A.H. Cunningham

Sometimes you think you know yourself until you realize you’ve only scratched the surface. Mariana Torres Charles is finally ready to fulfill her dream as a bandleader and designer for the up-and-coming Carnival Band LoveVibe for Miami Carnival. The win would be proof that she can follow through on her goals because in love…the follow through is less than stellar. After a long string of crushed lovers, she is done breaking hearts. When Mason Brathwaite, her forever-friends-with-benefits, needs a date to a networking event to snag a new sponsor for his Student Community Center, she volunteers to attend with him hoping to catch a break from the pressures of dating. But when they meet the mysterious Daniel Robinson, son of Mason’s prospective donor and experienced kinkster, she can’t help but forget her newfound resolve. Every moment they spend together illuminates her thoughts and desires, but her track record at love tells her it is only a matter of time before their liaison smokes away. With Mason’s vying for her heart and Daniel’s and Daniel seducing their minds, what can a woman do but succumb to the temptation calling to her? Mariana will deal with the ashes once they come. After all, that's her specialty.

What do you do when your mind tells you to move on, but your heart tells you to stay? Alicia Powell Torres is sick of her joyless career, in a town full of painful memories. She wants to seize life again, and she won’t get that by staying still. It’s time for a big change, and Brooklyn seems like the right place for a fresh start. Gathering her courage, she begins the arduous process of selling her family home and leaving her past behind. But before she can pack everything up, her childhood friend and neighbor Gabo returns to town with sexy smiles, his dinner invites, his collection of steamy romance books, and his big...goals. He also brings memories best left in the past. She struggles to keep him at a distance, but he lights her up like no one else ever could. The temptation he offers is impossible to resist, and if she doesn’t get away soon, she’ll end up hurting him and herself in the process. Gabriel Miller Garcia has always been cautious, but when he returns to his hometown, he bumps into the love of his life, the one that got away. Being around Alicia again has him tempted to take a chance, but a fateful day from their youth threatens his hopes for a bright future together. Losing her again isn’t an option, so Gabriel will risk it all to keep Alicia from the bright lights of Brooklyn, but will his rekindling of her fire be too late, or will love light the way to a future together… Content Warning: Parental Death off-page Grief and Mild Depression Convalescent Parent (cancer) on page