Stories

A response to Prompt #68:

Imagine where your character leads a pretty decent single life. Then there is a phone call and that life is turned upside down as they find out, they have just become a parent—to a teenager. Is this a cousin that has been left with no other family members? A god child? A niece or nephew? What is this first meeting between them going to be like?

The circumstances whereby Manny obtains guardianship are a little strange, to say the least. Not to mention what happens afterward.

Best friends, Luke and Matt, have been inseparable since primary school and now, after twelve long years of schooling, the end of those school years are finally within sight. All that is left to do is make it through the night of the school formal, before starting their final exams.

So what will the night bring for the boys and their group of friends? What secrets are about to be exposed? How will they, their families and their friends all react to the events that are about to unfold? And what will they discover about themselves . . . about each other . . . and about life?

Being the oldest and growing up in a large family can be hard, especially when you are gay and the family is extremely homophobic. You are constantly being compared to your deceased father. A man whose stature and deeds are always increasing, as time goes by, and are held up as your goals. Anytime you reach those goals, your mother moves the goalpost further away.

You never seem to measure up. You are always being told that you are worthless and will never amount to anything since you cannot measure up to your father. It never mattered that you were a straight "A" student and that you were an athlete.

Jamie, mischievously called Leon by his colleagues, is a mid-twenties police officer in London Enfield who loves his job. Having been unlucky with previous relationships, he is scared about his feelings for a new Special Constable who joins his shift, Mike.

This becomes only one of his problems when an unusual encounter with a suspect leaves him with more questions than answers, putting Jamie into the heart of a secret reaching deep into the UK government and on a path of self discovery.

Owain returns to live in his home town, 20 years after leaving when he was disowned his parents for being gay. He needs to rebuild his life following illness and come to terms with his messy family history. There is much to learn and discover, along the way he meets Colin, a builder who has his own family issues. The two explore how to make a life the way that they want, irrespective of the weight of their family experiences.

The story takes place in Cheshire, UK. The main setting, Netherwich, is my invention based on elements of Crewe and Nantwich. The language uses some regional idiom.

Jackson is a Senior in high school. Everything seems to be coming together to make this the best year yet.

Sometimes love comes from the unlikeliest of places.

Devastated by the loss of his mother, Cal enters his final year of high school in Cape Town facing an uncertain future, plagued by bullies and struggling to keep his grieving family together. When a handsome troublemaker with a mysterious past arrives at the school, an unlikely friendship develops. And as Cal grapples with feelings he never expected, he is plunged headlong into an adventure that will turn his entire existence upside-down.

This 10th anniversary edition differs from the Kindle version, and contains new and old material cut from the Kindle version.

Murder or tragic accident? When his ex-lover is mauled by a supposedly tame wolf, Micco races to discover how such a thing happened at his animal refuge. Strength in the face of adversity is at the core of Micco’s Seminole upbringing. But is he strong enough to handle Special Agent Chase Becker, his best childhood friend and secret first love? Chase can still twist Micco’s emotions into a knot and draw out secrets he’s desperate to keep buried -- secrets that could get him arrested for murder.

About to return home after five years working in the Middle East, former soldier Brian has an unreliable ex-girlfriend, a teenage son and a dead-end job to look forward to. Can he take courage, leap into the unknown and accept that his mate Gordon is far more than a friend with benefits.

Many men enjoyed the life and freedom of being a cowboy, but it wasn't an easy one in The Old West. The aches were many, but it was the loneliness that could wear a man down. Jubal was one of those who dreamed as he moved and protected cattle, and the day finally came he had enough money to buy his own piece of land. Fate, though, dealt him a terrible hand once again, taking everything from him and leaving him lost and alone. Was Lucas his savior, or just more trouble for a man who'd learned to trust no one?