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 My Studs & Steel Series (Including Novellas) is currently heavily discounted over at Smashwords.com as part of their summer sale.

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Spend your summer at the marina... but don't expect to cool off... #hotsummerromance

 

 I looked up, “Oh no.” I groaned. There was a tailback of traffic as far as the eye could see.

Dad patted my knee, “It’ll be fine, son. I know a short-cut.”

Well they were famous last words... Dad turned off and headed in the completely wrong direction. I looked around at the unfamiliar streets, “Where are we going, Dad?” I asked in mild panic.

“Your father knows these streets like the back of his hand…” Mum piped up proudly from the back seat.

I snorted as we passed a road sign, “Then why are we headed for Birmingham, right now?” I muttered. Seriously? Asking for help from Dad was sometimes a real challenge.

He grinned and patted my knee reassuringly, “I’ll loop back on the ring road, son. Don’t worry.”

I tried my best to relax. I still had twenty minutes, after all…

We pulled up at the traffic lights and somehow or other, Dad managed to stall the engine. I glared at him. “Are you freaking serious,right now?” I snapped, beginning to lose any remaining patience I was managing to hold on to...

Seth looked at me warily, “Hey, San Antonio.” He said, “How are you?”

I nodded, “I’m good…” I flashed a smile, “Freezing, but good.” It was December and the snow had come early, which was great for business because it turned the marina shopping precinct into a perfect winter-wonderland but having to work outdoors most of the day wasn’t really my idea of a fun time.

He nodded, “Well, this is awkward.” He said, huffing an embarrassed laugh. 

I chuckled along with him, all embarrassed, too. “Yeah.” I agreed, “Shall we uh, shall we go and get a drink or something? I could do with something to warm me up. I’m supposed to be cleaning the glass all around the café.” I rolled my eyes, “But I’m likely to get stuck to it in these temperatures rather than get it clean.”

“Jeez,” Seth murmured, “Don’t you guys ever get a day off?”

I shook my head, “Nope.” I said with a laugh, “Even in sub-zero temperatures, we all have to do our chores.”

He fell into step beside me, “Have you thought any more about uh, summer camp?” he asked quietly.

My insides froze. I stopped, “Please.” I said, glancing around nervously, “Don’t. Not here.”

He stood in front of me, “Where, then?” he asked, “Because I’m going crazy here, thinking about it.”

“Treehouse?” I suggested, “It’s right up there in the tree, no one’s evergonna hear us talking up there.”

He looked at the treehouse, “Whose bedroom is that, right behind it?” he asked sceptically.

I snorted, “That’s El Paso’s room – he’s always got his head in a book. He never notices anything– and besides, it’s like, minus five degrees out here. He’ll never have his window open in this weather.”

Seth grinned, “Cool.” He said.

 After Tiffany left, I lay on my bed for a good couple of hours just thinking about she’d said. I didn’t much care what she told anyone about me and El Paso. It wasn’t true… or at least, even if it was true that I felt more for him than I’d ever felt for her, it didn’t have to mean in a romantic way. There was no way I felt like that about him – we were just really good friends. She was just sore that I spent a lot of time with him and enjoyed his company.

I was just about to get ready for bed when another text came through.

I scrambled to a sitting position and fumbled for my phone.

All the tension I’d been feeling seemed to just drain away as I read the message.

“Are you still awake?”

I grinned and typed out an immediate reply, “Of course I am.”

“Good. Listen, can I call you instead of texting? I’m not a fan of getting writers’ cramp. I’ve got a better use for my right hand.”He sent an emoji of an aubergine and two laughing faces.

I shook my head. Chuckling to myself I sent back a smiley face. Seconds later, my screen lit up with a picture of El Paso pulling a silly face. I had no idea when he’d added that to my phone but it made me laugh all the same. “Hey, El.” I said.

His breathy voice came through loud and clear, "Lyle!" He exclaimed in a hushed whisper, "There's been a development."

 “Fort Worth!”

My steps faltered in my stilettos as I heard my mother’s voice from one of the upstairs windows. Dammit. What now? If she saw the top I was wearing, I’d be dragged back by my multicoloured wig before I could even take my drag name in vain…

I turned, checking my phone as I did so. The girls were waiting for me…

Mum was stood on the balcony of her bedroom and I could almost see the steam coming out of her ears. I smiled, “Yes?” I asked as sweetly as I could.

