Today we have author Carol Lynne over stopping by at Love Bytes as a part of her The Brick Yard blog Tour
She takes about the fall and there is also a Giveaway!

Fall on Sugar Valley Lake

By Carol Lynne

 

Fall has always been my favorite time of year, but it has become even more special since I pooled my money with my two sisters and mother and purchased a small house on Sugar Valley Lake. Yes, it truly is as picturesque as the name implies. The house is tiny, roughly 850 square feet, with one bedroom. You may be asking yourselves how six people can stand to occupy a space with only one bedroom. The answer is quite easily. In the bedroom are three twin beds that my mom and sisters sleep in. I have a twin bed in a small nook off the living room and my two daughters sleep on one of two fold-out sofas. See? We have room for guests.

 

Despite the cramped sleeping arrangements, the house is the most peaceful place on earth to me. I made it a rule a long time ago that I am not allowed to work at the lake. That leaves me plenty of time to play solitaire, listen to audio books and hang out with my girls, sisters and mom. We spend hours during the day sitting on the huge deck that is steps away from the clear lake. Although our lot is completely shaded by tall cedar trees, the trees on the opposite side of the lake change colors in the fall. Beautiful. I prefer to stare at the leaves that are reflected in the water. It’s like looking at a huge Monet painting right there from the deck.

 

In the evening, we’ll start a fire in the big fire pit if it isn’t too windy, but if it is, we have just as much fun inside. We either gather around the huge dining table and play games or settle in the living room to watch television. No joke, my family can spend hours watching Cops or House Hunters. Cops is preferable, but not always on.

 

My favorite part of the weekend is always mornings at the lake. I’m an early riser, so I’ll make coffee and wander out to the deck to greet the start of a new day in the stillness that surrounds the lake. In the fall, the smoke rising from the water always makes me feel like I’ve been transported to a different time and place. No people, no boats pulling skiers, no radios, just me and an occasional fisherman.

 

More than the house or the lot, the retreat is about family. It’s the one place I can gather the people I love the most and relax after a week of stress. I love knowing that tranquility is only an hour’s drive from my normal hectic life. I can pick up the girls from school on Friday and be down to the lake house in plenty of time to make dinner.

 

I’m extremely lucky to have the family I was blessed with and the chance to own a spot of heaven right here in Kansas. I only wish our tiny abode was big enough to open its doors to GRL Retreat attendees. Gosh, that is a dream that I’ll never get tired of thinking about which is why I always try to search for hotels that are just as comfortable to me as the lake house.

 

Blurb for The Brick Yard, the debut novel in Totally Bound’s What’s his Passion? imprint:

For Lucky Gunn, the hardest fight of his life happens outside the cage.

On the south side of Chicago sits an old gym called The Brick Yard.

Ten years ago, on a bitterly cold day, Lucky Gunn wandered into The Brick Yard dressed in a threadbare jacket, looking for refuge. He hadn’t expected the owner, Tony Brick, to welcome him with a job and a place to sleep when Lucky’s abusive and drug addicted mother made it too dangerous to return home.

Dray was a gay man living in a world of straight fighters. When his secret was exposed to the media, he dropped out, giving Lucky a piece of advice, if you want to make it as a MMA fighter, bury the part of yourself that won’t be accepted.

Lucky discovered the cage was the perfect place to keep his demons at bay, but when he learns his trainer and mentor, Brick, is suffering from end-stage cancer, he begins to spiral out of control. After eight years, Dray returns to help Lucky and Brick deal with the devastating news.

With Dray so close, Lucky’s old desires return, and Dray teaches him more than how to fight. Torn between his career and the passion he feels for Dray, Lucky finds that his past demons resurface in full force, threatening his sanity and his budding relationship with Dray.

Despite leaving the cage years earlier, Dray finds himself in the battle of his life with the only man he’s ever loved. Will he stand and fight or walk away like he did years earlier?

 

Like the sound of The Brick Yard? Buy it here: Totally Bound

 

Carol Lynne:

An avid reader for years, one day Carol Lynne decided to write her own brand of erotic romance. Carol juggles between being a full-time mother and a full-time writer. These days, you can usually find Carol either cleaning jelly out of the carpet or nestled in her favourite chair writing steamy love scenes.

Enter Totally Bound’s competition for a chance to win The Brick Yard and two other titles from her backlist!