Showing results by author "Mary Calmes" in All Categories

Stefan Joss just can’t win. Not only does he have to go to Texas in the middle of summer to be the man of honor in his best friend Charlotte’s wedding, but he’s expected to negotiate a million-dollar business deal at the same time. Worst of all, he’s thrown for a loop when he arrives to see the one man Charlotte promised wouldn’t be there: her brother, Rand Holloway. Stefan and Rand have been mortal enemies since the day they met, so Stefan is shocked when a temporary cease-fire sees the usual hostility replaced by instant chemistry.

Locryn Barnes knows what it means to be a fixer for Torus Intercession. Torus is the place that people in need turn to for everything from bodyguards to chaperones, and God knows Loc is the kind of man who'd rather play human shield against a bullet than spend even a moment of his life as a glorified babysitter. Which is why he tells a prospective client, in no uncertain terms, that he's not the right fixer for the job when Torus is tapped to play what amounts to a life coach for a spoiled, burned out, fresh-out-of-rehab rock star.

Linden Van Doren is in a strange position. He’s an emancipated omega holding down two jobs, so he should be out from under anyone’s thumb, but in reality, there are still weird lupine rules to follow. For instance, if an alpha wants to court him, he’s not allowed to say no. If that same alpha asks for his hand in bonding, however, as there’s no contract that anyone holds but him, he can certainly say no to that. And would. He trusts no alpha to keep their word. He’s also doing his very small part to help others—and that just became a problem.

Deputy US Marshal Eli Kohn is doing fine. As the Director of Public Affairs for the Northern District, he represents the USMS in Chicago and that suits him. Yes, it’s wearing to always be on, to smile and wave even in the face of adversity, but he’s good at his job, and no one ever sees him sweat. His personal life, though, has been stagnant, and that doesn’t seem likely to change. But that’s fine too. Eli would much rather spend his free time with his best friend Cel. And lately, when they’re not together, he’s been missing him more and more….

Miro Jones is living the life; he's got his exciting, fulfilling job as a US deputy marshal, his gorgeous Greystone in suburban Chicago, his beloved adopted family, and most importantly, the man who captured his heart, Ian Doyle. Problem is, Ian isn't just his partner at work - Ian's a soldier through and through. That commitment takes him away from Miro, unexpectedly and often, and it's casting a shadow over what could be everything Miro could ever dream of.

Croy Esca is a fixer at Torus Intercession, paid to guard, advocate for, and help those in need of the services his boss, Jared Colter, provides. Professionally, Croy goes in, gets the job done, and doesn't allow for anything that might resemble interest - which mirrors the way he handles his personal life as well. When Croy is assigned to act as bodyguard to a billionaire during a long weekend trip to Las Vegas, he expects another in and out job made all the more tedious by the company he'll be keeping....

Forty-five-year-old English professor Nathan Qells is very good at making people feel important. What he's not very good at is sticking around afterward. He's a nice guy; he just doesn't feel things the way other people do. So even after all the time he's spent taking care of Michael, the kid across the hall, he doesn't realize that Michael's mob muscle uncle and guardian, Andreo Fiore, has slowly been falling in love with him. Dreo has bigger problems than getting Nate to see him as a potential partner.

Fixer. Bodyguard. Advocate. Brann Calder is expected to play all these roles and more as a member of Torus Intercession, a security firm guaranteed to right what’s wrong. In the military, catastrophe was his specialty. Five months out of the service, Brann is still finding his way, so a new assignment might be just what he needs. Unless it includes two things sure to make a seasoned, battle-trained veteran nervous: life in a small town, and playing caregiver to two little girls.

Mob enforcer Ceaton Mercer has killed a lot of people in a lot of different ways - he stashed the last two bodies in a toolshed belonging to a sweetheart marine researcher in an idyllic island community - but he's really not such a bad guy. Over time he's found a home of sorts, and he even learns he's found a place in the hearts of the people he works with...at least enough so that they won't put a bullet in his head because he's outlived his usefulness to the boss.

