Love, Step by Step

Book Cover: Love, Step by Step
Editions:ePub

Peter Lamont and Mark Trainor met as freshman in college. They separated to go to different law schools, but promised if, when they turned thirty, they weren’t attached or married, they would get back together again. Over the years, they met up time and again, keeping their friendship alive and well.

Recently, Peter turned thirty. Now for Mark’s thirtieth, Peter has planned a progressive dinner at the restaurants on the refurbished pier. Will the lovely sunset, twinkling lights, and excellent food set the scene for their reunion? Or will one of them decide to renege on the promise?

Published:
Publisher: JMS Books (https://www.jms-books.com/)
Editors:
Lourenza Adlem
Cover Artists:
Written Ink Designs
Genres:
contemporary, MM, romance
Tags:
animal shelter, attorney, baseball, blind dates, dog walking, MM, movie, pool, progressive dinner, restaurant, soup kitchen, speed dating, trivia
Excerpt:
    • “Our second step back in time leads to the Good Samaritan Shelter.” Peter gestured to Soup It Up Café as Mark groaned.

 

    • A waiter wearing an apron with an oversized logo seated them. They were surrounded by a country kitchen themed space with red and white checkered tablecloths, pottery dinnerware, recycled wood walls, and dried herbs hanging in bundles overhead. It was much busier her than at Mama Mia’s. But then, it was now early dinner hour.

 

    • Although the Soup It Up décor wasn’t like Good Samaritan’s food kitchen and shelter, the crowded tables and jostling crowd were. Unlike Good Samaritan’s these diners weren’t smelly men and occasional women off the streets who stood in line to eat each evening. This place reeked of family.

 

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    • “Hey, I was going through my do-gooder phase,” Mark protested. “Because of you, I might add.”

 

    • “Your grudging, complaining, growling do-gooder moment I think you mean,” Peter added. “You showed up, what? Three times. The first time after a day of drinking when you could barely stand and called me to come bail you out.”

 

    • Even though Soup It Up wanted to be upscale and trendy with its kitchen antiques and deliberate homey smell, the noise level screamed big, vocal family at the holidays. There might have been ambient music, but no one could hear it.

 

    • Peter and Mark huddled closer together so they could talk and hear each other.

 

    • “Hey, I was trying,” Mark protested. “Besides, my bad mood and drinking were all your fault. That morning, I’d been to see the shrink you convinced me to visit. A shrink who ‘drilled down’ into my unhappiness at getting dumped a second time by my scumbag boyfriend. I was drowning my sorrows, including my shitty taste in men and my incredible stupidity in thinking a man who cheated once wouldn’t actually do it again.”

 

    • Mark grimaced. “I know, I know. You warned me not to take him back. And I got mad at you. Sorry to have been such a loser friend.”

 

    • Peter held up his hands in a defensive gesture as they were served the soup of the day. The herbs hanging from the hooks overhead might be decoration, but by the delicious smell, they could tell the chef used them well in his creations.

 

    • “Not a loser. Eternally hopeful. Eat up. This looks delicious.”

 

    • Both men tucked in as if they hadn’t had canapes a few moments before.

 

    • “I might remind you, you agreed to see the shrink, Mark. And, you told me you felt better afterward.” Then Peter grinned, his trademark dimples and twinkly eyes making Mark feel as if he wasn’t being blamed or shamed. “Well, at least you told me you felt better after I came to your rescue at the soup kitchen. You even said the experience with your ex and with the shrink had made you want to give back to the community. So you decided to help out on the serving line at the shelter.”

 

    • Mark sighed.

 

    • “Yeah, okay, I know you think I’m a quitter and a loser.” He held up a hand to stop Peter from speaking. “Not your turn to talk now, okay?”

 

    • At Peter’s nod, Mark continued, his voice empty.

 

    • “I just hadn’t found the right way to help others. My way to help. Standing in a serving line and watching man after man walk by getting a bowl of soup, roll, butter, and drink didn’t make me feel like I was really helping. All it did was remind me over and over that there but for the grace of God go I.”

 

    • They ate in silence for a few minutes.

 

    • “My turn to talk now?” Peter asked.

 

    • Mark dunked his roll into the broth.

 

    “Yeah, I guess.”

 

COLLAPSE

12 Blind Dates

Following a horrific break up with his fiancé, Luke Bennet spends two years as a social hermit, only going to work and talking with Tina, Gina, and Rita, three friends from high school.

