Author: BL Dayhoff
Title: Growing Strong
Publisher: Torquere Press
Cover Artist: Kris Norris
Release Date: 5/11/16
Heat Level: 2
Pairing: male/male
Length: 47K
Book/Buy Links: (Publisher site, Goodreads, Amazon, etc…):
Genre/Tags: Contemporary, M/M Romance, New Adult
Add to Goodreads
Synopsis
A chance—and embarrassing—encounter brings Hunter and Chase together, but it’s patience and kindness that keep them there. Through a slow-blossoming friendship and a series of misunderstandings, Hunter finds himself fighting an attraction he thinks isn’t returned. But with the help of his roommate, Tony, he may just be able to make the leap and confess his feelings. But love isn’t Hunter’s only concern. With his sister’s upcoming nuptials, he also must learn to face a family that hasn’t quite disowned him for his sexuality. With Chase by his side, it’s going to take strength for Hunter to stand up for himself and to hold on to what really matters.Excerpt
Hunter tripped over Tony’s briefcase
in his rush to get to the door, cursed, and somehow remained upright. He
stumbled a few more steps, caught himself on the kitchen counter, and stopped.
Huffing once, he continued, with slightly more competence, the final few feet
to the front door. When he opened it, Chase was there with a stack of DVDs in
hand. “Hey.”
“Hey, c’mon in. You find the place
okay?”
“Yeah, it was really easy and—oh,
hi.”
“Yo.”
“Chase this is—Tony! Put some pants
on!”
Tony grinned from his boxer-clad
position on the couch. “You didn’t tell me you were having a guest.”
He most certainly had. “Well I do,
so, pants!”
“Careful, I might take that as an
order.” Tony winked, then wagged his butt all the way back to his room.
“Sorry about him. I think his mother
dropped him a few times as a child.”
Chase chuckled. “Don’t worry about
it. We all have a few in our lives.”
“Tell me about it. So what movies
did you bring?” He sat on the couch, tucking himself against one armrest, and
was pointedly not disappointed when Chase sat on the opposite side—making
himself as far away as possible.
“Um, well, La Belle et la Bête,
because it’s so standard, The Bitter Sweet Tears of Petra von Kant, The
Four Hundred Blows, Run Lola Run, Rashomon—which is dry but
classic—and A Love to Hide.”
“Well,” Hunter chuckled. “I think
I’ve heard of one or two of them. How about Lola? Unless there’s one you
wanted to watch?”
“No, I just brought a variety so if
you get bored, we can switch.” He opened the case, popped the DVD out, and
handed it to Hunter, who got up and slid it in the DVD player.
He tracked down the remote, and when
he turned around he found Tony sitting in his spot.
Glaring at Tony was equivalent to
yelling at the rain, so he dimmed the lights, took the spot between them, and
hit play. Lacking an armrest, he folded his arms across his chest and glanced
at Tony. What did he think he was doing? Why was he crashing in when Tony had
been egging him all week about how Hunter had a second date? Was he trying to
make sure nothing happened? Or was he forcing Hunter to sit closer?
He shifted his gaze to Chase, who
was watching the previews. With a sigh, Hunter sagged into the couch and
skipped the disc ahead so he could stare at the opening credits.
But he couldn’t focus. He wished
life was full of do-overs like movies. He had the running down. Or maybe just
the running without ever getting anywhere. He woke up in the same bed every
morning. Went to the same job. Knew the same people.
Leaning forward, he picked up the
remote and paused it.
“Everything okay?” Chase asked.
Tony elbowed him in the side and said,
“Dude?”
“I just realized we don’t have
popcorn. Do you want popcorn? I want popcorn.” He stood and shuffled into the
kitchen.
“Sure, I could eat some popcorn.”
Chase followed behind. “Plain?”
“Um.” He pulled the box off the
shelf. “Movie theater. So extra buttery, I guess. That good?”
“Yeah.” Chase smiled.
