Book Title: #SlidingIntoMyDMs
Author: Nell Iris
Publisher: JMS Books
Cover Artist: Written Ink Designs
Release Date: February 17, 2021
Genre: Contemporary M/M Romance
Trope: Friends-to-lovers
Themes: Bisexual character, 40+ characters, old friends reconnecting
Length: 21 998 words
It is a standalone story.
Buy Links
Amazon
It all started with a DM on Instagram
Blurb
“Hi. I heard you’ve been sick.”
Eddy Pennington is recovering from a severe bout of pneumonia when an old acquaintance, Moss, sends him a message on social media. They haven’t spoken in years, but Eddy is pleasantly surprised. He always liked Moss even if they were never close friends.
Moss Fanning has no ulterior motive with his message: all he wants is wish Eddy a speedy recovery. He got over the crush he used to have on Eddy a long time ago.
They reconnect easily and have even more in common now. And when they meet in person, the attraction is instant. Will an innocent, well-meaning message on social media lead to something more? Something deeper? Something…everlasting?
He closes the door behind him, and we stand there in my cramped hallway, grinning at each other. He’s a wonderful sight; his cheeks are red from being outside, his hair looks like it’s been caught in a tornado, and…I reach out and pluck a wilted leaf from behind his ear and hold it up to show him.
“Dammit. I guess I should have checked the mirror before knocking on your door.” The redness of his cheeks deepens. He grabs the leaf and stuffs it in his pocket.
“Nah, you’re fine. I like you all scruffed up.”
“I didn’t think. I just jumped in the truck and took off when my brother came home.”
My smile widens, and my fingers twitch, itching to reach out and touch him. “So you missed me.”
He lets his gaze travel along my body, the admiring glint in his eyes unmistakable, and I forget to feel bad about being so skinny. “I did,” he says.
“I’m glad.”
“Why?”
“Because that means I’m not alone in this whirlwind.”
He slips his hand into mine. “Whirlwind, huh?”
I tangle my fingers with his. “Yeah. It doesn’t make any sense.”
“Does everything have to?” His voice is so deep and smooth, like being wrapped in velvet, and it warms my insides.
“Usually, I’d say yes. I like things orderly.”
Moss hums. “Would it make you feel better knowing I used to have a crush on you back in the day? So for some of us, this isn’t exactly new.”
My jaw drops. “You did?”
Moss nods.
“But…” I look into his eyes and all I see is honesty. “You never said anything.”
“As we’ve already established, you were a bit of a manwhore. I didn’t want to be another notch on your bedpost.”
“No? What did you want to be?” I sway toward him, hypnotized by his scent. It’s as though he brought the outdoors with him, and not just the leaf I plucked from his hair. No, he’s surrounded by the essence of high, crisp air, of crumpled leaves, of nature getting ready to go to sleep for the season, and I haven’t ever smelled anything more alive.
“I wanted to be more.”
“What do you mean, more?”
“You only shared your body with them. Never let anyone see the deeper parts of you. No one got to see your intellect or your artistic skills or your wit. Nothing beneath the surface. You only showed the smiley, flirty, sexy guy who wanted a bit of fun. I know we were never actually friends, yet you let me see the real you. At least more than any of the guys you picked up got to see. I didn’t want to lose that. So I never made a move.”
I lay my hand on his biceps, wishing he didn’t have his jacket on so I could feel his skin underneath my palm. I would love to feel those thick muscles move and flex, but for now, I settle on wrapping my fingers around it.
“You’re right,” I say. “You would have lost that. I never shared that part of me with any of my lovers. Still don’t. Or anyone, really.”
“Why not?”
I shrug. “I’m not that interesting.”
“That’s not the reason.”
“It’s not?”
“No.”
“Then what is the reason?”
“You never show your true self, never share your vulnerable side with anyone who might leave.”
His words hang heavy between us, full of too much truth, and I have to tamp down my instinct to step away and shove him out the door, out of my life, like I always do when someone’s coming too close.
I don’t push him away, but I can’t keep looking at him, so I avert my eyes. Close them too, so I won’t accidentally see him, and I breathe.
Breathe even though my windpipe closes in my throat and my lungs stop processing air.
I breathe in his scent, breathe in the truth, breathe in the fact that he’s still standing here, touching me, seemingly going nowhere.
But that can change quickly. I’m still flabbergasted by how easy it was for people I thought loved me to turn their backs on me.
Not everyone leaves, little brother. Anne’s words from years ago echo through my mind.
Not everyone leaves.
Don’t they?
Nell Iris is a romantic at heart who believes everyone deserves a happy ending. She’s a bona fide bookworm (learned to read long before she started school), wouldn’t dream of going anywhere without something to read (not even the ladies room), loves music (and singing along at the top of her voice but she’s no Celine Dion), and is a real Star Trek nerd (Make it so). She loves words, bullet journals, poetry, wine, coffee-flavored kisses, and fika (a Swedish cultural thing involving coffee and pastry!)
Nell believes passionately in equality for all regardless of race, gender or sexuality, and wants to make the world a better, less hateful, place.
Nell is a bisexual Swedish woman married to the love of her life, a proud mama of a grown daughter, and is approaching 50 faster than she’d like. She lives in the south of Sweden where she spends her days thinking up stories about people falling in love. After dreaming about being a writer for most of her life, she finally was in a place where she could pursue her dream and released her first book in 2017.
Nell Iris writes gay romance, prefers sweet over angsty, short over long, and quirky characters over alpha males.
Author Links
Blog/Website | Facebook Author Page | Facebook Profile
Twitter: @nellirisauthor | Instagram: @nell_iris | Goodreads
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