“Get back here and put some clothes on!” she yelled, “You’re ten times worse than Georgia was at your age!” 

I rolled my eyes. “But Mum.” I whined, “Georgia’s a girl.”

She glowered, “And what the hell do you think you’re dressed as?” she snarled.

Damn it. The woman had a point. I did look a little like a hooker… “Right!” I retorted as dramatically as could pull off, “I’ll put the goddamn jeans and trainers on and totally ruin the lewk,” my voice had risen in frustration and I was now practically screaming at her, “but I’m taking them off and changing into my hot pants and these incredibly hot boots as soon as I get there, so what’s the point?”

The boots were fabulous. They were a shiny, silver thigh-high number with stiletto heels. They were a gift from my fairy drag mother, Honey-Rose Delmonte, who was a queen I followed avidly and had met on a few occasions, and I absolutely loved them – and I absolutely loved Honey-Rose, too; she was a total darling and had asked me to follow her, doing a bit of a vlog and I’d had the most amazing response. Within six weeks I’d attracted more than three hundred thousand followers on Instagram and this outfit had had more than a thousand likes in the first minute of me uploading it earlier.

Still, my followers had no idea that my mother could still ground me until I was about a hundred and fifty years old and so, I was now standing in front of the balcony, my hands on my hips and tapping the toe of my fabulous thigh-high, boots impatiently.

 “Go and get Dallas to put a new barrel on, will you?”

I blinked at Jon, the guy who owned the bar, “Huh?” I asked stupidly.

He raised an eyebrow, “You’re not gonna go all moony-eyed on me about the new guy, are you?” he asked.

I shook my head, “No, sir.” I said, feeling my face reddening. Jon knew I was gay and he didn’t half love to rib me about it. Not in an unkind way… Well, not really. “I’ll go and ask him.”

He chuckled, “Ask him to go surfing with you tomorrow.” He said, “He might surprise you and agree.”

Fat chance of that. I’d seen him pushing a buggy with a little boy in it that was the spitting image of him. He was definitely the baby’s dad. There was no way he’d be interested in me. I huffed a laugh, “Sure, sure.” I said, “Jog on.”

Jon raised an eyebrow, “He’s single.” He said, “He told me.”

I rolled my eyes, “he needs to be a bit more than single to want to date me.” I said, “I might be pretty but I’m a guy, or hadn’t you noticed?”

He rolled his eyes, “And he’s not into girls.” He replied in a voice that sounded as if he was talking to a stupid person, “so, just ask him.”

No way… It was too embarrassing. Jon had to have got it wrong. The guy was straight, he was sure of it…

The door to the cellar flew open a few minutes later and a slightly breathless and sweaty looking Dallas manoeuvred himself into the bar, carrying a crate of bottles to restock the fridges. “Slade,” Jon barked, “Give the boy a hand.”

Jeez. Did he have to make it so damned obvious that I was interested? Or maybe it wasn’t obvious to Dallas at all. Maybe it was all in my head and the guy hadn’t even allowed me to invade his thoughts at all.

I tilted my chin towards him in acknowledgement, “Want some help?” I muttered.

He shrugged, “I’ve got it if you’re busy.” He said, “But if I could leave an hour early…” he scratched his neck nervously, “My babysitter just called…”

“Sure.” I jumped in. Anything that gave him that haunted look was something I could definitely help with – not least to never see it again. He was too beautiful to look that stressed out, “I’ll take over your stint at the bar – it’s not busy on a Tuesday anyway.”

He shot me a grateful smile that shook me to my core and made me wonder what the hell it was about him that had me going all squiffy over him. Whatever it was it was like magic – and I wanted more of it… “Thanks, man.” He said, “You’re a lifesaver.”

I grinned at him, “You’ve got a kid, huh?” I asked, “How old?”

He beamed with pride as he started talking about his son, “He’s eight months and he’s just started to stand up and walk around the furniture – it won’t be long and he’ll be walking around. Then I’ll really have to watch him.” He chuckled.

It sounded as if he had sole responsibility of him the way he spoke about it. “So, have you uh, got a girlfriend? Wife?”

He coloured up and shook his head, “No,” he said, “It’s just me and Starr.”

