Author: verlenelandon
There’s a hero inside all of us, or so they say. After a decade of surviving an abusive relationship, Rachel wanted more than survival; she wanted to live. She’d long ago given up on a knight in shining armor riding in to save her from Tony. There was only one place beyond his creatively cruel reach, the grave. Vin was fed up with his life of bloodshed…sick of being Tony’s deadly right hand. … deadly right hand. He’d only stayed for his brother’s girl. Secretly doing everything he could to lessen her abuse, but when she died, nothing in his…
Warning: Objects in the rearview mirror are not always as they appear.Benton and Rayna broke-up almost a year ago to the day. As it does, life moves on, but sometimes you need to slam it in reverse before shifting into drive. An unconventional road trip, desert heat, and an unexpected detour create mirages from memories neither can ignore. When faced with the past, they have to choose between … have to choose between grinding the gears or popping the clutch.Can a first love detour to a second chance, or will it just be stranded?(Story was initially released as part of…
Learning to love is the best hack of all. Three hundred and thirteen days ago, Veronica Allen was a fierce and independent woman ready to kick life’s ass and take names. Fear wasn’t even in her vocabulary. Three hundred and twelve days ago, she shattered like a china doll under a sledgehammer. What a difference a day makes. Clayton Briggs was building his perfect life. A successful business, … A successful business, check. Dream home, check. Dog named Roscoe P. Coltrane, check. The only thing missing was a woman with a “take no prisoners” attitude to share it with. That last checkmark was proving…
This is OSCAR MIKE as it appeared in Branches of Healing: Tales of Unsung Heroes charity anthology.(Expanded story coming soon.)As a soldier, Cassie was always on the move, but when she lost her husband in an explosion overseas, her life stalled. She lost her best friend that day and had nowhere to turn in her time of grief.Rob, Jeff, and Cassie had been inseparable in high school. When Jeff and … in high school. When Jeff and Cassie became a couple, and Rob realized his feelings ran deeper than just friends, they drifted apart.But fate was cruel and spiteful. Ending…
Best friends for the past two years, Josh and Cait have shared everything with each other—except for sharing a bed. But Josh wants more than a friendship, he wants a relationship and all that goes along with it—her body and her love.Cait adores her bestie, Josh. Their friendship means everything to her, but she’d have to be dead not to notice how incredibly sexy he is. The idea of a … no-strings-attached arrangement seems ideal. She can have her cake and eat it too.Is a friends-with-benefits relationship the perfect way for them both to get what they wantSometimes redefining the…
When what you do under the covers lands between them.**********What would you do if your weekend tryst turned your encounter into a best-selling novel and movie? Well, if you’re Trevor Dickson, son of legendary porn stars and a former child actor, you audition for it, of course. Ryder—Trevor’s go-to alias—helped him maintain a no attachments lifestyle. Not to mention, escape his parents’ infamy … mention, escape his parents’ infamy . . . and his own. A lifestyle he’d always enjoyed until he spent one amazing weekend with a woman who he wanted to know him as Trevor. What better research…
They had always been R & B, the couple most likely to make out in the back of a theater and make it to their golden anniversary. But their “perfect” relationship had just been a mirage, and when their future evaporated like water in the Nevada desert, they went their separate ways. Yet neither ever really moved on.Now they’re just Rayna and Benton, two people doing a favor for each other in … other in the name of the good times they once shared. When fate steps in and thrusts them together at a roadside motel—it’s divine intervention. However, neither…
Love can be unexpected, but sometimes, the fall is inevitable.Augusta is a carefree soul with the heart of an angel, the face of a pixie, and the body of a…pregnant woman?When she decided to carry a baby for friends who couldn’t do it themselves, she knew she’d have to give up a lot—coffee, seeing her feet, and possibly even her chance at happiness with the man she adored.John doesn’t thrive in … adored.John doesn’t thrive in chaos. Control and routine are more his style. Some might even say he’s anal. This way of life has served him well for decades,…
Ink is indelible. So is love, at least in theory. He’s an over-inked, reformed bad boy and she is the slightly older, seemingly out of reach woman who’s head over heels (actually knees over shoulders) in love with him. Almost as much as he is with her. Somehow, they have remained oblivious to their mutual attraction for five years. One night, they take the plunge. Love conquers all, right? plunge. Love conquers all, right? They expose hearts and bodies, expecting a happily ever after until a terrible secret is revealed—during climax. Anything worth having is worth bleeding for—and boy will…