by J. M. Colail
Dreamspinner Press
Years 1 & 2 Greatest Hits Contains:
Diplomacy By Zahra Owens
Jack Christensen has everything he ever wanted. He’s a rising star in US diplomacy, the youngest man to have been appointed as an Ambassador of the United States. A career diplomat who’s just been sent to a politically interesting embassy in Europe, he has the perfect wife, speaks five languages, and has all the right credentials, yet there’s something missing and he doesn’t quite know what.
Then Lucas Carlton walks into an embassy reception and introduces himself and his American fiancée. From the first handshake, the young Englishman makes an impression on Jack that leaves him confused and uncharacteristically insecure. Lucas’s position as the British liaison to the American embassy means they are forced to work together closely, and they have a hard time denying the attraction between them, despite their current relationships.
When their women decide to go on a weekend trip together, Jack and Lucas start a passionate relationship, which continues long after their partners return. Diplomatic circles are notoriously conservative though, and they each know that the right woman by their side makes a very significant contribution to their success. Will they be able to make the right choices in their professional and personal lives? Or will they need to sacrifice one for the other?
Wes & Toren By J.M. Colail
It’s not so easy being young, gay, and in love for the first time at the average high school. Senior Toren Grey cares more about his family and his grades than what brand of clothes he wears. He agrees with the majority consensus that he’s a nerd. So he’s quite surprised when resident bad boy Wesley Carroll speaks to him in the hall, stirring feelings that Toren has to hide.
Disconcerted by Wes’s free and easy ways, Toren can’t deny the attraction between them. As he relaxes and gets to know Wes better, he finds there’s more to the sexy rebel than his public image. Before long the young men are exploring new territory and falling in love, but life just isn’t that simple. After they graduate, obstacles block their relationship at every turn: Wes working versus Toren in college, the virulent disapproval of parents, and everyday trials faced by any struggling young couple. Wes and Toren have to believe in each other… and never doubt that their love can conquer all.
True North By Bethany Brown & Ashlyn Kane
Lost Boys and Love Letters: Book One
Small-town engineer Jackson Strange has been clumsy his whole life, so it doesn’t surprise him when an accident at work sends him to the local clinic—but his attraction to Julian Piet, the charming doctor charged with stitching him up, catches him completely off guard.
Julian has just returned home after finishing his residency a few provinces over. Now he has to make his tiny Alberta town fit again. When his path crosses Jack’s, he gets an idea of how to do that. Unfortunately, Jack’s reluctance to be open about his sexuality and Julian’s shattered confidence make taking that first step difficult. It takes a push from Julian’s meddlesome sister to send them stumbling into romance.
Happily wrapped up in their fledgling relationship, Jack and Julian think they may have found their way. Then Julian’s job, Jack’s family connections, and dangerous illness threaten to send them spinning apart. The only way to get to happy-ever-after is to believe and trust that together, they can find true north.
A Note in the Margin By Isabelle Rowan
John McCann, a man who judges life by the tally of an accounts ledger, has a supreme goal in life: to achieve, live, and enjoy the rarified executive lifestyle. But he’s encountered one problem. “The migraines are going to continue to get worse unless you make some major changes in your lifestyle. What you need is a ‘sea change’…. Perhaps buy a nice little business in the country, settle down, something easier to occupy your time….”
While John knows the doctor is right, he just can’t resign from the job he’s fought so hard for. He decides the sacrifice of taking a year’s leave of absence won’t interfere too much with his plans, and so he finds himself running Margins, a cozy little bookstore, with the help of the former owner’s son, Jamie. John expects to put in his year, get his stress under control, and then get back to business.
What John doesn’t expect is how Margins and its denizens draw him in, particularly the quiet, disheveled man who takes refuge in the old leather chair in the secondhand book section. John’s plans for an unattached year of simple business crumble when he meets David and is forced to reevaluate life, love, and what he really wants from both. John and David are forced to come to terms with their pasts as they struggle to determine what possible future they might build together.
Zero at the Bone By Jane Seville
After witnessing a mob hit, surgeon Jack Francisco is put into protective custody to keep him safe until he can testify. A hitman known only as D is blackmailed into killing Jack, but when he tracks him down, his weary conscience won’t allow him to murder an innocent man. Finding in each other an unlikely ally, Jack and D are soon on the run from shadowy enemies.
Forced to work together to survive, the two men forge a bond that ripens into unexpected passion. Jack sees the wounded soul beneath D’s cold, detached exterior, and D finds in Jack the person who can help him reclaim the man he once was. As the day of Jack’s testimony approaches, he and D find themselves not only fighting for their lives… but also fighting for their future. A future together.
Author’s Note
A WRITER doesn’t exist in a vacuum.
Although we tend to be loners, happy to spend time with just ourselves for company, we can’t live without other people to interact with. We need others so we can borrow a look, steal a character trait, use a quirky insight from them. It’s other people that help us write fleshed-out characters, interesting people, and intriguing situations, and that interaction starts early on in life. Without other people in our lives, our imagination would be sadly limited.
