Heart of a Cowboy

Contributors: Jodi Payne, B.A. Tortuga
Series: Higher Elevation #1
Genre: , , , ,
Release Date: October 29, 2019
Pages: 240

Heart of a Redneck

An East Meets Western M/M Romance

Colby McBride is a blue-collar cowboy trying to make ends meet laying tile in Colorado. A loner by choice, Colby works hard with his hands and finds his peace camping in the mountains outside Boulder. Gordon James is a white-collar restaurateur who owns not one, but two successful establishments in downtown Boulder. He’s a sophisticated urbanite who is devoted to his work and is accustomed to getting what he wants.

The men are friends, but sparks fly when Colby falls in love and decides to show Gordon how much fun a good old boy can be. They’re just beginning to explore their relationship when Gordon’s sister’s suicide leaves him with custody of his five-year-old niece.

Colby comes from a huge family and is eager to help with the girl and to prove his worth to Gordon. But neither of them is ready for the tremendous changes to their already busy lives, or for how this new relationship with Olivia challenges them, complicating the way they interact with each other. They say opposites attract, but can these two very different men work together to join their disparate lives and form a strong, if highly unlikely, family?

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EXCERPT

Chapter One

IT WAS a beautiful day. The sun was bright, and a light breeze ruffled Gordon’s hair as he got out of his Jeep Wrangler. He opened up the back, pulled out a heavy, square cardboard box and a bag with two bottles of wine, and then headed into the restaurant.

He stopped and set the two bottles of wine on the bar next to a man bent over some paperwork. “Hey, Oscar.”

“Hey, boss.” Oscar was the manager at Delmara. Gordon had hired him many years ago, not long after he opened the place. It had been Oscar’s brilliant idea to add tapas to the menu, and look where they were now. Oscar was constantly proving himself more valuable.

Gordon had asked Oscar if he’d be interested in running his new farm-to-table place, Gaia, when it opened a year ago, but Oscar had turned the job down. He said he knew what he was good at and it wasn’t yuppie tomatoes. Gotta love him.

“Oscar, these two bottles are for Mr. White. He has a reservation tonight and requested them specifically. The first one is on the house because I want him to sponsor part of the spring mentoring fundraiser. Make sure he gets his usual table and Becky as his server.”

“Got it. And is he bringing his… er….”

“Date. Call her his date. Remind Becky.” Becky had a few other choice words for her, he knew. He understood; after all, the woman, drunk at the time, had loudly accused Becky of flirting with White the last time they were in. But Becky would be fine. White liked her and tipped well, and she liked her bread buttered.

Oscar laughed. “I’ll do that. Oh, boss? Don’t forget that the ladies’ room has a….”

“Got the tile.” He pointed to the box under his arm. “But I need to make that call. I’ll go do that right now. Thanks, Oscar.”

Gordon hurried back to his office. The fucking special-order tile in that bathroom was costing him a fortune, but scheduling the work would be easy at least. His tile guy was also a buddy, and always easy to bribe with good beer. He closed his office door and dialed.

“Yo, sugarbutt. How goes it?” Colby answered him with a low drawl that reminded him of incredible whiskey poured over sugar cubes.

He put the box down on his desk and collapsed into his desk chair, grinning. “Hey, Colby. Listen, I need you to come by and install that replacement tile I ordered for the ladies’ room at Delmara. You got time this afternoon? I have a beer with your name on it.”

“For you? I’ll make time.” Colby laughed, utterly unashamed about wanting his beer. “You might have to have me dirty, though. I’ve been loading my truck with tile boxes all morning, and I’m covered in ceramic dust.”

That was Colby, always coming off a hard day’s work somewhere. “Please. Do you ever show up clean? What time will I see you?”

“Is four too late? Then I won’t have to run off.”

“Four it is. The bathroom stall has been taped off for a week. It can go one more day.” He still needed to head upstairs and change. He spent nearly every evening front of house, and he had a VIP coming in tonight, so he needed to be on time. Oh shit, he needed to pick up his suit at the cleaners. Okay, that errand was next.

“You’ll have to let it cure twenty-four hours anyway.” Something crashed, and he heard, “I swear to God, y’all. You break those tiles and I will personally rip off your heads and shit down your neck.”

“Oh, listen to you go all boss. Should I let you go?”

“Yeah, yeah. I got a reputation to uphold and shit. See you at four, man.”

Gordon laughed. Colby’s voice had dropped a whole octave. “Your secret is safe with me. See you at four.”

A raspberry sounded, and then Colby hung up on him. There was something about Colby—this genuine joy when it came to anything from working to shooting pool to watching a movie—it made the guy fun to hang out with. And Gordon needed some fun once in a while. He loved his job, but it could really eat up his personal time.

Still grinning, he put his phone back in his pocket. He cut open the box to check out the tile he’d ordered. It was the right stuff. He’d just leave it on his desk for Colby. He took a second to look through the mail Oscar had left for him. Bills, bills, and more bills as usual, but also the package he’d been expecting—the newest addition to his porn collection. He left that on his desk unopened and headed out to the bar.

“Hey, Oscar, I have to run out and get my suit, and I’m going to stop by Gaia and make sure they’re good for the weekend. I’ll be back by three. Colby McBride will be by around four to see about the tile. Send him to my office when he gets here?”

“Oh, great. Will do.”

“What do the reservations look like?”

“We’re packed, boss. Tonight and tomorrow, both.”

“Nice.”

“He’ll be out by six, right?”

“I’ll make sure he is.” It wasn’t a lot of work; it’d be okay. They could hang out and have that beer after Colby was done. Damn priorities.

“All right, I’m off.” Gordon brushed the wrinkles out of his shirt and headed out the door.

God, this gorgeous day. No wonder they were expecting a packed house. People were out everywhere. Nothing was as good for business as the promise of springtime.

After a long winter, there was nothing quite like coming alive again.

  

Chapter Two

“MCBRIDE? YOU get that utility room floor done?”

“Would I be out here looking for my draw if I didn’t, man? Y’all know I do good work.” Come on, motherfucker. Pay me. I got to tile a bathroom and see my man. He reckoned it didn’t matter a bit whether Gordon knew he was Colby’s. That was just details. Eventually he would make Gordon see him as more than a beer buddy.

