Dusk, who served as best man to them both, stood by the wooden platform proud as a peacock. One might have thought he was the father, not the older brother to one of the grooms. He’d done an amazing job aiding them with organizing the whole thing, though Mage should have asked someone else to deal with the bachelor party. Because, instead of a bar hop or a short beach holiday, Mage and Dawn had been treated to a bondage lesson with a friend of Asher’s, which had been even more awkward than the realistic cock made of Belgian chocolate.
It was a good thing that Dawn was taking his anti-anxiety meds and did so well in therapy, because Mage had no idea how he would have survived meeting the leather-clad Dom otherwise. Weirdly enough, Dawn had ended up chatting to the guy after the whole thing, and Buck was now sitting at their wedding in the back row with Asher, Abra and Sid. Mage could only hope she had no idea what Buck did for a living.
Dawn had said he was a ‘very nice man’.
How precious was he?
In contrast to the bachelor party, the wedding itself was pure pleasure, since Dawn and Dusk’s parents took the weight of preparations off their shoulders, and even Mage didn’t feel the need to micromanage everything.
The food was fresh and home-made. The wine came from their friend’s vineyard, and the cake was the most perfect tower of cupcakes.
The wedding was by no means a formal event, and even Mage’s dad followed the dress code by leaving his tie at home. The relaxed atmosphere dispersed any stress that had been eating at Mage in the days leading up to the ceremony. When he stood with Dawn, listening to the last of his vows, he had no doubts whatsoever that this was what he wanted. What would make him happy.
The sight of his parents and siblings clapping loudly from their table made his smile even wider, because no matter how complicated his relationship with them was in the past, they were family, and he wanted them to love Dawn as much as he did.
Gulliver, who had come with a partner of his own, cheered a bit too loudly, but Mage waved at him, happy with the guy’s enthusiasm. Sure, he was weird, but he’d proved to be an amazing assistant in the last two years, so maybe Asher had been right about picking him for the job. Instead of a chilled out fan of rock music, they got Gulliver, a squeaky clean nerd who didn’t drink, and could always drive them home.
After their kiss, Mage was about to pull on Dawn’s hand and lead him to the cupcakes, but Dawn wouldn’t budge.
He smiled and pointed to a chair Lolly had sneakily added to the front row. “Please, have a seat, Mage. I wanted to say something special to you.”
At first, Mage wasn’t sure what this was about, but it looked like Dusk was part of this surprise, because he handed Dawn a guitar. A bit thrown off guard, he sat on the chair, facing Dawn while the guests all remained behind him. His skin was tingling as if he’d been touched by a low current of electricity, and while the guitar gave him an inkling of what might happen, his mind was not certain. Dawn had never done anything like it before.
Mage never prodded him, because as long as Dawn was making progress in therapy, he shouldn’t be pressured into things beyond his comfort zone, but he’d always expressed the wish to see Dawn on stage. Only that he didn’t expect this moment to come at their wedding, even if it made all the sense. A step forward in front of their friends and family.
Dawn smiled at him, filling Mage’s heart with so much love it was hard to contain. He quickly wiped his eyes when they blurred. It was the reason behind wearing glasses instead of contact lenses for this occasion. Mage wasn’t a crier, but he had no doubt he’d be shedding a tear today.
All that they’ve been through together, had led them to this moment, and to this expression of love.
Dawn gently tapped the microphone Dusk had put in front of him. His face bloomed with a pretty flush, and his warm eyes--with love. So much love. “This is only one of many songs I’ve written with Mage in mind, but it still expresses everything I feel.”
Mage smiled back the moment he heard the first chords, but had to wipe his eyes again when Dawn started singing.
A moment of truth
I felt your shadow touch me for the first time
Since then, it has always been you
You. Forever. Always.
When I first saw you,
Lemonade buzzed in my veins instead of blood
The fizz went straight to my head
You. Forever. Always.
Your lips are sweet ecstasy
Your arms the fortress I’ll always call home
You are the knight at the gate
You. Forever. Always.
It’s for you that I breathe
It’s for you that I’m ready to break all the rules
It’s for you that I long at night
You. Forever. Always.
Yeah, baby, it’s always been you
You pushed me into adulthood
You, my only.
You. Forever. Always.
But then when Mage thought the song was over, after all, he’d heard it so many times, Dawn added one more verse.
I will grow old with you
The beginning of my forever
And I will love you always
You. Forever. Always.
The end
Hipster Brothel
--- The lumberjack of his dreams is now available for rent. ---
Mr. B has always been a safe guy for Jo to crush on. He’s the cutest bearded lumber-god to salivate over. Add to that his friendly, outgoing personality, and Mr. B might just be the first guy Jo would be willing to kiss. Fortunately, Mr. B has been in a relationship for years, and Jo is no home-wrecker.
But when Mr. B breaks up with his partner and all of a sudden is single, available, and talks about his plans to be sexually adventurous, Jo isn’t so sure anymore if he has the guts to come out as bisexual.
After a sour breakup, Mr. B wants to show his ex that he’s independent, exciting, and can do very well without him. His best friend Jo is there to the rescue, and they come up with a great new business venture. One thing they lack to start their own line of artisanal boozy jams - money for the investment.
After a drunken brainstorming session, Mr. B finds a way to both gather the cash and show the middle finger to his ex. He will create a one of a kind Hipster Brothel - The Lumbersexual Experience - offering wood chopping lessons, pipe smoking, and a reclaimed wood bed where the magic happens. It’s bound to be a success… if only Mr. B can go through with it, because the mixed signals from Jo are making him wonder if his best friend is as straight as he always seemed.
POSSIBLE SPOILERS:
Themes: Hipsters, sex work, friends to lovers, bisexuality, post-breakup issues, coming out, first time, alternative lifestyles, lumbersexual bear, commitment
Genre: M/M contemporary romance
Length: ~50,000 words (standalone novel)
WARNING: Explicit content, strong language. A shameless amount of buzzwords. May cause second-hand embarrassment.
AMAZON
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Kat&Agnes AKA K.A. Merikan
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http://kamerikan.com
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About the author
K.A. Merikan are a team of writers who try not to suck at adulting, with some success. Always eager to explore the murky waters of the weird and wonderful, K.A. Merikan don’t follow fixed formulas and want each of their books to be a surprise for those who choose to hop on for the ride.
K.A. Merikan have a few sweeter M/M romances as well, but they specialize in the dark, dirty, and dangerous side of M/M, full of bikers, bad boys, mafiosi, and scorching hot romance.
FUN FACTS!
- We’re Polish
- We're neither sisters nor a couple
- Kat's fingers are two times longer than Agnes's.
e-mail: [email protected]
More information about ongoing projects, works in progress and publishing at:
K.A. Merikan’s author page: http://kamerikan.com
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Twitter (run by Kat): https://twitter.com/KA_Merikan
Agnes Merikan’s Twitter: https://twitter.com/AgnesMerikan
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Other books by K.A. Merikan
Guns n’ Boys (single-couple series)
Road of No Return
The Devil’s Ride
No Matter What
Red Hot
One Step Too Close
His Favorite Color is Blood
Heart Ripper
Diary of a Teenage Taxidermist
Bare-Knuckle Love
The Cattery
Werewolves of Chernobyl (written with L.A. Witt)
Special Needs
The Copper Horse (single-couple trilogy)
Stung
Crazy Kinky Dirty Love (single-couple series)
The Art of Mutual Pleasure
The Black Sheep and the Rotten Apple
Hipster Brothel
Laurent and the Beast
My Dark Knight
The Underdogs Box Set - Books 1-3 (gay rockstar romance) Page 58