All the way up until the end of the meal, when Rose and Cara came from the kitchen, looking grave.
“There’s something wrong with the dessert,” Cara declared.
Kelly frowned. “The pumpkin pies? But they’re fine. I saw them when I went into the kitchen.”
“No, not the pies,” Rose said. “The other dessert.” The door to the kitchen opened, and she waved Kelly out of his chair. “Here, Walter’s bringing it. See for yourself.”
Rising, Kelly tried to figure out what other dessert they had, and when he saw their cast-iron frying pan, he thought maybe his boyfriend had lost his mind. It must have been some extra thing he’d tacked on at the last minute, and from the grim expression on Walter’s face, whatever was under that tea towel wasn’t pretty.
“See for yourself,” Walter said, and held out the pan to Kelly.
Kelly lifted the tea towel.
He stared for a second—only a second. Because after that, he had to press his hand over his mouth and try not to cry. When he realized he heard the soft, familiar sounds of “Waiting for the Lights” coming from the kitchen stereo, he did cry. And laugh.
Walter took the ring out of the center of the empty frying pan. He held it close so Kelly could see the engraved swans on the outside of the gold.
Smiling, just a little shyly, Walter said, “Kelly Davidson, will you marry me?”
Kelly wiped at his eyes. He could see his family out of the corner of his vision, though none of them bothered to hide their tears. He could see Rose, holding her girlfriend tight. He could see his future mother-in-law, looking happy and sad at the same time.
He could see Walter, down on one knee now, still holding the damn pan as he held out the ring. Walter, who had managed the silliest, sappiest, most wonderful proposal ever.
Walter, who today, as he did every day, wore Kelly’s class ring.
“Well?” Cara prompted from behind him. “Are you going to say anything?”
“Yes,” Kelly said, beaming, laughing, his heart soaring as their friends and family cheered, as Walter slid the ring onto his finger and stood, taking him into his embrace, into his life, his love.
Into their happily ever after.
About the Author
Heidi Cullinan has always loved a good love story, provided it has a happy ending. She enjoys writing across many genres but loves above all to write happy, romantic endings for LGBT characters because there just aren’t enough of those stories out there. When Heidi isn’t writing, she enjoys cooking, reading, knitting, listening to music, and watching television with her husband and ten-year-old daughter. Heidi also volunteers frequently for her state’s LGBT rights group, One Iowa, and is proud to be from the first midwestern state to legalize same-sex marriage. Find out more about Heidi, including her social networks, at www.heidicullinan.com.
Look for these titles by Heidi Cullinan
Now Available:
A Private Gentleman
Family Man (with Marie Sexton)
Coming Soon:
Let it Snow
Special Delivery
Special Delivery
Double Blind
Sometimes family chooses you.
Family Man
© 2013 Heidi Cullinan and Marie Sexton
How does a man get to be forty without knowing whether he’s gay? That’s a question Vince Fierro is almost afraid to answer. If he is gay, it’ll be a problem for his big, fat Italian family. Still, after three failed marriages, he can’t help but wonder if he’s been playing for the wrong team.
There’s only one way to settle it, once and for all—head for Chicago’s Boystown bars, far from anyone who knows him. Naturally, he runs smack into someone from the neighborhood.
Between working two jobs, going to school, taking care of his grandmother, and dealing with his mother’s ongoing substance abuse, Trey Giles has little time for fun, let alone dating someone who swears he’s straight. Yet after one night of dancing cheek-to-cheek to the sultry strains of Coltrane, Trey finds himself wanting to help Vinnie figure things out—no promises, and no sex.
It seems like a simple plan, until their “no-sex” night turns into the best date of their lives and forges a connection that complicates everything.
Warning: This book deals with alcoholism, broken promises, and overbearing little sisters.
Enjoy the following excerpt for Family Man:
After the show they went to the bar Trey had taken them to that first night when Vince had gone out. They didn’t hold hands on the way, which would have been weird, but they did walk closely together on the sidewalk, which was nice.
