Book Title: My Friend Tyler
Author: Shea Swain
Publisher: SSW Publications
Cover Artist: Shea Swain
Release Date: January 4, 2023
Website page dedicated to book
Genre: Contemporary M/M Romance
Tropes: Forbidden love, friends to lovers
Themes: Coming out, forgiveness
Heat Rating: 3 – 4 flames
Length: 71 487 words/ 133 pages
It is a standalone story and does not end on a cliffhanger.
Buy Links
Universal Link | Amazon US | Amazon UK
Blurb
Tyler Morales is a friend by association. So, when my inebriated ass stumbles into his bedroom after a party and see him bare, face down, and blindfolded in some sort of sensory play, I’m speechless. And when his partner removes the earplug in his ear and asks him if I can join in, with a nod of Tyler’s head, my body moves before my brain can catch up.
Initially, I want to forget that night. Tyler never saw me and his partner doesn’t know me. But that proves difficult because I dropped something inside Tyler’s room. He traces the item back to me but it doesn’t matter. I want him even though I’ve never considered dating a guy. Problem is, Tyler hasn’t come out and it seems he comes with his very own stalker. None of that shit matters. I want what I want. So, tell me, what’s a guy to do?
Club Scene
Tyler is leaving out of the exit. He peers down at his cell phone just as I clear the stairs. Outside, I follow him. There’s a small crowd between us but I can see him clearly as he walks toward the premium parking lot located on the side of Heat. By the time I catch up to him, he’s hidden in the shadow of the building a few feet from his car.
“Tyler,” I call out.
I’m still wondering if he has plans with Gene.
Tyler turns around and faces me but I can’t see his eyes. He waits and I wonder if he knows it’s me. I’m hidden in the shadows too as I walk along the side of the building, taking the path he took. That he is waiting for me makes me oddly happy but it concerns me too. This setting is the perfect spot for a crime and his listless care for his safety is cringeworthy.
I can tell when he recognizes me because he turns and leans back against the brick wall. As I approach, I focus on his profile, his honey-toned skin, his perfectly shaped-up hairline, his jaw, and his neck. Touching him has been a strong urge of late whenever I see him. Standing by his side, I turn and copy his stance.
The brick is cool due to the lowering temperatures of late. I’m not cold or hot but I feel nervous so a warm sensation is currently traveling over my face and down my neck. He has me nervous.
I let out a low chuckle because the last time a person made me this anxious was when I was in seventh grade. It was the first time my parents took me in for a psych exam. My mom was scared of me and my dad was concerned about my future quality of life. Reflecting on that day, I felt anxious but what I feel when with Tyler is wholly different.
Like back then, I had to accept that I have some issues. Just like I can no longer deny that I’m sexually into Tyler and possibly want more from him now.
“You’re not avoiding me anymore?”
His voice is so monotone that he sounds almost bored. I feel a pulse of pain in my chest and it’s a little exciting. I’m now wondering if he’s attracted to me at all. Sexual attraction may be the extent of our connection on his part and that’s fine.
For now.
Those two words come to me as if an alternate version of myself wanted to make things clear. Sighing, I turn my head to look at him.
“Needed some time to get my head around this,” I say.
I motion to him and then to me with my hand.
“…and?” Tyler asks.
He’s looking forward and not at me. Peering at him like this, in the dim light of darkness, I feel like I can look my fill. The attraction I’m feeling for him is strong. Touching him is my number one goal at the moment. Images of me licking all over his body flashes in my mind. Instead of trying to snuff out these foreign thoughts like before, I embrace them as goals.
“Honestly,” I say, reaching for his neck.
His skin is warm and his hair soft when my thumb grazes his hairline.
“I don’t want to fight it anymore. I want to touch you.”
Tyler grabs my wrist, pushing my hand away and holding my arm out. I allow it. The way he’s bending my wrist with his thumb pressing into my palm is a defensive technique someone taught him. I’m surprised at how I don’t feel the overpowering urge to respond aggressively. But then, his action did bring us closer.
“Don’t,” he says.
I don’t know why I lean into him, close enough to his neck that if I stick out my tongue, I can taste him. I feel the palm of his other hand pressing against my chest. He’s not pushing me away so that’s what I do. I stick my tongue out and give him a lick.
Tyler’s grip on my wrist tightens as if he is against me licking him but he moans too.
I feel the rumble of his moan vibrate his skin with my tongue. God, the noises he makes… My dick likes the sounds he makes too. I knew this from that night but hell…my overall response to him is an even bigger surprise.
What the fuck is going on with me?
Tyler pushes at my chest so hard that I stumble two steps back. If he didn’t have hold of my wrist, I may have fallen to my ass.
“What are you doing?” he demands as his eyes move around the lot and then back at me. “Are you crazy? PDA is a hard no for me.”
Shea is a woman who believes that love is life’s greatest gift so it’s no wonder she writes Romance Novels. She lives on the east coast of the United States with her family. A romantic to her core, Shea reads and enjoys watching anything with a love story. She especially likes binging on Romance TV around the holidays.
She enjoys spending time with her family, meeting people, reading, chatting. Collecting Barbie dolls, toys, and Funko Pops makes her happy. But she’s addicted to watching anime, k-dramas, movies, and playing The Sims games. Shea also loves music and has mentioned that she writes better when she has music playing as white noise in the background.
This exciting author writes Adult Romance in the sub-genres of Contemporary, Young Adult, New Adult, Paranormal, Sci-Fi, and Erotica.
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