“Star?” I asked. Whoa. That was far out…

He smiled and nodded, “I’m a massive Beatles fan.” He said, “And it just suited him.”

“So, was there a girlfriend?”

He shook his head, “there was a girl. She wasn’t really my girlfriend…. Well, she was but she wasn’t. It’s complicated. I’m not with her anymore. She didn’t want Starr or me – and so, she left.”

Well, that told me everything but nothing… Was he straight? 

“Anyone since?” I asked. Yes. I was aware that I was asking far too many questions to say we’d only just spoken to each other today but I was way beyond curious. I was on Interested Highway, heading straight for Besotted Boulevard...

GRAB A BARGAIN WHILE YOU CAN! SALE ENDS 31ST JULY 2021 - ONLY AT SMASHWORDS.COM

 

Stan is an alien from the planet Gore. Molly has been given the task of teaching him about life on Earth. She isn’t impressed at first, but soon things change and she and Stan find they have more in common than either could have ever known. When Molly’s dad finds out that she and Stan have become friends, he tries to send Stan back to Gore, but Molly
has other plans...

ABSOLUTELY FREE UNTIL 31ST JULY 2021

Peyton is the owner of the swanky new nightclub, Studs and Steel. He's already been involved in a hit and run and was lucky to come away from that with nothing more than a broken leg.  he's been shot at point blank range and is recovering in hospital. He's got an ex-girlfriend and a son who could also be in danger, an ex-boyfriend that he's desperate to find and now to complicate matters even more, he's got a hotter than hot bodyguard watching his every move...

ABSOLUTELY FREE UNTIL 31ST JULY 2021

 

When Saul and Laars meet, they have no idea their connection is destiny or that their union will change the path of the future forever. In fact, Laars doesn't even really like the strange young man that he just can't seem to stay away from... Warning: this book contains two adorable MC's, mild magical references, the odd profanity, mild sexual references and a father from hell... Enjoy!

ABSOLUTELY FREE UNTIL 31ST JULY 2021 

 Emilia is married to Isaac Wolseley, Duke of Chittenden, but neither love each other - she is secretly in love with his cousin and as for Isaac - well he is in love with his best friend. The situation is intolerable for both of them so Isaac makes a decision to fake his own death to release them both from the marriage... 

ABSOLUTELY FREE UNTIL 31ST JULY 2021

The rest of the titles in each of the series are also discounted for the entire month too - so grab them while you can!

Get yourself over to Smashwords.com... All of these are absolutely free until 31st July 2021

Stan is an alien from the planet Gore. Molly has been given the task of teaching him about life on Earth. She isn’t impressed at first, but soon things change and she and Stan find they have more in common than either could have ever known. When Molly’s dad finds out that she and Stan have become friends, he tries to send Stan back to Gore, but Molly has other plans...

Peyton is the owner of the swanky new nightclub, Studs and Steel. He's already been involved in a hit and run and was lucky to come away from that with nothing more than a broken leg.  he's been shot at point blank range and is recovering in hospital. He's got an ex-girlfriend and a son who could also be in danger, an ex-boyfriend that he's desperate to find and now to complicate matters even more, he's got a hotter than hot bodyguard watching his every move...

 

When Saul and Laars meet, they have no idea their connection is destiny or that their union will change the path of the future forever. In fact, Laars doesn't even really like the strange young man that he just can't seem to stay away from... Warning: this book contains two adorable MC's, mild magical references, the odd profanity, mild sexual references and a father from hell... Enjoy!

 Emilia is married to Isaac Wolseley, Duke of Chittenden, but neither love each other - she is secretly in love with his cousin and as for Isaac - well he is in love with his best friend. The situation is intolerable for both of them so Isaac makes a decision to fake his own death to release them both from the marriage... 

A Christmas Carlo....

Lucas, having run from the altar for the third time, vows never to get engaged again.

He’s always falling in love with the idea of falling in love, rather than actually finding the real deal.

His wedding planner and good friend, Dylan is determined to help him find his ideal man with his app, Perfect Partner – something Lucas has vehemently resisted in the past, convinced that he can find his very own perfect match without his friend’s help. Somehow, the idea of an app matching him with another guy seems unnatural. He’s always secretly believed in magic and love at first sight and he may well have failed miserably for the third time, now – but deep inside, he still believes that Mr Right’s stars are going to align with his and they’ll meet and find the epic love in each other that they’ve never found before. Well, maybe someday...

