Ellis Parker is a lucky man: he escaped his persecuting family, survived his tour of duty, and met Maxwell Clark in the city of New Amsterdam. Clark showed Ellis more than the ropes: Clark helped Ellis figure out who he is -- a gay submissive with a massive fixation on a beautiful, mysterious ballet dancer named Bryn Rothe. Ellis knows a Good Man when he sees one, and he wants nothing more than to score a first date with Bryn.<br><br>Little does Ellis know that Bryn has a violent past that is crawling out of shallow graves to haunt him. Even his hectic schedule and beloved stage aren’t enough to distract him. It’s impossible for Bryn to figure out how he feels about Ellis with his demons between them, but when Ellis saves Bryn not once but twice, Bryn is forced to admit that there’s something about Ellis that Bryn might not merely want but need.<br><br>Together, they journey to the scene of Bryn’s original crime -- Charles Towne, South Carolina. There they will dig up secrets that might explain Bryn’s tortured life but might also be his -- and Ellis’s -- undoing.

Earthquakes

“Guess who?” Medea stage-whispered.


“No,” Bryn replied, angry at how difficult it was for him to catch his breath.


“Spoilsport.” Medea let go of Bryn’s face and linked her arm through his. She wore a skintight black outfit. It would be a stretch to call it a gown. “Who’s your friend?”


“Ellis,” he said, offering his hand. “Ellis Parker.”


“Are you two here together?” Medea asked a split second before she answered herself. “You’re not here together.”


“Don’t bother. She’s not going to listen to us.” Bryn downed the rest of his drink. Now the edges of the room were so blurry he couldn’t tell where Jared might be lurking. Life was so much better that way. He held his glass out to the bartender again, who refilled it.


“Hey,” Medea scolded, catching the glass and putting it down. “How many is that?”


Chapter 33