Secret lovers for years, Commander Rick McConnell and Colonel Elijah Masters have nurtured their very private relationship with planned vacations and leaves, always meeting somewhere different—always escaping off the grid. It worked for them—career officers with a desire to serve their country and a passion for each other.
The repeal of the military’s policy, Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell, provides them with the tremendous opportunity to come out to their friends and loved ones. Rick wants to seize the day, but Eli isn’t so certain. His hesitation leads to a fight, an ultimatum, and a breakup. Rather than confront their issues, Eli takes a foreign assignment.
A year’s separation changes both of them. The last person Eli expects to see when he steps off the plane is Rick, but the physician wants another chance with the only man he’s ever loved, and he has a plan. Will bitterness, recriminations, and loss keep them apart or can these two officers rediscover the faith and loyalty that bound them for so long?
Matt McCall’s struggles to reintegrate into civilian life have been an ongoing battle for the better part of two years. Daily group sessions and weekly one-on-ones have only allowed him to grow so far. Twice he’s returned to his home state of Indiana and twice, he retreated to Mike’s Place. Uncertain of where he belongs in the world, he silently battles depression. The unexpected gift of Jethro, a black Labrador Retriever, perks his spirit…and a chance meeting in the park gives him a precious gift…
Aspiring country singer, Naomi Sparks, comes from a long line of Marines, so she knows all about sacrifice and struggle. When her Congressman brother asks her to visit Mike’s Place on his behalf, she discovers a real opportunity to make a difference. And meeting former Marine Matt McCall inspires her with the real challenge of discovering love and daring heroes who take risks. Writing music has never been so sweet….
Can one woman who believes in him really heal the wounds in this Marine’s heart?
The high school beauty queen…
The face of baby food, the darling of surfing commercials, and the exotic stunner who walked away with the Miss California title at eighteen, Mary Phillips has heard “you’re so beautiful” from childhood on. Tired of being her mother’s personal Barbie, she traded in her tiara and a lucrative modeling contract for combat boots and life as a Marine. She’s lost good friends and seen more walking wounded than she cares to admit, but this Marine wouldn’t trade her assignment for all the Manolo Blahniks in the world. What does it matter she has no one waiting at home?
The class nerd…
Kyle Stewart heard every variation as he went through school: nerd, geek, four-eyes, weirdo—and he rolled with it. He could count on one hand the number of girls who ever deigned to talk to him about something other than tutoring. But as the only self-made millionaire from his graduating class, he has the last laugh.
A high school reunion…
Despite the invitation, Mary didn’t plan to attend the ten-year reunion. The last thing she wanted to hear was—”you could have been so much, what happened?” But running into Kyle at the local coffee shop reminds her that not everyone judges by appearance. Kyle once swore to rub his former tormentors noses in his success, but when the reunion rolls around, he’s reluctant to go. Seeing Mary again encourages him to confront his one lingering regret, and the millionaire dares to reach for happiness.
Can Combat Barbie and her nerd overcome the past to love another day?
Have you ever woken up every day afraid of everything?
For single mom and widow Melody Carter, six months passed since an IED ripped her life apart. Everyone is sympathetic and offers platitudes of comfort and support. Everyone thinks they know why she’s grieving, but Melody isn’t mourning her broken heart. She’s ashamed to be grateful her abusive husband won’t hurt her anymore and scared for her child. Born with a mild heart defect, her daughter needs lifesaving surgery and with her funds tight and her emotional scars tighter, she’s running out of options. When she receives an offer for assistance from Mike’s Place, can Melody put her faith in the men her husband called friend?
Have you ever woken up, day after day, to discover your body’s betrayal?
Marine Captain, Joe Anderson Cooper, received the Silver Star for Valor when he led his unit through heavy fire to rescue fellow Marines. Despite numerous injuries, the Captain refused medical aid, insisting that the medics attend others. A broken back and shattered bones put Captain Cooper in a wheelchair and every day is a battle to keep his recovery on track and his sanity intact. When a single mom moves in to the apartment next door to his and he recognizes kindred—damaged—soul, can he overcome her fear and be the man she’s always needed?
Can these two lonely souls rise to the challenge or will their scars trap them forever?
Lieutenant Brenden Fitzpatrick is a dedicated Marine, loyal son, and devoted uncle, but he’s lonely. When he went Marine, the rule was don’t ask, don’t tell. His brothers-in-arms pretty much didn’t ask and didn’t care. Watching so many friends settle into long-term relationships highlighted the absence of someone to come home to in his life. When his unit encourages him to give the 1 Night Stand service a try, he asks for the impossible – a night with the one man he almost gave up the Marines for in the first place. A man he called best friend but let time and distance carry away.