If he could start his weekend with a check in one hand and a beer in the other, he would be a happy little cowboy. He’d started one job, picked up supplies for another, and trimmed out the third. He was a busy man.

Thank God for that.

“You’re the best guy out there,” Lou admitted grudgingly, handing over his draw. “And I gotta say, you will work for money.”

“I’m good that way.” He pocketed the check after peeking to make sure all the numbers were there. “Thank you, sir. I will be on the Williams’s job come Monday. Should take me a day and a half, give or take.”

“Then you’ll work that Best Western?”

“Just the lobby fireplace, man. You can get any asshole to slap down twelve-bys on the rooms.” He knew what his happy ass was worth, and it was worth more than mindless tile work. He liked to be pushed some.

“Just the lobby.” Lou rolled his eyes like dice. “The owner’s wife has ideas.”

“Faboo.” Something else he was pretty good at was talking to folks. He liked people, so for the most part, people liked him. “I can talk to her Tuesday afternoon or Wednesday, huh? Let her show me what all she wants.”

Lou snorted. “Oh, I’m sure she’ll love whatever you have to offer. Try for Tuesday, yeah? I want you done over there by Friday. I’ve got a couple of big jobs I’ve bid on for the week after, and there might be some design work on one of them. I could use you.”

“Just call.” Lou paid on time and, so far, didn’t seem to be too much of a dick, so Colby gave the big man priority. “Have a good weekend, sir.”

“You too, cowboy.”

He tipped his gimme cap and headed out to his F-250, then hauled his butt up into the cab. “Okay. Let’s get this show on the road.”

Colby cracked his window, turned Luke Bryan up loud, and put on his sunglasses. Damn, he did love to have him some springtime, even if it came later up here than it did back home. The snow was gone, the trees were budding, and the sun was making promises that it might be time to grill out wearing nothing but his cutoffs.

Between the weather and his music, the forty-minute drive from the worksite just flew on by. Traffic into town was pretty heavy but moving, and it wasn’t long before he was pulling into the lot at Delmara. He saw Gordy’s Wrangler, looking a damn sight cleaner than any Jeep he’d ever seen back home. Figured. That Wrangler probably hadn’t seen a dirt road in its life. He parked right next to the shiny Jeep, tossed his sunglasses on the seat, grabbed his tool belt, and headed inside.

“Ah, Mr. McBride.” Gordy’s manager waved him over to the bar. Hell if he could remember the guy’s name.

“Yes, sir. Mr. James called. Says he got a job for me?”

“Yes, but he wants you to stop by his office first. You remember where you’re going?”

“Think so.”

“I’ll buzz him. You can head on back.”

He headed through the restaurant to the office, thinking that the tile floor in the hall probably ought to be replaced. It was pretty beat-up.

Gordy’s office door opened before he even had a chance to knock. “Hey, man. Come on in.”

“Hey, honey. You wanting me to get to work on that bathroom, huh?” Look at that hot motherfucker. Colby did like him some stud.

Gordy closed the office door. He turned around, and Colby got a good view of his five-o’clock shadow and his crazy green eyes. “I’d really like to take a break now, but we open in two hours, and those ladies aren’t going to like you in their bathroom much.”

“I live to serve, honey, and your fancy-assed customers might be took aback by my Wrangler butt.”

“They’re not that fancy. You’re just that cowboy.” Gordy laughed, blond bangs falling in his eyes. He swept them away the way he did, one hand carding through them and then that little toss of his head. Gordy gave him one of them weird-assed man-hug deals, bicep popping through his shirt like some high-dollar Popeye. “Thanks for coming by. Now get to work.”

“Bossy old man,” he teased and opened the office door real quick before Gordy could react. “You put the tiles in the bathroom?”

“Oh shit. No, they’re on my desk.” Gordy picked up the box and handed it over. “Here. And don’t make me hound you for an invoice like last time.”

“Yeah, yeah. I’m on it.” He grabbed the box, nodded, then made his way to the bathroom. He was going to have to set up his wet saw to trim around the toilet….

Before long he was lost in the steadiness of the work, setting the tile, making sure everything was just so, and the time just flew by.

“Hey, looking good in here. Not that I would expect anything less.” Gordy set a cold bottle of beer down on the floor next to Colby. “We open in a half an hour, you close?”

“You know it. I’ll pop in tomorrow afternoon and grout it before y’all open.” He grabbed the bottle and downed half the brew. Oh, hoppy goodness. One thing about hanging with a restaurant guy? You didn’t have to drink so much Coors Light.

“That would be great. Really appreciate it. Come on up when you’re done if you want. I need a shower, and I have to put on a tie for a VIP tonight, but I’ve got some time to hang out. Back elevator’s running again.” Pretty neat that Gordy owned the building and lived two floors above the restaurant.

“Spiffy! Sure.” Man in a suit. Yay. “I got to go load my truck. You got a sign for this stall? Someone steps in here on this thin-set and they’ll slide and hurt themselves and ruin my tile job.”

“Can’t have that.” Gordy winked at him and then looked around. “Oh. I thought there was a rope and… yeah. I’ll get Oscar to set something up in here. Do your thing and then come on up. Door’ll be open.”

“Yessir. I’m on it.” It took him two trips to load up the truck and get his shit locked in his toolbox. He finished his beer on the way and took a second to wipe his face off.

Lord have mercy, he was filthy. Good thing he’d warned Mr. Fancy Tie before he showed.

He headed around to the back of the building and took the stairs instead of the elevator. The stairs were more convenient anyway; the fire door on the third floor opened up right next to Gordy’s front door.

He let himself in, as he had done many times before, and was overwhelmed as usual by the size of the damn TV in the front room. He kept telling Gordy to move it to the back wall, but the guy was as stubborn as a hog on ice. Otherwise, though, the apartment was comfortable and not nearly as showy as Gordy could probably afford to be if he wanted. Everything was new and shiny, but the couches were comfy, and the decor was basically gay bachelor pad. Framed Stonewall poster on one wall, rack of DVDs, mostly porn, under the TV, the usual. Broadway soundtracks lined up next to the stereo.

“That you?”

“No, sir!”

Some ancient rock band was on the radio. Gordy always had music going. Colby just shook his head.

Gordy came out of the kitchen still in his jeans but nothing else except the two bottles of beer he was carrying.

