Sebastian Nothwell's Blog - Posts Tagged "hold-fast"
Sunday Snippet, 1.15.23
Please enjoy this Sunday Snippet from my gay Victorian whaling romance, Hold Fast – available now wherever fine books are found.
~
Turner took Evelyn’s wrists in his hands. Evelyn, startled, looked down at the point of contact, but made no move to resist. Truth told, he had no wish to pull away from his grip. Turner had a firm hand, sure and supportive. A touch such as Evelyn hadn’t felt in many years. He watched passively as Turner rearranged his limbs.
“Your left hand will settle onto the lady’s waist,” said Turner, placing Evelyn’s hand in accordance with his words.
Evelyn’s breath caught in his throat as his palm met Turner’s jacket. Instinct encouraged him to squeeze, to feel the flesh beneath the cloth, to pull Turner close. He ignored it.
“And your right hand,” said Turner, going on as if no untoward thoughts raced through Evelyn’s mind, “takes the lady’s left,” and here he shifted his grip, his hand palm-to-palm with Evelyn’s in a gentle hold—such soft hands, “and holds it aloft. Not down by her waist, nor up over her head, but in line with her shoulders. Allow for a slight bend of the elbow. Do not pull her arm straight out. Just hold it, thusly. You will look the lady in the eye.”
With difficulty, Evelyn tore his eyes away from the sight of Turner’s hand in his own and met Turner’s gaze.
“You will not watch your feet,” Turner continued. “Nor will you allow your glance to settle upon anything between her feet and her eyes.”
Turner’s gaze was steady as the tides—and Evelyn was just as powerless to resist its pull.
~
~
Turner took Evelyn’s wrists in his hands. Evelyn, startled, looked down at the point of contact, but made no move to resist. Truth told, he had no wish to pull away from his grip. Turner had a firm hand, sure and supportive. A touch such as Evelyn hadn’t felt in many years. He watched passively as Turner rearranged his limbs.
“Your left hand will settle onto the lady’s waist,” said Turner, placing Evelyn’s hand in accordance with his words.
Evelyn’s breath caught in his throat as his palm met Turner’s jacket. Instinct encouraged him to squeeze, to feel the flesh beneath the cloth, to pull Turner close. He ignored it.
“And your right hand,” said Turner, going on as if no untoward thoughts raced through Evelyn’s mind, “takes the lady’s left,” and here he shifted his grip, his hand palm-to-palm with Evelyn’s in a gentle hold—such soft hands, “and holds it aloft. Not down by her waist, nor up over her head, but in line with her shoulders. Allow for a slight bend of the elbow. Do not pull her arm straight out. Just hold it, thusly. You will look the lady in the eye.”
With difficulty, Evelyn tore his eyes away from the sight of Turner’s hand in his own and met Turner’s gaze.
“You will not watch your feet,” Turner continued. “Nor will you allow your glance to settle upon anything between her feet and her eyes.”
Turner’s gaze was steady as the tides—and Evelyn was just as powerless to resist its pull.
~
Sunday Snippet, 2.12.23
Sunday Snippet from my gay Victorian whaling romance, Hold Fast - available now wherever fine books are found.
~
A sailor stood across the way by the very lamppost Morgan had abandoned to approach the ship. Many of his shipmates milled about nearby, but this particular sailor attracted Morgan’s attention by standing quite literally head and shoulders above the rest. He had a broad, bearded face to match his broad, brawny shoulders. Years of open-sea sun had tanned his skin and bleached his hair to the same shade. The hair—tied back, with the ends flitting about in the sea breeze, strands stiff with salt—drew more of Morgan’s interest than he would have liked to admit.
The sailor caught Morgan’s eye over the crowd, and winked.
Morgan quickly glanced away, intending to keep walking, but stopped as a thought occurred to him. The sailor had lately crewed aboard the Gayheader. Perhaps he knew where Morgan might find his quarry. Resigned, he crossed the wharf and approached him. “Your pardon, sir.”
