We're happy to host the final stop of The Garden (Lavender Shores #2) blog tour! Rosalind Abel drops by with an exclusive excerpt and a $5 Amazon gift card giveaway (ends August 9th)
Good luck!
Walden Thompson dreamed about living in Lavender Shores since he visited as a child. He finally gets his chance, and he embraces the opportunity to start over, to become someone new. He leaves both hurts and dangerous habits in the past, where they belong. When Gilbert crosses his path, Walden gives in to his baser instincts. He can indulge in the carnal pleasures this once and still be okay.
Their few hours together haunt Gilbert, the two-hundred-mile buffer from home no longer shutting out the past or the sexy man he left behind. Walden is just beginning to recover from the smoldering encounter with Gilbert when they are thrust together once more. This time, neither of them can walk away, no matter how hard they try. But when their pasts crash into each other as surely as the magnetism that pulls them together, walking away may be the only option.
The Garden Amazon Link: http://amzn.to/2sCXIOf
Publication date: July 25, 2017
Cover Artist: AngstyG
Thank you, Boy Meets Boy, for having me here for an exclusive excerpt from The Garden, and thank you to each of you who’ve stopped by!
The Garden is the second book of the Lavender Shores series. Each of the novels can be read as a stand-alone or as part of the series. I’m going to let the excerpt and blurb speak themselves, but I will promise you romance, steamy sex, laughter, all the feels, and a happily ever after. Whether you read The Palisade (the first book in the series) or not, you will thoroughly enjoy this particular visit to Lavender Shores.
The Garden is available from Amazon and is also free on Kindle Unlimited. I can’t wait for you to fall in love with Gilbert, Walden, and Lavender Shores.
Each of the stops on the blog tour have focused solely on Gilbert and Walden’s time together, but for our final stop, I wanted to give you a humorous moment with Gilbert’s family. It’s the first time Walden is meeting Gilbert’s parents. A moment some of us remember clearly when we started dating our significant other. Always a fun endeavor. I hope you enjoy! Try not to cringe.
(Side note. The picture doesn’t match this scene at all. But, I couldn’t resist!)
Gilbert held out the flowers. “Here, Mom, Walden brought these. It seems he’s trying to romance you instead of me.”
Regina took the bouquet, raised the flowers to her face, and breathed deep. She sighed contentedly, then looked at me, her expression serious. “Well, I am the better option, definitely. But my son does have his charms, as I’m sure you’ve discovered.” She winked, then headed into the kitchen, raising her voice as she walked. “Walden’s here, everyone! Line up and introduce yourself. Mark this down as the day we got a new Bryant in the family! And the day after the Kellys got Joel. Just perfect.” She continued muttering cheerfully as she disappeared behind a wall in the kitchen.
I turned to Gilbert and gaped, sure I’d heard her wrong.
He shrugged. “I should’ve warned you. I don’t bring men home, so they’ll all assume this means….” His words wandered off, and he broke eye contact.
Lacy leaned in, nudging me with her shoulder. “Better brace yourself, sweetie. You’re not going to be bored.”
The introductions were thick and fast, sweeping any astonishment aside. Patrick, Gilbert’s dad, was the opposite of his wife. Where she was all big blonde hair and low-cut pastel dress, he was sleek and handsome and serious. Then Gilbert and Lacy’s older sister, Hayley, her husband, James, and their three children, Dillon, Jackson, and Olive. It put me at ease to have kids there. If worse came to worst, I could pull my teacher card and entertain them. Then Micah, who’d played the violin at the wedding. Finally, Connor, who still made me feel small. He was the one who stood out. Darker and so different from the other Bryants, especially with all his tattoos. As he shook my hand and clapped me on the shoulder like we were old friends, I noticed the same purple-and-blue heart tattoo on the back of his right hand that Gilbert had on his shoulder.
There was no time to ask about it as Regina called out that dinner was ready.
Meals at my home were quiet. Just my mother, father, and me. They’d gotten quieter every year as I became more and more of who I was and less of the son they’d hoped and prayed I’d be.
By the time the meal was halfway over, I was nearly overwhelmed. With all the voices, laughter, the barking of two dogs that appeared from nowhere as the meal was set out. People spoke over each other, Olive started to cry when one of her older brothers made a face at her from across the table, Micah laughed way too hard at something Connor said.
It was noise, noise, noise.
And I thought I liked it.
Gilbert was discussing something with Lacy, his fork already halfway to his mouth, though he hadn’t even finished chewing his bite of baked chicken as he continued yakking away. He must have felt my gaze, as he glanced over and cocked a questioning brow. I smiled and nodded in a way I hoped was reassuring. He didn’t look fully convinced but smiled back and resumed talking to Lacy.
I’d been so convinced that there wouldn’t be anyone else after Levi. That part of me had broken irrevocably. And I figured that was still true. Or at least that I’d been broken so badly I was never going to be the same Walden I’d been before. I’d also assumed that I’d never be able to trust anyone else again either. But as I looked around at the Bryants, I realized that part wasn’t accurate. Levi had kept me from everyone. And everyone from me. Which, looking back, made sense; he’d lived a secret life. I was his secret life. At least one of them. But Gilbert and I hadn’t gone further than admitting to each other we both had feelings, and there I was. Surrounded by his family, by nearly everyone who was important to him. None of this was secret. And maybe it was too much, too fast. But I was glad it was this way. Overwhelming to be sure, but it made me feel safe. Not only that he was who he claimed to be, but that the feelings I saw in his eyes were truly real.
