I've always been the black sheep of the family—the weird goth girl who had an obsession with the dead. So when I left home for college with a major in science, no one should have been surprised.But the whole family has shunned me. None of them would speak to me except my cousin, who was second runner-up on the family's list of no-gooders since she ran away to join a biker gang. We keep in touch but haven't seen each other in years.Until she shows up on campus, covered in bl...

I have several business ventures under my belt, but none are as lucrative or as fun as my business in Leather Persuasion. The exclusive resort accepted my bid after I pitched them a one-of-a-kind excursion idea.Any fantasy you can think of, fulfilled, no questions asked, within the letter of the law.I hand-approve all submitted requests and match them with the staff best suited to fulfill their wildest dreams. This side of my life never crosses my other professional persona...

I never thought life could change so fast. In the blink of an eye, I'm dishonorably discharged from the Navy and burying my grandma, all while trying to learn what civilian retirement is all about.I inherited a house that's a money pit, and the only person willing to hire me has ulterior motives…But beggars can't be choosers, as Gram used to say.So when my first day as dockmaster ends with a gun to my head and a seriously pissed off biker telling me he's my new boss, who am...

Bitter work rivals Derek and Lillian come to head over an ad campaign that could make or break their careers. When the dust settles, one walks away victorious and decides to celebrate with a well-earned holiday while the other hops on a plane to lick their wounds.When they both find themselves on a seaplane to Trunk Bay, tension rises even more when private secrets are revealed, and an attraction they can no longer fight finds the one place where no one will judge them.In a...

You know, the thing about being a legacy is that everyone expects you to do better. I've always just wanted to be me until my whole identity was stolen during one failed run.Now, my need to be the best is driven by revenge.Unfortunately for her, her old man died before I could get to him. She'll need to settle his debt to me now and it's a hefty one. Little Miss Socialite has no idea what her Daddy was really all about.It'll be my pleasure to teach her.Kiss ...

Prodigy and Legacy are two massive words to live up to. Growing up in the club was never as simple for me as it was for the other kids. They all knew that they'd one day have a role to play. They would always belong.I was special.The surprise child my parents never thought they could have—my father's little miracle. I inherited my parents' gifts and then some. I can hit a perfect C7 note and a target from over three hundred meters with an arrow.With a riffle? I'm ev...

Being the newest and youngest member in the club can be ego-bruising. If you don't have tough skin or a fantastic sense of humor, you'll never make it in a motorcycle club. The teasing I can deal with, but the constant second-guessing of my skills I don't appreciate.I'm no longer the kid who gets drunk and then regrets his nightly conquest, but they can't see anyone else.I've been thinking of stepping away and going nomad for a while, but a beautiful know-it-all doctor has ...

Five years ago, I found the missing piece of my soul.I returned to Roanoke, VA, with a hole in my chest that only my missing sister could fill. She was the reason I joined the club, and after years of looking, my brothers delivered on their promise to help me rescue her.What I found when I arrived there was so much more.Leaving and going home to help my sister regain a life stolen from her was the only mission I had left, and now that it was complete, I realized I h...

I fell in love with the girl next door in high school. She's been sleeping in my bed since we were teens, and no one knew a thing. Our parents are so close; they're family, and that's the problem.We're viewed as family and, therefore, can't ever be together, or at least that's what she's using as an excuse. Her determination to fight our love has caused a drift that the club is starting to notice.We've been attached at the hip since we could walk, and now we can barely stan...

I've lived my life exactly how I've wanted to, chasing fires. Until the best night of my life made me rethink the word responsibility. Suddenly, risking my life jumping out of planes into forest fires wasn't worth the chance of not coming home. Especially when I have two little girls waiting on me.So I retired.Bought a house, learned how to change a diaper, and have been trying to change that life I thought I wanted into the one I have and desperately want to keep.B...

Fame does something to a young man's mind that no other experience can possibly do to teach him about humility. Why, you ask? Cause fame is fickle. One day you have it, and the next you're just another broken cowboy on the rodeo circuit of life.When you're barely legal to drink, having that ripped away from you is a bitter pill to swallow.Having a nurse whose words cut deeper than any wounded pride could seems to be the highlight of my days now. Until her mouth gets her fir...

With moments of dry humor, this new story collection by award-winning author Gregory D. Williams provides a glimpse of boyhood and its lingering effects inside the man. The gentle irony and characters’ keenly observed dilemmas reflect life in Arizona, baking in the dry heat of the Sonoran desert.When a Little League player takes direction from the team’s star female player, he learns about “rounding the bases.”Seeking revenge, two boys set up a sting operation to catch a ne...