Three
angry men, two loveable dogs and one isolated cabin.
What could possibly go wrong?
Gabriel Sanchez is a man running away from his past, unaware it’s about to
catch up to him. Stuck in an isolated cabin with two strangers is the last
thing he planned. One guy, a bear of a man shouldering intolerable emotional
pain, Gabe instinctively wants to soothe. The other, kinder, gentler, and just
wishing to be seen, Gabe desperately wants to show him how visible he is.
However, the harder he tries to keep both at bay, the more they fight and the
closer they get until his heart begins to desire things he’s promised himself
it can never have again.
Leo Taylor has yearned for approval his whole life, and as the lawyer
negotiating the sale of a run-down cabin and its land, this time he may just
earn it. But, trying to keep the peace between a cocky New Yorker and the
grumpiest man alive is slowly taking its toll. During their confinement,
secrets are uncovered that will force Leo to make a tough choice. Close the
sale and gain the approval he craves, or follow his heart and fight for the men
for whom he’s falling head over heels.
Mitchell Houghton is drowning in grief and guilt following the death of his
wife four years ago. Then, along comes a lawyer with an outsider who claims to
own 50 percent of his home, his land. After years of self-imposed isolation,
Mitch is now trapped with them both in his small cabin. Determined to make
their lives a misery, he almost succeeds, until their unwanted interaction and
attention makes him remember the man he used to be—the one he thought lost
forever—giving him another chance at a happiness he’s not sure he deserves.
Author’s Note: This is book three of a four-book series. It does not end
on a cliffhanger. Each book concentrates on a different main character from the
four owners of a successful construction company. Successive books will include
spoilers from the previous ones if the books are not read in order.
Book
3
Buy Links
Amazon US ~ Amazon UK ~ Amazon Au ~ Amazon Ca
Apple Books ~ B&N ~ Kobo
Paperback (US) ~ NineStar Press
“I’m a determined man, Mr. Houghton.”
“Or a foolish one.”
I shrugged, not prepared to admit I was beginning to agree with him.
“Time after time, you were told no, but unlike any decent man, any honorable man, you didn’t leave me alone and walk away, did you?” He didn’t wait for me to answer. “No, instead, you went behind my back and began pressuring my brother to sell, recognizing he’d be the more gullible of us, the weaker of the two.”
I frowned at his answer. Obviously, there was far more bad blood between them than I’d originally suspected.
Not my problem.
“And you think it’s me who’s foolish.” I chuckled and shook my head. “I’m here today because you requested this meeting. You. You were the one who’d finally decided to sell.” I lifted my shoulders. “Don’t kid yourself into believing I’m the bad guy in this scenario. It’s pretty obvious as soon as you received our offer and caught sight of all those zero’s, you had a very rapid change of heart.”
“A momentary lapse in judgment,” he snapped at me.
“Whatever.” I balled my hands into fists in my pants trying to remain relaxed, knowing my next admission wasn’t going to be well received. “Oh, and by the way. To be clear, your brother came to us, not the other way around.”
“No.” His sharp rebuttal sounded almost painful.
I shrugged again. “Believe what you want, but I’m telling the truth. Until Jared Houghton offered up his fifty percent, I’d given up on the purchase, had decided you weren’t worth the time and effort to continue pursuing.”
Something flashed in his eyes at my comment but was gone too quick for me to decipher. “There are other cabins, other land”—removing my hands from my pockets, I spread my arms to indicate the shabby interior—“in much better condition.”
He moved off the jamb and was in my face before I had chance to blink, his voice low and threatening. “Be very careful what you say in my home, Mr. Sanchez.” He said my name like my presence left a bad taste in his mouth. “You’re a guest here, and you better remember that—and your manners.”
I took in a few deep breaths, wanting to calm down and ensure I didn’t say something inappropriate. I hated being threatened. Watching Mason after his attack, how he’d get jumpy and scared at the slightest hint of raised voices or aggression from others, I’d done everything in my power to help him work through his trauma. To the point I automatically placed myself in front of him whenever he got anxious, protecting him from anyone getting too close. So Mitchell trying his intimidation act on with me in the hopes I’d cower meekly? Well, I couldn’t help myself.
“Ah, but that’s not quite true anymore, is it?” My blood pumped hard in my veins, rapidly heading south, making me hard. I wouldn’t say I was enjoying our sparring match, but the male aggression filling the air, raising our body temperature, and releasing delicious-smelling pheromones of sweat and musk pushed all my buttons.
I glanced around the room with its worn couch, scuffed oak furniture, and thick log walls, thinking if renovated, the place would look amazing. “I’m not really here as a guest, am I? I own fifty percent, remember? So this place is as much mine as yours.”
I didn’t see the punch coming until it connected with my gut, winding me as it knocked the air from my lungs in a loud whoosh, doubling me over as pain ripped through my abdomen. The next thing I knew, I was grabbed by the collar of my expensive silk shirt and the back of my leather belt and heaved up as if I weighed nothing. He dragged me around the couch to the front door, which, typically, opened as we got there, to a horrified Leo.
Mitchell pushed past him, me firmly in his grip, my struggling useless against his power and strength as he swung me back, and then let gravity pull me speedily forward before releasing me, sending me flying across the porch to land in the snow and frozen dirt at the bottom of the steps in front of the cabin.
“My house,” he roared. “My home. Mine.” Then he slammed the door firmly behind him, leaving me there on my ass and out in the cold.
Angie
– ☆☆☆
This is the third book in the series, but I feel it can be read as a
standalone. I haven't read any of the previous books.
Gabe, Mitch, and Leo are all so different. Each man has baggage; while they do
share some things right away, they don't share everything right away. The
chemistry is off the charts... hubba hubba. There was angst – how could there
not be with all that baggage they each have? I thought the book was a little
too long and at times, I just wanted to tie things up for goodness’ sake! Once
we get to the end, it was worth it, and these three men got the happily ever
after they deserve.
PAULEY
J. RAY writes contemporary M/M romantic fiction. His books contain sexy yet
complicated and flawed characters searching for their own happily ever after.
When not writing, he can’t wait to get outdoors, and with his husband, go
hiking, camping, and travel everywhere they can, as often as they can.
With his husband’s job taking them all over the world, he now gets to write all
day, every day, and he's never happier than when sat at his laptop creating new
stories about gorgeous and sexy men.
Except when there's coffee... ooh and chocolate... yes, he's way happier when
there's coffee and chocolate!
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Pauley J. Ray!
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Reviewers on the Wicked Reads Review Team were provided
a free copy of A Little More Forgiveness (Hot Property #3) by Pauley J. Ray to
read and review.