“You get mugged on your way up?”

“What?”

“You lost your shirt.”

Gordy laughed, holding out one of the bottles. “Have another beer, cowboy. Your jokes aren’t funny yet.”

“Now, now. Ain’t it you that ought to be having another one so I start getting funnier?” Lord have mercy, he did love to look at that man. He could watch Gordon James wander around his so-fancy condo for days.

Well, maybe not days. That would lead to long-term blue balls.

“Yeah, that’s never worked. There’s no hope for you.” Gordy took a swig of his beer. “Oh!” He pointed to the coffee table. “New porn in the mail.”

“Lord, honey. Don’t you know that’s all on the computer now?”

Gordy shook his head. “That’s vintage, my friend. The early bareback stuff. Low edit, tons of fucking. That’s not your cheap internet thrill. You should borrow it.”

“Low edit—what the fuck does that even mean, man? Seriously.” Tons of fucking he got.

“No cuts? No kissing and then cut to the money shots?” Gordon sounded a little snooty about it. Like this was something everybody knew but Colby. “You know, the whole scene—foreplay to finale.”

“Not all of us are conness… connoisseurs and shit. Me? I like a nice long bout of on-screen fucking. That way if your mind wanders….” He did love to tease.

“Your mind or your hand?” Gordon snorted. “I’m with you, the longer the better.” He drew his words out, and they had a little heat and a little growl in them. “Mm.”

“Listen to you.” He’d like for Gordon to listen to his happy ass, just for a second, just long enough to prove that he was man enough to rock Gordon’s world.

Gordon laughed. “One of these days we should hit the clubs in Denver. You get over there much?”

“Once a month or so. Depends on whether I have to run over for a specialty tile in the afternoon. That makes it easier.” And he got to dance. Damn, he did love to two-step.

“I think it’s been—God, I don’t know—maybe five or six weeks since I’ve been there. I used to go every Sunday. Last few weeks I’ve been watching a game or bad movies with this tile guy on Sundays. Or losing at pool. I’m still waiting for that chance to redeem myself, by the way.”

Few weeks? It had been three months. “Oh, now. I’ll play you any time, but you ain’t got redemption coming.”

“I might if you’d drink anything stronger than beer.”

“Country don’t mean dumb, Gordy.” He winked over. Some things were real important—knowing when to drink and when to make a bet were two of them.

“Nope. And apparently a college degree doesn’t make a man wise either.” Gordy winked right back at him. “Oh, speaking of wise. Have you got a couple of work days open in the next week or two? I’m having a new shower installed in the master bath, and I want to do something kind of modern and flashy in there with the tile after. I told them I knew a guy.”

“Yeah? Sure. We got lots of options. I’ll bring a few things over—wood-grain tile is huge right now. I did a bath the other day with glass pieces in the grout line. It looked like diamonds or some shit. Too fucking cool.”

“Glass? How cool is that? Must take forever to do, though, huh?”

He shrugged, took a long swig of beer. “Depends on what you want. They have some strips you can lay in. You do know a guy, after all.”

“Yep. A very reliable guy that does top-notch work. Thanks. Just let me know when you can show me the samples.” Gordy finished off his beer. “Drinking before work. Good thing it’s not full-on summer yet.” He set his bottle on the coffee table. “I need a shower. You want to hang out and watch the cable or whatever, go ahead. I might even have some food in the fridge.”

“You mean you’re not worried about your virtue?”

Gordon snorted and tossed Colby the remote. “Don’t drink all my beer, cowboy.” He headed down the hall toward his bedroom.

One day, man. One day I will have my shit together enough and I will make my move. Colby watched that tight little ass as Gordon disappeared into his bedroom.

He could be patient. In theory. Really he could.

He hoped.

Title: Heart of a Redneck
Published by: Tygerseye Publishing, LLC
ASIN: B09Y649SB5
ISBN13: 978-1951011758

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Be sure to visit BA Tortuga online at batortuga.com

Keeping Promises

Contributors: Jodi Payne and BA Tortuga
Series: Higher Elevation #3
Genre: , , , ,
Release Date: March 23, 2021
Pages: 262

Jeremy M. Dunn III has the single dad thing down, so the last thing he wants to do is call his ex-husband to ask for help with their two kids. They didn’t part on good terms, and they’ve barely spoken since the divorce. But with a cast on his arm that goes up past his elbow, Jeremy has no choice. He needs a few days to figure out how to bathe their daughter, make school lunches and parent their son one-armed, and there isn’t anyone else he can ask for help.

Former rodeo cowboy West Belen was already on his way back to his kids, and to Trey (“the third”, his nickname for Jeremy). He made a promise to try again, and he means to keep it, so when he sees his chance to move back into his family’s life, he grabs it like the brass ring he knows it is. He’s determined to be more than an “every other weekend” dad to his children, and he doesn’t want to keep on living with regret about how he and Trey ended.

Jeremy still desires West, but he isn’t sure he can trust West to be responsible and available. West still thinks Trey is the hottest thing he’s ever seen, but he has no idea how to convince the man he’s ready to settle down. The two of them have never had trouble butting heads, but now they need to learn to work together to make a home for themselves and their kids where they both belong.

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Excerpt

 

Chapter One

“Kiddo. Kiddo, you awake?” Hank’s voice jolted West upright from where he’d been dozing in the old recliner he’d moved near the hospital bed they’d put in the sunroom so Hank could see out the window and watch the hummingbirds.

“Yessir. You hurtin’? I can get Gretchen.” The little hospice nurse was on it. She lived two houses down, too, so it took her no time to show up.

“No. No, I just wanted to talk to you.” The hand that had been whole and strong three weeks ago was a sack of bruised bones, and West took it so carefully.

“Anytime. Anytime at all.” Hank had been his best friend, his mentor, his adopted father for as long as he could remember, and time was getting short. They could both sleep when Hank was dead.

“You’re a good man.” Hank stared at him, gray eyes seeming to blaze with light, and West thought maybe that was what happened when the best of them was being called home.

“I try. I’m not feeling all the way on that, you know.”

Hank shook his head. “No. You’ve been dealt some shit, but you have managed it. All of it.”

What was he supposed to say to that? “Thank you.”

“If you could go back and change anything in your life, what would it be?”

He rolled his eyes at Hank. “I would have bet on me two years ago in the finals.”