Refusing to let him wallow any longer, they intervene and talk him into going on twelve blind dates to get him back in social circulation.

The Trio have not only planned the dating venues but also chosen the perfect guys to lure Luke from his isolation.

Will he find love through these dates? Or will he run for cover again?

Published:
Publisher: JMS Books (https://www.jms-books.com/)
Editors:
Drew
Cover Artists:
Written Ink Designs
Genres:
contemporary, MM, romance
Tags:
animal shelter, art gallery, bartender, baseball, basketball, blind dates, board games, chef, contemporary, dog walking, gay romance, LGBTQ+, MM, movie, non-series title, poetry reading, pool, quiz competition, referee, restaurant, second chance, second chance at love, second chance love, soup kitchen, starting over, treasure hunt, Trio, trivia
Excerpt:

About the most positive part of date four was the date showed up. Equally, that could have been the worst part of the date.

Since dates four and five had already been lined up without Mike and Bert being invited to go on them, we decided to start the foolproof date backup plan on date six. I mean, what could go wrong on Friday and Saturday?

Rita who organized catering for gala events had scored a pair of tickets to the premier of the newest Marvel film at the refurbished mall Cineplex. During the pandemic, the Cineplex had gutted its theaters, transforming its rows of hard-backed chairs into home entertainment seating.

I’d read a couple of online articles about how incredible the new wave of movie theater comfort was becoming, so even if I wasn’t gung-ho about another blind date, I was excited to be one of a pampered audience.

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Bernard showed up in a three-piece suit looking like he’d stepped out of a GQ ad. Audience members around us ranged from those costumed to those in theme T-shirts. I wore jeans and a neutral sweater.

After exchanging names and a hearty handshake, we were greeted by people with clipboards who logged us in and told us where our seats were located. As we waited our turn to enter the theater itself, Bernard glanced around and sighed.

“I should have known.” He looked like he was in pain. “Who are these people?”

Thinking it was a genuine question and he’d never seen cosplayers before, I started to answer as he shook his head, disgust written all over his face.

“They have no appreciation of the time, trouble, and creative genius that went into this production,” he said.

“What? No! You’ve got it wrong. They’re the ones who truly appreciate what we’re going to see.”

I realized my mistake almost immediately. Obviously, nobody ever told Bernard he was wrong.

The date immediately plunged toward disaster status.

With him ignoring me, we were checked off the guest list, given brochures about the operation of the lounge seats, and ushered into the theater.

I was reading how the seats reclined, featured built-in speakers, sported cup holders with cold and hot settings, and even gave massages. To break our silence, I was about to comment how a massage might put me to sleep instead of enhance the movie experience when I realized Bernard wasn’t anywhere near me.

He was down the row facing a handsome twenty-something in the center chair.

“I don’t give a fuck who you think you are! I’m sure this is supposed to be my seat,” Bernard yelled.

After we were escorted from the theater -- without seeing the movie -- Bernard stalked off to the parking lot and it was the last I saw of him.

Mike thought the story of the date was really funny.

“Okay, wise guy. What would you or Bert have done to help me out?”

“Um, I would have stepped in and explained how we weren’t responsible for your blind date’s actions and let Bernard leave and be his own unhappy self. Then we all would have sat back and enjoyed the movie. You were being too nice to have walked out with him.”

“Well, he was my date.”

“Not right then he wasn’t.” Mike looked at me with a huge grin. “Did you even get to try out the new lounge chairs?”

At my head shake, he added, “Well, I’m putting them down on our to-do list.”

Our to-do list?

How come his words made me feel hopeful? I didn’t tell him, though.

In the end, he and I thought the next date couldn’t possibly be worse.

We were wrong. So wrong.

COLLAPSE
Reviews:Natalie on Goodreads wrote:

This was a cute and fun read that just made me giggle as Luke went through his dates, most of them just a disaster. Mike is Luke's first date and as Luke goes through his other dates, these two start to get closer than just friends. I loved that Luke's friends wanted to help him get out of his rut but man did they did not pick some winners, except for Mike of course. This is short and entertaining so if you need something to make you smile or a palate cleanser between emotionally heavy reads, then pull this up.

Maureen on Goodreads wrote:

A delightful and entertaining tale of how sometimes friends, although they mean well, are not the best Cupid assistants. Actually it's more than that, it's freaking hilarious! Who knew so many blind dates could be so disasterous. Poor Luke, having three female BFF's is bound to bring about emotional upsets as they try to re-involve him into the dating world. Great fun to read and a sweet sweet finale.