Gilbert had set down the fork and rested his hand on my thigh as he spoke to Lacy. It was an unconscious, automatic gesture, at least it seemed. I marveled at that. I’d wanted more with Gilbert. Had for months, even though I’d never thought it could happen, hadn’t even been sure I was ready. But there I was, surrounded by his family, him touching me as he chatted with his twin, like he simply needed to know I was there. My heart soared. Fear bit at me as well; I didn’t think I was strong enough to go through loss again, but I did my best to shove that worry aside. Reaching over, I slipped my hand into his, the table hiding it from view. He glanced back at me again. He smiled once more and squeezed my hand. “I’m glad you’re here.”
I leaned closer. “Me too.”
Maybe his mom noticed, since she sat across from us, or maybe she’d simply decided the meal had gone smoothly enough. She pushed back from the table with a flourish and stood. “I’ll be right back.”
Patrick sighed loudly as he shook his head toward his wife’s vacant chair.
Gilbert straightened instantly, his voice panicked. “No. Mom. No. Absolutely not. Sit back down.”
She was already lost in another room.
“Might as well accept it, bro. It only gets worse if you fight it.” Micah waggled a fork at his brother. “Remember when I had a crush on Sam Welby in fifth grade and brought him here? At least you’re not ten and you don’t have to worry about all your classmates talking about your ass for the next year.”
Connor shook his head. “That’s nothing. The only childhood picture she got from my mom was me in the bathtub with my dick tucked between my legs. That was real fun having a guy you were planning on sleeping with see you like that first.”
Picture she got from his mom?
“I still remember Hayley’s,” James piped up from across the table. “Prom night, and that was definitely not the image of Hayley’s ass I was planning on seeing that evening, let me tell you.”
Patrick cleared his throat at his son-in-law. “Need I remind you that your three-year-old daughter is at this table?”
James blushed. “Sorry, sir. You’re right, sir.”
Hayley shook her head and grinned at Gilbert. “It is your turn. Finally.”
Before I had a chance to figure out what they were all talking about, Regina was back and she wedged herself between Micah and me. She swatted at him. “Scoot over, baby.” He did, and she plopped down, sharing the chair with him, then shoved the plates and dishes out of the way on the table with a clatter before slamming a large photo album down in front of me. The edge of it hit a spoon, which shot across the table, nearly hitting her husband. The two little boys at the end of the table giggled.
Regina was oblivious and held the album closed as she leveled her gaze on me. “I’m assuming since you know my son biblically, you also know what he does for a living.”
Beside her, Micah snorted. “Right, Mom, because Gilbert has had that conversation with every guy he’s known biblically.”
“Hey.” Gilbert leaned back in his chair and reached around us just enough to swat him in the back of the head.
“Well”—Regina bobbed her head—“he does have a point, dear.” She returned her quizzical gaze to me.
It took me a moment to remember what the question had been. “Oh, yes. He designs jewelry.”
“Very true.” She nodded in approval. “Well, one day I came back from walking Anne—she was our cocker spaniel at the time—and I strolled into my bedroom to find this!” She flung open the album to the place her thumb had saved.
Beside me, Gilbert groaned, and Lacy burst out laughing.
Regina pointed a long periwinkle nail at the picture. “You’ll notice he had excellent taste in jewelry even back then.”
I leaned closer, unable to stop the smile I felt growing. In the photo, a little Gilbert stood in the center of a room. Naked except for the countless strings of pearls and gold around his neck. Behind him, a girl who could only be Lacy sat at the vanity, still clothed and making a mess of lipstick across her face.
Regina tapped it again. “Notice that the jewelry nearly covered up the private bits, but not quite.”
Gilbert raised a finger in the air, drawing my attention away from the album. “I want it pointed out that I’m not fighting this because I know it’s pointless, but I also want to let you know that I hate you all.”
To be continued. . .
See, meeting the future in-laws isn’t that bad. Well, sometimes.
I hope you enjoyed that glimpse of The Garden, and the some of the characters you’ll fall in love with as you journey along side Walden and Gilbert. Pick up the book on Amazon and visit the town of Lavender Shores at: http://www.lavendershores.com. Thank you so, so much! Rosalind
Blog Tour:
July 25—The Novel Approach
July 28—Love Bytes
July 31—Scattered Thoughts
August 2—Boy Meets Boy
About the author
In between crafting scorching sex scenes and helping her men find their soul mate, Rosalind enjoys cooking, collecting toys, and making the best damn scrapbooks in the world (this claim hasn’t been proven, but she’s willing to put good money on it).
She adores MM Romance and the power it has to sweep the reader away into worlds filled with passion, steam, and love. Rosalind also enjoys her collection of plot bunnies, and welcomes new fuzzy ones in her home all the time, so feel free to send any adorable ones her way.
Amazon author page: http://amzn.to/2qoiuLC
Facebook Author page: http://bit.ly/2rH8C4o
Rosalind Abel Website: http://www.rosalindabel.com
Lavender Shores Website: http://www.lavendershores.com
Twitter: @rosalind_abel
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/rosalindabelauthor
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