HIS TRUTH
RILEY
HART
M/M
ROMANCE
RELEASE
DATE: 03.29.18
BLURB
They were
only kids when they met for the first time. Leo Mancini was the son of a judge.
Roman Cipriani the son of a criminal. So different, yet as they shared stolen
kisses and secret moments, they fell in love. One day they would run away
together, have the future they deserved, because no one loved Leo like Roman
did, or Roman like Leo did. But before they could make their dreams come true,
their future was viciously stolen and their lives changed forever.
Roman has
spent the last twelve years repressing the trauma in his past, trying to
pretend it didn’t exist, until even he believed his own lies.
Leo won’t
let himself forget what happened because he doesn’t ever want to be that person
again. He won’t become the man his father wanted him to be or the guy who gets
hurt when he lets someone in.
But in
that split second when their eyes meet again, everything changes. Despite Leo’s
anger and Roman’s denial, the connection they shared as teens is still there,
too powerful to deny. Now, when their moments don’t have to be stolen, they
cling to what they’ve always craved—each other.
Roman and
Leo aren’t kids anymore, though—they can’t lock themselves away from the world
and pretend nothing exists but each other. A trauma like Roman suffered doesn’t
just go away, but now that Roman accepts his truth, can the two of them escape
their demons before they destroy Roman and Leo a second time?
EXCERPT
It was
close to ten when Roman’s phone rang. His pulse kicked up, and when he saw
Leo’s name on the screen, he fumbled ridiculously picking it up. It was Friday
night, so he’d assumed Leo would be at work. He hadn’t expected to hear from
him. “Hello?”
“Hey,
Tough Guy. What are you doing?” Roman wasn’t sure why, but his pulse sped again
at the old nickname. He listened but didn’t hear music or anything in the
background. “You didn’t have to work tonight?” he asked.
“I’m on
break. I borrowed the keys to someone’s car, so I’m sitting in it. Needed some
quiet. How was work?”
“Work was
work. I had too many meetings and a few unhappy clients.”
“Sounds
like your day was about as good as mine.”
They were
quiet for a few moments. Roman wasn’t sure what to say. There was something
different about Leo right now, but he couldn’t put his finger on what it was.
“What did you do today?” he finally asked.
“Nothing
important.”
Leo’s
words sounded like a lie. No, he knew they were a lie. He’d always been able to
tell when Leo was having a bad day or wasn’t being truthful with him. “I don’t
believe you.”
There was
a soft chuckle on the other end of the line. “I never could lie to you. I went
to see my parents. It was a shitty day. I don’t want to talk about it. Where
are you?”
Curiosity
almost made him refuse to answer Leo’s question, but somehow he knew now wasn’t
the time to talk about it. That wasn’t what Leo needed. “Lying in my bed.” At
ten on a Friday night. He really needed to get a life. What would Leo do after
work tonight? Would he bring someone home with him? The thought made Roman’s
gut churn, but it wasn’t as if he had any claim on Leo. They hadn’t discussed
anything.
“Have you
done what I told you to do?” Leo asked, confusing him.
“What was
that?”
“Finger
yourself. Get to know your body.”
Roman immediately
tensed up and hated himself for it. There was nothing wrong with masturbating.
He’d jerked off too many times to count. Most people did, but this was
different.
“Do it
for me now, Ro,” Leo said, obviously not needing Roman to answer him.
“What?
No.”There was a voice in his head telling him it wasn’t a big deal. Phone sex.
People did it all the time. He felt like a novice when it came to being sexual.
He’d worked hard to please Amy or other women he’d been with, but he wasn’t the
kind of man who had phone sex or anything like that.
“Yes. You
can do it. I don’t have much time, though. Let’s see…If I can make you come
before I get back to work, what do I get?”
Roman
didn’t answer. The truth was, he couldn’t imagine putting a finger up his own
ass while he was on the phone with Leo.
“The only
way to move forward is to let go of the past.”Leo’s words burst through his
thoughts. They were true, another truth Roman needed to accept.
“Are you
wearing anything?” Leo asked.
“Just my
underwear.”
“Take
them off for me. You have such a beautiful body. I couldn’t stop looking at it
the other night.”
It was
clearly a distraction, but…fuck, Roman thought maybe he wanted this too. Wanted
to let loose and just do the kinds of things people dating did. He didn’t want
to think about things that hurt or things that were hard, and he knew Leo
didn’t either.
Roman did
his best to turn his brain off, took a deep breath, and pulled his underwear
down his legs. He kicked out of them and then pushed the blanket down so he was
completely bare in the middle of his bed. “Okay, they’re off,” Roman told him,
realizing he really wanted to do this. “How should I lie?”
Riley Hart is the girl who wears her heart on her sleeve. She’s a
hopeless romantic, a lover of sexy stories, passionate men, and writing about
all the trouble they can get into together.
She loves reading, flawed characters, and hanging out with her husband
and children, who she adores. She and her family live in Southern California,
soaking up the sunshine while also missing seasons. Not a day goes by that she
isn’t thankful she gets to wake up and do what she loves.
Life is good. Riley also writes young adult and new adult under the
name Nyrae Dawn.
No comments:
Post a Comment