Title: Desires’ Guardian
Author: Tempeste O’Riley
Series: Desires Entwined, #2
Genre: M/M Erotic Romance, with lite BDSM/Kink
Publisher: Dreamspinner Press
Release Date: June 6 2014
Edition/Formats Available In: eBook, Print
Blurb/Synopsis:
Most people see Chase Manning as the
party-boy twink he seems on the surface. Only James,
Chase’s BFF, knows the depth of his loyalty and the extent of the wounds Chase
carries inside. When Chase meets Rhys Sayer things don’t go well, but he can’t
shake his attraction to the huge, sexy man.
Rhys is a man of contradictions and fear—a
strange combination for a PI and bodyguard. He’s in a bad place emotionally
when he sets eyes on Chase for the first time. When Chase puts the moves on
him, Rhys insults him, thwarting any possibility of a relationship. Rhys
doesn’t see himself as a complicated man, but he dreads the very kind of
connection he desires.
Just as they’re trying to overcome their
uncertainties, Chase is put in harm’s way. Luckily Rhys and their friends have
all the right talents to help Rhys save the man of his dreams.
Book Links:
Excerpt:
PLEASE, GOD, make it stop.
The loud ringing next to his head had Chase
debating between smashing the phone and burying his head until the demonic
thing went quiet on its own. When the ringing stopped but immediately started
up again, he gave up on Option B.
Why?
Even mentally whining made his head hurt
worse. Chase lay sprawled across his bed on top of the covers. The only part of
him not exposed was his head; he’d burrowed under a pillow when the sunshine
pushed its way into his bedroom. Sitting up without moving the pillow from over
his head, Chase slowly scooped up his cell. “’Lo,” he croaked.
“Chase?”
“Um, yeah. Who is—wait, James?” Chase’s
thoughts refused to clear as he fought his way past the alcohol struggling to
drag him back into unconsciousness. The taste of stale beer and liquor was
almost enough to make him puke. He vaguely wondered where his trash can was and
whether he could get there if needed.
“You forgot, didn’t you?” The loud chuckle
that followed the question did not help with his headache. However, with everything
that had happened recently—the stalking and threats against his best friend— he
would have gladly suffered in silence to make James happy.
A soft moan escaped his dry lips. He tried
to wet them with his tongue, but it felt dry and thick. “Sorry, Jamie. What did
I forget?”
“You went out to the club again, didn’t
you?”
“Yes,” he whimpered. “Dale and Simon wanted
to go out for some fun. But I know you’re not calling to see if I went home
with anyone. So again I ask, why am I awake?”
“My art show tonight.”
He was certain he could hear a smirk in
James’s voice. “It’s”— Chase paused to check his clock—“not even noon yet,
Jamie.” He loved his best friend dearly, but why did he have to be so damned
perky first thing in the morning?
“Lunch. Remember?”
Lunch? Eating? He so didn’t want to think
about food right then.
“Right. Let me get up and get dressed. I’ll
swing by your place soon.”
“Go ahead and meet me at the restaurant,
please. We have reservations at Zarletti’s downtown. I’m out and about right now.
Okay?”
“Uh, sure, hun.” After a few more
pleasantries, he hung up and slowly dragged his groggy self out of bed,
stopping to down a couple of Tylenol and a full bottle of water before taking
his shower.
Chase took his time getting dressed, and
not simply because his head still hurt, the dull ache grating but livable. He
never went out without dressing for the occasion, though it was nothing
compared to how he would look later that night when he accompanied his best
friend to his first gallery show. It would be James’s debut as the featured
artist.
God, means I’ll have to deal with Rhys too.
He knew Rhys wouldn’t miss the show. He rolled his eyes for thinking about the
damn man. Rhys was sex on legs, but his attitude was crap! Still, dressing to
kill might not be a bad idea….
Chase finished buttoning the deep green
silk shirt over his slight frame as he walked to the fridge in his small but
well-appointed kitchen. Grabbing a bottle of Mountain Dew, he took a gulp
before he put the cap back on, grabbed his backpack, and headed out the front
door. He was usually a cappuccino kind of guy, but sometimes one needed an
extra kick of sugar and caffeine, fast.
Yawning, Chase got into his car and started
over to James’s before he remembered they were meeting at the restaurant
instead. At some point, he knew he would have to change his thinking and
acknowledge that the little cottage was James and Seth’s now, especially since
they were not only living together but would be married in just over a month.
Chase turned the corner to pull up in front
of Zarletti’s. A moment later, a motorcycle passed him. He paused a moment to
take in the eye candy: the black and chrome Harley Softail and the tall,
wide-shouldered man atop it. When he parked, he realized to whom the bike
belonged and groaned, cursing his luck and his reaction.
There Rhys stood, peering at him from
beside the motorcycle. Too bad the bike and those looks belong to such an ass
hat. Since the man was staring at him so blatantly, Chase decided to return the
favor. He took a moment to let his gaze wander from the man’s deep auburn hair
and perpetual five o’clock shadow to his delicious athletic build, wide shoulders,
and the defined pecs his black T-shirt served to accentuate, not hide, even
with the leather coat half covering him. Rhys was huge at close to six and a
half feet. He continued his perusal down Rhys to his thick, muscled legs and
his chunky black leather boots. Chase allowed himself a soft sigh. He took just
as long on the return trip, making a true production of it. When his gaze
finally landed on Rhys’s deep green eyes again, he smirked, turned, and made
sure to put a little extra swish into his hips as he sauntered up the sidewalk
to the front doors.
He reached to open one but paused when he
heard the crunching of boots on the path behind him. He groaned to himself
quietly and then stepped inside, hoping Rhys was there to meet someone else,
not James. Please let it not be us! Chase had managed to avoid Rhys for the
last few months, ever since James’s first gallery show. It was a lot harder to
stay away from him than he had expected. He hated how Rhys had befriended
James, making avoiding him all the more complicated.
“Good afternoon, welcome to Zarletti’s.
Table for two?” the brighteyed hostess asked as Chase approached her stand.
“No. I’m meeting someone. James Bryant? He
should be here
already.”
“Very good, sir. And you?” the hostess
asked, gazing past Chase to Rhys.
“The same, thank you.” Rhys’s deep,
rumbling voice sent a jolt through his system, as always.
Author Bio:
Tempeste O’Riley is an out and proud
pansexual gender fluid whose best friend growing up had the courage to do what she
couldn’t–defy the hate and come out. He has been her hero ever since.
Tempe is a hopeless romantic that loves
strong relationships and happily-ever-afters. Though new to writing M/M, she
has done many things in her life, though writing has always drawn her back–no
matter what else life has thrown her way. She counts her friends, family, and
Muse as her greatest blessings in life. She lives in Wisconsin with her
children, reading, writing, and enjoying life.
Tempe is also a proud PAN member of Romance Writers of America®, Rainbow Romance Writers, and
the WisRWA. Learn more about Tempeste and
her writing at http://tempesteoriley.com.
Author Links:
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Other Works by Tempeste O’Riley
Desires Entwined Series
Designs
of Desire (Amazon)
Simple Desires (in Grand Adventures Anthology)
Bound
by Desire (Free Read at ARe)
Desires’
Guardian (Amazon)
Temptations
of Desire (Amazon)
Truth
in Lace (Amazon)
Standalones
Caged
Sanctuary (Amazon)
Anthologies
Grand
Adventures (Dreamspinner Press)
Hope
& Love Anthology (Amazon)
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