“Granted.” A cocky grin flashed through the sailor’s grizzled beard, turning his aspect from ferocious to friendly in an instant. He rested a hand against the lamppost. Ragged blue lines across his knuckles spelled out H-O-L-D. A glance at his other hand, planted on his sinewy hip, showed the letters F-A-S-T.
Morgan forced his gaze back up to the sailor’s face. “I’m looking for Sir Evelyn Winthrop.”
The sailor’s eyes widened, but his grin never faded. “You’re in luck, mate. You’ve found the very man.”
~
~
A sailor stood across the way by the very lamppost Morgan had abandoned to approach the ship. Many of his shipmates milled about nearby, but this particular sailor attracted Morgan’s attention by standing quite literally head and shoulders above the rest. He had a broad, bearded face to match his broad, brawny shoulders. Years of open-sea sun had tanned his skin and bleached his hair to the same shade. The hair—tied back, with the ends flitting about in the sea breeze, strands stiff with salt—drew more of Morgan’s interest than he would have liked to admit.
The sailor caught Morgan’s eye over the crowd, and winked.
Morgan quickly glanced away, intending to keep walking, but stopped as a thought occurred to him. The sailor had lately crewed aboard the Gayheader. Perhaps he knew where Morgan might find his quarry. Resigned, he crossed the wharf and approached him. “Your pardon, sir.”
“Granted.” A cocky grin flashed through the sailor’s grizzled beard, turning his aspect from ferocious to friendly in an instant. He rested a hand against the lamppost. Ragged blue lines across his knuckles spelled out H-O-L-D. A glance at his other hand, planted on his sinewy hip, showed the letters F-A-S-T.
Morgan forced his gaze back up to the sailor’s face. “I’m looking for Sir Evelyn Winthrop.”
The sailor’s eyes widened, but his grin never faded. “You’re in luck, mate. You’ve found the very man.”
~
Hold Fast 2 - Hold Faster is on Patreon!
Hold Fast 2 - Hold Faster
is up on Patre♡n! Wherein we glimpse the ongoing romance of Morgan Turner and Sir Evelyn Winthrop.
~
Morgan raised an eyebrow. “Did you enjoy traveling as a merchant seaman?”
“It had its moments,” Evelyn admitted.
“Do tell.” The trace of a smile graced the corners of Morgan’s lips, which was as good as a grin on another man’s face.
“The boiler room, for one.”
This statement did nothing to dispel Morgan’s bemusement. “I never realized you had such a passion for coal.”
“I could take or leave the coal. My fellow stokers, on the other hand…” Evelyn trailed off just long enough for Morgan to catch his drift before he dove ahead. “Six brawny men to each furnace, all stripped to the waist.”
Morgan’s bemusement vanished.
Evelyn continued. “Sweat gleaming in the firelight as we bend and twist to shovel coal. Thrusting our lances into the flames and withdrawing to feed the draught.”
A hard swallow traveled down Morgan’s slender throat.
~
Joining me on Patre♡n will give you access to “drawer fic” – aka the 500k+ words worth of manuscripts that have been shelved until I figure out how to fix or finish them. You'll also be invited to join an exclusive Discord server just for patrons!
A new story or chaper will go up every week. Missing (unwritten) scenes will be indicated by brackets describing what would probably happen if the scene were written. Example: [in this scene Aubrey and Lindsey ride a carousel]
Currently posting…
♡ Hold Fast 2 - Hold Faster (mm)
Completed works...
♡ the Aubrey & Lindsey solar fantasy project (mm)
♡ A Willing Canvas - John Halloway x Lord Cyril Graves (mm)
♡ The Train Job - Rowena Althorp x Rebekah (ff)
See you on Patre♡n!
~
Morgan raised an eyebrow. “Did you enjoy traveling as a merchant seaman?”
“It had its moments,” Evelyn admitted.
“Do tell.” The trace of a smile graced the corners of Morgan’s lips, which was as good as a grin on another man’s face.
“The boiler room, for one.”