Hagen Wylie has it all figured out. He's going to live in his hometown, be everybody's friend, explore new relationships, and rebuild his life after the horrors of war. No muss, no fuss is the plan. He's well on his way - until he finds out his first love has come home too. Hagen says it's no big deal, but a chance encounter with Mitch Thayer's two cute sons puts him directly in the path of the only guy he's never gotten out of his head.

Falling for a coworker is rarely a good idea, especially for a man getting a last chance at salvaging his career. But from the moment Dwyer Knolls sees the beautiful but socially awkward Takeo Hiroyuki, he seems destined to make bad decisions. Takeo's life is a string of failed attempts to please his traditional Japanese father. Unfortunately, succeeding in business turns out to be just as difficult for Takeo as changing from gay to straight.

Trevan Bean has a job that's going from illegal to frightening, a boyfriend who may not be in his right mind, and a guardian angel who might actually be evil incarnate. Add to that the reappearance of his boyfriend's estranged family, death threats, kidnapping, and the struggle of saving money to realize a dream, and Trevan has a lot on his plate. But Trevan is up to the challenge: he promised Landry a happily ever after, and Landry's going to have it if it kills him! It just might.

Jude Shea's life is turned upside down when he rescues a dog he names Joe. Even though Jude has enough trouble taking care of himself - he doesn't even have a job - he can't resist the animal that needs him. Then one night, a man shows up on his doorstep looking to claim Jude's new companion. As they run from a surprise attack, Jude finds out that "Joe" is not what he seems.

Two years after riding off into the sunset with ranch owner Rand Holloway, Stefan Joss has made a tentative peace with his new life, teaching at a community college. But the course of true love never does run smooth. Rand wants him home on the ranch; Stef wants an exit strategy in case Rand ever decides to throw him out. Finally, after recognizing how unfair he's being, Stef makes a commitment, and Rand is over the moon.

Thirteen years ago, Eli went on a summer trip with his mother and never came back. Now, existing in a new life as Jacob Somerville, he's again running from fear and memories, only to end up where he started. As Jacob struggles to reconnect with his father and brothers, he realizes that his lover, Craig Zhao, was the only thing filling his empty heart and standing between him and ghosts of the past. It will take the power of love - from his family, from Craig, and from himself - for Jacob to see that his life truly is filled with the promise of what can be.

Glenn Holloway's predictable life ended the day he confessed his homosexuality to his family. As if that wasn't enough, he then poured salt in the wound by walking away from the ranch he'd grown up on, to open the restaurant he'd always dreamed of. Without support from his father and brother, and too proud to accept assistance from anyone else, he had to start from scratch. Over time things worked out. Glenn successfully built a strong business, created a new home, and forged a life he could be proud of.

ATF agent Peter Lomax isn't a hearts and flowers kind of guy, but he can be possessive, and it caused problems - until Carver Fleming. Carver may be part of the art world, but he gets Peter, loves belonging to the man, and Peter treasures the way Carver understands them together.

Terrence Moss. Conrad Harris. Gold Team Leader. Darius Hawthorne. The Vault. Juggling all these names would bother some, but for Darius, it’s business as usual. When he closes a chapter in his life, he leaves a name - and the people associated with it - behind. He’s managed to keep a few colleagues, even fewer friends, and no companionship through his 40-plus years...but that’s now changing. The newest chapter of his life brings a chance encounter with the one man Darius ever loved: Efrem Lahm.

Why his boss at Torus Intercession chose him to figure out who may, or may not, be trying to kill Benjamin Grace, is beyond Shaw James. Protecting a paranormal investigator from whoever—or whatever—may be trying to kill him is completely out of Shaw's wheelhouse, and how is he supposed to help find an attacker when the guy he's sent to protect maintains that the threat is ghostly in origin? It's insane, and Shaw does not do insane. Benjamin Grace is going to be a problem. But Benji is nothing at all like Shaw imagined he'd be, and the fixer is spellbound from their first meeting.

What happens when two men who have been together for 17 years fall out of love? Sivan Cruz, a set director in San Francisco, and Walter Wainwright, a big shot Bay Area lawyer, find out the hard way. Walter loves Sivan with all his heart but rarely talks about it, and Sivan needs to hear the words. The language of the love they have shared for so long, that has enabled them to build a life together and raise two children, stops working. They become - still.