Love Bytes welcomes to their blog author Ava Hayden, Welcome Ava 🙂
Many thanks to Love Bytes for hosting me today to talk about The Valentine’s Day Resolution.
In Huxley and Paul’s first conversation, they talk about Tofino, located on Vancouver Island, British Columbia. Paul vacations there to surf—but not surfing like the Beach Boys sing about. Out of curiosity, I checked the surf forecast for today (July 19 as I write this):
“Today’s Tofino (North Chestermans Beach) sea temperature is 12.9 °C.
The water temperature (12 °C) at Tofino (North Chestermans Beach) is quite cold. If the sun shines as forecast, it should feel warm enough to get away with a good sealed spring wetsuit but you won’t overheat in a winter wetsuit, gloves boots and a hood. Effective windchill factor of (14 °C).”
That’s around 53 °F. That’s right—middle of July—wear your wetsuit!
I’m not a surfer myself, but I love watching the people who do it. Chesterman Beach is absolutely stunning. (It shows up a lot on Instagram: @tofino.sunsets.) Actually, all Tofino beaches are gorgeous. (A couple of pics on my Instagram feed: https://www.instagram.com/p/BAaSuL7ptnV/?taken-by=avahayden.ab & https://www.instagram.com/p/BA0su7Tptv7/?taken-by=avahayden.ab) I don’t have enough adjectives to do justice to the wild, awe-inspiring beauty there. It’s not like any place I’ve ever been, other than a couple of other locations on Vancouver Island, like Juan de Fuca Provincial Park. Nearby Ucluelet is equally lovely. (https://www.instagram.com/p/BAlMTDjJtka/?taken-by=avahayden.ab)
You can hike old-growth forest full of thousand-year-old-and-older trees and see one estimated to be two thousand years old. You can hike through rainforest. You can hike trails to beaches and coves and bays or the Wild Pacific Trail. I’ve done a fair bit of hiking there—still just a fraction of what’s available.
Besides being known for surfing, Tofino is a dream destination for storm watchers. I haven’t traveled there in winter to watch storms yet, but it is on my bucket list. I can’t decide what is more romantic: walking on the beach with stormy skies and salty air in between downpours or watching enormous waves rolling in from behind windows, securely wrapped up, well fed and warm, maybe beside a cozy fire or in a tingly, toasty hot tub.
Wild, natural, and romantic, Tofino is a perfect destination for lovers. If you ever get the chance to go, you should—and then you can see firsthand why Paul keeps going back.
Release date: August 2, 2017
Blurb:
Huxley carries invisible scars from a near-fatal car accident. He sleepwalks through a job at his father’s company, marking time until he can quit and pursue his own dreams. Everything changes the moment he makes eye contact with a stranger while riding to work. It’s as if he’s been shaken out of his stupor, and Huxley vows to find the man.
Thanks to a thieving ex-lover, Paul’s florist shop is on the brink of closing down. He needs to milk Valentine’s Day for all it’s worth—and the irony that a day dedicated to love might help undo the damage of a failed relationship is not lost on him.
When Huxley finds Paul at his shop, both men feel an instant attraction. Before long, they’re falling hard, but Huxley holds back. If Paul knew all the baggage he’s carrying, he might run.
Paul’s gut tells him Huxley is hiding something. Huxley looks like a keeper, but Paul can’t go through another disastrous romance.
When Valentine’s Day arrives, will they have anything to celebrate?
Buy link:
Ava Hayden lives and writes in Alberta, Canada. When not writing, she loves reading yaoi manga and gay romance, baking, seeing plays, hearing live music, and hiking (even though she once came face to face with two grizzlies on a trail). Most of the time her life isn’t that exciting, and that’s fine by her.
Ava Hayden Writes: https://avahayden.com/
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