New Release By S.C. Wynne

Morning all! 


I wrote a short story for Ellora's Cave years ago before they closed. It was called Guard My Body and it was for a special call they had for characters that were in their fifties. It was only around 17,000 words and I ended up adding lots more and rewriting the story hugely. I also changed the name to Redemption. It came in at  35,000 for the re-release. It was fun revisiting these two characters who had meant so much to me.

I loved the idea of writing a sexy story about older men. There is such an odd perception in our society that once you're over thirty you're supposed to just stop being a sexual being or something. It's a rather odd idea in my opinion. You don't have to be in your twenties to feel sexually attracted. This story deals with a man who loses his love of thirty years. He struggle to realize he can love again, without dishonoring the love he had before. 

Blurb

After losing his lover of more than thirty years, Andrew struggles with guilt and grief on a daily basis. He wrestles with the idea of moving forward, and leaving the memories of his past lover, Rory, behind. Even if he had the courage to look for love again, he’s in his fifties, and has been out of the dating game for decades. What could he possibly have to offer someone else?

Michael has spent most of his life hopping from one lover to the next. He longs for the stability of a relationship, but is afraid he’ll have to sacrifice heat and chemistry—until he lays eyes on Andrew. From their first conversation there is no denying they have an emotional and physical connection.Will these two men figure out that age is just a number, and the future is bright for those who reach for it?

Excerpt

The servers circled the table filling our wine glasses and setting little spinach salads in front of us all. I was trying to converse with my hearing impaired friend when something brushed against me on my other side. Someone sank into the chair next to me, and my breath caught in my throat when I saw who it was. Sexy dark-haired guy was sitting in the chair, smelling of orange flower and lavender. My pulse sped up as his shoulder brushed mine, and he turned to stare into my eyes. I let out a surprised grunt and met his friendly gaze.
“Oh good. I didn’t miss the meal.” He smiled, and I went weak in the knees. Thank goodness I was sitting. He had a tiny dusting of gray around the temples, but his skin was tanned and almost flawless. His eyes were a dark chocolate brown, and his lips full and supple. He was even more striking up close, and my pulse responded by jangling insanely like earlier. “I had to take a call.”
I didn’t respond. I just stared and then turned back to my spinach salad. I forced myself to continue eating, but I couldn’t taste anything. It was hard to assimilate things when I felt like I was having a heart attack. The lady on my other side wasn’t having any trouble eating. She’d given up trying to talk and was digging into her salad as if someone was going to steal it away.
“Close friend or acquaintance?” Dark-haired guy asked me. His intense gaze came to rest on my mouth briefly.
I stared at him blankly, as if I didn’t understand his question. It’d been a while since I’d bothered to read the signs of attraction from another man, but I could sense that he felt what I felt. Sexual attraction was pretty straight forward. My gut ached as the same guilt from earlier attacked me as my body responded to his sensual glance. Rory had been the only other guy who I’d ever lusted after the moment I’d met him. We’d had an immediate connection, and until now, no one had ever struck that same salacious cord in me.
“With Fredrick. Are you a close friend or an acquaintance?” He smiled at my confusion, and that almost made it worse. His smile was white and warm, with perfect little dimples.
“Friend. Close friend.” I grimaced. “But I also work for him.”
“I see. So you’ve known him a long time?”
“Yeah. I met him straight out of college, so a really long time.” I winced. “How time flies. Jesus, college was an eternity ago.”
“You’ve held up very well.” His smile was easy going, and his gaze approving.
“Good genes, I guess.”
“Whatever the reason, it’s a nice package.”
My face warmed at his heartfelt compliment. I knew I was good looking for my age. I had blond hair that for some reason wasn’t graying yet, and because of my job, I was forced to work out. I had a lot more muscle than most guys my age. But in my profession you had to be tough and in great shape. However, I didn’t kid myself that I was in this guy’s league. I wasn’t quite sure why he was looking at me like I was.
“It’s all smoke and mirrors.” I avoided his gaze. “Of course, Fredrick is much older than me.”
“Well, yeah, that I could tell.” He ran his eyes over my body again, and I squashed the desire to do the same to him. I was already more aware of the heat of his thigh near mine than I needed to be. “Of course no one really knows Fredrick’s real age, do they? He’s very secretive. Maybe one day I’ll hire someone to break into his safe so I can take a peek at his birth certificate.”
“Rumor has it he used to lunch with the The Pharaohs.”
He grinned. “Knowing him, he made them pick up the check too.”
I couldn’t help but laugh. “No doubt.” Something about him seemed familiar, but I couldn’t quite put my finger on it.
He picked at his salad and turned back toward me. “So you’re his friend, but you work with him?”
“Uh… for him.” I was uneasy about telling him what my job was. It was a perfectly respectable profession, and I didn’t need to feel like a poor relation. My shame probably stemmed from having gone from being equals or partners with Fredrick, to working under him. After the downward spiral I’d been in from Rory’s death, I now relied on him for a job. No one else would have hired me. And I didn’t blame them either. I wouldn’t have hired me back then. “I’m his bodyguard.”
His perfect dark brows rose. “He needs a bodyguard?”
I nodded. “He has a great success rate at work. But when he loses, his clients aren’t the forgiving type.”
“I never thought about what happens when he loses a case.”
“He doesn’t lose often.”
“Very true.” A small wrinkle appeared on his forehead. “Bodyguard, huh? Sounds dangerous.”
“Danger is my middle name… or my first, I forget.” I smirked. He looked distracted now. Maybe my lowly job had turned him off. Or maybe I had a piece of lettuce hanging from my chin and he didn’t know how to tell me. Either way, I figured it was fine with me if he lost interest. I hadn’t wanted his attention to begin with. Right?
He set his fork down and shifted to face me. “Speaking of names, what’s yours?” He suddenly looked very serious.
“My name?” His sudden change in demeanor had me uneasy.
“Yes.” He frowned. “Your voice is familiar.”
“It is?” I gave an uneasy laugh. “My name is Andrew James.”
“Seriously?” He shook his head and shot an irritated look toward the end of the table where Fredrick sat. “He is unbelievable.”
I frowned. “I’m sorry?”
“That sneaky son of a bitch.” He continued to glare in Fredrick’s direction.
“What’s wrong?” I’m sure I looked confused at his sudden irritation with my boss.
His jaw was tight with tension. “Please know I had no idea this was going to happen.”
I was muddled by how he was acting, and felt like I was the only one who didn’t quite get the joke. “What’s about to happen?”
“Please don’t blame me, Andrew. We’re both just pawns in this unfair little game.”
A feeling of apprehension began to grow in my gut. There was definitely something about his voice that was familiar. “Do I know you?”

“Not really. Sort of.” He shook his head, looking embarrassed. “I’m Michael Lawrence. Well, to be more accurate, Dr. Michael Lawrence.”

Hope you enjoyed that little taste! I'd you're interested in buy the book I'll leave some links below.
S.C.www.scwynne.com
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