Mr. Banks swallowed his pasta with delight and said to Angus, “Here’s cheers to that!”
Cal and I watched our family eat, laugh and enjoy life in that tiny restaurant illuminated by fairy lights in the Piazza del Popolo, and in that moment, there was one thing I had never been more certain of.
I had finally done the one thing my parents had wanted me to do.
I had fallen in love.
And as he kissed me again, I knew that Cal had too.
Chapter Ten
Cal and I stayed in Italy longer than we had planned, living life and loving every passionate moment. A month later we were back in New York.
One morning, Cal rose early for work. I made him a coffee and kissed him on his way out the door. And as the morning sun poured through the window I sat at my typewriter, took a deep breath, and I read aloud as I finally began typing.
“It all began with a dozen roses. Red roses, naturally…”
The End
About the Author
Geoffrey Knight is the author of more than 25 gay fiction novels, novellas and short stories, ranging in genre from gay adventure, gay romance, gay suspense and gay comedies. He is the recipient of two Rainbow Awards including Best Mystery Winner and Best Overall Gay Fiction Runner-up. His work has been featured in several anthologies including Best Gay Erotica 2013, and he appeared as Guest of Honor at the inaugural Rainbow Con in Florida, 2014.
Geoffrey has worked in advertising, politics and journalism, but nothing is as fun as telling stories.
BUCK BAXTER, LOVE DETECTIVE
Welcome to Wilde City, 1924—a crane on top of every skyscraper, a party in every club, a romance on every dance floor, a shooting every night, a broken heart on every street corner and a dirty secret behind every window with the curtain drawn. It’s the kinda town that keeps Buck Baxter, private detective, in business.
For despite his fondness for a cold gin and a pipe stuffed with cannabis, Buck is the best gumshoe in Wilde City. Why? Because he has rules: never make friends, never make enemies, and never ever fall in love. That is until the day playboy nightclub owner Holden Hart swings into town. He’s suave, he’s charming, he’s chivalrous… and he’s exactly the kinda man that Buck will break all the rules for.
From the romance of the Rainbow Palace atop the Wilde City Tower, to the dazzling debauchery of the gentlemen’s parlor The Velvet Viper—from the history surrounding the sinister convent on the hill better known Hell’s Bells, to the lantern-lit opium barge, The Peking Empress, run by the mystical Madame Chang—could Buck be about to unravel the greatest mystery of them all...
The mystery of love?
BUCK BAXTER
AND THE DISAPPEARING DIVAS
Something sinister is occurring at the Maharaja Majestic Theatre on Broadville Boulevard. The domineering actress, Dominique Darlington, has vanished without a trace, the opening night of the theatre’s new production of The Snake Charmer’s Slave is now in jeopardy, and six suspects are about to have the pleasure of meeting Buck Baxter, Private Detective, as he investigates whether there’s a killer on the loose… or a phantom at the opera?
Could it be the handsome leading man, Errol Hemingway, who’s responsible for the disappearance of his leading lady… or perhaps it’s that sweet, doe-eyed understudy Olivia Overton? Is it the theatre owner himself, the tall and mysterious Raja Khan who has committed the crime… or the show’s investor, the autocratic aristocrat Serafina Somerset? Or is it possible that the meek and mild stage manager Stanley Small, or the flamboyant and frustrated director Barnabas Blake, is guilty?
And what of Buck’s romance with playboy millionaire Holden Hart? Will Buck get a backstage pass to access all areas of his one true love… or will this be the final curtain for Buck and Holden?
Trademark Acknowledgement
The author acknowledges the trademark status and trademark owners of the following places and items mentioned in this work of fiction:
Can’t Stop the Music, YMCA & Macho Man: Casablanca Records/ Village People
Chippendales: Espinals
Dom Perignon: Moët & Chandon
Ellen DeGeneres Show: Telepictures Productions
Fiat: Fiat Automobiles S.p.A.
Guggenheim Solomon R. Guggenheim Foundation
Harrods: Qatar Holdings
IKEA: The Ikea Group
Imagine: John Lennon/Apple
iPad/iPhone: Apple Inc
J.C. Penny: J. C. Penney Company, Inc.
Learjet: Learjet
Mission Impossible: Paramount Pictures
People Magazine: Time Inc.
The Deer Hunter: EMI
The Tonight Show starring Jimmy Fallon: •Broadway Video/Universal Television
Time Magazine: •Time Inc.
Uber: Uber Technologies Inc.
Vespa: Piaggio & Co. S.p.A.
Walmart: Wal-Mart Stores, Inc
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