Shoulder Season Read online

  “We’ve argued?” asked Solvin, his brow crinkling.

  “Didn’t we?” asked Ben, confused.

  “We disagreed, and then we discussed it,” said Solvin. “And then we kissed after, which is how it should go.”

  “I think the kissing should come before, during, and after,” said Ben.

  “See there?” asked Solvin as he planted a huge, messy kiss on Ben’s mouth. “We’ve just done it again, only you’re two kisses behind, I think.”

  “I’ll make it up to you, I promise,” said Ben. “Starting now.”

  To prove this, Ben kissed Solvin, and kissed him again and again until Solvin was laughing out loud, and they almost fell off the couch together. The heat kicked on, and the apartment was warm and smelled vaguely of garlic, and there were things that needed taking care of like paperwork and the approval of a mom he’d not yet met. But all of that could be done later, because even if the visa application and packing went slowly, like a glacier, their lives would be knitted together like the most beautiful Icelandic sweater anybody had ever seen. And Ben knew as long as he had Solvin in his life, he would be happy, which was all he’d ever wanted.

  JACKIE NORTH has been writing stories since grade school and spent years absorbing the mainstream romances that she found at her local grocery store. Her dream was to someday leave the corporate world behind and travel the world. She also wanted to put her English degree to good use and write romance novels, because for years she’s had a never-ending movie of made-up love stories in her head that simply wouldn’t leave her alone.

  Then as fate would have it, she discovered m/m romance and decided it was exactly what she wanted to write books about, with men falling in love with other men. In this dazzling new world, she turned her grocery-store romance ideas around and is now putting them to paper as fast as her fingers can type.

  She creates characters who are a bit flawed and broken, who find themselves on the edge of society, and maybe a few who are a little bit lost, but who all deserve a happily ever after. (And she makes sure they get it!)

  She likes long walks on the beach, the smell of lavender and rainstorms, and enjoys sleeping in on snowy mornings. She is especially fond of pizza and beer and, when time allows, long road trips with soda fountain drinks and rock and roll music.

  In her heart, there is peace to be found everywhere, but since in the real world this isn’t always true, Jackie writes for love.

  Email: [email protected]

  Twitter: @JackieNorthMM

  Facebook: www.facebook.com/jackienorthMM

  Website: www.jackienorth.com

  By Jackie North

  Shoulder Season

  Published by DREAMSPINNER PRESS

  www.dreamspinnerpress.com

  Published by

  DREAMSPINNER PRESS

  5032 Capital Circle SW, Suite 2, PMB# 279, Tallahassee, FL 32305-7886 USA

  www.dreamspinnerpress.com

  This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and incidents either are the product of author imagination or are used fictitiously, and any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, business establishments, events, or locales is entirely coincidental.

  Shoulder Season

  © 2018 Jackie North.

  Cover Art

  © 2018 Brooke Albrecht.

  http://brookealbrechtstudio.com

  Cover content is for illustrative purposes only and any person depicted on the cover is a model.

  All rights reserved. This book is licensed to the original purchaser only. Duplication or distribution via any means is illegal and a violation of international copyright law, subject to criminal prosecution and upon conviction, fines, and/or imprisonment. Any eBook format cannot be legally loaned or given to others. No part of this book may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, or by any information storage and retrieval system, without the written permission of the Publisher, except where permitted by law. To request permission and all other inquiries, contact Dreamspinner Press, 5032 Capital Circle SW, Suite 2, PMB# 279, Tallahassee, FL 32305-7886, USA, or www.dreamspinnerpress.com.

  Digital ISBN: 978-1-64080-615-3

  Digital eBook published August 2018

  v. 1.0

  Printed in the United States of America