Some people are more important than others in that respect.
My mother raised an open-minded daughter and showed her, in a very matter-of-fact way, that relationships come in all shapes or sizes and that some of them involve two people of the same gender. Thank you, Mom, for being one of my most avid readers and for not even blinking when a passage turns a little explicit. Also, thank you for saying that my book was every bit as good as the romance novels you devour at a pace of three a week, even though I know you’re biased.
On the Internet I met many kindred spirits and one who became my regular editor. Silv, thank you for correcting my strange European sayings, my wonky spelling and weird sentence structures, and putting up with my sometimes very American way of putting things. Also, thank you for having the guts to tell me when things don’t work and the tact to tell me in such a way that it doesn’t damage my delicate writer’s ego.
Nancy, you persuaded me to send this story to a publisher and here I am!
To all my Internet readers, thank you for encouraging me to write more. Every single one of your comments was devoured and appreciated. Feedback keeps a writer not only on her toes, but also keeps her motivated.
Elizabeth and all the lovely people at Dreamspinner Press, my professional editors, Lynn West and Willa Canter, and my cover designer, Mara McKennen, thank you for giving me a voice.
From behind her desk,
Zahra Owens
Introduction
JACK TOOK a deep breath. He hated his job.
Well, not exactly his whole job, just the pomp and circumstance that came with it. Far away from the official engagements, he actually adored it. He did what he had always longed to do, ever since
he was a child. He did what his father had always done, and as soon as he was in high school, he knew he wanted to follow in his father’s footsteps and become a diplomat. Thanks to the fact that he grew up all over the world, he spoke quite a few languages, and he was learning another one now that he was in a new country. All his life he had wanted this, and now he had it.
Only tonight was one of the nights when he hated what he did. Because he was helping his President host a banquet in honor of his visit, he was dressed to the nines in an Armani suit that was especially cut for him and a designer shirt underneath with gold cufflinks that Maria, his wife of more than fifteen years, was helping him fasten.
“Will you just… hold still for one second?” She wasn’t smiling when she asked. He figured she was as nervous as he was, if not more so. When it came to banquets, he was the host in name of the President, but all eyes were invariably pointed toward ‘the wife’ because it was understood she always made all the practical arrangements. He smiled as he realized how lucky he was to have her.
Maria was also the child of career diplomats with an upbringing similar to his own.
The reason why he had gotten his first ambassador posting before the age of forty was undoubtedly in large part thanks to the fact that she was an impeccable organizer. Tonight would be no different. She had arranged a banquet for 112 dignitaries with a five course meal and speeches, and it would all flow together seamlessly, no doubt. He would get all the compliments tonight, not in the least about his wife’s radiant beauty. And a beauty she was, her medium length blond hair pulled back and pinned up with the diamond hair pin he had bought her in Antwerp for the wedding anniversary they had just celebrated, her slim body and delicate breasts enrobed in an elegant burgundy red strapless dress that flowed over her body as if it was molded onto her and made her smooth lily-white skin stand out. As she reached up to brush some stray hairs off his shoulders, he rested his hands on her waist and leaned in to whisper in her ear. “You look absolutely eye-poppingly gorgeous tonight. You’ll knock ’em dead out there.” Maria just smiled her knowing smile. She was more than aware of the heads she would turn this evening.
One of the Secret Service men stuck his head inside the room. “Mr. Christensen, Ma’am, POTUS is ready to go inside.”
They both knew the jargon. POTUS was the name used for the President of the United States. They would need to be by his side as he walked in.
While Maria straightened his tie one more time, he leaned in to give her a quick kiss on the mouth.
“Oh, Jack.” She ran her finger over his lip to erase the tiniest red mark her lipstick had left. Jack could see the worry lines on her forehead.
“Just smile, Maire. You look much nicer when you smile.”
This was their little ritual before these occasions; their own way of getting ready to face their guests. Maria loved it when Jack called her by her nickname, which was the Irish version of her Christian name. Her father had called her that and after his death, Jack had adopted the practice. It would inevitably make her relax, a shy but warm smile appearing on her face.
Jack took her hand as they headed toward the next room where they would join their President.
Preliminary
Negotiations
Chapter One
AS AMBASSADOR, Jack Christensen was the representative of his Head of State in the country he was assigned to. That didn’t mean he always agreed with the man, it just meant he had to pretend he did. So he was not exactly a member of the current President’s fan club. In fact, he had always been a fairly eloquent Democrat, so he was quite surprised when he was appointed to replace the Ambassador to Belgium who was retiring.
Even though a large part of his job was to translate his President’s policies for that country, the assignment excited him. This was a small country indeed, but a well-trusted one. Not to mention it was interesting diplomatically, since its capital housed not only the Headquarters of NATO, but also the seat of the European Commission, and was considered the de facto capital of the European Union. The north of Belgium also housed a major international seaport that was often used by the United States for military transport, making it an ally to be pampered.
