Fighter
The Brick Yard #1
Carol Lynne
Pride Publishing
February 9, 2017
M/M Erotic Romance
For Lucky Gunn, the hardest fight of his life happens outside the cage.
On the South Side of Chicago sits an old gym called The Brick Yard.
Ten years ago, on a bitterly cold day, Lucky Gunn wandered into The Brick Yard dressed in a threadbare jacket, looking for refuge. He hadn't expected the owner, Tony Brick, to welcome him with a job and a place to sleep when Lucky's abusive and drug-addicted mother made it too dangerous to return home.
Dray was a gay man living in a world of straight fighters. When his secret was exposed to the media, he dropped out, giving Lucky a piece of advice-if you want to make it as a MMA fighter, bury the part of yourself that won't be accepted.
Lucky discovered the cage was the perfect place to keep his demons at bay, but when he learns his trainer and mentor, Brick, is suffering from end-stage cancer, he begins to spiral out of control. After eight years, Dray returns to help Lucky and Brick deal with the devastating news.
With Dray so close, Lucky's old desires return, and Dray teaches him more than how to fight. Torn between his career and the passion he feels for Dray, Lucky's past demons resurface in full force, threatening his sanity and his budding relationship with Dray.
Despite leaving the cage years earlier, Dray finds himself in the battle of his life with the only man he's ever loved. Will he stand and fight or walk away like he did years earlier?
Publisher's Note: This book has previously been released with Pride Publishing under a different title. It has been considerably expanded and re-edited for re-release and now is book one in The Brick Yard series.
Amazon - B&N - Kobo - Pride Publishing
Visit Pride Publishing to read the full excerpt.
“I thought I might find you in here,” a deep voice said from behind him.
Lucky turned to find Dray standing just inside the room. Dray’s light-green eyes were normally breathtaking, but now they were red and swollen as if he’d broken down more than once that day.
Lucky dropped a towel into the washing machine. “I’m sorry about what’s going on.”
“Yeah, well, that’s my fault. I should’ve known not to trust Vince, but loneliness makes us do crazy things.” Dray leaned back against the wall and crossed his arms over his muscular chest. “I’m leaving,” he announced.
“What?” Lucky took a step toward Dray. “You mean you’re going into hiding to get away from the reporters?”
Dray shook his head. “They canceled my fight on Friday and told me they didn’t know where things would go from here, so I’m moving back to Kansas City.”
“You can’t just give up.” Lucky gestured toward the front of the building. He couldn’t imagine the UFC without Dray. Worse, he couldn’t imagine The Brick Yard without him. “They’ll get bored and go away if you give them some time. You’ve worked for years to get where you are. You can’t just let them run you off.”
Dray stared at the floor. “It’s not the reporters or the sponsors that are running me off.” He rubbed his eyes with the heels of his hands. “It’s the fans. You should read some of the shit they’ve posted on the Internet. People wishing me dead. I get they’re pissed, but, Christ, dead?” He ran his palms over his closely cropped hair. “I know some fighters might be okay with being hated by the fans, but I’m not one of them. If they’re not behind me, I can’t do this.” He pushed off the wall. “I know I’m acting like a pussy, but the faster I can get outta here, the less likely The Brick Yard will be pulled down with my career.”
“I’m sorry,” Lucky said.
“Yeah, me too. Anyway, I wanted to ask you a favor.”
“Anything.” Lucky took a deep breath, trying like hell to keep his emotions in check.
“Take care of Brick. I love that old sonofabitch.” Dray dug into his pocket and removed a slip of paper. “Here’s the phone number to my cousin’s tattoo shop. If anything happens, you can probably reach me there. If not, Berto can get you in touch with me.”
“There’s nothing that says you can’t come back to see Brick,” Lucky pointed out.
Dray shook his head. “I can’t stand to see the disappointment in his eyes. I know I fucked up.” He met Lucky’s gaze. “Do yourself a favor and don’t make the same mistake I made.”
Did Dray know? Lucky nodded.
“Sex, no matter who with, isn’t worth giving up your dreams for. Remember that,” Dray said before walking out of the room.
Lucky stared at the closed door long after Dray had gone, promising himself he’d never forget his idol’s departing advice.
From Pride Publishing
An avid reader for years, one day Carol Lynne decided to write her own brand of erotic romance. While writing her first novel, Branded by Gold, Carol fell in love with the M/M genre. Carol juggles between being a full-time mother and a full-time writer. With well over one hundred releases, one thing is certain, Carol loves to keep busy writing sexy cowboys, shifters, bodyguards, vampires and everything in between. Although series books are her passion, Carol enjoys penning the occasional stand-alone title.
As founder and President of GRL Retreat, Inc., Carol helps organize the annual GayRomLit Retreat. Now in its sixth year, GayRomLit is an annual retreat that brings together the people who create and celebrate LGBT romance for a one-of-a-kind, must-attend gathering of dynamic, informal, and diverse fun.
No comments:
Post a Comment