Hunter opened a bag, shoved it in
the microwave, entered the time, and started it.
“I was worried that you hated the
movie already.”
“No! I mean, it’s fine; it just
started. I don’t like to judge things immediately.”
“Good. I know it’s a weird one, but
sometimes I swear we only get the weird ones.”
“Ah, well,” Hunter said in his worst
European accent, “you crazy Americans love that shit.”
Chase chuckled and leaned back on
the counter as the smell of hot butter filled the air, joined by the pop-pop-popping
of their snack. “It’s true. America sometimes feels like the redheaded
stepchild of the world.”
“Well, least we’re not Canada.”
“Hey, my grandparents were
Canadian!”
“Oh, uh… I…”
Chase laughed. “I’m kidding. Sorry,
I couldn’t resist.” He tilted his head to the side and flashed a grin. Cute.
Hunter diverted himself by pulling a
bowl down and removing the hot popcorn. The comforting aroma rushed out when he
opened the bag and poured the popcorn into the bowl.
Chase snuck around him to steal a
piece, popping it into his mouth with a satisfied crunch. “First piece is
always the best.”
“Right…” He was distracted by the
smudge of oil on Chase’s lip and the pink tongue that darted out to clean it
up. Averting his eyes to the bowl in his hands, he headed back toward the
living room. “So, shall we?”
“Yep!” Chase followed him, plopping
down in his previous spot on the now-empty couch.
Hunter hesitated, then sat beside
him with just enough room to nestle the bowl between them. He hit play.
Chase glanced down the hall toward
the bedrooms. “Should we wait for Tony?”
“No, I don’t think he likes foreign
flicks. It’s fine.”
“Okay.”
They settled into the movie, taking
turns gobbling up popcorn as the scene unfolded again and again. Hunter
couldn’t concentrate. Their hands kept bumping, knuckles grazing and skin
brushing, each awkwardly pulling away. Was Chase doing it on purpose? Was it
subtle flirting? Hunter couldn’t tell. He knew he wasn’t doing it on
purpose—not that he minded—but what if Chase was?
Eventually he just grabbed a large
handful and ate from that, leaving Chase what was left. It didn’t matter.
Things could just progress naturally. If Chase was interested, he’d say
something. He’d have to have seen how incompetent Hunter was. God, he was
incompetent. Not that he necessarily wanted to date Chase. Friends first, that
was a good idea. So that way they’d have something to base a relationship on.
Not that he thought Chase was interested in a relationship. If he was gay—and
Hunter was pretty sure he was—it didn’t mean he’d automatically be interested
in Hunter.
Hunter was a dork, socially screwy,
and God, they’d met when he’d been fucked in an alley, drugged, and was
throwing up. Yeah, there was no way in hell Chase was interested in him. He
wiped his hand on the leg of his jeans and stared pointedly at the screen.
Friends was good. He needed more friends. Tony would argue he needed friends
period, but that wasn’t true.
He winced at a loud noise in the
movie and sank down into the couch, shifting away inch by inch until he was
leaning against the opposite armrest. To distract himself from the man on the
other end of the couch, he tried to focus on the movie. When that didn’t work,
he pondered if his character Erik would like this kind of movie. He didn’t seem
like the type. Too busy with work and school to waste time watching movies when
he could be studying or hanging with friends. Half closing his eyes, Hunter
composed in his head.
Purchase
Torquere Press
Meet the Author
BL Dayhoff is working on coming out of her shell. She's always had an interest in writing, but only recently has done it for more than just her own personal amusement. She loves to fill her time with too many things, and her initials really are "BL" but unfortunately do not stand for Boys Love. Although maybe her parents knew something about the future...
Twitter | Blog | Goodreads
Giveaway
Rafflecopter Prize: One winner wil be selected to win an eBook copy of An ebook copy of “Sometimes the Cowboy Falls” from BL's backlist.
No comments:
Post a Comment