GENRE: Gay Mystery Spicy Romance
LENGTH: 55,761 words
RATING:

Chad Singleton returns to his hometown of Eden to uncover secrets and scandals, including whether his father was murdered.

Chad Singleton works as a high-priced escort for wealthy men. When he gets a call telling him his father has died, Chad is torn about returning to his small hometown of Eden, Pennsylvania. After all, it was his homophobic father who banished Chad years earlier. When he returns, he is thrown into the mystery surrounding how his father died. Fortunately, the sexy chief of police, Brett Ellers, has caught Chad's eye.

As Chad and Brett submit to their heated attraction, forces from Eden's underbelly threaten to undo their secret affair. In Eden, everyone has an agenda, their motives as dark as the night. Intrigue, murder, passionate love affairs -- they all dominate the landscape in this picturesque world of horse farms and crumbling, once majestic estates.

In Eden, even the wealthy -- especially the wealthy -- play dirty.

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

A Welcome to Eden sign fast approached after he’d crested a hill and sooner than he could have gone in reverse, he was rolling forward into a village that always looked as if it had received a fresh coat of paint overnight. Golden sunshine heaped a gleaming cast over the tree-lined streets, across perfectly cultivated lawns, illuminating the houses large and small he passed. He saw no For Sale signs. No one ever left Eden. It was as if an invisible force field hovered over the village, keeping it protected from outside influences and dangers ... or maybe it was a mistaken allure that kept everyone locked in.

He was back, so did that mean he was once again stuck within its borders for good?

He couldn’t imagine much of a life awaited him in Eden, especially considering how he’d been earning his money of late. He doubted escort services were needed here. Rich men who would pay to sleep with him. But he had time to worry about the future; it was death that had brought him back and he was here only so he could witness the traditions and ceremonies of the deceased -- and to ensure the bastard was really and truly gone.

Edenwood Estate was built atop a high bluff on the western edge of the village, found by taking a long country road forested with trees that did a good job of providing privacy to not only his family home but also neighboring homes and other properties. But once Chad turned onto Hilltop Road, familiarity rose up and he felt a swell of emotion. For all that he’d had and all that he’d lost, neither of which included thoughts of the father who no longer lived. How his life would have been different if he hadn’t been born gay. But he was and he liked himself, so fuck his father and fuck the fucked-up legacy the bastard had left behind. And while you’re at it, fuck whomever you wanted too. Chad Singleton knew he was stronger than the forces that had chased him away and with such a renewal of self emanating from inside the car, he pulled up to the entrance to Edenwood. Wrought iron gates with spiky spires jutting upward greeted him and, more surprising to Chad, they were wide open.

He turned up the long driveway unannounced, the shade of the trees helping to shield his eyes from the glare of the sun. One massive tree to the right was damaged, a large section of its rough trunk shredded and charred. Whatever had happened, it looked like a recent occurrence, perhaps a lightning strike. At last he rounded the final bend and pulled around the circular drive.

It was as if he was the unnamed heroine in Rebecca discovering Manderley for the first time but without the dashing, deceptive Mr. DeWinter at his side. The oversized white house loomed like a spectral ghost even in the beaming sunshine, a metaphor for his soul -- gilded on the outside, battered on the inside. It didn’t help that his wasn’t the only car in the driveway. A Town of Eden police cruiser was present also.

Chad felt a chill. Why were the cops here?

Behind the wheel of his car, unable -- or unwilling -- to get out, he steeled himself.

“Okay, Chad, you’ve come this far, time to take the next step.”

It was the idea of his grandmother being interrogated by the cops that got him motivated and soon he was walking those cobbled stones toward the front entrance.

This late in June, the temperatures were warm and he felt the sun glisten off his already tan skin. He wore blue shorts and a casual, button-down shirt open three buttons and rolled at the sleeves, sunglasses shading his eyes. He questioned whether he was appropriately attired for an audience with his imposing grandmother. He rang the bell, a strange feeling washing over him. How odd it was to have to ring your own doorbell. He smoothed down his shirt and needlessly flicked his gelled hair with his fingers in an attempt to look more presentable. He knew it was just nerves.

The door opened after a short wait and the person standing in the front foyer was a man he’d have recognized anywhere.

“Pearson,” Chad said, removing his sunglasses.

“Yes indeed. May I gather that the young man before me is none other than Mr. Chad?”

“In the flesh,” he said with an easy smile. Even as a kid, he’d been Mr. Chad.

“Indeed, sir. Welcome ... uh, home.”