GENRE: Gay Spicy Romance
LENGTH: 40,773 words
RATING:

Asher Thornwood is having a really bad year. He had his whole life planned, then bam! His fiancé Victor was killed in a car crash. A couple months later, the loss is still fresh in Asher's mind. But if Asher wants his life back, he has to find a way to pull himself out of the funk he's in. Whether he’s ready to start living his life, including being open to the possibility of falling in love again, is another question.

Brody Spencer got a second chance at life when he received a heart transplant and he’s determined to make the most of his fresh start. The only issue is he's never been lucky in love before. He’s looking to change his bad dating luck, though. Mr. Right is out there -- he just needs to find the right guy.

When Asher's and Brody's lives collide, the attraction is immediate and they start dating. What neither knows, at least at first, is that Brody has the heart of Asher's dead fiancé. If Asher wants a real shot at happiness with Brody, then he’s going to have to learn to let go of the life he thought he would have. Otherwise, life will pass him by.

EXCERPT:
Note: may contain sexually explicit scenes of a homoerotic nature.

Will, Steffy, and Asher sat at the bar part of the club while music echoed through the air. And Asher didn’t have a problem with sitting on his ass the whole night. Nothing wrong with nursing a drink or two over good conversation. Since Ron and Elena weren’t there, Asher didn’t have to worry about getting his feelings hurt.

Steffy nudged Asher. “Sure you don’t wanna dance? You’re probably a better dancer than you think you are.”

“I’m good,” Asher said. “But don’t let me stop you.”

Steffy’s attention shifted to Will. “What about you?”

Will held up his bottle. “I’m good nursing my beer.”

Steffy heaved a sigh. “Party poopers.”

Steffy exited the bar, then headed to the dance floor. The DJ changed the song to something more mellow. And Asher fought back tears. It didn’t matter if Asher was surrounded by people he trusted. There was no escaping some emotions.

“I gotta go to the bathroom, so I’ll be right back,” Asher said.

“No problem.”

Asher splashed some cold water on his face a couple of minutes later while he stood in front of the bathroom sink after a humid sensation washed over him. Everything would be fine. Asher didn’t have to solve the rest of his life tonight. He just had to make sure he had a good time, which was simple enough.

The door creaked open. A guy with spiked brown hair entered the bathroom, and Asher couldn’t stop looking at the man despite how the person was walking closer and closer. The man sported a black leather jacket, T-shirt, jeans, and sneakers.

Asher stepped out of the way, giving the guy access to whichever of the two sinks he wanted. Then, Asher got a paper towel and dried his hands.

The guy gave him a mischievous smile before washing his hands. “You should take a picture. It’ll last you longer.”

“I wasn’t staring. Just wanted to make sure there was a clear exit out of the bathroom in case of an emergency.”

“Seriously?” The man finished washing his hands before facing Asher.

“Admiring a hot guy isn’t a crime. It’s not like I slapped your ass or grabbed your crotch.”

The guy raised his palms. “Not trying to bust your balls, so no need to get defensive. But would you mind giving me a name?”

“I’m Asher.” Asher pushed down the lump in his throat. Everything would be fine -- it had to be. No harm in bantering with a guy. Having one interaction with a smoking hot guy wasn’t betraying Victor. “And you are?”

“Brody.”

“Nice to meet you.”

“Could I buy you a drink?”

“That’s so generous of you. However, I’m here with friends. And it’d be rude to leave them.”

“No problem. Another time then.”

“Sure.” Asher darted out of the bathroom without looking back at Brody. His tightened throat told Asher everything he needed to know about the situation. Mainly that it’d been a long time since he was out in the dating world. And he absolutely, positively wasn’t ready for that scene yet. Not when it’d barely been two months since Victor died.