Hank swatted his hand. “I’m serious, boy. Tell me. It ain’t like I’m telling.”

West took a deep breath. He knew the answer to this one. He’d known it for two years, two months, three weeks, and four days. “I would have told Trey no when he asked for a divorce. I would have stuck like a burr and kept my kids and my husband and damn the consequences.”

Hank bobbed his head at him like a big, dying bird. “I hear you. I couldn’t have had a family like y’all did. I never will now.”

Shit. He didn’t say anything to that because he didn’t have anything to say. Hell, he’d lost his whole life—his kids, his husband, his house. He was working a job that was Friday through Sunday, and those were the days he could see Lukas and Ava. He got to keep his truck, his child support payments, and the knowledge that his ex hated him enough to make sure he had to choose between rodeoing or his babies.

Shit, why did he even want Trey back?

He guessed because he loved the son of a bitch.

“So, go make it right.”

West looked up, just utterly confused. “What?”

They were divorced. That meant it was over.

“Go home and fix it. You have a chance. You survived that last bad wreck; you can do this.”

He rubbed the back of his head, that heavy scar back there. “Oh, Hank… Trey don’t want me no more. He hates everything about my life.”

“So change. If you want it—them—bad enough, do what you have to. Those babies need you, even if Jeremy Fancy Pants No Fun doesn’t.”

He started chuckling. Jeremy Fancy Pants No Fun. That was going down in history.

“Promise me, kiddo. Swear you’ll try. Don’t—don’t end up dying with your regrets.”

“Hank—”

“Goddamn it! I’m dying. You give me this. I’m never going to get to see those babies again. Promise me you’ll try.”

“I swear to God. I’ll try.” West felt his face try to crumple, because he didn’t want to figure out how to be a man without the person who taught him how to cowboy up. He kept it together, though, because it was their way. “I promise, Hank.”

“Good boy.” Hank sighed, that light fading as he closed his eyes. “Know that I love you, West Belen. You are my son, just like as if I’d borned you.”

“I love you, Hank. I got your back.” Even though this was a trip West couldn’t make with Hank right now, he was here ’til the bitter end.

“I never doubted that for a second. Just hold my hand a minute and pray for me.”

So West did. All the way until Hank wasn’t holding on anymore.

 

Chapter Two

“You did what?”

Jeremy shook his head and tried not to glare at the nurse fussing with his IV. “Remember I told you I was going to paint the kitchen?”

“Jeremy Dunn the Third versus a cane-back cafe chair.” Drew laughed. “Loser.”

“It has a wobbly front leg.” He’d managed to go thirty-two years without breaking a single fucking bone. He wasn’t pouting. He was not.

Drew snorted, and he could picture the exasperated look on his best friend’s face. “Then why were you standing on it, idiot?”

“Fuck you.”

His nurse gave him the side-eye. “Watch your language, please.”

“Sorry.” He shrugged at her.

“Where are the kids?”

“Annie has them. She’s had them a couple of times before.” He wasn’t sure what he’d have done if his neighbor hadn’t been home.

“She’s keeping them overnight?”

“I—maybe? I’ll be home later today, but it’s my right arm…” Four years of high school sports, rock climbing, and all of his idiotic shenanigans in college, running and mountain biking all over Boulder…and he shattered his elbow falling off a stupid fucking chair.

“Your right arm? Jer, how are you going to—I mean, maybe…” Drew sighed, and Jeremy’s stomach sank as he realized what Drew was going to say before he said it.

“No.” Nope. No way.

Drew sighed. “You have to—”

“I’m not fucking calling him.”

“Jer—”

“What?” He shouted. “Did I hear someone yell ‘shark’? Sorry, what? You have to go? Okay, man. Enjoy your honeymoon, get a great tan.”

“Don’t be an ass, Jeremy.” Drew shouted back over his babbling.

“Talk to you later! Bye!”

He hung up.

Yep. He hung up on his best friend for not quite suggesting that he call his ex-husband for help with their kids.

Because he knew Drew was right.

Jesus, he’d gone off the deep end.

He looked at his phone. It was great of Annie to take them for the night, but she wasn’t going to keep the kids long. She had a life and four hundred boyfriends and a day job.

West was their father after all, and it wasn’t like Jeremy had asked him for anything since the divorce. Nothing. Ever. Maybe West could come take them for a few days until he figured out how to scratch his butt with his nearly useless left hand.

He pulled up West’s number and frowned at the picture, feeling sick that he still thought that smiling vortex of chaos in a cowboy hat was handsome.

“Fuck.” He hit the number and dialed.

“Trey.” No hello, no what’s wrong, just that nickname that he hated.

“Hey.” He could hang up. Say he butt dialed West by mistake. The idea of asking his ex for a favor was making the bile rise in the back of his throat. But he tried to imagine giving four-year-old Ava a bath left-handed while trying to keep from jostling his right arm and decided he was going to have to suck it up. Fuck. “So…listen, have you got plans the next couple of days?”

“Why? What’s wrong? Are the kids okay?” West’s voice was sharp, clear, and focused. God, he remembered being the center of that focus.

“Yes, they’re fine. I’m… I’m in the ER.” He let that hang out there a second since West hadn’t asked if he was okay.

“I’ll be there in four hours. I was doing a signing in Raton.” West’s voice got quiet. “I got to bounce. Family emergency. Yeah. See you.” Then West was back. “What’s wrong?”

A signing. Still in the limelight. Some things never changed.

“I broke my elbow.” I got into a fight with a rabid dog… I was barreling down this crazy trail on my bike… I went rock climbing and man, it was a close one. “I…fell off a fucking chair.” He rolled his eyes. Drew was right; he was an idiot.

“That hurts like a motherfucker.” West didn’t laugh, but Jeremy knew that bastard was grinning. “Who has my babies?”

Asshole. West had broken every bone in his goddamn body. Twice. “Our children are with Annie, next door. I’ll text you her number if you want it. They’ll be fine with her for a while.”

“Okay, good. Do you need a ride home, or should I just come to the house?”

“Let me know when you get up here, and we’ll see if I’m home yet.” Annie had a key, but no way was West going to wander around his house and pack up the kids unsupervised. His lawn might get mowed, but the kids would be covered in mud, and there’d be no beer left.

