by B. G. Thomas
I sighed.
“What I think you should do—if you two decide you like living together, and I think you will—what I think you should do is leave that city job of yours. Live here at the Bear with your man.”
Live here?
“Would that be a problem? You in love with the big city? Would livin’ in the country be too laid back for you?”
Would it be a problem? I suddenly wanted to laugh. The idea filled me with a joy like I had never known that threatened to come out in whatever way it could.
“Really?” I exclaimed.
“Yup. I think this is just the place for you, Neil. And I think Cole’s just the man.” She looked at me.
I grinned. I couldn’t help it. “Do you trust me running your office?” I asked.
“I do or I wouldn’t’ve offered you the job.”
“Oh my God, Darla.”
“Is that a yes?”
“Is what a yes?” said Cole, stepping up on the porch and looking all kinds of gorgeous.
Without taking my eyes off my love, I answered.
“Yes, Darla. That’s a big yes!”
EPILOGUE: Uncle Cole
AMY’S CAR pulled into the parking lot, and before Cole and I could start down the porch steps, Crystal was out the door and running up the walk. “Pop,” she yelled and threw her arms around me. She kissed me and hugged me all the tighter.
“Oh, baby,” I said, “I’ve missed you so much.”
“Me too, Poppa.” She pulled back and then launched herself at Cole. “Hey, Uncle Cole.”
“Uncle?” he said.
“Well, you sure aren’t my stepmom!”
We all laughed.
“Nope,” I agreed, looking at my man—my man!—from top to bottom. “Cole is no stepmom.”
Oh, the look Cole gave me!
“Hello, stranger” sounded Amy’s familiar voice.
I nearly ran down the steps and into her arms. “Oh, Amy, how have you been?”
“I’ve been good,” she said, stepping back. “I have someone I’d like you to meet.”
A man joined us, tall, lean, balding, but handsome.
“This is Brice. He’s the one who bought your house.”
I smiled and shook his hand. “It’s nice to meet you, Brice.”
“Likewise,” he replied. “I’ve heard a lot about you.”
“Uh-oh.”
“All of it good, so don’t worry.” He looked to my left. “And you must be Cole.”
“I am,” Cole answered and took his hand. “I was surprised to hear Amy was bringing another new guest to Black Bear.”
“I’ve been looking forward to it. I used to love riding horses as a teenager. I can’t wait.”
“We figure we’ll put you up at the cabin down by the creek,” Cole said. “It’s really nice.”
“Wonderful,” I added.
Amy cleared her throat. “I don’t think that’ll be necessary,” she said and held out her hand. An engagement ring sparkled brightly in the sunlight.
“Oh my God,” I shouted and pulled her into my arms. “When did this happen?”
Amy blushed. “It’s been happening. He came to look at your house, bought it, and then decided he wanted me too. I was afraid to say anything, you know? Owen being gone only a year and a half.”
“Oh, Amy,” I said and kissed her. “You shouldn’t have worried.”
“I popped the question last week,” Brice said.
“We figured we’d wait another year,” Amy said. “Then, if it’s all right, we’d get married right here.”
That got a loud whoop from Cole and set me to laughing.
People did get married at Black Bear Guest Ranch, all right.
“Going to replace some old memories with new ones?” I asked her.
“Not replace,” Amy said. “Add to.”
Darla and Vincent came out onto the porch.
“Good morning, everyone,” Darla said. “To all of you who are leaving today, we hope you had a wonderful time and we hope you’ll be back. We loved having you, and the staff says you’re about the best darned group we’ve ever had.”
“She always says that,” Amy whispered in Brice’s ear.
“For all our new guests, I’m Darla Clark, and this is my husband, Vincent. Welcome to Black Bear!”
I reached out and took Cole’s hand. When he smiled at me, looked at me with those eyes dancing, I knew there could be no more welcome place on Earth.
I knew something else as well.
I believe we all come together in life for a reason.
And sometimes, this time, that reason was love.
More from B.G. Thomas
On June 26, 2015, the Supreme Court of the United States made a monumental decision, and marriage equality became the law of the land.
That ruling made history—but what about the gay men who waited and wondered if the day would ever come when they could stand beside the person they love and say “I do”?
