Showing results by narrator "Holly Warren" in All Categories

Some of North Carolina's finest fiction and nonfiction writers come together in Every True Pleasure, including David Sedaris, Kelly Link, Allan Gurganus, Randall Kenan, and more. Within the volume - featuring writers who identify as gay, trans, bisexual, and straight - are stories and essays that view the full spectrum of contemporary life though an LGBTQ lens. These writers, all native or connected to North Carolina, show the multifaceted challenges and joys of LGBTQ life, including young love and gay panic, the minefield of religion, military service, and more.

Noah Grant was my first. He was the guy who went from childhood friend to teenage love. The guy I spent one heady, intoxicating summer with, only to have my heart snapped in two—not by him, but by me. Fast forward 12 years and just when I think I’m finally over Noah, he’s back. Older, wiser, hotter.

For years, I’ve loved him. Not that I ever told him, or that he would ever be able to tell. I hid it from him…from everyone including my best friend. Travis Fillmore is my best friend’s brother and the object of my infatuation. He’s also my cohost for our home improvement show and we are zooming to the top right now. Unfortunately, I can’t work with him any more.

College graduate Valentina never expected to fall for the hot as hell and intimidating Derek Cole when she accepted his offer to rent his property. From cottage to mansion, Valentina is certain she doesn't deserve the fairytale unfolding. But Derek gets what he wants...and he wants her. He’s “the one” for her, but before she says I do, she has to survive a month long trip to his family’s estate in Atlanta. Gaining approval from four brothers and an over-protective mother might just be her hardest test yet.

I'm studying to be a sex therapist, and I haven't even had sex yet. Which is why I decide that Professor Hanks is going to be the one to take my virginity. I want Professor Hanks to be my dom. Hung Hanks. That's what they call him. All the students know Professor Hanks' reputation since he grew up in Blackwell. Small-town high school football star turned Harvard PhD. Only in town to care for his dying mother. Too good for local girls. I've done my research, and he's the perfect candidate for what I want. Hot, smart, dominant. Did I mention hung?

Tall, trusted Tandy Caide, CPA, is a long-time patron of the arts in her town, which is why you will find her sitting in the front row of the high school's annual musical production. This year is an Annie year - and it would be no different than other years were it not for the high school's hiring of a new vocational agriculture (Vo-Ag) teacher. With his beguiling ponytail and decorative beaded belt, Kenny catches Tandy's eye immediately. Ignoring the fact of her slovenly husband - who takes most of his meals in their hot tub - Tandy decides to entertain Kenny's advances.

Liam is the perfect rebound to bring to my sister's wedding. And with my car still on the fritz, it can't hurt to have a sexy mechanic along for the ride, right? I'm not looking for anything serious. Not after my last horrible breakup. Besides, Liam is such a cocky jerk. I can barely stand listening to him. Although I love looking at his handsome face and ripped, gorgeous body. The man works well with his hands, and he's great at running his mouth, too. I can't trust this arrogant mechanic. But maybe I'll let him have another ride.

After two years in a coma, August Kinkaid has forgotten the darkness in his past. But his past hasn't forgotten him. His beautiful former fiancée, Everly, remembers every tumultuous moment of their stormy relationship. The sizzling passion. The web of lies. And the terrible secret Everly's been...

Sebastian Blackwell isn't only the sexiest man I've ever met. He's also my boss. The way our every interaction is laced with sexual energy makes my already difficult job that much harder. He turns me on so much, I constantly fantasize about him. To the point where I find myself writing at work about what would happen if we had an affair. It's not a big deal, I swear. This is meant to stay at the purely fantasy level. Until he finds it.

It was just a teeny, tiny lie we told the loan officer. “Together? Yes, we’re together.” Now, Clarissa and I have to play like we’re engaged. She’s doing me a huge favor - the bank won’t loan to me unless I have a partner. Clarissa’s got her own requirements for holding up her end of the bargain, though. She wants benefits. And I mean more than just free margaritas on Saturday nights. She’s heard about my "special ability", and not the fact I make the best martini in town. So we make an agreement: no feelings, just sex. Really, really hot sex.

