Friday, 19 December 2014

Guest Blogger ~ AKM Miles: Something MORE for Santa

Blurb:
While on a break at Martin's Department Store, Derek Campbell, aka Santa, wishes aloud for a little something for Santa and he gets it, and more.

Derek Campbell loves his job as Santa at Martin's, but finds himself wishing for a little something for himself. He's surprised when an elf hears his request and answers him. Derek gets more than he bargained for when he meets young Michael and then Max, who just happens to own Martin's. He falls in love with both of them and they him, but something happens, something bad. But, they're strong, together, and they have a good Christmas. But then, even worse things happen. What now? What follows is a wonderful holiday story filled with love, adventure, fear, hope, and kittens.


Short Bit about it:
Once upon a time there was a sweet young man who worked as Santa during the season. One day, while on a break he was lamenting the fact that he had no one to love and wanted someone perfect for him, he was overheard by an elf. Well, it was really a boy. The little boy, Michael, wanted Santa to help his father, who had a migraine, _(main headache). Derek, (Santa) went with the boy to the main offices of the department store and did, indeed, help the boy's father, Max. Then wonderful and horrible things started to happen. The two men fell in love, both loved the boy greatly, but there was ugliness even at Christmastime. Someone did something bad to Michael and when they got that cleared they had a great Christmas with Betsy Ross and Sara Lee.

Not long after that something horrible happened to Derek, who now worked more closely with Max, who just happened to own that department store chain. Who would want to kill someone as sweet as Derek? You know there's a happy ending, but it takes some work to get there. But, of course, it's all worth it.

I loved writing this story and always in the back of my mind I wanted to revisit these people. They were all three so lovable.  When I decided to place it with MLR I added enough that it doubled in size. I really like where it went and how I ended it. (I really wanted them to go on that cruise!) I know a lot of people liked the first book and I added MORE to the title so they would know it was the same only more. I hope everyone loves the rest of the story as well.
~AKM Miles
***love is love***

Excerpt:
Derek closed his eyes and sighed. He needed the rest, there was no doubt of that. He felt like he'd run a marathon and he'd just been talking.

"Daddy, look at the bag. Derek peed a lot!"

"Shh, Michael." Derek could hear the humor in Max's voice. He didn't want to think about the catheter, but well, it wasn't like he could get up. He waited until they were sitting beside the bed and then he said,

"Where's my hug? And quit looking at my pee."

"Daddy! He said something. Did you hear him? He said 'where's my hug?'. Do you think he means me?" Michael was no longer using his quiet voice. His surprise and happiness had him back to the Michael that Derek knew.

"I bet he does. Okay, you still have to be careful, okay? He might be awake, but he's still in pain. No moving around," Max said and Derek could hear him lift Michael up and put the boy beside him. He sighed. He tried to bring his arm up to hug Michael, but his shoulder screamed out in pain.

"Michael, be careful, honey."

"No," Derek said, his voice still raspy, "it was me. I tried to hug him back but my shoulder hurts." He opened his eyes and Max's face was right there. Max leaned down and touched his lips gently, making Derek sigh in complete happiness.

"Daddy, don't move him too much. You don't want to hurt him, do you?" Michael said, all serious.

"You're right, I don't. I'll be careful." Max turned away and Derek nearly whimpered, but he saw that Max was bringing the chair closer. He sat and took Derek's hand and held it in his, squeezing gently. That touch, that light squeeze, said so many things. It said, "I want to hold you, I love you, you scared me, we were worried, we're here for you."

"I know." He answered all the unsaid statements and Max didn't even question it.

Michael asked, "Are you going to stay awake now, Derek?"

About AKM:
I love to read M/M books. It’s hard to find me without my Kindle in my hand. I never want to lose an opportunity to read and have so many authors that I enjoy. The idea of being an author that readers enjoy fills my heart. I’ve wanted to write since I was in high school and I did. I wrote a short story for the school newspaper. Hooked.

I wrote three mainstream novels and got rejections and just kind of lost interest. Then along came Brokeback Mountain and I ordered the movie and got the script with it. Loved it. Then I went on line to see if there way anything else like it. I found Cowboy Up from Torquere Press. It was an anthology and had such good stories. I was more than hooked. I wanted to do this. I wanted to write a story. Soon after that I went to a drag show in my little town, heretofore unheard of, and watched these two guys dance. That scene is in my first novel, Smart Alex. I couldn’t stop then.

You will find that I like to have my characters meet, have feeling for each other, start a relationship, and then face some kind of conflict together, instead of it being about whether they really like each other or not. That’s just the way I like it. I want them as a unit facing whatever comes. I also like to do series. I try to populate my books with wonderful side characters that just beg for their own stories. Life is full of side characters, right? Sometimes they just need their story told, too. (And then you get to revisit the first couple and see how things are going!)

I now write for four different publishing houses and love being an M/M author. Want to know what I like most about it? Oh, I love getting good critiques from places who specialize in that, but it’s the readers who blow me away. I can’t believe the response I’ve gotten to some of my books. They inspire me and make me want to do more and better. I love love some of the connections with people in the industry.

Through ups and downs this career has kept me going with the warmth I’ve received from other authors, publishing people, and fans. I’m excited about future books that are swimming in my head right now. I hope you love them, too.

Find AKM Here

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