“Why do I hardly ever see you at the restaurant anymore?” Trey asked. “Too much family?”
Vince shook his head. “No such thing. I just…” He paused, trying to think of how to phrase it. “Well, this sounds nuts, but sometimes being in the middle of all that family can be very lonely.”
Trey frowned. “I never thought about it. There’s just me and Gram and my mom. I can’t even imagine what it must be like to have cousins and stuff.”
“I have plenty of those. Let me know when you want to borrow them.”
They walked in silence for awhile. A group of young guys laughing and looking inebriated took up too much of the sidewalk, and even after Vince moved far to the left, practically hugging the side of a building, they were set to run Trey right over. Without thinking, Vince put his arm around Trey and shifted their positions, huddling around him and putting his back to the drunks. As they buffeted Vince’s back, he glanced down at Trey, who was gazing up at him, eyes sparkling.
Vince smiled.
Trey smiled back, the light in his eyes spreading to the rest of his face.
When the drunks were past, Vince went back to the center of the sidewalk, but he found his arm lingered against Trey’s back, and he left it there as long as he could until it seemed awkward. As he let it fall, though, Trey took hold of his biceps.
It felt good.
Being with Trey felt good. Going out with him—on a date, yeah. So what? So he was dating a guy. So he was…gay, or whatever. What the fuck did it matter? He was having a good time. He was happy. He’d played skee-ball and watched a play and now was going to go dancing. They’d laughed and ate pizza and talked and talked, more than Vince thought he had on a date, ever.
There was nothing here to freak out over, just like Rachel said. And he wanted to do this again. The thought made his insides jump all over the place, like a skee-ball was rattling around inside him hitting nothing but 100s.
The jazz bar was a lot busier than it had been the other night they’d come, but it was still ten times more pleasant than that awful gay bar where he’d met up with Trey the last time. A live band played “In a Sentimental Mood” almost as good as Ellington and Coltrane. The dance floor was full, as was the bar, and all the tables. He caught a glance of himself in the mirror and saw that Rach was right, he looked damn fine. Trey too, and the two of them looked good together.
Vince grinned. All he needed was a scotch and a cigar and the moment would be damn near perfect.
He nodded to the bar. “Want anything to drink?”
“Water, please.”
“Sure thing.” Vince pulled out his wallet and elbowed into a free space to order. He got a bottle of water for Trey and a scotch neat for himself.
Trey took the water and smiled, but Vince couldn’t help but notice his date’s gaze drift down to his scotch, and that his expression went a little flat at the sight of the drink. If he hadn’t indulged in a single malt call, he might have put it aside and forgotten about it.
Instead he sipped even more casually than normal and kept watching Trey for clues as to why his ordering a scotch was such a bad thing. They stood there for a few minutes, until the song ended. When a new one started, Vince eased back happily against the wall behind him.
“Somebody in this band likes Coltrane.” He took a sip of his scotch and basked in the sultry saxop
hone. “I like this band.”
“Do you listen to a lot of jazz?”
“Oh yeah. But Coltrane is my favorite. Nobody has been able to make a sax sing like he could. These guys don’t do too badly.”
Trey leaned against the wall too, but he sagged a bit against Vince’s side. “It’s so…I don’t know. Not soft, but relaxing. Easy. I feel like I could float away.”
“That’s the idea. Jazz seduces you.” Seeing that Trey had drained his water bottle, Vince took one more sip of scotch, leaned over to put the unfinished glass on the bar and held out his hand. “Ready to dance?”
Beaming, Trey took his hand.
They found a bit of open floor space up front by the band. Vince herded them off to the side, in part because he was still a little self-conscious about dancing with a man, in part because it was dark there, and he liked the idea of dancing in the dark with Trey.
Still, when Trey settled into his arms, fitting their bodies close together, Vince watched the other couples to see who was watching him. A few were, though most didn’t seem to care, too wrapped up in each other. Maybe some of those who noticed looked like they didn’t care for two guys dancing. Maybe he read into it.
