Layla Reyne’s DINE WITH ME is a contemporary m/m romance following a dying chef on a last tour of his favorite meals, and the travel companion who must convince him he’s more than his taste buds and that the cost of love is worth living for.
Title: Dine With Me
Release Date (e-book and audio): September 16, 2019
Blurb:
Life never tasted so good.
Miller Sykes’s meteoric rise to award-winning chef is the stuff of culinary dreams, but it’s all crashing down around him. He’s been given a diagnosis that could cost him something even more precious than his life: his sense of taste. Rather than risk the very thing that defines him, Miller embarks on a last tour of his favorite meals while he still can.
But there’s a catch: he needs a financial backer to make it happen, and he doesn’t want anyone to know he’s sick.
Dr. Clancy Rhodes has two weeks to come to terms with putting aside oncology to work at his father’s thriving plastic surgery practice. When the opportunity to travel with a Michelin-starred chef presents itself, the foodie in him can’t believe it. It doesn’t hurt that Miller’s rugged good looks are exactly Clancy’s cuppa joe.
As Clancy and Miller travel from coast to coast and indulge in everything from dive bars to the most decadent of culinary experiences, they’re suddenly sharing a lot more than delicious meals. Sparks fly as they bond over their love of flavors and the pressures of great expectations. But when Miller’s health takes a turn for the worse, Clancy must convince him he’s more—so much more—than just his taste buds. And that together, they can win a battle that once seemed hopeless.
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“Doc, I need to apologize.”
“For?”
“My shitty mood. On Christmas Day, no less.”
“I’m the one who overstepped last night. It’s my fault.” Avoiding his gaze, Clancy shook himself loose, took the last few steps to their door, and swiped his card in front of the electronic lock.
Miller put his hand on the knob, preventing him from opening it. “But I didn’t have to snap like that.” He lightly clasped Clancy’s chin and tilted his face up, forcing his gaze. “Or throw your own life decisions back in your face. I overstepped too. I’m sorry.”
“You were just so happy. I liked seeing you like that.” He cast his earnest green gaze aside again. “And then my mouth got ahead of my head.”
“It’s okay.” Miller pushed Clancy’s glasses up his nose. “I wish Oscar’s was the answer, but it’s not.”
“What is?”
There wasn’t one, simple as that. But rather than bringing the mood down further, Miller said, “Right now, rest.”
He pushed into the room and halted, Clancy stumbling into his back.
“What’s wrong?” Clancy poked his head around Miller’s shoulder. “Hmm, that’s not right.” He stepped back, swinging the door partially closed to check the room number. Yep, it matched the room number written on the paper holder in Miller’s hand. Clancy squeezed in next to him, the both of them considering their “suite.” While the room was luxurious with top-of-the-line furnishings, as Miller had come to expect and had held his tongue over the last two stops, it was exactly that. A room. Not a suite. There was a sofa in a tiny seating area, a desk, and a bed. As in one. One room, one bed.
Clancy checked the door to their left. Bathroom.
Miller checked the one to the right. Connection to the other bedroom, through which he heard the squeal of small children.
“There must have been a mix-up.” Clancy crossed the room and picked up the phone on the desk. “I’ll call down.”
There was a knock on the door behind them, and Miller dealt with the very harried valet, who didn’t give him an option of not taking their bags, Clancy’s escalating argument with the front desk be damned.
“We seem to have very different definitions of suite,” Clancy said into the phone.
Miller tuned it out, knowing what the conclusion would be. It was Christmas week in New York City; there were no more rooms. He stared out the window onto Central Park, the light dusting of snow giving it a magical quality in the setting sun. At least the view was good.
Clancy slammed down the phone. “There was some sort of mix-up,” he said, hands on his hips. “This is technically a suite, and there’s a sofa bed.”
“In case you haven’t noticed, Doc, I’m six-three. I haven’t fit on a sofa bed since I was in high school.”
“I’ll call Mom,” he said, digging out his cell phone. “See if she can find us something else.”
Miller closed his hand over Clancy’s. “One, don’t interrupt her and Robert on vacation. Two, it’s Christmas Day in New York City. We’re not going to find anything else, definitely not anything this nice.”
Clancy glanced helplessly around. “I can sleep on the sofa.”
“Don’t be ridiculous.”
His gaze whipped back to Miller, eyes wide. “What are you saying?”
Shit, what was he saying?
- Can you share with us something about the book that isn’t in the blurb?
LR: It’s not just Miller and Clancy in this story. There’s a supporting cast of characters—family, of the blood and found sort—that I absolutely adored writing. And they support, first and foremost. No one here is trying to foil or divert our main characters, and I love that about this story. They are there to support Miller and Clancy, as best and as full-of-heart as they can.
- Are there any secrets from the book (that aren’t in the blurb), you can share with your readers?
LR: Every place Miller and Clancy visited is a place I’ve dined or based on a place I dined. (Sadly, a few of my favorites had closed!) Each place in this book is as special to me, for my own reasons, as it is for Miller and Clancy. For instance, one of the stops is The French Laundry, which is where my husband and I got married, so it holds a special place in my heart too.
- Does one of the main characters hold a special place in your heart? If so, why?
LR: Ohmigod, they both do. This story has been rattling around in my head since 2015. It was on the initial list of project ideas I gave my agent. There’s a lot of me in both Clancy and Miller (more so Clancy, my husband more so Miller), but it’s really a love letter to all the amazing dining experiences I’ve been so lucky to have in my life.
- What is the significance of the title?
LR: It starts as the opening line of the advertisement Miller posts for the tour. It also ends the book in a way that still makes me happy sigh.
- What is the future for the characters? Will there be a sequel?
LR: This is a standalone, so there won’t be a sequel. Though keep your eyes peeled for a special project involving one of the secondary characters.
- If you had to describe character Miller Sykes in three words, what would those three words be?
LR: Loyal, Self-Sacrificing, Stubborn
- If you had to describe character Clancy Rhodes in three words, what would those three words be?
LR: Earnest, Honest, Risk-taker
- If your book was to be made into a movie, who are the celebrities that would star in it?
LR: Oh, this is easy (since the book has been in my head for YEARS). I’ve always had Clive Standen as my fancast for Miller and Grant Gustin as my fancast for Clancy.
- Was the writing process different and what challenges did you face writing contemporary romance versus romantic suspense?
LR: I couldn’t just throw a car chase or explosion in when I needed to pick up the pace! But seriously, I really did have to dig deep to center this one more on emotions, more on the journey of these two men, individually and potentially together in the future. That’s what’s driving the story, versus my usual twisty plot.
About Layla Reyne:
RITA Finalist Layla Reyne is the author of the Agents Irish and Whiskey, Fog City, and Changing Lanes series. A Carolina Tar Heel who now calls the San Francisco Bay Area home, Layla enjoys weaving her bi-coastal experiences into her stories, along with adrenaline-fueled suspense and heart-pounding romance. She is a member of Romance Writers of America and its Kiss of Death and Rainbow Romance Writers chapters. Layla is a 2019 RWA® RITA® Finalist in Contemporary Romance (Mid-Length) and 2016 RWA® Golden Heart® Finalist in Romantic Suspense.
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