Liam Gardiner grew up on the same Boston block as his best friend, Brenden. Unlike Brenden, Liam always accepted that he was gay – a fact he didn’t mind flaunting to all the bullies and naysayers in school. It got his ass kicked more than once, but Brenden always had his back, rescuing him time and time again, until the day Brenden left for the Marines. He missed his buddy, the crush he never confessed, lest it cost him the precious friendship. When Madame Eve’s invitation to meet Brenden arrives, Liam faces uncertainty for the first time.
Life made them best friends, can Madame Eve help them become so much more?
Roger Michael Easton IV, better known as Rowdy, flouted the family’s Naval tradition to enlist in the Marines—not as an officer, but a ground pounding grunt. He never expected to see as much combat or valor as he did in the field, but every engagement furthered his commitment to his brothers in arms. Now, with an early offer on the table to end his contract, Rowdy has to take a long look at the life he left behind, the life he’s built, and the future he longs to have.
Rowdy also wants a woman who gets him.
Inactive Marine, Kim Wakefield, continues to serve her country as a Naval Criminal Investigator. She’s hard on the grunts and sailors because she is one of them—and they didn’t sign up for easy. Tired of the seedier side of military life—picking up drunk Marines, AWOL sailors, busting drug running operations, or worse, sending drug addicted servicemen to court marshal and treatment, she longs to have her faith in her fellow Marines restored.
Kim wants a man who knows what she needs.
Thrown together by chance on a 1Night Stand, the jarheads have a combustible chemistry—but do they have what it takes to give each other what they want?
Turning down a billet at Mike’s Place in Dallas, Sergeant A.J. Turner left Iraq for Freewill, Wyoming with one goal in mind—to forget the last five years. Trading his MARPATS for jeans and his cover for a cowboy hat, he plans to work his ranch and pray the green grass, tall trees, and sweet mountains can wash away the taste of the desert.
The last thing he expected was a reminder of a promise made to his buddies: one night to help them all start again.
Sheri Vaughn quit her corporate job, sold her house and moved to Freewill on a whim. Six months after her divorce, she’s hardly ready to put her toe in the dating waters again. One bottle of wine later, however, she signs up for Madame Eve’s exclusive 1Night Stand service and lists a very particular set of qualities she wants in a man; he must be honorable, courageous, forthright, single, have served as Marine, but be a cowboy at heart. If she wants to dream, at least she can dream big.
But when local hero A.J. Turner arrives home, Madame Eve comes through, and Sheri has to find the courage to make her dream a reality…
Can one night, even a night arranged by Madame Eve, fulfill both a promise and a dream?
At the end of their night of frenzied passion, Jazz Winters walked away from the only two men who’d ever made her feel like a woman. Logan Cavanaugh and Zach Evans let her go, but only if she swore all her future leaves to them. For fourteen, excruciatingly long months, they’ve waited for her, visiting when they could, but the demands of Mike’s Place only let them go one at a time.
Jazz’s fear that a ménage can’t last a lifetime is founded in her very middle-class, middle-American upbringing. The stress of years of military service in hot zones, combined with life-threatening injuries, pushes her to the edge. When she comes home, she’s the wounded warrior, not the woman she thinks they want. But Zach and Logan are right there to help her, even when she resists.
She’s not alone. And whether she chooses one man or both, they have no regrets and they won’t surrender.
Shannon Fabray is a sculpture artist and her love of the pure masculine body is demonstrated in every work of aesthetic art she creates. But her passion for the body doesn’t extend into her personal life after a hellish experience in college left her with nowhere to turn but her work. After several criticisms about the lack of passion in her sculptures, Shannon is determined to face her fears and take desire by the balls. A one-night stand should do the trick.
2nd Lt. Brody Essex is an active duty Marine with one goal: come home, get rested, go back. Brody isn’t interested in a date arranged through Madame Eve’s 1Night Stand service like the rest of his friends from the Corps have had, but he doesn’t hesitate to fill in for a Brother who can’t go on his own.
The last thing either Shannon or Brody expect is a wondrous, soul deep connection, but is the spark of lust enough to bring the two loners in from the cold?
Damon Sinclair is a simple Marine with simple needs and after five years of active duty in the sandbox, he’s ready to settle down and feed people’s souls. But when the rest of his Brothers sign up with the 1Night Stand dating service, the opening night of his new restaurant includes a date with Madame Evangeline’s hand picked choice.
Helena Blake has focused her entire life on her education and legal career. But, there must be more to life than legal briefs and the Styrofoam take-out palace decorating the interior of her refrigerator. And finally, a year after signing up for the 1Night Stand service, Eve has found her a date.
Wine is poured, incredible food is served, and sparks fly creating a total seduction of the senses as Damon prepares a birthday celebration that Helena will never forget.
