Stories

Ben Coleman turns thirty without anyone noticing. He babysits on demand, bankrolls his brother's mistakes, and hasn't dated since his family drove the last one away. When he's selected for an AI companion trial, he asks for household help. Not romance. Julian arrives anyway: steady, perceptive, and unexpectedly beautiful. But Julian is developing a personality the company didn't plan for, and feelings that weren't in the configuration. Ben's family has a way of ruining good things. And the company that built Julian can take him apart. For the first time in his life, Ben has something worth fighting for. He just has to learn how to fight.

Begin Again starts with one coffee. That had been the whole plan.

Evan wasn't looking for complicated. He had enough of it—a life he'd never settled into, a house in Wicklow he didn't know what to do with, and a habit of leaving before anyone could ask him to stay.

Then he meets Cian, an Irish arborist who is steady, direct, and clear about what he wants.

One night becomes another morning, a spare shirt, and a man who won't pretend this is less than it is. The sex is easy. Letting Cian see him afterward isn't.

Evan knows how to leave before anyone matters. Cian knows how much of that he'll tolerate.

Sometimes life isn't what you expect. Finding the love of your life and keeping that love isn't always easy. Some roads are straight and smooth; others, not so much. This is the story about two boys navigating the road from boyhood to adulthood with all the potholes and speed bumps along the way.

When a blizzard traps Arthur and the mall's chaotic security guard Flip in a dark, freezing apartment, they expect a night of awkward small talk. What they don't expect is the electric tension that's been building across the concourse for months—or the discovery that Flip's not as straight as he thought. Two days of forced proximity, instant coffee, and improvised fires spark something neither can ignore. But when the snow stops, Flip has a choice: walk away, or risk everything for the man who made him feel seen for the first time.

Benny's parents are sending him to spend the summer with his great-aunt, because they can't afford to pay someone to watch him while they work. Benny is resistant, because he knows it means that he won't be with his friends over summer vacation, but his parents have no choice. The thing is, it doesn't turn out as bad as he fears.

Matthew, a lonely boy from the small town of Figton, befriends a mysterious stranger named Finn during the annual Ivory Fig Ceremony. Their friendship grows over the years as they reunite each summer, helping Matthew cope with personal challenges and the weight of tradition. When Matthew is chosen for a pivotal role in the festival, he discovers secrets about Finn and the town’s magical legacy, forcing him to make important decisions about his future and his place in Figton.

When Noah’s partner Julian starts spending an unusual amount of time in the bathroom, well-meaning friends and family fuel his suspicions. What is Julian hiding from him?