Devoted. Loyal. Shameless. The Boys of Clermont Bay had been my protectors for as long as I could remember.
And Olly Warner took the job to heart.
He was intense and all-consuming, and I had been in love with him for years.
Alarmingly handsome and recklessly charming, he attempted to deny there was ever anything between us.
But we slipped over that invisible line, and the moment we gave in, something fractured.
He was leaving regardless, and I couldn’t hang on tight enough for the both of us.
Olly had always been the boy I could never have, but I couldn’t help losing myself in him.
A searing affair, the guarantee of a broken heart, and the desperation of careless promises. Olly and I were never meant to be, and we had become nothing more than a pretty lie.
I’m Holly Renee, a small-town east Tennessee girl who is obsessed with all things romance. I love bringing flawed, sassy, and real characters to life in a way that makes you feel like you’ve been best friends with them for years. No two Holly Renee books are the same, but if you love real, relatable, fun female characters and swoon-worthy heroes, I’m your girl.
When I’m not writing or reading, you can find me momming so hard, being disgustingly in love with my husband, or chilling in the middle of a lake with my sunglasses and a float. #lakelife
I have a 2-year-old adorable little man who is as wild and sweet as they come and a baby girl on the way.
Became the starting quarterback for an NFL team – check. Secured a multi-million-dollar contract – check. Moved to LA and lived the glamorous life – check.
What could possibly cause me any issues? Oh yeah, one more thing. I’m gay.
I was outed a couple of years ago to my former team and my family, but it hasn’t been made public knowledge yet. Well, that is, until now. I’ll be known as the first LGBTQ+ active player in the league’s history. And if I stick to the conditions of my contract, it won’t be a problem. The thing is, I’m not really a guy known for playing by the rules.
Most people think of my personality as the three B’s: bold, brash, and blunt. My mouth has gotten me into more predicaments than I can count. Even my best friends have told me I’m stubborn as a mule and have the delicacy of a bull in a china shop. This presents a big problem for me because I have my eyes set on winning over the guy who stole my heart years ago, only he doesn’t know it yet.
Getting his attention is going to be challenging. It’s a good thing I’m tenacious. Unfortunately, it’s not great timing and could get me into a whole mess of trouble. Why does falling for a guy need to be anyone’s business but mine?
Kai
The past couple of years were a whirlwind of activity. My career took off after my guest shot appearance in Americana. I appeared in a few indie features and finally got a shot at my first major motion picture release. The work came as a great distraction from my personal life, which took a further nosedive after I found out the guy I was falling for had already fallen for someone else.
Why should I be surprised? He was another in a string of failed relationship attempts. I swore I wouldn’t get involved with anyone else, choosing to stay focused on my career instead. That is, until the force of nature known as Archer McMillan came storming into my life.
To be the pursued instead of the pursuer was not in the cards. To top it off, he’s everything I’m not. Yet, there’s something to be said for a guy who can make you laugh when it’s the last thing you want to be doing. I’ll admit he’s got a playful and determined spirit. Archer also has one of the biggest hearts of anyone I’ve ever known. Not the mention the cute way he… Hold on. What am I doing? We cannot be a thing. Nope. Not gonna happen. Ever. Right?
**
Follow Kai and Archer as they cross the lines as friends, partners-in-crime, and confidants, to discover a love beyond boundaries that needs no definition.
T.L. always hated math, so it was a good thing she had a way with words. Since she was a shy and quirky kid; words were her best friends. She would imagine entire worlds in her head and talk to herself endlessly. Her mother wondered if she was speaking with ghosts for a while.
Her older sister was a voracious reader of trashy romance novels and would pass them down to her after she had finished them. T.L. was the only 10-year-old kid sitting in class reading “The Stud” by Jackie Collins during reading time. Oddly enough, she never got called out on it.
As she grew older, her tastes evolved, but one thing held fast; her undying attachment to love stories. One day out of the blue, she decided to write the love stories she always wanted to read instead of searching for her story. Since then, writing has been a dream fulfilled for her and she could not be happier.
She enjoys writing about love, regardless of gender and is a proud supporter of the LGBTQ community.
T.L. calls the Pacific Northwest her home and enjoys the quiet rural life of her little oceanside home with her playful/crazy husband and their giant dog Noah.
Title: Samson Author: Marteeka Karland Series: Black Reign MC #6 Genre: Contemporary MC Romance
Charlotte: When I get into trouble, I go big. There was so much pain and fear, I turned my thoughts inward. To Samson. He’s my knight in shining armor. The one man I’ve ever felt a real connection to. Then he was there, killing those who hurt me and sweeping me up in his embrace of warmth and safety. But now he sees me as a victim. Not a woman. It’s up to me to prove I’m made of sterner stuff.
Samson: I had no intention of having sex with the little spitfire, but one look at Charlotte and I knew she was trouble. Our night was the kind of explosive a man can’t walk away from, but I tried. Right up until her daddy showed up telling me she was missing and the last person she was seen with was one of the prospects from Black Reign. Wrangler, the little asshole, had her squirreled away somewhere and I knew if I didn’t find her soon, I might never see her again.
Saving Charlotte from Wrangler will be a piece of cake — after this his days are numbered. Which leaves me with time. Too much time. Time Charlotte’s dad will have to convince her to leave me and come back home. So, how do I fight off another man determined to take my woman from me when that man is her daddy?
I adjusted the water while she sat there. Charlotte made no attempt to move or to take over her own care. She was probably overwhelmed and still in shock.
“Come on, baby,” I said. “You’ll feel better once you’re clean.”
“Not sure I’ll ever be clean again,” she whispered. Then her head snapped up. “But I didn’t let ‘em rape me.” She looked fierce as any warrior when she said this, shaking her head. “I didn’t. I fought ‘em.”
“I know you did,” I said. This was a delicate situation. I knew whatever happened in the next few minutes, the way I handled this situation, would set the tone of our relationship from here on out. “You were brave to do so. They could have killed you, Lottie.”
She nodded her head. “They wanted to. When I fought, I hurt more than one of them, but they weren’t as big as you.”
“Ain’t many people who are.”
“When I saw you. Coming down those steps. When you got close to me…” She shuddered, pulling the blanket tighter around her. “I didn’t give up. Exactly. But I knew there was no way I could fight you off.”
“But you still would have.” I made the statement firmly. Almost an order. “You did. With the pipe.”
She nodded at me. “Yes. I would have fought until I died. If they’d managed to tie me up — and they tried — I’d have still fought.” She looked up at me again, tears in her eyes. They weren’t tears of sorrow or shame. They were of a fierce pride. “I’m not weak!”
“No, Charlotte. You’re anything but weak.” I took one slow step toward her. Her tears were killing me, but I knew I couldn’t touch her unless she made the first move. “You’re a strong, capable, fierce, brave woman. You’d never stop fighting.”
“No. Not for myself. Not for my children.”
“Not for your family.”
“No. I’d never stop fighting for my family. Or my friends.” I nodded. “You know what that makes you, Charlotte?” When she shook her head and shrugged, I answered my own question. “That makes you the woman I want for my own.”
Romance author by night, emergency room tech/clerk by day, Marteeka Karland works really hard to drive everyone in her life completely and totally nuts. She has been creating stories from her warped imagination since she was in the third grade. Her love of writing blossomed throughout her teenage years until it developed into the totally unorthodox and irreverent style her English teachers tried so hard to rid her of. Now, she breathes life into faeries, space hunters, werewolves, vampires, shapeshifters, and a few just plane ole ordinary people. She loves to see the awkward, self-conscious band geek get the captain of the football team and make him beg for it.