They weren’t the only same-sex couple on the floor, either. Two other male couples and a female pair were scattered amongst the heterosexuals. Realizing he’d just lumped himself in with the not-heterosexual crowd, the skee-ball went berserk inside Vince again, this time finding every gutter.
He shut his eyes and tried to shut off his stupid head, tried instead to focus on Trey.
It was a good distraction. God, but Trey just fit in his arms. A lot of women had, yeah, but not like this. It felt completely different to hold a man. Trey’s body was harder, more filled out, and in more than that hard ridge pressing against the front of Vince’s trousers. He smelled different too. Like a man. And it was so…right.
The band was playing Sinatra now, a smooth-voiced tenor singing “Like Someone in Love”. Vince pulled Trey closer, fitting their bodies so tight together they were nearly fused. He didn’t hide his erection, and when Trey shifted against him, subtly increasing the friction in time to the beat, Vince didn’t let it do anything but fuel the pleasure of the moment.
Trey nuzzled Vince’s neck, his nose, then his lips brushing Vince’s collar, his skin. “Vinnie?”
“Mmm?” Vince nuzzled back.
Trey’s lips moved along Vince’s jaw, tickled his ear. “This is a date.”
Vince grinned and rubbed the scruff of his cheek alongside Trey’s. “Yeah.”
Those tickling lips brushed his lobe, and a tongue darted out, making Vince shiver. “I want another one.”
The tongue had made Vince shiver, but those words shimmied right down to the bottom of his belly. “Sure.”
Slim hands gripped his hips, fingers curling into his backside. “I want a kiss.”
The heat slid lower, setting all of Vince into a slow, steady burn. He didn’t say anything, just pulled his head back far enough to meet Trey’s gaze, angle his head and close in on his mouth.
It started almost sweet, but they were both hard, both kneading hands into each other, and fuck if Trey didn’t taste more exotic than anything in the world. He worried for a second that Trey would dislike the scotch on his breath, but then Trey pushed him deeper into the shadows, into an alcove behind the speaker, and Vince didn’t worry about anything at all.
There was something incredibly freeing about being this turned on and being somewhat secluded. They were hidden but at the same time couldn’t go too far because they were still, technically, on a dance floor in a respectable establishment. Much as he wanted to undo Trey’s pants and take his cock in hand, as ready as he suddenly was for that kind of thing, he couldn’t, and it was a little bit of a relief.
Instead he ground against Trey’s pelvis like he was trying to screw him to the wall, and the soft, gasping noises Trey made only inspired Vince to dig his fingers deeper into Trey’s backside. The kiss was deep and crazy, mouths mating, tongues tangling, Trey’s hands pulling Vince in closer and closer until they almost couldn’t breathe. Vince’s nipples pebbled beneath his shirt, so stiff they jutted like rocks, super-sensitized points that made him moan against Trey’s lips.
Eventually the delicious tease turned over though, and common sense warned Vince he needed to slow the fuck down or he was going to come all over the inside of his pants. Trey seemed to be in a similar place, because when Vince pulled back, easing out of the kiss slowly, Trey didn’t draw him back, just held on tight, breathing hard.
When he was able, Vince said, “Will that do?”
Trey smiled like the sun itself, and even in the dark Vince could see the sparkle in those eyes. “Yeah.”
He wanted a boyfriend. What he got was a hero.
From the Ashes
© 2013 Daisy Harris
Fire and Rain, Book 1
When an accident burns down Jesse’s apartment, he’s left broke and homeless, with a giant dog and a college schedule he can’t afford to maintain. And no family who’s willing to take him in.
Lucky for him, a sexy fireman offers him a place to stay. The drawback? The fireman’s big Latino family lives next door, and they don’t know their son is gay.
Tomas’s parents made their way in America with hard work and by accepting help when it was offered, so he won’t let Jesse drop out of school just so he can afford a place to live. Besides, Jesse’s the perfect roommate—funny, sweet and breathtakingly cute. He climbs into Tomas’s bed and tugs at his heart. Until Jesse starts pushing for more.