 

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Flash Summer Sale Alert!!!

Get yourself over to my page to check out the freebies from 18th June - 22nd June. 

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Flash Summer Freebies! Only at Amazon!

 I've gone stark, raving mad!

While the attack continues, take full advantage of getting these titles absolutely free!

The promotion is through Amazon and starts tomorrow 9th June through to 13th June! 

Hope you love them as much as I do :)

#gayromance #loveislove #neverlookagifthorseinthemouth #LGBTQ

I stared at him. His mouth was moving – which was a total turn on, by the way – but the words he was saying wouldn’t process in my confused brain. What the hell was he talking about? He couldn’t have found the one – because I was the one…
“He’s totally awesome, dude – I know this is the real thing.” Paris’s eyes were shining and his smile was enough to make me want to cry.
I nodded, forcing myself to smile along with him – he was so totally stoked about the whole thing I couldn’t show my disappointment – hell, never mind disappointment – this was totally heartbreaking… “The real thing, huh?” I asked and I was grateful that my voice didn’t wobble, showing how upset I was about this new episode. “Wow – that’s amazing.”
He nodded, “I know, right?” he laughed, “And I want to be everything he needs me to be – that’s kind of where you come in…” he blushed bright red.
I frowned; did I miss something? “What are you on about?”
He looked up at me through his eyelashes – something he’d done since we were kids and I’d always been putty in his hands when he did that, “Could you, like, teach me…?” he trailed off, going an even deeper shade of red.
My heart started to beat a little faster. “Teach you?” I faltered. Surely that didn’t mean what I thought it meant, “Teach you what?”
He shrugged helplessly, “Everything.” He muttered, “I’ve never…”
My heart started to thump out of my chest. Paris was asking me to teach him how to be a good lover? Holy shit. I nodded. Wiping my hands down my face, I found myself, against my better judgment, agreeing to be his teacher… This was going to end in tears – and they’d undoubtedly be mine but this was also my only chance to show him what he was missing in me. Maybe he really was in love with this wonderful guy he’d met. Only time would tell but I was not going down without a fight…
This is the first in the Boys Next Door series, with a decent helping of adorable guys, a little drama and just enough naughty bits to keep you turning the pages...

“Now, I know this is nothing like your usual role – but hey, who wants to be typecast?” My agent, Lawrence, laughed slightly hysterically and I instantly knew that he was up to something. He was holding the script in his hand, tantalisingly in view but still out of reach unless I made a grab for it, which, I’m not gonna lie, I wasn’t above doing...
Gerard has been acting for years; he makes decent money and he's comfortable enough to be able to pick and choose his roles.
Jason is an up-and-coming actor who's just starting out in the business. He's been tipped to be the next big thing and as much as Gerard admires the guy, he can't help feeling a little intimidated by working with him.
What he doesn't expect is to find that Jason is one of the nicest guys he's ever met. He's funny and smart and truly beautiful inside and out.
Jason can't believe his luck. He's going to be acting alongside his all time favourite actor and secret celebrity crush. The fact that they're going to have to kiss and make out in the movie makes it all the more exciting for him - if a little terrifying. 
As much as he's always admired him - he didn't expect for their friendship to become a bromance - or is it more than that? Are they actually falling in love in real life too?

Zac looked up at the rather imposing building and did his best to swallow down the nerves that threatened to overwhelm him and have him running for the exit again and just spending the day down on the wreck with his skateboard… Okay, dude – no one knows you here. No one’s judging you. You’ve got a whole new start… 
After his twin brother died and he was shipped off to his rather austere grandparents while his parents recuperated, Zac just wanted to get through his A Levels and to finish school altogether; to move on with his life and try to get over his loss in his own way. It never occurred to him that he might meet someone who was going to mean more to him than anything had ever meant before... Things sometimes have a funny way of working out. Maybe just maybe he could finally find his happy ever after with Shay, or maybe he was just doomed where relationships were concerned and it was never gonna happen...