“Fine. I’ll see you in a few.” And just like that, the line went dead. Infuriating asshole. Seriously, if Jeremy hadn’t needed him…

“Ow!” He dropped his phone.

“Sorry. I need to get your sling fitted.” The nurse picked his phone up and handed it to him.

“Thanks. Sure.” He nodded and sat up so she could reach, the simple move making him a little dizzy. He tried to text Annie’s details to West, but texting with one hand, and left-handed at that, was a pain in the ass and it took him forever.

“Jeremiah M. Dunn, the Third.” A doctor came in, grinning broadly and reading his full fucking given name off an iPad. “That’s quite a name.”

“It was my father’s.” Ha-ha. So funny. “Jeremy works.”

“Jeremy. Got it. How are you getting home today?”

Fuck.

Title: Keeping Promises
Published by: Tygerseye Publishing, LLC
ASIN: B08Y5GY7GF
ISBN13: 978-1-951011-43-7

 

Keeping Promises is available in AUDIO, narrated by the amazing John Solo!

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Bigger Than Us

Contributors: Jodi Payne, BA Tortuga
Series: Higher Elevation #4
Genre: , , , , ,
Release Date: November 23, 2021
Pages: 240

When Daniel McCaverty gets the call that his best friend and mentor up in Vermont has cancer, he expects to have plenty of time to go help. He never expects that Adam will be gone before he can get there, or that he will suddenly be in charge of Adam’s two small children. He’s a loner, an artist, and a wanderer. What’s he supposed to do now?

Mitchell Brown is a white-collar kind of guy. Organized. Careful. He has a plan in place for Adam’s kids long before Daniel arrives, and is shocked when Daniel is given custody. But for Vicky and Emory, he’s willing to put his hurt and confusion aside to help Daniel figure things out, to make the whole situation work.

Daniel and Mitch have to deal with a tidal wave of grief while getting one kid started in school, and keeping up with their work. But they’re going to have to figure out their unexpected attraction to each other if they’re going to build something together that’s bigger than either one of them alone.

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Chapter One 

 

“Jesus, Adam.” Daniel McCaverty had made it through the five a.m. flight from the Sunport, through Dallas and O’Hare. He’d made it through baggage here in Burlington and through the fucking line at Enterprise. He’d managed to drive about a mile before he looked around this place that was familiar but not, and had to pull over, sobbing against the steering wheel while the radio played. 

Daniel hadn’t understood when Adam had called last month and said, “Kiddo, I’ve got cancer”. He’d thought, oh, surgery and chemo and radiation. It would be tough with the kids, but he could come out after he’d delivered his last canvases. He would help for a few weeks and, one day, they would laugh together over how Adam’s thick black and silver hair had been gone during that terrible time. 

That was what was supposed to happen. 

Not a phone call early in the week that he’d missed because he was up on Angel Fire, and there was no signal. And then when he’d called back three days later, scared at Adam’s voice, Adam’s words, Adam’s goodbye, it was over. 

Fuck him. He hadn’t understood. 

Adam had told him not to worry. 

He never once thought Adam would actually die. 

After the storm had passed, Daniel pulled back onto the road, making the trip to Adam’s neat house. He’d helped Adam and Tina with adding a bathroom and another bedroom one summer. Another year, they’d put the deck on. He’d painted the nurseryfirst with Adam and Tina, then with Adam alone. 

Little Vicki would know him, but the baby? Shit, he’d been brand new before Daniel had left to work for a few months. 

“What the fuck happened, Adam? Seriously. Nobody dies from cancer anymore! It’s all about surviving. Don’t you fucking watch commercials?” His words echoed in the car, and he rocked with the intensity of them. 

He could almost hear Adam snort at him, saying “You can’t believe everything you see on TV, Dan-O.” 

Yeah. Yeah, like he even owned a TV. That was what he got for trying to be ironic. 

He pulled into the long driveway, the Escalade rumbling through the ruts. Someone needed to grade this before winter. 

The trees around Adam’s place were turning colors, some of them already orange and red like fire. That, he’d seen before, but Daniel hardly recognized the man sitting on the front steps. It had to be Mitch Brown underneath the beard and the baseball hat, but the last time he’d seen Adam’s business partner, Mitch had been clean-cut and in a sharp suit and tie. 

Damn. 

He probably looked like a wild man. He hadn’t bothered to change from his work clothes, and his jeans were spattered with paint. Daniel parked and opened the door of the SUV. “Mitch? Hey. IHey.” 

Mitch looked up and stood slowly. 

“Uncle Daniel!” Little Victoria dropped the hula hoop she’d been playing with and ran toward him full tilt. 

“Vicki. Baby girl. C’mere.” He opened his eyes, the sweet little black curls shining in the fading sun. “I missed your pretty face.” 

“You came! Daddy said he had to go, but that you would come, and you did!” She squeezed him tight, little five-year-old arms circling his neck. 

“Of course I came.” He should have come earlier. Sooner. Weeks ago. He blinked hard, fighting his tears. 

Mitch cleared his throat. “I guess you had a long trip. Would you like some coffee? Vicki, baby, why don’t you take Uncle Daniel to the porch? 

“I started at three this morning. Coffee is great. I don’tI’m sorry, man. Y’all had been friends a long time.” 

“Yeah. Um…yeah. Not as long as you. I know thisit was pretty shocking andhard.” 

“Uncle Mitch fixed the porch swing.” Vicki pulled on his hand, tugging him toward the porch. “Emory is napping. He sleeps all the time. Babies do that, but it’s boring.” 

“They do, and it is. Do you still like those genie toys? I have a color book of them in my backpack.” 

“For me?” Vicki smiled at him like he’d hung the moon, as if she hadn’t just lost her father. Five had to be so complicated. 

“Yeah, for you. I’ll grab them in a second.” He’d brought a suit bag and his backpack. 

“Have a seat, I’ll get us some coffee.” Mitch disappeared into the house, leaving him there with Vicki. 

“Did you know my daddy died?” 

“Yes, ma’am. I just found out last night. I came straight away.” 

“He was really sick. He slept a lot, like Emory.” Vicki climbed up on the porch swing. “He missed you though. He told me so. I knew you’d come.” 

“He was my best friend, and you’re my god-girl. Of course, I came.” Jesus, Adam. Why didn’t you tell me how bad it was? 

