Tuesday's Best 12-6-2011

Good morning, my lovelies! Are you all bundled up nice and warm, ready for a couple of great stories? I hope so, because Connie and I've found some good ones for you. So grab your hot cocoa and snuggle under that blanket for a little while longer, and settle in for a good read, shall we?

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Hello again ladies & probably some gents too, it’s Tuesday again and I’m glad to see you all back here for some Boy Loving. So, if you call yourself a true Slash H00r you probably know who Touchstone67 is. Her masterpiece Mergers and Acquisitions will be forever on my Favorite List.

M&A was from the start an amazing fic, a O/S extended to 40 something chapters and marked as complete a few months back.

Why am I bringing all this up? Well two of M&A’s characters made such an impression on all of us readers that they got their own fic!

I’m talking about Peter and Riley.

Peter is Jasper’s client from the escort service and Riley is Jasper’s best friend from the streets and lover. Together they give life to The Whore and The Gentleman. The story picks up the moment Peter decides to care for Riley during his recovery from his drug addiction.

I was a homeless whore, what the hell was I doing in the spare room of some guy's mansion?

Jasper is with Edward back in Chicago and he can only trust Peter to look after his boy. You can place Riley in the nicest room possible, but he will still be Riley…

The room was painted a dark maroon with two big windows on one wall. To the left of the doorway was a large bed covered in gray blankets and a fucking lot of pillows. How many did he think I needed? I only had one head. Well, two if you wanted to get technical, but I didn't need a pillow for the second one.

The one thing Peter and Riley have in common is Jasper, both of them love him and both lost him to Edward. In different ways maybe but it hurts the same.

His shoulders were wide and slightly slouched even as he tried to stand tall. Messed up hair obviously hadn't been washed, and I suspected the clothing had been worn at least one day. My heart, which had briefly filled with hope, broke again and I wanted to turn and leave. Everything in me told me to walk away, he wasn't the right one. Instead, I found myself walking across the lobby until I was standing only inches from him. One more step and my forehead was pressed against his chest. He tucked me under his chin and when my fingers found the partially untucked shirt at his waist, his arms went around me and I felt his long sigh in my hair.

He was hurting as much as I was, maybe even more, and yet, he was still comforting me. Or maybe I was comforting him. Or maybe we were comforting each other. Peter couldn't possibly understand what Jasper and I were, no one could, but right then in Peter's arms with his strong warmth around me, I was lulled into thinking it would be okay.

One of the things you have to understand before you go into The Whore and The Gentleman is that Riley is exactly that, a whore. He lived in the streets for over four years and in his mind nobody gives something for nothing, there is always one way to pay for whatever you are given.

"You can fuck me anytime you want, you don't even need to ask," I offered bluntly.

Water spewed from his mouth and across the table in front of him. Dabbing at it with his napkin, his brows knit together and shook his head. "I told you, this isn't about that."

Then what the fuck was it about?

Peter & Riley’s living arrangements are confusing. Peter seems detached, not interested and that makes Riley feel insecure. Riley’s power goes hand in hand with sex and helps him feel in control.

I didn't get it. I mean, I knew I wasn't losing my charm. It still worked on everyone else. But not Peter. I had few skills in life, I could suck and fuck, I could steal just about anything, and I could read people. Didn't matter who, I could do it. There were only a few exceptions, and I happened to be living with one of them.

Riley is so outgoing, charming and secure, but that’s just on the outside. Deep inside he is still that 15 year old child that was kicked out of his house by his parents and had to learn to survive on his own. Riley craves human contact, he mistakes the way he asks for it but he just needs someone, anyone.

"Do you need help finding something?"

"I think I've found what I need," I murmured. "Do you want to fuck?"

And with Peter he finds his match. Peter will not take any bullshit from Riley and will keep him in check.

We drove past Forth Street and I found my eyes habitually scanning the sidewalks. It was early, no one would be out yet. A burn begun inside me, more of simmering, a warning of the yearning still in me, one that only been dulled by rehab. It would never be gone completely.

Before I could get too lost in the need, a hand was covering mine on my lap, squeezing it reassuringly. I don't know if he knew what I was thinking or if he thought it was something else entirely, but either way, I turned my palm up, loosely opening my fingers to let his slide between. Curling mine up, I never looked at him.

