Book Title: Dingo Run (Bushrangers Book 3)
Author: Jack Byrne
Publisher: Dreamspinner Press; 1 edition (October 22, 2014)
Book Length: 60 pages
Genre: Gay Romance, Western/Cowboy, Historical
Sequel to Billabong and Walkabout. Book Three in the series.
New South Wales, Australia, 1876. As captured outlaws, Jim Kelly and Mark Turner face the gallows. Help comes from an unexpected quarter, but their hasty escape goes wrong and now Jim’s life hangs by a thread. Mark is driven by desperation to form an alliance with an infamous bushranger who may hold clues to his mysterious past. But as Jim and Mark’s relationship intensifies, it is also tested. Their secret is discovered, tempers fray, and jealousy flares.
Hello, and thank you so much for hosting me on your blog! I appreciate it!
Jack Byrne
What are Jim and Mark’s greatest challenges in The Bushrangers series?
Jim Kelly’s greatest challenge
Getting used to the idea of loving a man.
Up until he met Mark, Jim had never even considered breaking with convention and becoming involved with a man. He had been married with children until tragedy and the harsh environment took the lives of his family.
It was kind of symbolic that Jim had a near-death experience just at the same time as he met Mark, and that Mark was the one who ‘brought him back’ by treating his snake bite. In the weakened state of recovering from the poison, Jim is a little more vulnerable than he would otherwise have been to his own feelings. That combined with a sense of gratitude and the relief that Mark’s company provides from the loneliness of Jim’s solitary existence, re-awakens Jim from a long spate of grieving for his family. The combination of all these things is enough to put Jim in a receptive state to his own and Mark’s feelings which he might not have had otherwise. I’m not saying that they would not have ended up with each other if Jim had not been bitten, just that it might have taken a bit longer.
After they do get involved Jim is still worrying over the situation and suffering the pangs of conscience about it, but the sex is so damned hot that he can’t bring himself to stop.
Mark Turner’s greatest challenge
Keeping himself and Jim alive.
Mark is a bushranger not through choice, but through being caught kissing a powerful man’s son and consequently framed in revenge. So even though he has the toughness that comes from living the life of a fugitive for two years now, he has all the sensibilities of a gentleman, having been raised by an English doctor and a wealthy Chinese shopowner. Jim does not understand this at first, and is left completely befuddled by some of Mark’s actions. During the story arc of the first three novellas, The Billabong, Walkabout and Dingo Run, we see Mark coming to terms with the fact that although he could just survive on his own in this situation, it is becoming impossible to keep both himself and Jim safe. This is particularly so because Jim is willing to go to any lengths now to protect Mark, including risking his own life.
Links to buy Dingo Run:
Then Jim’s arms were around his neck, and Jim pulled him into a deep kiss. Mark surrendered to the kiss, careful because he could still feel the remnants of the fever in Jim’s hot lips and slightly uncoordinated movements.
He laid Jim back on the swag, kissing him so softly that Jim whispered, “I’m not going to break, you know.”
“I know.” Mark carefully removed Jim’s shirt and pants, then stripped him completely, kissing him all the while.
He stopped for a moment to undress himself, spared the horses and the cave entrance a glance, and then returned to kissing Jim. Dan wouldn’t be back for hours.
Silently he pressed kisses down Jim’s broad chest, nibbling gently at the hard nubs of his nipples, feeling with gratitude the chest below rise in a gasp as he did so. Mark tasted the taut stomach, slightly salty with sweat, and heard a moan of pleasure from Jim. He smiled and licked again, a gentle dab of the tongue, and got the same response. He listened to the contented moans from above and kept giving tiny licks and nips down Jim’s stomach, which was now rolling under him and pushing up into the pressure, until Jim’s erection bumped Mark’s chin. Mark lifted his head slightly and carefully took the taut glans into his mouth, tasting more salt—there was fluid leaking from the tip.
“Oh, Mark,” moaned Jim, his voice throaty and deep.
Mark smiled and worked the glans in his mouth, running his lips and tongue around in circles until Jim was pressing rhythmically up against him, pushing for more contact. Mark let his mouth open a fraction more to allow Jim’s erection to slide gradually farther into his mouth and heard Jim groan, “Oh-oh.” He looked up to see Jim’s chest heaving and blue eyes looking down to him, hooded with desire. The taste of salt increased, and
Jim became rock hard in his mouth.
Mark wet his fingers with spit and precum and teased them around the outside of Jim’s entrance, wetting it thoroughly before slipping a finger in, then another and another. Jim’s moans became more desperate. Mark pushed his fingers in and out, circling them, then plunging them in and out of Jim’s body again and again until Jim’s moans gained a pleading tone. Then he extracted his fingers and shifted upward to let his own leaking erection press against Jim’s hole.
