The ABCs of Romance: B is for Buddies

by K. Vale

Hi, everyone! Kimber Vale here. Today I’m talking about the ABCs of romance. There is an A floating around the ether somewhere in case you’re OCD and can’t possibly read B first. Feel free to do a search because I’m not organized enough to have a link here or anything.

Okay? You done? Good. It’s B time, baby.

B is for buddies. I’m not saying every romantic relationship needs to start off with friendship. Plenty of them are launched with white hot passion and that can sustain a couple for a while. But eventually, lust gives way to either love or lassitude. Love needs mutual affection and comradery, not just animal magnetism, in order to grow. And hey, if you start out being friends in the first place, all the better in my opinion.

In my newest release, Hard Act to Follow, Greg and Kyrie are best friends—heck, they were even brothers in the eyes of the law until Greg and Jasmine, Kyrie’s sister, divorced. They’ve got a buddy base so stable, it’s nearly too solid to hold up a relationship, as it turns out. Eventually, though, they find a way past the complications their friendship places on a potential deeper relationship, and when they do, it’s pretty damn romantic, if I do say so myself.

An Excerpt from Hard Act to Follow

Kyrie cracked an eyelid and at first didn’t recognize where he was. In a heartbeat, the night washed over him in a mammoth tide of memories and prickly apprehension. He turned to see the other side of Greg’s queen bed. It was vacant; the curtain that separated Greg’s bedroom from his living space left open a foot.

Shit. Shit. Shit. You’ve really fuckin’ done it now, Kyr.

Why couldn’t he have just left it alone? He had told himself and told himself not to force things past the innocuous flirting he always did. It didn’t matter his best friend pushed every big bear button in Kyrie’s body. Didn’t matter he loved Greg more than he could ever say. That he felt safe and protected, and the fantastic permission to always be himself and be completely accepted around Greg.

I fucked it all up.

Greg wasn’t in bed anymore. Did he wake up at some point, look over to see his gay brother-in-law lying naked beside him, and run like hell?

Kyrie had drunk more than his fair share. Some parts of the night were fuzzy, but he knew exactly what had happened. Greg’s bedside drawer was still open. A box of condoms and the lube jeered at him from the tabletop. He opened the drawer wider to put them back. Hide the evidence. How drunk was Greg? Did he even remember?

Kyrie tried to tick off the number of drinks he’d pushed on the guy. You fuckin’ got him blasted because you are fucked up in the head! You got exactly what you wanted, stupid! Maybe Greg wouldn’t remember? Maybe it could be like it never happened. Yeah, right.

A flash of color caught his eye from inside the drawer, and he picked it out. The photo… from my fridge? Kyrie hadn’t noticed it was gone. The picture was folded in half, dividing Kyrie and Jazz.

Jazz.

Greg was still hung up on her.

Lube and a picture of my sister by his bed? Kyrie shook his head, denying the evidence before him. He picked up the box of rubbers, hoping against hope to prove himself wrong.

Expired. Probably a holdover from their marriage, for God’s sake! Kyrie placed the entire jerk-off-kit-slash-shrine-to-his-sister back in the drawer and closed it, a chill enveloping his entire being, trying to suck him down into some frigid hell.

About Hard Act to Follow

Kyrie is an actor with a physical aversion to telling lies, a one-eyed cat, and horrible taste in men. His ex-brother-in-law and best friend, Greg, harbors a secret crush he can’t shake. After denying his feelings for Kyrie for too long, Greg finally gives in to desire one drunken night. Come the morning, the facts get twisted. Kyrie pretends he doesn’t remember a thing—a lie that eats him alive—and Greg can’t stop thinking about how he screwed up the best thing in his life.

Before they can clear the air, Kyrie follows his dreams to New York City, but could he also be running away?

A mistake from Kyrie’s past detonates their silence, and Greg is forced to confront the man he loves. Is their new truth strong enough to support a relationship, or are they doomed to crumble under old fears? Their friendship could evolve into something a million times stronger, but maybe Kyrie’s act is just too hard for Greg to follow.

Available at: Liquid Silver Books

About K. Vale

K. Vale writes erotic romance of all stripes, from hot hetero to mouthwatering manlove. Find her MF work published under Kimber Vale. Come for the sex. Stay for the story. Stalk Kimber on Facebook and Twitter @KimberVale, and check her site for updates, new releases, and freebies at http://www.authorkimbervale.com. The blog: http://www.kimbervale.me

Kimber is giving away a $25 Amazon gift card to celebrate her new release! To enter, just click the link below!

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Don’t forget to check out Susan65’s review of Hard Act to Follow to see what she thought of it!

Good luck!