Sometimes only the wrong guy can bring the
right happy ever after.
High Balls
right happy ever after.
High Balls
(Balls To The Wall Series #6 )
by Tara Lain
Blurb:
Though only twenty-six, single father Theodore Walters lives with his head in the clouds and his feet firmly planted in reality. At the center of his life is Andy, his seven-year-old son, with whom he shares no DNA, though nobody—including his religious-fanatic in-laws—knows that, and Theodore will do anything to keep them from finding out. Theodore works hard to get his PhD and the tenure and salary that might follow to make a better life for Andy—but the head of his department thinks his dissertation on Jane Austen and romance novels is frivolous.
Theodore’s carefully planned life goes off the rails when he walks into a popular Laguna Beach bar and meets the bartender, “Snake” Erasmo, a pierced and tattooed biker who sends Theodore’s imagination—and libido—soaring. Snake has even more secrets than Theodore and couldn’t be a less “appropriate” match, but he might be the only guy with the skills to show Theodore that happily-ever-after is for real.
Available for purchase at
Kindle | Nook | Kobo | iTunes | Dreamspinner Press
Excerpt
“Dad?”
Snake
whispered, “Showtime.” He stood.
Teddy
looked up and rose.
Andy
rubbed his eyes and his nose. “How come you guys are on the floor?”
Teddy
smiled and picked up Andy. “I was just surprised and unhappy when Snake told me
what your grandparents did.”
“Yeah.”
He snuffled and snuggled into his dad’s shoulder.
Teddy
sat on the couch and settled Andy on his lap. Snake started to sit in the chair
across from them, but Andy looked up. “Snake? Will you sit by me?”
“Sure,
buddy.” He glanced at Teddy, who looked up quickly and then away. Snake sat
beside Teddy, who held Andy in his arms. Snake took Andy’s feet.
Teddy
started to rock him. “So you know about babies coming from mommies, right?”
“Sure.”
“Moms
might have different possible dads around before their baby is born, but after
the baby is born, the mom might choose a dad.” He looked at Snake, pleading in
his eyes.
Snake
picked up the thread. “It could be that the dad the mom chooses isn’t the same
dad that actually caused the baby in the first place. But that doesn’t matter.”
“Right.”
Teddy kissed Andy’s hair. “You mom chose me, and we got married right away, and
I was there the whole time you were in her tummy, and I saw you get born and
loved you when you were barely an idea.”
Snake
blinked hard. “That guy who came to talk to you might have caused the baby, but
then he was gone, and he never married your mom or helped her or saw you born
or raised you—or loved you. So guess who your dad is?”
Andy
tightened his grip on Teddy. “Daddy is my dad.”
“Ding,
ding, ding, ding. Give the prize to Andy Walters!”
Andy
was quiet for a minute. “But that guy caused me?”
Teddy’s
chest rose and fell. “He might have, sweetheart.”
Andy
sat back and stared at Teddy with his brows scrunched over his nose. “You
didn’t cause me ’cause you don’t like girls, right?”
Snake
bit the inside of his cheek.
Teddy
smiled. “Kind of. I actually loved your mom a lot. She was my best friend. And
when she told me she was going to have a baby, I said maybe I could be the dad.
She loved that idea, and we had such a good time raising you.”
“Wish
I remembered her better.”
Snake
had to look away or Andy might see the tears pushing out of his eyes.
“She
loved you so much. Just like I do.” Teddy hugged him tight.
The Balls Title Writes the Balls Book
Hi. I’m Tara Lain and I’m delighted
to be here celebrating my brand new book in the Balls to the Wall series, High
Balls. You may have heard me say in the past that titles are really
important to me and I usually create them before I write the book – sometimes
before I even know what the story is.
For example, back in 2011, I knew I
wanted to write a book that involved a black cat. That’s all I knew. Black cats
are often associated with witches so I decided to write a witch paranormal. I
know a fair amount about the witch trials so I thought it would be fun to embed
some of that information in the book. What if the hero witch is – a teacher?
Like a college professor who teaches a class on witchcraft? Hmmm. Teacher, witch,
cat. Yes! The title Spell Cat was
born, before a word had landed on the page.
The first book in the Balls to the
Wall series was originally going to be called David, Gareth and Goliath. I
decided that title wasn’t beachy enough and played with the fact that two of
the heroes are volleyball players. Hmm. Fun to separate the words and make it a
little provocative. Volley Balls. That became the title of a book that started a
Balls cascade. As soon as book 2, Fire Balls, became a bestseller,
people started sending me ideas for Balls titles. I literally received many
dozens of them. I sure am glad I changed that name!
When I decided to write a new story
in the series I played with all the many Balls titles I could think of. High Balls kept coming up for me
(pardon the pun). What if, I thought, my hero meets his love in a bar and what
if the guy is the – bartender? Okay, so my hero has to be somebody unexpected
to match up with this bartender. So I created a nervous, serious, young PhD
candidate whose life is focused on his seven year old son and defending his
dissertation, who falls head over balls for a tattooed bartender named – Snake!
Writing High Balls was literally
a ball since I got to create two brand new heroes but still include all the
guys from the past books. I hope you love the story the title suggested!
The Balls to the Wall Series
Volley Balls
Bk #1
Available to purchase at
Kindle | Nook | Kobo | iTunes | Dreamspinner Press
Fire Balls
Bk #2
Available to purchase at
Beach Balls
Bk #3
Bk #3
FAST Balls
Bk #4
Available to purchase at
Kindle | Nook | Kobo | iTunes | Dreamspinner Press
Prefer paperback?
The first and second book are now available in paperback!
About the Author
Tara Lain writes the Beautiful Boys of Romance in LGBT erotic romance novels that star her unique, charismatic heroes. Her first novel was published in January of 2011 and she’s now somewhere around book 32. Her best-selling novels have garnered awards for Best Series, Best Contemporary Romance, Best Paranormal Romance, Best Ménage, Best LGBT Romance, Best Gay Characters, and Tara has been named Best Writer of the Year in the LRC Awards. In her other job, Tara owns an advertising and public relations firm. She often does workshops on both author promotion and writing craft. She lives with her soul-mate husband and her soul-mate dog near the sea in California where she sets a lot of her books. Passionate about diversity, justice, and new experiences, Tara says on her tombstone it will say “Yes”!
Thank you for having me and the guys on the blog! : )
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