She patted the swing next to him and leaned hard once he sat. “Good.” She sighed and flopped over, lying her head in his lap. 

She was asleep by the time Mitch came back with two mugs of coffee. “She’s been waiting for you. Adam’s” Mitch bit his lips together and shook his head, handing him a mug before sitting in a rocking chair. “The promise was important to her.” 

“I came as soon as I knew. I had no idea it was so bad.” 

“Well, to be fair I don’t think he really believed it would be so fast.” Mitch’s voice was rough and dry. Anyone could see how tired he was. “I should have just called. He wanted to do it himself, but I should have. It’s just that I was here with the kids and helping him deal with his doctors and I… I’m sorry.” 

“I am too. I would have come to help. You have to know that. I would have come.” He wasn’t a shit. He loved Adam and these kids to death. 

“You know Adam. He was private, and he didn’t even like me helping. I think he wanted people to remember him healthy.” Mitch sipped his coffee and tugged his ball cap down lower. “This isso fucked up.” 

“Yes. More than. Did heis your business stuff okay?” He knew Mitch and Adam had run an advertising agency, but that was really all he knew about that. 

Mitch shook his head. “I don’t know. We have good people working for us, so I’m going to hope, but these last few weeks I haven’t… I checked out of work.” 

“I can only imagine.” He sort of wanted to give the guy a hug. More than that, he wanted to leave, find a hotel room and drink. He wouldn’t, because obviously Mitch had been working his ass off dealing with shit and needed a hand, but that didn’t alter his wanting. 

“I’m just going to try to look ahead now. The kids need that. I need to get them a new routine. It’s a couple of weeks late but I can still get Vicki into kindergarten, and I guess I’ll find a nanny for Emory. They need some stability. Then I can get my head back to work.” 

“Wow. Kindergarten? Already? She’s just so little…” Surely she wasn’t that old yet, right? 

“I know, but she turned five in July. I remember Adam saying at one point that he was going to sign her up but hedidn’t.” Mitch glanced at him under the brim of his hat. “So, how’s the…your art going?” 

“It’s good. I got my last show in on time.” He always felt weird talking about his paintings. He always had. It just felt strange. 

“So that’s going on now, without you there?” 

“Yes. My manager deals with the sales and the galleries. I just paint the canvases. I spend most of my time searching for the right environment to inspire.” It was an oversimplification, but it was still true. 

“Sounds nice. Where did you fly in from?” 

“Albuquerque. I was up on Angel Fire. I called as soon as I got signal. I didn’t know. I wouldn’t have” He wouldn’t have missed saying goodbye. 

“I was with him when he called you. He said he knew you were busy doing what you loved. It made him smile. He didn’t” Mitch cleared his throat, and when he spoke again his voice was even rougher than before. “He didn’t call anyone else. Just you. I’m sorry, I haven’t really processed any of this, I justthese kids are so important. I’m just a little tired.” 

“It’s okay. You can bewhatever you need to be. I’m serious. You can feel whatever you have to.” He didn’t know how else to do it. 

Mitch glanced up, blue eyes searching his. He wondered what they were looking for. “Thanks. I appreciate that. I do.” 

Daniel stroked Vicki’s hair. “You poor baby. You had to lose both your folks, didn’t you? Well, you got people that love you more than the world. Don’t you worry.” 

Adam had obviously intended for Mitch to take the kids, so he’d send money and stay as long as they needed. He wouldn’t let them hurt for anything. 

“It sucks. It just sucks. But they have me. You. Friends. They have people. I didn’t.” 

The baby started wailing somewhere inside the house. “Emory. He’ll be hungry.” Mitch hauled himself out of his chair. 

“Do you need help?” He wasn’t sure he could move. Hell, he didn’t want to go inside that house. 

“Yes. Stay right there with Victoria.” Mitch touched her cheek, then headed for the front door. “That’s the deepest sleep she’s had in days. I’ll bring Emory out once he’s fed.” 

“Okay.” He swung with her, singing for her, random songs that he knew. He spent a lot of time in life singing along with the radio. This much he could do. 

Title: Bigger Than Us
Published by: Tygerseye Publishing, LLC
ASIN: B09KWNL6P9
ISBN13: 978-1-951011-66-6

Home Free

Contributors: Jodi Payne, BA Tortuga
Series: Higher Elevation #5
Genre: , , , ,
Release Date: July 18, 2023
Pages: 234

Connor Westin and Early Jericho have a comfortable, busy life in Denver. Connor is a lawyer who brings home the bacon and Early is a stay at home dad to their two young boys.

Sure, Early is a cowboy at heart, but he loves their kids and as far as Connor is concerned they’re happy in their suburban home.

When Early inherits a ranch on the Western Slope of Colorado, neither is sure what they should do about it. That is until they visit, and Connor sees just how much it all means to his husband.

Both men agree to uproot their family and take a shot at running the ranch together, but it takes time to shut down one life and start another. Early takes the boys to the ranch while Connor spends the summer in Denver to handle all the details of moving on.

Between the long distance, the new responsibilities, and interference from a not so well meaning employee, Connor and Early have trouble staying connected. Will the ranch become the home they need it to be, or will it tear their family apart?

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Chapter 1 

Connor Westin parked his BMW in the garage and climbed out, his phone switching from Bluetooth to speaker automatically. “Agree to fixing the window and the lock on the back door, but the kitchen appliances are as-is, and we’re not painting anything. That’s ridiculous.” 

“You want me to say it’s ridiculous?” 

Connor reminded himself that although Kit was a great paralegal, he was young. “That would be fun, wouldn’t it?” 

“So, no. Got it.” Kit was also way too serious. 

“Thank you. I’m around if they come back with anything tonight. Gotta run.” He hung up, dropped his phone in his pocket, and went into the house. “Smells good in here.” He made his way to the kitchen, where he knew his handsome husband would be cooking dinner for their family. 

“Chicken parm. Your sons had a request.” Early wore a pair of jeans and a T-shirt, button-down shirt draped over one of the dining room chairs. Pretty-pretty. “How goes it?” 

“Good, another day another house sale. And there’s some easement dispute downtown that I’m supposed to be talking to someone about tomorrow.” He slid a hand around Early’s waist, fingers spreading out across killer abs and kissed his nape. “My sons? What did they do now?” 