This statement did nothing to dispel Morgan’s bemusement. “I never realized you had such a passion for coal.”
“I could take or leave the coal. My fellow stokers, on the other hand…” Evelyn trailed off just long enough for Morgan to catch his drift before he dove ahead. “Six brawny men to each furnace, all stripped to the waist.”
Morgan’s bemusement vanished.
Evelyn continued. “Sweat gleaming in the firelight as we bend and twist to shovel coal. Thrusting our lances into the flames and withdrawing to feed the draught.”
A hard swallow traveled down Morgan’s slender throat.
~
Joining me on Patre♡n will give you access to “drawer fic” – aka the 500k+ words worth of manuscripts that have been shelved until I figure out how to fix or finish them. You'll also be invited to join an exclusive Discord server just for patrons!
A new story or chaper will go up every week. Missing (unwritten) scenes will be indicated by brackets describing what would probably happen if the scene were written. Example: [in this scene Aubrey and Lindsey ride a carousel]
Currently posting…
♡ Hold Fast 2 - Hold Faster (mm)
Completed works...
♡ the Aubrey & Lindsey solar fantasy project (mm)
♡ A Willing Canvas - John Halloway x Lord Cyril Graves (mm)
♡ The Train Job - Rowena Althorp x Rebekah (ff)
See you on Patre♡n!
Happy 6th Book Birthday to Hold Fast!
Happy book birthday to Hold Fast!
Hold Fast is a gay Victorian romance between a whaling harpooner who inherits a baronetcy and the estate agent tasked with turning him from sailor to gentleman.
You can find Hold Fast wherever fine books are found – but if you get it thru Smashwords it’s 50% off (along with all my other books)!
And thank you for reading!
Hold Fast is a gay Victorian romance between a whaling harpooner who inherits a baronetcy and the estate agent tasked with turning him from sailor to gentleman.
You can find Hold Fast wherever fine books are found – but if you get it thru Smashwords it’s 50% off (along with all my other books)!
And thank you for reading!
The Sebastian Nothwell Contemporary Expanded Universe on Patreon
A thought experiment that frankly got out of hand is up on Patre♡n! Daring to answer the question no one asked - what would the casts of Mr Warren's Profession, Hold Fast, and Fiorenzo get up to in a modern setting?
Joining me on Patre♡n will give you access to “drawer fic” – aka the 500k+ words worth of manuscripts that have been shelved until I figure out how to fix or finish them. You'll also be invited to join an exclusive Discord server just for patrons!
A new chapter will go up every week. Missing (unwritten) scenes will be indicated by brackets describing what would probably happen if the scene were written. Example: [in this scene Aubrey and Lindsey ride a carousel]
Currently posting…
♡ The Sebastian Nothwell Contemporary Expanded Universe
Completed works...
♡ the Aubrey & Lindsey solar fantasy project (mm)
♡ A Willing Canvas - John Halloway x Lord Cyril Graves (mm)
♡ The Train Job - Rowena Althorp x Rebekah (ff)
♡ Hold Fast 2 - Hold Faster (mm)
♡ Vampires Vampires Vampires (mmm)
See you on Patre♡n!
Joining me on Patre♡n will give you access to “drawer fic” – aka the 500k+ words worth of manuscripts that have been shelved until I figure out how to fix or finish them. You'll also be invited to join an exclusive Discord server just for patrons!
A new chapter will go up every week. Missing (unwritten) scenes will be indicated by brackets describing what would probably happen if the scene were written. Example: [in this scene Aubrey and Lindsey ride a carousel]
Currently posting…
♡ The Sebastian Nothwell Contemporary Expanded Universe
Completed works...
♡ the Aubrey & Lindsey solar fantasy project (mm)
♡ A Willing Canvas - John Halloway x Lord Cyril Graves (mm)
♡ The Train Job - Rowena Althorp x Rebekah (ff)
♡ Hold Fast 2 - Hold Faster (mm)
♡ Vampires Vampires Vampires (mmm)
See you on Patre♡n!