Here, four accomplished authors—gay married men—offer their take on that question as they explore same-sex relationships, love, and matrimony. Men who thought legal marriage was a right they would never have. Men who now stand legally joined with the men they love. With this book, they share the magic of dreams that came true—in tales of fantasy and romance with a dose of personal experience in the mix.
To commemorate the anniversary of full marriage equality in the US, this anthology celebrates the idea of marriage itself--and the universal truth of it that applies to us all, gay or straight.
Seasons of Love: Book One
Sloan McKenna is going through a tough time. His beloved mother has recently passed away, leaving him her house and beautiful garden. But should he keep the house? Sell it? To make matters worse, he’s in love with one of his best friends, Asher, a man who can’t (or won’t) love him back.
Sloan’s neighbor, Max Turner, is married to an ambitious woman with far-reaching dreams, including moving the family to France. But Max is happy teaching at the local college and living in their nice, quiet town. Then he discovers his fourteen-year-old son is not only gay, but out and proud as well. That throws him into complete disarray, for more than one reason….
When Max’s wife leaves on a two-month business trip to Paris, circumstances throw the two men together. As they become friends, Sloan finds himself falling in love with Max, who is completely unavailable… just like Asher. As for Max, he is discovering that both his son’s coming out and his new friendship with Sloan are stirring up feelings he thought buried long ago. Spring is a time for rebirth—Is there any way the two men can find happiness and a new beginning?
Seasons of Love: Book Two
Scott Aberdeen doesn’t believe in Santa Claus, the Easter Bunny, or God. Or love—at least, he knows no one will ever love him. After all, he has carried a torch for his best friend Sloan for a decade, hoping his feelings will be returned one day. But when Sloan finds springtime love with another man, Scott’s fantasies are crushed and his skepticism confirmed.
Cedar Carrington, raised by rock star parents, leads a free-spirited, nomadic life, never staying in one place for long. Due to a dark past he refuses to share or even think about, he is willing to let men into his bed for sex, but never for the night.
When Scott finds himself camping in the middle of nowhere with over a hundred men who all believe in love—and faeries and a magickal gay brotherhood—he’s pretty sure he’s in the wrong place. And when Cedar connects with cynical, critical Scott, he wonders how he could be falling in for this man of all men. But hearts and lives have been transformed at the Heartland Men’s Festival before, and it might be just the place where two very different men can release their pain and find true love at last.
Seasons of Love: Book Three
Asher Eisenberg is a brilliant actor, destined for fame and fortune. But a traumatic incident in his past has caused him to reject his Jewish heritage and hide from everyone behind walls of arrogance and
selfishness, and he blurs his loneliness with a lot of sex and alcohol. When he meets Peniamina Faamausili, however, he strangely can’t stop thinking about the young man.
Peni is struggling with his sexuality, the Mormonism he was raised in, and the Samoan heritage that calls to him. He longs to receive the pe’a—the traditional Samoan tattoos-- and learn more of his people's ways. He has no interest in a man like Asher, who appears to use men and put them aside and whose drinking can't help but remind him of the drunk driver who killed his father. But he can’t deny his attraction to Asher and finally agrees to a date if Asher can go thirty days without a drink.
Asher is about to go on a journey that will awaken him to his friends, his past, his future, and even to love. But that awakening could well demand the sacrifice of the dream he holds most dear.
Seasons of Love: Book Four
For over ten years, Wyatt Dolan defined himself as the lover of Howard Wallace. Howard made sure Wyatt’s self-worth depended on that role. So when Howard dumps him, he is lost at sea in a storm without a rudder. If it wasn’t for his supportive friends, he doesn’t know what he’d do. Finally, after a series of disasters, he escapes to Camp Sanctuary—a sacred place to him—where he can be alone, try to put his past behind him, and find a new direction for his life.
Kevin Owens is a lonely man. He is very intelligent—several apps he created have gone on to make him a comfortable living—but he is also quite shy and is uncomfortable making conversation. The death of his dear friend and former lover after a long illness leaves him grieving, confused, and adrift. Then a dream guides him to Camp Sanctuary, only to find that the one cabin with a wood-burning stove has already been reserved. And worse, by a man he’s had a secret crush on for years—Wyatt Dolan.
When a snowstorm knocks out power at the Camp, Wyatt and Kevin must share the same cabin to stay warm, and very soon, magickal things begin to happen.