“Which one?” Early shot him a quick, easy grin. “Jaxson climbed behind the bleachers and found a mouse, which he proceeded to keep in his lunch box until he got ready to come home, and he showed it to Jenny Franklin. It’s now living in a cage in his room, his lunch box has been bleached, and I made him apologize to the teacher and Jenny. And Jayden…” 

Oh god. 

“He apparently climbed into the ceiling of the school using the pipes in the boys bathroom. Did you know he’s allergic to fiberglass? He is. He looks vaguely like he’s been boiled. I’m calling him Lobster Boy. He isn’t amused.” 

Oh, the poor kid. That had to itch. “Good. Great. They’re both still alive and taking after you.” Truth be told, Jayden was more like him in this case, but he wasn’t going to admit it. 

“Dad! I got a mouse. You wanna see?” 

“Has it had its shots?” 

“What?” 

He glanced at Early. “We’re keeping the mouse?” 

“You going to poison it?” Early shrugged, altogether too unconcerned about a possible disease-ridden rodent in their house. 

“Daddy! His name is Dennis. You can’t kill it if it has a name.” 

Connor sighed. “I didn’t mean we should kill it. Geez. But maybe Mrs. Mouse misses him?” It was worth a shot. 

“He’s not married. He’s a DJ, and he’s going to be all about the bass.” Save him from smartass sons. 

“DJ Dennis Mouse?” He ruffled Jaxson’s hair. “Fine. But he’s going to the vet.” 

“Okay! Wanna meet him?” 

Early shook his head. “After supper. Y’all have fifteen minutes. Go wash and tell Lobster Boy to get his butt down here.” 

Jaxson bounced up and ran for the stairs. “Lostber Boy! Daddy says get your butt butt butt down here!” 

“Stop calling me that!” Jayden came slumping down the stairs and shuffled into the kitchen. “Hi, Dad,” he said opening the fridge door and hiding behind it. 

“Hey, kid. So, what was the endgame here? After you made it into the ceiling?” 

“Endgame?” 

“What were you trying to do?” 

Jayden closed the fridge door and looked at him, clearly confused. He was definitely red and swollen. “I don’t know. I just did it.” 

“We’re raising monkeys.” Connor shook his head. “Set the table, boys.” 

Early just went about his business like nothing was out of the ordinary and, really, nothing was. This was par for the course. “So that was my day.” 

“Just another day in paradise. Did he get some Benadryl?” 

“Benadryl, oatmeal bath, cortisone creamhe got the whole enchilada.” Early rolled his eyes and started moving food to the table. 

“You’re a good dad.” Connor gave Early one more quick hug, then hung up his coat so he could help. “What can I do?” 

“Salad. Green beans. Something healthy that we have to force our children to eat.” 

“There’s leftover broccoli.” There was always leftover broccoli because their kids were not good eaters. He opened up the fridge, grabbed the bowl, and stuck in the microwave. 

Early seemed…tired, maybe? Something felt a little dull, a little off. Not enough to worry about, he supposed. It was the end of another incredibly busy day with two active boys. He hoped the kids hadn’t brought a bug home; it was so close to the end of the school year. 

He grabbed the bowl and carried it carefully into the dining room, setting down right in front of Jaxson. “It’s hot guys, careful.” 

“Yay. Limp trees.” 

Early’s growl was immediate. “You watch it, or I’ll serve nothing but brussels sprouts for a week.” 

Oh, god. Not that. Not again. 

Never again. 

He reached over and put two florets on each of the kids’ plates. “No arguments.” Then he took some for himself because he actually liked broccoli. “Chicken parm was a good call, though.” He served them each some of that too, and himself before handing Early the plate. “Looks as good as it smells, honey.” 

“Thanks.” Early chuckled and shook his head. “So, we’ve survived another school day. Go team Jericho.” 

Oh they’re yours again now, huh? Why? Because I didn’t lose my mind over the mouse?” Connor grinned at Early, teasing. 

“He’s a nice mouse, Dad!” 

He rolled his eyes. “Eat. Jayden, tell me about the math test.” 

Jayden gave him a deadpan look. “You mean the one that I aced?” 

He laughed. “I guess that’s the one. Nice work.” 

“I got done early, that’s when I—” 

“I don’t really need the details unless the principal calls me.” 

Jayden arched one eyebrow, somehow looking just like Early. “Principal Shields always calls Daddy. She thinks he’s hot. She calls him Mister Early and puts her hand on his arm.” 

He mimicked that look, giving it to Early instead. “He is hot, but he’s mine.” And Principal Shields probably didn’t want to talk to him anyway, he’d been deemed “less reasonable” a few years back. 

“Dad! Ew! That’s nasty!” Jaxson gagged dramatically, slumping against his brother, sending his fork flying, red sauce spraying across the floor. 

“Jax! Ugh.” He sighed and got up, going for a damp towel. And another fork. “I know we taught you table manners at some point. Daddy insists on it.” He brought the towel back and handed it to Jaxson, then traded a clean fork for the one that landed on the floor. “Clean up the floor, please. Jayden, you keep eating.” 

Jayden shoved an entire stalk of broccoli in his mouth, chewing dramatically. 

“Did you want a beer, babe? I need a beer. There’s an open red wine in there too.” 

“I’ll have the red. Thank you. Jax, that’s good enough. Hand that to Daddy and finish your dinner.” God, he was ready to broil them both. 

Early headed back to the kitchen, turning on the music on his way. Ah, the boys were getting their next warning sign that Daddy was about to stroke out. 

“Both of you finish up. Jax? Broccoli. Now. And then upstairs for reading.” 

“Reading?” Jaxson started to whine, but his big brother gave him the elbow. “Okay. Reading.” 

“Thank you. Don’t forget to tell your daddy thank you for the dinner, please? He made you chicken parm.” 

“Yes, sir. It was really good.” 

Connor watched as Early set down his wine. “Thanks, honey.” 

“Thankyoufordinnerdaddymaywepleasebe…” Jaxson took a deep breath. “Scused?” 

“It was so good, Daddy. Thank you.” 

“You’re very welcome, sons. Please wash your hands after feeding/handling/touching the mouse in any way and before your reading.” Early sat with his beer, waiting for the boys to leave. “I bet that mouse escapes and infests the house.” 