Conner raised an eyebrow. “Did you do something stupid?” he asked with the ghost of a smile.I nodded maintaining my no-eye-contact façade, “Yup,” I sighed.He brightened and sat forward in his seat, “What? You mean… did you actually tell him?” he sounded pleased and incredulous all at the same time.I rubbed my eyes and looked up at him sheepishly; I was never any good at the whole no-eye-contact thing anyway, “Yup,”
He looked hopefully at me, “And?” he asked with a hint of a smile.
I looked at the two eager faces before me. There wasn’t a trace of gleeful mickey taking in either of them. They both knew the way I’d felt about Skye back in school and sixth form – hell, sad git that I am, they knew that I’d never felt that way about anyone since too.
I shrugged, “He already knew,” I said. “He reckoned he looked for me to tell me he’d made a mistake but…” I trailed off.
“Well, why don’t you go over there and ask him to go out for a drink with you one night, then?” he nodded in the general direction of where I’d been stood talking to him.
I scratched my neck nervously, “I can’t do that – I’ll look all pathetic and needy.”

“I don’t want to knock your confidence, mate – but you are all pathetic and needy,” Biff leaned forward and patted me on the shoulder, “– we’ve been propping you up for years mate – It's Christmas, just get laid already.” Biff had such a nice turn of phrase.

When Myles goes off to university, seemingly never looking back, Sage is heartbroken, bitter and resentful and determined to never speak to him again. 
The next two years are hard for Sage; what with his mother dying, leaving him to bring up his baby sister all on his own.
His neighbour, Pearl is his rock, lending a hand every time he needs someone to look after his baby sister, Chelsea, all the while chattering on about her grandson...
Since they never mention his name, neither Pearl, nor Sage realise that her grandson, and Sage's ex-best friend are one and the same person...
But then Myles returns, back from uni - possibly for good, determined to rekindle at least a friendship with his most favourite person in the whole world and turning Sage's world upside down in the process.
At first, Sage is suspicious of Myles' attempts to befriend him again but slowly, he starts to realise that Myles is absolutely genuine in his desire to win his heart back....
Is this Sage's time for a Christmas miracle?
With a little help from his friends, he's hopeful that finally, it might be...
This is a standalone gay Christmas romance. It's full of festive cheer, two cute guys, an adorable little sister and a gran that doubles as a fairy godmother. Find a cosy corner, a glass of something festive, eat too much chocolate and enjoy...

When Danny met Horatio, he was unaware that his life was about to change dramatically. When Danny met Horatio he knew that he was drawn to him as more than a friend.
What he didn't know was that their friendship was going to develop into something beautiful and precious and beyond his wildest dreams.
What he did know was that he
had no business wishing for something more than friendship with his new best friend when he was a married man.
When Horatio met Danny, he couldn't believe his bad luck that the man of his dreams had come bursting into his life, perfect in every way except for one tiny flaw. The man of his dreams was straight - and married.
Horatio's friends, the other band members tell him to forget it - that no good could ever come of pursuing something with Danny and that he will ultimately get his heart broken.
He knows the dangers, he knows he shouldn't, but he just can't help himself...

“Oh, my God!”

I looked up at Phoebe from where I was trying to fit a load of the freshly delivered button-holes and bouquets into our special chiller cabinet, “What?”

“My water just broke.” She wailed.

I stared at her. No way. This couldn’t be happening. “What?” I repeated. Yes. I know I’d heard her perfectly well but I really didn’t want her to have just said that and I was stalling.

“MY WATER JUST BROKE!” She screamed at me at the top of her voice, “DO SOMETHING ZOE!”

I panicked. Running to the bottom of the stairs, I called for back-up “DYLAN!” I yelled, “I NEED YOU!”

He came belting down the stairs, “What?” he asked, his massive blue-green eyes full of fear, “Are we being held up?”

I shook my head, wondering what sort of a person would hold up a wedding planner business. “Phoebe’s gone into labour!” I shouted, even though we were now practically nose-to-nose, “Do something!”

He looked at me as if I was quite mad. Pulling out his mobile phone he calmly dialled 999, “Ambulance, please.” He said politely as I panted next to him, a total sweaty mess. Of course. I could have done that…

He ended the call and smiled at me, “We just have to keep her calm and safe while we wait.” He said.

Cool…

Only it wasn’t cool. The baby wasn’t prepared to wait for the emergency services. She was as impatient as her mother and she wanted out of that cosy space.

“Oh, God.” Phoebe whimpered, “I need to push.”

“Oh, my God.” I whimpered, “I think I’m going to pass out.”