Readers love B.G. Thomas
Winter Heart
“Winter Heart by B.G. Thomas was a powerful story of hope and recovery with a beautiful happy ever after that was hard fought, but so well deserved.”
—Joyfully Jay
“The treasure in this story is Wyatt. I got an unfiltered look into his heart and what I saw is unforgettably beautiful.”
—Alpha Book Club
Autumn Changes
“There are so many wonderful elements, from the well-crafted plot to the range of emotions.”
—Inked Rainbow Reads
Red
“I think it is one of those books that will allow me to discover something new every time I read it. Truly amazing!”
—Rainbow Book Reviews
“I urge you all to give this hot, sweet and poignant story a read.”
—The Novel Approach
B.G. THOMAS lives in Kansas City with his husband of more than a decade and their fabulous little dog. He is lucky enough to have a lovely daughter as well as many extraordinary friends. He has a great passion for life.
B.G. loves romance, comedies, fantasy, science fiction, and even horror—as far as he is concerned, as long as the stories are character driven and entertaining, it doesn’t matter the genre. He has gone to literature conventions his entire adult life where he’s been lucky enough to meet many of his favorite writers. He has made up stories since he was a child; it is where he finds his joy.
In the nineties, he wrote for gay magazines but stopped because the editors wanted all sex without plot. “The sex is never as important as the characters,” he says. “Who cares what they are doing if we don’t care about them?” Excited about the growing male/male romance market, he began writing again. Gay men are what he knows best, after all—since he grew out of being a “practicing” homosexual long ago. He submitted a story and was thrilled when it was accepted in four days. Since then the stories have poured out of him. “It’s like I’m somehow making up for a lifetime’s worth of stories!”
“Leap, and the net will appear” is his personal philosophy and his message to all. “It is never too late,” he states. “Pursue your dreams. They will come true!”
Website/blog: bthomaswriter.wordpress.com
By B.G. Thomas
All Alone in a Sea of Romance
All Snug
Anything Could Happen
The Beary Best Holiday Party Ever
Bianca’s Plan
The Boy Who Came In From the Cold
Christmas Cole
Christmas Wish
Derek
Do You Trust Me?
Desert Crossing
Grumble Monkey and the Department Store Elf
Hound Dog and Bean
How Could Love Be Wrong?
It Had to Be You
Just Guys
With Noah Willoughby: Mele Kilikimaka
A More Perfect Union (Multiple Author Anthology)
Red
A Secret Valentine
Soul of the Mummy
Editor: A Taste of Honey (Dreamspinner Anthology)
Until I Found You
GOTHIKA
Bones (Multiple Author Anthology)
Spirit (Multiple Author Anthology)
Contact (Multiple Author Anthology)
SEASONS OF LOVE
Spring Affair
Summer Lover
Autumn Changes
Winter Heart
Published by DREAMSPINNER PRESS
www.dreamspinnerpress.com
Published by
DREAMSPINNER PRESS
5032 Capital Circle SW, Suite 2, PMB# 279, Tallahassee, FL 32305-7886 USA
www.dreamspinnerpress.com
This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and incidents either are the product of author imagination or are used fictitiously, and any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, business establishments, events, or locales is entirely coincidental.
Do You Trust Me?
© 2017 B.G. Thomas.
Lyrics from “Right Outta Nowhere” and “Falling in Love with the Wind” by Christine Kane. Copyright © 2004 by Firepink Music. All rights reserved. Used by permission of the artist.
Cover Art
© 2017 Anne Cain.
[email protected]
Cover content is for illustrative purposes only and any person depicted on the cover is a model.
All rights reserved. This book is licensed to the original purchaser only. Duplication or distribution via any means is illegal and a violation of international copyright law, subject to criminal prosecution and upon conviction, fines, and/or imprisonment. Any eBook format cannot be legally loaned or given to others. No part of this book may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, or by any information storage and retrieval system, without the written permission of the Publisher, except where permitted by law. To request permission and all other inquiries, contact Dreamspinner Press, 5032 Capital Circle SW, Suite 2, PMB# 279, Tallahassee, FL 32305-7886, USA, or www.dreamspinnerpress.com.
ISBN: 978-1-63533-273-5
Digital ISBN: 978-1-63533-274-2
Library of Congress Control Number: 2016915095
Published February 2017
v. 2.0
First Edition published as Trust Me by Amber Quill Press, 2011.
Printed in the United States of America
