Title: Pieces of Me

Series: Spectrum Nights, Book 1

Author: Melanie Hansen

Publisher: NineStar Press

Release Date: January 16th

Heat Level: 3 - Some Sex

Pairing: Male/Male

Length: 89800

Genre: Romance, Photographer/photojournalist, hurt/comfort, step brothers, friends to lovers, model (ish), reunited, family drama, angst

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Synopsis

Deep in the heart of the Florida Panhandle, Scott Ashworth’s bleak life stretches out before him with not much hope for the future. His hardscrabble days are brightened by the arrival of a new stepbrother, Rylan Mahoney, who quickly becomes the friend Scott so desperately needs. Their relationship has just started to deepen into more, when during the course of one terrible night, what Scott overhears sends him fleeing from his home, never to return. Flash forward six years, and Scott is now the hottest club host on the Phoenix gay scene. He takes what he wants, does what he wants, and does whom he wants. It’s a good life, but the journey to local popularity and fame wasn’t an easy one.

For all that Scott’s looks are a blessing, at the same time they’re a curse—the source of his alcoholic mother’s inexplicable hatred. Rylan dreams of photojournalistic glory. He’s in Phoenix looking for the story of a lifetime, but the project isn’t coming to fruition. Needing rent money, he accepts a gig at Phoenix Pride hawking lewd lollipops and edible condoms…all while wearing gold lamé hot pants and a matching bow tie.

When Rylan’s house keys and street clothes go missing after his shift, he’s desperate, until a stranger in a convertible stops to help. The man is absolute sex on legs, and Rylan is jolted when he recognizes him—his stepbrother Scott Ashworth, long missing but suddenly larger than life. Reunited after six years apart, Scott and Rylan are determined to put their past behind them, but fate intervenes and leaves their future in jeopardy once again.

Excerpt

Rylan trudged to the bus stop, and after an uneventful thirty-minute ride, he stood in front of Spectrum Nights, gazing around in awe.

Within sight of the glitzy stadiums and high-rise condos of downtown Phoenix, Spectrum was housed in an old-style movie theater. Rylan couldn’t help but pull out his camera and photograph the stonework of the building, the retro-looking marquee with flashing colored lightbulbs around the edges proclaiming Fantasy Friday! The hottest night in the Valley of the Sun!

Velvet ropes held the teeming queue at bay, and inside an old-fashioned glass ticket booth under the portico, a fabulous drag queen held court, taking patrons’ cover charges and stamping hands while delivering comical insults. Beefy-looking, shirtless bouncers flanked the entrance, and each time one of the heavy padded doors swung open and shut to admit a new arrival, the thumping bass of the house music floated out and washed over the senses.

Fully clothed male and female go-go dancers worked the crowd in line, moving with fluid grace up and down the sidewalk, dancing alone and with each other to the sound of the music, keeping everyone engaged while they waited for admittance.

Rylan was captivated. While he was in college, he’d spent quite a bit of time in Miami’s South Beach, but the vibe here, the energy, rivaled anything he’d seen there. It was obvious that Spectrum on Friday night really was the hottest place in town.

Eyeing the long queue, Rylan slung his camera around his neck and strode past them, right up to the ticket booth. The queen inside stared at him with narrowed eyes, waving her hand at him, flashing an immaculate manicure and several large, ostentatious rings.

“Way to make friends and influence people, darling,” she drawled, sarcasm dripping from her husky voice. “Around here, cutting the line is verboten and a good way to get that cute little ass kicked. Away you go.” She made a shooing motion, but Rylan stood his ground; journalism school didn’t make for a shrinking violet. He held up the Nikon.

“Scott Ashworth invited me here to take pictures―”

Rylan must have said the magic words, because the drag queen widened her eyes and pursed her lips up in a sexy moue. “Oh my God, darling! Why didn’t you say so?” She looked him up and down. “Scott told me to expect a little photographer boy tonight, but he didn’t tell me you would be so cute! Mmmm, sexy baby with glasses. I love it.”

Rylan couldn’t help but blush, and she winked. “Tell me, picture man, do you have a long, hard lens, just for me?” She put the tip of her finger to her bottom lip and peered up at him through her eyelashes.

Rylan grinned, held up his camera, and leaned in close, letting his voice drop to a growl. “The longest and hardest of lenses is right here, beautiful. All for you.”

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Meet the Author

Melanie Hansen has spent time in Texas and Florida prisons…for work. She’s been in a room with a 17-year-old mass murderer who was also one of the most soft-spoken and polite teenagers she’s ever met. After a 13-year career as a court reporter, she can tell many stories both hilarious and heartbreaking. She grew up with an Air Force dad, and ended up marrying a Navy man. After living and working all over the country, she hopes to bring these rich and varied life experiences to her stories about people finding love amidst real-life struggles. Melanie left the stressful world of the courtroom behind and now enjoys a rewarding career transcribing for a deaf student. She currently lives in Arizona with her husband and two sons.