On the other hand, Belgium was known to be a headstrong country that did not follow the pack blindly. On more than one occasion, the former Ambassador had needed to smooth out wrinkles in the transatlantic relationship, so Jack knew he had his work cut out for him.
Tonight had been his baptism of fire. He hadn’t even had the occasion to officially present his credentials to King Albert II yet, as was the custom for new ambassadors, and now his President was visiting and he had a house full of government officials and Secret Service personnel.
The visit would last three days, and Jack knew that with all the receptions and banquets it was going to be the longest three days of his life.
The banquet went by perfectly, even though the United Kingdom’s Ambassador went home early with a bad case of the flu. At least that would be the official explanation. Just after the main course, Maria had noticed he was rather inebriated, and after she alerted Jack to this, he was discretely removed and sent home in his chauffeur driven car.
Since the President and First Lady were guests at the Embassy, Jack and Maria were required to stay in the private quarters of the Embassy instead of going to their home just outside the city.
“Tonight was perfect.” Jack was in his pajama bottoms, leaning against the doorway watching Maria take off her make-up. He knew she would understand that as “thank you for a great job.’
She rolled her eyes. “We came close to a small diplomatic incident, though. Luckily, our Brit didn’t object too much to being sent home.”
Jack moved behind her and rested his hands on her slender hips. “Judging from his reaction, his assistant wasn’t surprised.” He was watching her elegant figure in the large bathroom mirror.
As they had greeted their guests before the banquet he had seen quite a few men’s eyes travel across his wife’s body. Some of them had even looked at her lustfully, not bothering to hide it while he was talking to them. So why had she never conjured up those feelings in him? He loved her, of course. She was beautiful, that he could see too, but he had never felt the uncontrollable need to just have his way with her on the top of the table. Even in the beginning of their relationship, making love had been tender and caring, but rarely unashamedly passionate.
He kissed her neck tenderly. Luckily they were great friends. “It’s going to be a long day tomorrow as well, starting bright and early with a private breakfast with our honored guests.”
She turned around and brushed her finger along his jaw. “Yes, we’d better turn in.”
THE FOLLOWING evening there would be a reception where the Americans living in Belgium would not only get a chance to meet their President, but also their new Ambassador. Even though it was a much more relaxed affair compared to the banquet, Jack and Maria would have to make their rounds and shake a lot of hands, leaving very little chance to actually have a decent conversation with anyone.
Jack was talking to a Presbyterian minister and his wife who had lived in Belgium for more than twenty years. As always, he had one eye on the entrance where the guests were greeted by his Protocol Officer. Just as Jack politely declined the minister’s dinner invitation, his eye was caught by a young man entering. He was tall, dressed all in black, and instead of a tie he had on a black silk cravat, wrapped loosely around his neck. His hair was long and wavy, and Jack realized that he was probably the only one in the entire room who could get away with that look and not seem underdressed for the occasion. On his arm was a beautiful, fresh looking young blond woman, who smiled nervously and clung to him like wrapping paper.
“Oh, but you and your lovely wife must come to our church, Mr. Christensen. Antwerp is just a forty-five minute drive, you know,” he vaguely heard the older woman say.
As if emerging from a daze, he excused himself. “Mr. and Mrs.… Wallace, I�
�m sorry but I need to attend to a minor emergency.” He quickly made his way through one of the side doors.
Just seconds later Maria entered as well. “I almost felt like I should come and rescue you.”
“Huh? What?”
“I saw your eyes glaze over. She is a little pushy, isn’t she? Now let’s go back in before our guests start to wonder why the new Ambassador and his wife disappeared together.”
She smiled as she gently nudged Jack back into the room.
Both the President and the First Lady, closely watched by the Secret Service, worked the room like consummate professionals, trying to cover as much ground as possible in the shortest time. Jack and Maria were well experienced in doing the same, but as he emerged, Jack realized he was scanning the crowd for the dark haired young man. Even though the reception was at its height, he quickly found him and his twinkling companion, animatedly talking to the First Lady, who was clearly very taken by the confident young man. Jack could tell he was in no way fazed by the First Lady’s notoriety and seemed totally at ease, something Jack had never achieved in all his years in the diplomatic corps. Just as he was ready to make his way over to him, sensing the First Lady was ready to move on, he was engaged by an older businessman, a newcomer to this country and clearly eager to meet his Ambassador. They exchanged courtesies, but Jack was relieved when another older couple joined in the conversation, giving him a chance to take his leave.
“Your Excellency?”
A fairly low, confident and very British voice made him turn around, and he found himself looking into the most beautiful chocolate brown eyes he had ever seen. There was a moment of awkward silence between them that seemed to last forever. Jack knew he had to respond, but his mind was an absolute blank.