Give Me A Hand
A Beyond Desires Series, Book 1
Gwen Martin
M/M Romance, New Adult, Friends to Lovers, College Roommates
Release Date: 03.10.20
Blurb
THEIR WORLD COLLIDED. EVERYTHING CHANGED.
Cam and Jude had been college roommates for two years, fitting into each other's lives with ease.
That is, until Cam walked in on Jude getting off alone in their shared dorm bathroom.
Everything shifted between the two of them, awakening feelings Cam hadn't felt for anyone in a long time. Feelings Cam believed had shriveled up after surviving a near fatal car accident to then suffer a disastrous breakup with his first love.
Since then, Cam kept his heart sealed tight in a fortress, keeping himself busy with a lot of mindless hookups and a steadfast refusal to ever commit.
Cam's life had been predictable. He knew what he wanted.
Until that impromptu mutual orgasm with Jude.
Cam didn't want a boyfriend, and he certainly didn't need a relationship.
But he knew one thing he did crave and that was more of Jude Ellison.
Will Cam be able to work through his painful past if Jude offered him a chance at more?
***Give Me A Hand is the first book in the Beyond Desire Series, but is a standalone novel. Each book in the series will feature a different couple, but the couples will show up throughout the series. It is approximately 50,000 words and a New Adult Friends to Lovers romance between two men with explicit language and graphic sex intended for Adults Only.***
Cover Designer: StudioNP https://studioenp.com/
Universal Link: http://bit.ly/GiveMeAHand
Excerpt
Their bodies pressed together, faces a breath apart. Cam noticed the faint flicker of green around Jude’s pupils, and tiny droplets of water from his shower caught in his stubble along his jaw. Cam brushed the fringe off Jude’s forehead and watched, transfixed, as Jude wetted his lips.
Cam loved the way Jude responded; he reveled in Jude's eyes fluttering shut as Cam’s fingertips grazed down his neck.
“God,” Jude moaned with a sigh, “I’ve been thinking about this all day.”
Cam grabbed a handful of sheet in a tight fist in an effort to ground himself in the dizzying whirlpool he was sinking in. He was floating with desire, and shaky inside from the intensity of it. Cam’s mind warred with wanting it to stop and never letting go.
“Have you?” he murmured against the warmth of Jude’s skin.
Cam leaned down, his lips brushing against Jude’s collarbone. His heart pounded inside of his chest, and he was nervous, but he was excited. Cam hadn’t felt this way about being with someone since high school.
He swallowed hard and placed a small kiss on Jude’s collarbone.
Jude combed his fingers through the hair at the base of Cam's neck, gripping a handful and jerking Cam's head up. Cam expelled a sharp moan, and his heart revved into overdrive when Jude’s face grew so close he turned into a blurry mess within Cam’s swimming vision.
“You,” Jude said in a low, commanding voice, “are wearing far too much clothing.”
Cam licked his lips and nodded. “Okay,” he said, leaning back to give himself room. “Right, okay.”
He lifted an arm, and Jude helped pull his shirt off. Jude tossed it to the other side of the room without breaking eye contact with Cam, and lifted a single eyebrow.
“You need to be more naked for what I want to see you do.”
Cam bit down the whine itching in the back of his throat. The roughness of Jude’s voice was doing a million things to Cam’s body, including surging warmth in his chest. There was an old familiarity to that, and a warning bell went off inside of his head.
He swallowed hard and changed his focus.
“Oh yeah?” he teased, hoping his voice didn’t give away his nerves. Cam glided a hand down the front of his chest towards the button of his jeans, and a thrill jolted through him as Jude positioned himself on his elbows. Jude watched with such naked appreciation, Cam had to take several breaths before he could speak again. “And...what is it you want to see?”
Thank you to Wicked Faerie's Tales and Reviews for having me today.
I first began writing Give Me A Hand in July 2019. I was on vacation over the 4th of July, and the idea hit me like a freight train. I ended up writing the bulk of the story (around 38k) in a week and a half. My original intention was to have a erotic, high steam, new adult college romance, that would entice the reader and be about two guys who were roommates in a dorm and got it on. A lot.
After that I tabled the novel, deciding to give it some distance. I ended up writing another novel after that, and then a novella and short story. By the time I revisited Cam and Jude’s story, I had realized that there was so much more that I wanted and needed to add in order to make it a cohesive novel.
What happened was that my characters spoke to me more. They had more development between then than I anticipated, and what was originally meant to be a fun, steamy, romance novel, ended up turning into a story that is about growth, about healing, and about taking chances.
So I had to really figure out how to expand on this to give the reader the proper story they deserved. With the help of a few writing pals, I was able to see the gaps that I needed to fill, and thus my 38k steamy romance novel, ended up turning into a 55k new adult romance novel that is high steam but a love story nonetheless. I really enjoyed writing about Cam’s growth, and being able to show his heart healing on the page through his interactions and experiences with Jude.
I also was able to get more into Jude’s head while writing these bits too. I truly feel that characters talk to the writer, and Jude was fairly tight lipped about his background and his personality, because being the easy-going, flirty type, was definitely a shield. In the end, I had a friend of mine begging me to write a companion piece from Jude’s point of view, and I think I may have to.
It’s very interesting how a simple, fun, frantic summer vacation idea turned into such an elaborate story. I love how stories evolve and how just as much as you are God to your characters, your characters are their own individuals to you too. The symbiotic relationship between these dualities is always fascinating and never boring!
About the Author
Gwen Martin lives in Florida where the sun is always shining, the humidity is always high, and Disney is just a hop skip away. When she’s not trying to write one of her million story ideas, she’s usually hanging out with her husband and four cats.
Gwen first started writing at a young age, coming up with stories in class instead of paying attention to the math lesson. Since then she has been exploring her love of writing in various fan communities where she has learned how to cultivate character development and romantic interactions.
She has a strong love affair with cold brew coffee, black cats, and nerding out in various fandoms. When she’s not writing, she’s reading everything she can get her hands on, listening to a lot of lo-fi and making playlists, chilling with her four gatos and obsessing about Pusheen. Because it’s always about Pusheen.
Social Media Links:
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Facebook Group: http://bit.ly/gwensgang
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Goodreads: http://bit.ly/GwenMartinGR
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Direct Link: https://mailchi.mp/6f4d75eb84af/gwenmartinauthor
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