“Oh, God.” Dylan whimpered, “I’m not good with girl-parts.”

“Well, I can’t do it.” I said.

Phoebe looked at the pair of us, hatred for our patheticness oozing out of every pore, “Please.” She said, “Just pretend I’m your pet cat or something.”

Dylan nodded resolutely, “I can do that.” He said bravely. He turned to me, “Zoe.” He said, “put a couple of towels or something under her while I go and wash my hands.”

I nodded. Running around like a headless chicken for a good minute, I finally found something that would suffice as ‘a couple of towels or something’ and Dylan re-appeared wearing a clean apron (I know – he really was amazing). He’d discarded his suit jacket and had rolled up his sleeves and he was talking to someone on FaceTime, “They haven’t turned up yet,” he was saying, “And the baby is definitely crowning.”

How did he even know what he was talking about? I had no idea what he was talking about.

The person on the other end of the phone clearly did though, “Okay, sweetie,” she said, “Ask Phoebe if she went to classes and learned how to breathe through the pain.”

Phoebe was listening as intently to the phone conversation as Dylan and I and she nodded, “Yes,” she panted, “I did.”

“Good. Hello Phoebe, I’m Harriet – I’m Dylan’s mum and I’m also a midwife. I want you to breathe slowly and deeply through your nose…”

I tuned out a bit. I felt nauseous enough and seeing Phoebe, propped on cushions on the floor with only a towel covering her modesty but with her legs really wide apart was making me feel even worse. I had no idea how Dylan was coping.

“Dylan,” Harriet said, “What’s happening downstairs?”

Dylan lifted the towel, “Oh, God.” He whimpered again, “Baby’s a little further out. Do I have to touch anything?”

His mother chuckled, “Turn the camera around, sweetie,” she said, “I’ll take a quick look.”

We all waited as he turned the camera around and let his mother see Phoebe’s girl-parts. “Not yet,” she said, “You’re doing really well, Phoebe.”

Phoebe made a sound that was barely human.

I ran to the toilet.

I've relaunched my Stan Series on Amazon...

Stan wasn’t geeky as such; he was just a little creepy. He had very dark hair, slightly longer than would be regarded fashionable, really dark eyes – I’d guess at brown if asked, but they just looked black really, very pale skin – oh and really (and I mean really) hollow cheekbones. He could probably make a good model actually, if it wasn’t for the poor choice of clothes. Maybe I was being unfair. I don’t think he’d been given the option of choosing his own. As for his hair – well, let’s just say a decent haircut would go a long way to improve the way he looked.
Stan is an alien from the planet Gore.
Molly has been given the task of teaching him about life on Earth.
She isn’t impressed at first, but soon things change and she and Stan find they have more in common than either could have ever known. When Molly's dad finds out that she and Stan have become friends, he tries to send Stan back to Gore, but Molly has other plans...

 

Meet Maisie and her Highway Man in Highway to Society...

 

Matthew St Clair had no idea that his real name was Henry Montague IV. Kidnapped by Highway Men when he was only five weeks old, Matthew St Clair couldn’t possibly have known that he became the Earl of Eversham, following the events that led up to Henry Montague III’s untimely death. He didn’t know any of this – but his adoptive father did and he’d been trying to think of a way to tell him for years...

His adoptive mother didn’t want to lose her son, but she did want him to be returned to claim his rightful place in English history, as was his birth right. The only thing worrying her (apart from the fact that they might be hanged for their sins) was this, who would believe him anyway?

Christian St Clair didn’t necessarily agree with his wife. He had brought up Matthew to see things in the same way he did – that the rich were to be robbed!

 

*

 

Matthew was as wild and carefree as Christian and positively the last thing he would want would be to be returned to the pomp and ceremony of London Society...or so he had always thought – until the day arrived when he came face to face with Maisie Bywater that was....

“It’s coming Matt! Come on, jump out... Now!” John always got terribly excited at holding up coaches. They had a strict code of ethics – only to rob where they could get away with it and never to hurt anybody. It had been drilled into them by their father all of their young lives and now, at almost twenty-one and just shy of nineteen, they were young men of strong moral fibre. (Well, strong moral fibre for robbers, anyway.)

Matthew and his younger brother John pulled their horses into the middle of the road, blocking the way for the carriage that was bowling along at a fair old speed. The driver was clearly an excellent horseman as he pulled his horses up quickly without jerking the carriage too much at all.