“I won’t say I told you so.” They’d had mice before; it was a thing. They’d just go to battle stations. “DEFCON 1.” He looked his husband over critically. “Thank you for the wine. Something’s wrong. What is it?” This was the part where the cowboy in Early won out first, and Early would say “I’m fine”, until they were done with dishes or headed to bed and then he might sigh and fess up. 

If it was really awful Early would find an excuse to go hide in the garage for a few minutes and then they’d talk. 

“I’m fine. I—” Early twisted the top of his bottle. “It’s just some bad news from my dad.” 

And then there was this scenario. “Oh, honey.” He got up from his chair and pulled one closer to Early. “Not your Momma?” Please not his mother; she was the queen of amazing women. 

“Fuck no. She’s going to outlive us all. Uncle Rick. It won’t be long now.” 

Early’s Uncle Rick was one of Early’s biggest supporters, a good, amazing man who had rapid-onset Alzheimer’s. The last time they’d gone out for Easter, Rick had been violent, terrified, and restrained. 

“You need to go. Why are you sitting here? When did you find out? Let’s get you on a plane.” He pulled out his phone. 

“No. He’s not there. Pop says he’s not there at all. He had a stroke this morning, and they’re just waiting for the end. Me being there won’t help. I’ll go afterward, when I can be useful.” 

“You’re sure? I’m so sorry. You should have told me. I could have at least come home early, dealt with this lunacy.” He leaned closer and kissed Early’s cheek, then took a hand in his. “I know, it’s not worth hashing out. I’m here now, though.” 

“Thanks, babe. I love you. I’m just tired.” 

Ha hated this for Early. Early was close with his parents, but Rick had been the first one in Early’s corner, the first person Early really trusted with difficult things like how to manage being gay on a ranch. 

“Go take a shower, put on comfy PJ’s, and go to bed. I got the dishes. I didn’t bring home any work tonight, so I’ll join you as soon as I get the hooligans in bed.” Early liked a back rub, and he had magic fingers. It was a gift. 

“I’ll deal with the dishes, babe. You handle Thing One and Thing Two.” Early sighed and shook his head. “Lord have mercy, I hate this for him.” 

God, the man was impossible to pamper, even when he needed it. He ran a soothing hand over Early’s shoulder and stood. “Rick was loved. If he can manage to remember anything, he’ll remember that. Doesn’t matter by who.” 

“I’ll shoot myself first, before I let myself get there. I won’t make you watch me become a…whatever Rick is now.” Early’s expression was pure horror, pure pain. “I don’t understand how the good lord lets someone’s brain dissolve in their damn skulls.” 

“Oh, Early.” He caught his husband by the nape and pulled the cowboy into his arms. “It’s going to be okay, honey. It’s okay.” God, he hoped so. Early was scaring him a little bit. “I love you.” 

“I love you.” Early let him hold on, leaning in hard. “This is hard. I miss him.” 

“I know. I know it is. Just breathe and do what you need to do, okay?” He’d insist they go for the service. Bring the boys. 

“Yeah. Yeah, we’ll need to plan on going out for the funeral. I’m betting either Monday or Tuesday next week, if he dies during the night.” Early took a hitching breath. “I need to go. Do you—we haven’t ever talked about how to do funerals with the boys. How do you feel?” 

“I think this was someone very important to you, and the kids should be there.” 

“Can you come? I can’t—I can’t do this and deal with them alone.” 

Of course I’ll come. I’m not going to let you do this by yourself. We’ll all go.” He had to be there; where else would he be? Early and their boys were all the family he had. 

It was a six-hour drive to Durango, but it was a beautiful ride, and the boys were happy to have extra time on their games. They could head out Friday after school, have supper on the road, and get themselves a hotel. Early’s folks had sold their home and bought a two-bedroom condo, and while it was a lovely place, it was about two thousand square feet too small for their sons. 

He could keep them busy while Early talked with his parents. Board games, cards… 

Okay, their Switches. Or Benadryl. 

“You’re not alone, honey.” 

“No.” Early kissed his jaw. “Not since I picked up this guy at a little dive bar.” 

“I’ve never set foot in a dive bar. I’m way too classy.” It had definitely been a dive bar. But he’d never admitted it before, so why start now? 

“Mmhmm. Dive bar. Neon lights. Scary bathroom. Shots of tequila.” 

“Tequila and neon, sure. I don’t believe I used the bathroom. A sports bar maybe.” He flirted, playing Early’s game. 

“There was a TV, I think…and a piece of shit pool table.” 

“The hottest man on earth was playing pool.” And losing, but the table had been warped and the felt was bunched up near one of the side pockets. It’d looked like a neglected mini-golf course. He hadn’t cared if Early had won or lost, he’d just been watching. 

“Eh, I saw you, and it was over. I never saw another man.” Early said the words like they were simply a fact, just something that was an unalienable truth. 

“Doesn’t make it a dive bar.” He took a kiss and brought the last of the dishes into the kitchen. 

“Dive. Deep dive. Like one of them submarines.” 

Connor laughed. He couldn’t help it. “That’s a new one. I like it.” 

Early bowed deeply. “Well, thank you, sir. I worked hard for it.” 

They loaded the dishwasher, moving around each other easily. Early should have gone up to bed, but he didn’t go, he waited and helped until everything was done, and the house was locked up and quiet. Maybe his man just didn’t want to be alone. He could understand that. 

“You sure you don’t want to shower while I tuck the boys in?” 

“Join me after?” Early still looked a little shell-shocked, stressed out, with red-rimmed eyes and tight lips. 

“Yeah. I’m all yours tonight. Promise.” He gave Early another kiss, wondering how Early had hidden this so well from him until dinner and marveling how quickly his husband was falling apart now that that burden was off his shoulders. “I won’t be long.” He followed Early up the stairs toward the kids and the bedroom. 

“Sounds good to me.” Early tugged his shirt up and off as he walked. “Y’all sleep good, boys. I love you.” 

“Night, Daddy!” Jayden called, while Jaxon’s greeting was totally muffled. Possibly because Jayden was trying to smother him with a pillow. 

He could see Early’s shoulders slumping as he disappeared into the bedroom. 

 

Title: Home Free
Published by: Tygerseye Publishing, LLC
ASIN: B0C9XDL3QT