She can forgive, but can she forget? Some days, Everly still thinks she sees him. In the food court at the mall, or in a car speeding past as the light changes. It only lasts a second, but when it happens, she slips back to a time when she was ruled-and nearly ruined-by August Kincaid. And it...

Mackenzie “Kiki” Forbes finds herself in a pickle. Either become her snarky sister’s nanny or move halfway across the country to work as assistant to the stylist of a country music star. Neither job sounds ideal, although bedazzling cowboy boots may be a hell of a lot more interesting than ironing her brother-in-law’s underwear. But life on the road as the errand coffee girl for a sold-out tour leaves much to be desired. That is until Kiki meets her sinfully sexy new boss’ boss.

The Reluctant Rake: Proper, elegant Miss Julia Devere is shocked when she spies her fiancé in the arms of another woman. She awakens to the fact that the game of love can be played by very different rules than her own. And unless she can beat this new mistress at her own game, Julia stands to lose. How to Beguile a Baron: Miss Susan Wyndham's and Miss Marianne MacClain's debut at the first ball of the season is ruined when they realize they're wearing the same gown - and enamored of the same gentleman. Randal Kenyon, Baron Ellerton, is the most eligible lord in London. He sparks a battle between the pair.

The Semper Fi Marines Collection includes three novellas of hot military love. TEASE ME: Bran Johnson finds true love with his best friend, Tess Keller. TEMPT ME: Jesse is the man who could be general, but he doesn’t want that if he can’t have Zoe Jones. TOUCH ME: Jack Johnson came back from a mission with memories he would rather forget, and he thinks Hannah Richmond can definitely help him with it.

One night would change everything...affect our families...our own lives. The feelings buried inside for so long are suddenly coming to life! She was my childhood friend. I didn’t know if I loved her. And now I meet her in college again. She’s gorgeous.... I can lose myself forever in those big dark eyes and her silky black hair. But, she’s forbidden fruit; our families hate each other. I am a tough talker, but I know my family holds a certain control over me. And I wonder if she worth losing my family over.

The words on the page jumbled into a toxic mess my brain refused to comprehend, much less accept. Please consider this letter as a formal request to arrange a paternity test (DNA). I barely remembered Chelsea Airy. That wasn't true - we'd gone out once, and we'd been friends for a while after. But I hadn't heard so much as a peep from her since I'd gotten married. I'd reached out a handful of times, but she'd quit responding and fell off the face of the earth.

Grace Lafferty only feels alive when she's dangling 500 feet above ground. As a post-World War I wing walker, Grace is determined to get to the World Aviation Expo, proving her team’s worth against flashier competitors and earning a coveted Hollywood contract. No one’s ever questioned Grace’s ambition until Henry Patton, a mechanic with plenty of scars from the battlefield, joins her barnstorming team. With each new death-defying trick, Henry pushes Grace to consider her reasons for being a daredevil.

Jesse Johnson is a man everyone assumes will be a general. Everyone, that is, but Jesse himself. He isn’t sure if he wants to give that much to the military. His father has spent most of his life surviving a lonely existence with only his work for comfort. Jesse doesn’t want that—he wants it all: The woman who tempts him to misbehave.

Jeannie MacPherson left her ice cream empire to find peace on a rustic Maine island. Instead she found irascible Matthew Connelly, recovering from a suspicious gunshot wound. It didn’t help that he was drop-dead gorgeous. Or that he was just as reluctantly attracted to her as she was to him. Connelly had secrets, and Jeannie didn’t trust him. But that wasn’t enough to keep her away from him. Or to keep her from following him when he left without warning. Neither of them wanted to fall in love. But sometimes fate has other plans.

Holly Spinnaker is a monster. Really. Fangs and all. Never mind the petite figure. Pay no attention to the once-bouncy blonde mane. When Jarvis Winters first encounters...it...he prepares to exterminate freak number 132 without a flinch. Mistake number one: following it back to its lair. Mistake number two: watching and listening to her...it...replay voicemail messages from loving, clueless parents again and again and again. Mistake number three: having an actual conversation with a bloodthirsty fiend.