Title: A Little More Hope
Series: Hot Property #2
Author: Pauley J. Ray
Publisher: NineStar Press
Release Date: 07/18/2023
Heat Level: 3 – Some Sex
Pairing: Male/Male
Length: 87900
Genre: Contemporary, Age-gap, Alpha Males, Businessmen, Physical Assault, Coming Out, Sexual Discovery, Hurt/Comfort, PTSD/Post-traumatic stress, Slow Burn
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Description
After a vicious assault leaves him a virtual recluse, businessman Mason Wilder escapes to his friend’s beach house in the small seaside town of Melrose Bay to heal and come to terms with the shadow of the man he has become.
When Ashton Michaels, wanderer, surfer, loner, unexpectedly inherits a rundown shack of a house, he must decide: keep running from his disastrous past relationships or return to the place he loves, finally put down some roots, and learn to live life with all its consequences.
After a chance encounter with his elusive next-door neighbor, Ash can see Mason is hurting and it releases his protective, caring side and he knows he’ll do anything he can to aid the handsome, broken man in such desperate need of help.
Mason initially resists the offer of help from Ash, but the guy is persistent and for reasons he can’t figure out, Mason feels drawn to him. When Ash decides to keep and renovate his new home, impulsively Mason joins him and in the process of rebuilding the house, Mason begins to rebuild his life and confront his fears.
He must also learn to come to terms with his unexpected attraction to a man for the first time in his life. Ash is a solid, comforting, and caring presence and offers Mason everything he’s been searching for since his brutal attack.
Ash is falling hard for the quiet and troubled man he’s spending all his time with but is worried the past will only repeat itself and Mason will leave him all alone like everyone else.
Can Mason finally put his demons to rest to move forward with his life and will Ash be able prevent his fear of being left behind from ruining his chance at love?
A Little More Hope
Pauley J. Ray © 2023
All Rights Reserved
The bus jostled me awake as the wheels hit a speed bump on the edge of town. They must be new, as they weren’t there before I went away, though coming up to four years since I’d left, I should have guessed the place had changed in my absence.
Another jolt, another speed bump as the bus wound along the narrow streets, the mostly white or gray wood-clad houses lining the sidewalks becoming denser as we drew closer to the center, before turning onto Main Street and the heart of the town with a host of independent shops, bars, and restaurants. Wholesome and quaint, with 1950s nostalgia thrown in. The tourists loved it.
After the bus pulled to a stop, I dragged my duffel off the seat next to me and exited the vehicle. On the sidewalk near a small park, I reacquainted myself with my surroundings. Rolling the stiffness out of my shoulders from having sat in a cramped seat for so long, I breathed in deeply and let the sharp scent of the ocean fill my senses, removing the last of the stale air-conditioning odor I’d had for company over the last few days.
Forgotten memories of walks along the sand with my aunt and surfing with my friends bubbled to the surface. I’d traveled to a lot of beaches in the last few years, but nothing held the salty sharpness of the sea in the same way as Melrose Bay.
Home. I was home.
“You gonna stand there like an ass all day, or we gonna get a hug?”
Spinning around, I stopped dead at the sight of three men leaning against the side of a beat-up old truck. Two smiling and the other, Sawyer, sporting his usual unreadable expression.
“You still got that heap of junk?” I baited him. Instantly his chest puffed out, all indignant, making me chuckle. He’d always been so easy to rile.
“Don’t go insulting Matilda,” he warned, laying his hand on the side of the battered green-and-white 1970s Chevy C10 pickup, then reverently stroking down the paintwork, before fixing me with his turquoise-blue eyes. “Or you can walk your sorry ass back out of town.”
“Yeah, don’t be rude to the lady,” Flynn tacked on, his grin wide.
“For crying out loud,” Cam groused, heading over to me. “Ignore those two.” He jerked his thumb over his shoulder. “They’re just messing with you, ’cause you’re late arriving.”
Damn, I’d missed these guys.
Cam had filled out in the last four years. Big, with cropped brown hair, and dark brown eyes, he’d packed on some serious muscle, and it was like being hugged by a wrestler, his big arms wrapping me up so tight.
“Glad to have you back,” he murmured in my ear and hugged me some more.
“You gonna maul him to death or what?” Flynn moaned, shoving Cam out of the way. “C’mere.” And he pulled me into his arms. Shorter than my six feet by a good few inches, slim, and surprisingly strong, the air huffed out of me as he squeezed me hard. Leaning away, he flicked his auburn hair out of his pale gray eyes and grinned. “About time you came home.” Then, he added seriously, “We missed you, Ashton.”
My throat suddenly closed up, making speaking hard. “Missed you too, Flynn. All of you.” I managed to get out, casting my gaze to the others.
Flynn released me, standing to the side as Sawyer took his place in front of me. Jet black hair poked out from under his backward-facing baseball cap. His black tank and jeans highlighted the intense aqua blue of his eyes. He waited, standing casually, as if he could have cared less if I was there or not. I knew differently, so of course, closed the distance between us and gave him a hug. He went stiff for a second, then relaxed into me, briefly slapping me on the back a couple of times before pulling away. I let him go, knowing that’s about as much of a welcome as I’d get.
He slung an arm around my neck. “Come on,” he said, his voice rough. “Let’s drop your shit off so we can go to the Bayside for a proper welcome.”
“That place is still there?” I shook my head. “I’d have thought they’d have shut the stinking hole down years ago.”
He laughed, rich and deep, grabbed my bag, and slung the duffel into the bed of his truck. “Nah, new owners took over. Cleaned the place up.”
Perhaps more things had changed around here than I thought.
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Pauley J Ray has been making up stories in his head for as long as he can remember, and now gets to write those stories down in his own gay romantic fiction, involving sexy, complicated, and flawed characters searching for their happily ever after.
When not writing, he loves meeting up with friends and can’t wait to get outdoors with his husband, hiking, camping and traveling to new and exciting places as often as they can.
He feels extremely lucky to be able to sit at his laptop, all day, every day, creating the heartfelt, angsty and passionate romance books he himself loves to read.
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