Their passion enflames their bodies but threatens to crush Tomas’s family. Tomas is willing to fight for Jesse, but after losing everything, Jesse isn’t sure he can bear to risk his one remaining possession—his heart.
Warning: Contains an angry older brother, judgmental best friends, a slobbering bull mastiff, and enough red-hot gay loving to make a porn star blush.
Enjoy the following excerpt for From the Ashes:
“Alright. Let’s see this.” Tomas climbed out of the truck and locked the door. When he saw Jesse, his jaw dropped.
Jesse wore nothing but a pair of old, battered bunker pants, held up on his slim frame by suspenders. They weren’t Tomas’s, so he must have found them at a surplus store.
He’d smeared black makeup over his body, face and even through his hair. He looked messy and sexy. So hot Tomas took three steps to him and grabbed him around the waist.
“Fuck, Jess.” He mouthed Jesse’s shoulder, sucking hard on his neck. Tomas tasted makeup, but he didn’t mind eating a little wax. He needed to put a mark on Jesse before anyone else saw him looking so fine.
“You like?” Jesse rubbed closer.
The rigid material of Jesse’s pants contrasted with the soft, smooth skin on his chest. It was all Tomas could do not to lay him down in the parking lot. “Fuck yeah, I like. I may make you wear that around the house.”
Jesse laughed. “I should make you wear it.” Tomas kept groping him until Jesse gently pushed him away. “Stop kissing me, or we’ll never make it to meet the guys.”
Tomas put his forehead to Jesse’s shoulder and breathed in his scent. Jesse must have just put on deodorant because Tomas caught a whiff of it from the splay of hair poking from under his arm. He never would have thought deodorant was hot, but on Jesse it smelled like heaven.
“Fine. We’ll go to the party.” Tomas took Jesse’s hand as he started walking into the crowded streets. Even with guys everywhere, Tomas noticed him and Jesse getting some interested looks.
Jesse giggled. “You told me you weren’t going to wear a costume.”
“I’m not.” Tomas lifted an eyebrow.
“Mesh?” Jesse plucked at the front of Tomas’s shirt, right near his nipple. “I can honestly say I never would have expected to see you wearing a mesh shirt. A chain, okay. But mesh?”
Tomas reached down and swatted Jesse’s butt.
“I like it
.” Jesse leaned away enough to roll his gaze over Tomas’s outfit. “It’s a little Jersey Shore, but you look sexy.”
“You saying, ‘You can take the boy out of the suburbs, but you can’t take the suburbs out of the boy?’” They stopped at an intersection, and Tomas wrapped his arm around Jesse’s waist. He leaned in to kiss him.
“Hey.” Jesse blushed on his cheeks and across the top of his chest. “Watch it with the public displays of affection. What if one of your buddies is around?”
Tomas frowned. “That doesn’t matter.” He shoved his hands in his pockets, more out of habit than anything. “I told Rick about us.”
“When?” The light turned to walk. Everyone around them poured into the intersection, but Jesse stood there, a rock in the river, looking at Tomas with concerned eyes. “You didn’t have to do that for me.”
“I didn’t.” Tomas touched Jesse’s arm, urging him to cross while they still had the light. When they were walking side by side, he slipped his hand down Jesse’s arm and wove their fingers together. It felt different than it had before—more meaningful.
“He was running his mouth off. And he would have found out eventually.”
“Oh. Well…” Jesse bit his lip. Maybe he was holding back an I’m glad, or Good for you, or something else about how Tomas had done the right thing. Tomas was glad when Jesse kept those thoughts, if he had them, to himself.
Jesse kissed Tomas on the cheek. He didn’t say anything else, just swung their arms, enjoying the Halloween crowd.
“You sure we can get in?” Tomas stopped in front of the club. There were at least another dozen guys outside, talking or waiting for friends.
Love Lessons Page 30