“We don’t want no trouble.” He called, his face giving away the fear he was feeling.

John pulled his horse up to a stop alongside the driver. “You’ll get no trouble from us, just as long as you let my friend here go and have a word with your passengers.” He grinned showing even, white teeth. The driver nodded, trying to remember every detail. There wasn’t much to go on. A little sandy hair showing at the back of his neck. Maybe hazel eyes? It was hard to see under his black hat and mask. And his clothing was particularly unremarkable. These two young chancers could be anyone.

“You won’t hurt them, will you?” The driver asked. He was very fond of the Bywater family and he couldn’t live with himself for being the one to drive them into danger.

“Of course, we won’t.” John said indignantly. “What do you take us for?”

The driver looked as if he would like to say quite a lot about what he took them for, but he wasn’t about to get his head blown off for his trouble. The footman sat by his side, trembling violently with fright and seemed to have lost his tongue altogether.

Matthew jumped down from his horse and walked around to the side of the carriage. He had noticed a rather pretty woman peeping out just moments ago and was happy to go and investigate.

Looking as menacing as he was handsome; he sauntered along looking as nonchalant as could be. He was wearing a bandana to hide his long black curls and a mask hid most of his face.

He pulled the door of the carriage open and found himself face to face with the most exquisitely beautiful woman he had ever seen in his life.

She was small with golden coloured hair that reminded him of the fields of corn that grew next to his home. Her eyes were the deep blue colour of cornflowers and her skin was creamy white, like porcelain. She was utterly beautiful. She was gazing at him as if he was the most terrifying beast in all the world; he frowned slightly. That really wasn’t the impression he wanted to convey. 

Well, actually that wasn’t quite true, it was exactly the impression he liked to convey to some people, just not this particular woman.

He decided it was time he actually spoke to her.

“Good day, my lady.” He bowed low, which wasn’t particularly easy given the fact that he was halfway in and out of the carriage. “I am not here to hurt you, I simply want to relieve you of any jewellery you might have about your person.” He grinned at her.

She seemed to look at him for the longest time before she actually replied and when she did, all she said was, “Oh.”

This wasn’t exactly the easiest robbery he had ever carried out. “Your necklace, perhaps Ma’am?”

She glanced across the carriage. Matthew’s eyes followed hers quickly and he jumped as he spotted a middle-aged gentleman snoring softly leaning back against the upholstery, apparently fast asleep. 

He turned his attention back to the young woman. She was trying to undo the clasp of her necklace, but her hands were shaking so badly she didn’t appear to Matthew as if she would manage it anytime soon. He was about to turn and leave, with a witty comment, when another tantalising idea entered his head. It was absolute madness, but there it was.

Could he? Maybe not. He decided to give her another couple of moments, just to be able to look at her for a moment or two longer. John would be getting edgy and they really shouldn’t tarry for too long. “Take your time, Ma’am. I have all day.” He said, a hint of humour in his tone.

She looked up at him. “I’m so sorry. I cannot.” She whispered.

He grinned lazily at her, trying to look confident, while his insides writhed with anxiety. “Then please – allow me.” He said.

Climbing into the carriage, he was certain he heard John let out a groan of displeasure. He sat himself down next to her; he was so close he could see that her blue eyes weren’t quite the same as each other. The right one had a small brown stripe right through from the top to bottom of the iris. She wasn’t quite perfect and he found that he liked that about her. He slid his hands around her slender neck, and undid the clasp easily. It was only once he had her necklace in his hand that he realised he was holding his breath. He let it go slowly and then grinned at her again. She seemed to be leaning closer to him as he pocketed the necklace.

Another thought popped into his head. Just what was wrong with him today? “What is your name?” He asked.

“What’s yours?” She demanded immediately.

Slightly surprised by her reaction to him he recovered himself quickly. “Ahh, now that would be telling.” He said with a lazy smile. Goodness, she’d almost got him there!

“Yes, I suppose it would be.” She replied. “Well, I don’t suppose we shall ever meet again now that you have my most prized possession.” She sniffed rather indignantly. “My name is Maisie Bywater.”

Matthew nearly fell off the carriage seat with shock. “Lord Bywater’s daughter?” He turned round and got a good look at the sleeping man. Jesus Christ it was too! He turned back to Maisie. “Surely you’re not the Duchess of Chittenden?” He peered closer at her. Surely not – she was far too young to be married!