But I did hold his hand.

They are kind of stuck with each other now. They need each other more than they are both willing to admit.

We are on chapter 1 and for what we have so far it is not going to be an easy ride. If there is something Touchstone67 can write is angst, full on crying your eyes out angst. So be prepared for it.

Can Peter save Riley? Does Riley want to be saved?

All he wanted was a fair chance in the fight for my battered soul. It was the least I could give him. Still, he was suffering. He wanted to fight my battle with me, but he wasn't going to let me fight his with him.

"I know I'm not him," I murmured. "I know you miss him. I miss him too."

My eyes never left him. Sun glistened off his unwashed hair, wrinkled clothes covered the fit body I'd seen naked the night before, Pacific eyes closed and an unshaven jaw relaxed.

He didn't deny my words.

He might not have wanted me to leave, but it wasn't me he wanted there.

Do you need to read M&A to understand The Whore and The Gentleman? It’s not a must but I would recommend you to do it, especially because this story is told from Riley’s POV and there will be a few flashbacks to moments he shared with Jasper and you will also need some background information on Peter and Jasper’s relationship.

Since the end of M&A I’ve been looking forward to Peter & Riley’s story so I hope you get to love them as much as I do and enjoy Touchstone67’writing.

That’s all from me folks don’t forget to leave some love for the author as always.

See you all next week.

Connie

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As I was trying to figure out what on earth to rec this week (I’d gotten behind on my reading, whoops!), Got Your Back by LyricalKris dropped in my inbox. I’m telling you, it was meant to be. Why, do you ask? What was it that drew me to this story?

Well, let me tell you. A geeky, shy, insecure Riley and one scarred-but-still-very-hot Jasper, both of whom work for the FBI.

Riley doesn’t believe in himself (well, as far as anything not concerning his work goes, at least). He certainly doesn’t think he’s in the same ballpark, let alone the same league as Jasper, and yet he pines for him. Oh, Riley...

Jasper, on the other hand, has had a few experiences that severely cloud him and it’s left him scarred both inside and out. He plays at being strong, confident, and dependable, but is he? Well, dependable, yes, but the rest?

Riley gets to see a glimpse of the real Jasper one night as the team is out celebrating solving a kidnapping case.

Before Riley could even contemplate wiping off the sweat that accumulated on his palms at the very thought of making such a daring move, Emmett's voice boomed over everyone else's. "What do you mean, she got off? No. No. No. This is bullshit." He listened for a moment, and the bar became quieter as most everyone turned their attention to the very loud, large, fuming man. "Whatever," Emmett growled into the phone, hanging up with a scowl.

"What's going on?" Jasper asked, striding over to where his partner was now pacing.

"It's fucked up." Emmett sighed. "Jane and Alec Scarpinato are out on bail."

The crowd bristled, cries of "bullshit!" and "son of a bitch," going up. It was an unfortunate part of the job that no matter how tirelessly they worked, sometimes the bad guys got away.

It sucked... hard, but it wasn't that unusual, so it wasn't so surprising when most of the gathered agents shook it off. They all vowed to redouble their efforts - there had to be some way to nail the sadistic twins that had tortured little Eric Newton during his captivity. Then, they all shook it off and continued their celebration.

All of them except Jasper.

It was only because Riley was watching Jasper so intently that he saw the blond man's eyes go wide for an extended moment. He saw Jasper's nose flare as he breathed in deep once, twice, before a calmer mask came over his expression.

When Emmett threw an arm around his partner's shoulders, Jasper seemed to go stiff, his body language radiating discomfort. The larger man didn't seem to notice. "We'll get 'em," he said, steering Jasper back to the table.

The blond man grabbed Rosalie's arm as he sat down. "Whiskey. Straight. Please."

To find out exactly what happened to make Jasper so upset you’ll have to go read the story yourself. Be sure to leave LyricalKris some love when you do.

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There you have it, folks. Be sure to check back next week to see what MizzDee and I have in store for you then. In the mean time, please leave these wonderful authors some love.

So are you ready for the holidays, this year? Are you itching to share some warmth and cheer? Why not hop on over to the Twilight No Stress Love Fest, pick up a couple of prompts, and write some awesome stories to spread some holiday love. Or make some art to inspire, instead. Come on, join the fun!