Jim grabbed Mark’s hair and pulled him up to kiss him frantically, his breath coming in rough gasps in Mark’s ear. Mark teased him, nibbling and ghosting kisses across his neck until Jim begged, “Take me!” and claimed his mouth in a bruising kiss. Mark lined himself up and watched Jim’s face for any sign of a wince as he pressed into Jim slowly, his own erection so hard now that he didn’t have to guide himself in. The hot walls of Jim’s channel closed around him, and he heard himself give a guttural groan as he pressed slowly into the warmth and pressure of Jim’s body.
Jim closed his eyes and whispered, “I’m gonna shoot my load any second.”
Mark whispered back, “Open your eyes, then.”
Jim did, and the desire and pleasure in them was enough to make Mark growl again, grab Jim’s shoulders, and thrust hard and deep into him. Jim’s neck arched back, and he gasped. Mark wanted to sink his teeth into that exposed neck and thrust again and again, but he resisted and stilled, then pulled himself out very slowly.
“Jesus, Mark….” Jim’s voice was shattered as Mark began to push in again slowly.
Mark hesitated, then continued, watching the pleasure contort Jim’s face as he did. Jim’s teeth were gritted as Mark pushed himself fully home, and Jim whispered, “You’re killing me.”
Mark nibbled on his ear and breathed, “I almost lost you this morning.” He bucked his hips once, hard, and Jim gave a small noise.
Mark began to withdraw again with agonizing slowness, then heard a strangled whisper from Jim. “I can’t—”
Mark smiled and thrust himself in again, slowly but powerfully, pushing himself in until he was fully seated, then giving that slight buck inward that he knew Jim loved so much. Suddenly he heard Jim gasp and felt hot moisture between them and Jim convulse against him. He held Jim through his climax, watching the handsome face tighten and tip away from him as Jim arched up against him. He pressed quick, hot kisses up the corded tendons in Jim’s neck and whispered hotly in his ear, “I love you.”
“God,” managed Jim at last. “God.”
Mark kissed him and waited for Jim to meet his eyes again, then began to pump into him, still slowly, but putting all the power he could muster into his thrusts. Jim watched his face as he did so, and something in his look undermined Mark’s control so he began to thrust rapidly and deeply into Jim. Mark groaned his pleasure with each movement he made and was not sure when the groans became low growls.
Pleasure began to build in him, each push into Jim’s now slick, tight channel sending a thrill through his whole body. He struggled to keep control, but despite his best effortswas soon rutting into Jim’s body with abandon. When his climax came, it was intense, tightening his whole body and leaving him shaken.
Afterward he lay beside Jim, grateful to still be able to breathe in his familiar scent. If Jim had died…. Mark closed his eyes and pushed his face even closer to Jim.
Jim rolled over to face him and pulled him into a close embrace, the strong, bronzed arms holding Mark tightly against him. Mark closed his eyes and tried to breathe.
Jim’s voice broke through the silence. “What do you feel?”
Mark looked up into his eyes. “What?”
“When we do that, what do you feel?”
Mark hesitated. “You. Inside you. The heat.”
“Is it like a woman?”
Mark hesitated for even longer, then whispered, “I wouldn’t know.”
They lay in silence for a few moments, then Mark asked, “What do you feel?”
There was a long silence, then Jim said, “You. Like you’re part of me. Like you come into my body, and we’re one person. And every time we do it, I want more.”
Mark looked away, then couldn’t resist looking back, and saw Jim’s eyes gleaming at him. He asked, “Would you go back to a woman? Do you want children again?”
Jim stared off into the distance. “I don’t think so. Haven’t thought about it. Have you?”
Mark nodded. “I bet you were a good father.”
Jim’s eyes suddenly turned ice blue, and he turned to Mark and answered, “If I had been, they’d still be alive, wouldn’t they?”
Mark blinked, unsure what to say, and looked away.
Jack Byrne is an Australian who lives and works in the Australian outback training horses, doing farm work, and trying to stay out of trouble. He writes from experience (sometimes unfortunate experience!) and has been shot at (“a case of mistaken identity”) and bitten by a snake before. He writes on a laptop with a satellite connection and likes to ride or drive out to locations he is writing about to get a real feel for the surroundings.
He is happy to hear from readers. He can’t promise an instant reply as he goes out working sometimes for a week or so, but he will get back to readers as soon as he can.
Author Contact Links:
Email: Jackaroo_Byrne@hotmail.com
Website: http://fugitive1701.yolasite.com/
Twitter: @JackByrneAuthor https://twitter.com/JackByrneAuthor
GoodReads Blog: https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/2040451.Jack_Byrne/blog
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Two Lucky winners will win an Ecopy of Walkabout
Loved the excerpt , definitely adding to list.
I love the idea of this book. I like to read books from Australia.
This sounds like it will be very good. I love the excerpt.
Adding that to my TBR pile for sure. Sounds great!
loved reading about bushrangers as a kid 🙂
Loved the excerpt. Thank you for the giveaway.
Loved the excerpt . I’m hoping to getting my hands on a copy of this soon. Thanks for the great opportunity.
Thank you for the excerpt and sharing Mark and Jim’s greatest challenges.
great excerpt
Thanks for the nice long excerpt. 🙂