She let out a rather unladylike snort of amusement. “Ahh, no. I am her younger sister.” She replied firmly.

“So, you’re not a widow?” Relief poured through his veins. Thank God! He thought.

“No.” She smiled demurely. “I am not even old enough to attend the balls yet. My season starts later on this year.”

“Really?” He asked. “Then I shall have to make certain we do meet again. I shall meet you by the stairs at your debut ball – where will it be? Chittenden?”

Just what on Earth was he saying? This was utter madness! John would kill him for dallying for so long! And Maisie Bywater seemed to think he was half-crazed too. She was staring at him.

“Don’t be ridiculous!” She spluttered. “You will be caught and hanged!”

He tried to laugh it off. “Well, I very much doubt that.” He said, managing to sound more confident than he really felt. “But if you do not wish to meet me, I shall be sad, but I am sure I will live.” He sighed, and put his hand on his heart in mock dismay.

Maisie let out a giggle, which he found utterly delightful. In fact, he found her so delightful, he found himself doing something that he had never in his life done before; he wrapped his arms around her and pulled her close, his lips met hers and he kissed her with all the passion he was feeling for her. It was magical, it was wonderful… It was madness...

Pulling away from her, he felt certain he said something utterly ridiculous like, “Until the next time we meet my lady.” and he got the hell out of there.

John looked at him in exasperation as he half fell out; half jumped from the carriage and tore back to him.

Giving his brother an apologetic grin, he mounted his horse in seconds and they galloped off as fast as they could into the cover of the woods. He held up the necklace to show John that it hadn’t been a complete waste of time.

“Excellent work!” Grinned John. “But what the hell took you so long? You were ages!” He eyed him suspiciously. Matt seemed to be sporting a bit of a love-sick expression. John recognised the look – not that he had seen it on Matt’s face before today. It was usually their cousin Henry from the blacksmiths – he was in and out of love every week!

“Aye,” he agreed, “excellent indeed – that young woman was a beauty.” 

“They always are.” John replied, rolling his eyes with amusement. “They always are.”

“Not like this one.” Argued Matthew, slowing his horse down. “She was something else.”

John pulled his horse to a trot and fell into step beside his brother. “I noticed you took your time with her,” he commented, “So, what happened?”

“Nothing,” Matthew lied. 

John wasn’t fooled, “Your ears are going red, brother,” he grinned, “what happened?”

Matthew grimaced. Damn his bloody ears! And why, with his dark hair and olive skin was he the one who always seemed to blush? John was blonde with light green eyes and pale skin – and as far as Matthew could recall, he had never blushed!

They might be as different to look at as chalk and cheese, but you would be hard pushed to find closer brothers. Matt absolutely adored his younger brother – and John felt exactly the same way about him.

“Well, she told me her name for one thing.”

“What? Why did you ask?” John looked at him aghast.

Matthew shrugged. “I don’t know,” he said in wonder, “there was just something about her. I had to know!”

John rolled his eyes. “Go on then,” he pressed, “who was she?”

“Her name was Maisie.”

“Maisie? Maisie what?” John was looking uncomfortable. He’d only ever heard of one Maisie around these parts and she was the daughter of a Lord...

“Bywater.” Matthew mumbled.

“Bywater?” John spluttered, his eyes wide. “As in Lord and Lady Bywater’s daughter? The one with the massive…?”

Matt shot him a dirty look for thinking such things about the beautiful young woman, “Aye,” he said shortly, “I suppose it could have been her.”

John had the good grace to look a little ashamed of the way he was about to describe her, but that aside – she was totally out of their league. “She’s like, a proper lady, Matt.” He hedged.

Matt nodded, feeling more and more uncomfortable. He’d never liked being told off, and by his younger brother it really didn’t sit well with him.

John was staring at him as if he had completely lost his mind. “Are you quite mad?”

“Aye. I am.” He said stoutly, “I have to be, because I want to see her again and by God I’ll make sure I do – and you are going to help me!”

John rolled his eyes heavenward and uttered the words he usually did when Matt got him into a situation. “God help us all!”

Matt grinned. “Race you home!” He shouted and urged his horse forward. John laughed and followed him.

OUT NOW!