Book two in the Persuasions series
When life is perfect, you know it’s gonna throw you a curve ball…or four.
Nic and Vincent have been riding the high of a new romantic relationship that works so well they are on the verge of officially moving in together—but then the distractions begin. Their friend Daphne needs a temporary dungeon space, and Nic’s basement seems the perfect solution.
Vincent’s gay seventeen-year-old cousin, Taylor, needs a safe refuge from his uber-religious parents. When Vincent suffers an unexpected injury, Nic asks Daphne to suggest someone to help with domestic duties around the house. These combined circumstances lead to a less-than-ideal home life for Vincent and Nic, who struggle to find alone-time. But life has a way of giving people what they need, and the arrival of Matteo to help with chores around the house sets into motion an opportunity the three must decide to follow to its logical conclusion or abandon in order to maintain the emotional safety of all the participants.
AE LISTER
Give us the one to two sentence tagline for your book.
When life is perfect, you know it’s gonna throw you a curve ball…or four
What is your favorite scene/moment in your book?
There are so many touching moments in this one, interspersed with very kinky sex scenes, that I don’t think I can choose just one.
Does your hero prefer a real or artificial tree for Christmas?
Nic probably gets an artificial tree, simply for the sake of convenience.
What’s the one present your hero most wants to open Christmas morning?
Pretty sure he wants to unwrap Vincent, who will be dressed in pretty lingerie and perhaps with a bow on him somewhere.
Would your hero hang mistletoe?
Unlikely.
What scene did you adore writing in this book?
The final chapters, because I wanted to bring the theme of Found Family into bright focus, and I think I achieved that.
What is your hero’s favorite Christmas tradition?
Probably all the wine and good scotch.
Does your hero love or hate snow?
Ambivalent.
For Christmas, will your hero be having turkey, goose, ham, prime rib, or something else?
Depends what Matteo decides to cook, really. It’s his realm of expertise. Probably the traditional turkey with all the fixings. Or maybe lasagna.
What’s the strangest Christmas tradition your family does to celebrate?
My family? Um, get LEGO advent calendars (one for husband and one for youngest so they don’t have to share the prize).
EXCERPT
VARIOUS DISTRACTIONS
He seemed entranced with the image in the mirror. The black pinstripe suit-vest-slash-halter-top with pearl buttons up the center showed off his trim build and sexy arms and shoulders. The PVC shorts hugged all the delicate curves of his ass and hips. His legs were shapely and divine in the fishnet stockings. The elastic pink ruffles on his wrists that matched the hot-pink trim on his shorts completed the effect.
Except for the color of his hair, Vincent in this outfit would remind anyone who had seen the infamous video of Tom Holland. He had a matching grace of movement, a similar body type and the same aura of youthful beauty.
“Okay,” he smiled, gazing excitedly at his reflection.
“Okay? Meaning?”
He nodded and turned to me. “Okay, I’ll wear this.”
“To the gallery?”
“Yes.”
I smiled so wide that I thought my face might split open. “Vincent, you will be the finest piece of art in that room, I guarantee it. But I won’t say that to Juno.”
“I wonder what they’re going to wear?” Vincent said, cocking his head.
I laughed. “If I know Juno—and I do—it will be something eye-catching and unusual. They are known for that.”
Vincent frowned. “You don’t think they’ll feel like I’m trying to upstage them at their own show?”
I shook my head. “I don’t think so. I mean, Vincent, you look absolutely stunning and very unique. But Juno will make sure they are the center of attention. Don’t worry. I think they’ll appreciate this outfit on you more than anyone else, except me.”
By the time we’d applied thick liner around Vincent’s baby blue eyes, waved out his short hair with gel and laced him into his Doc Martens, he looked even more ethereal and gorgeous. I started to worry he might upstage Juno, but I wasn’t going to say anything. I had to trust that Juno would pull out all the stops for this occasion and wear something that would eclipse even this heavenly image of androgyny.
I handed him the black trench coat I’d bought for him to wear over top of the outfit, and he smiled at me with relief. “Oh, thank God. I wasn’t sure how my leather jacket would look with this ensemble.”
“I’ve got you covered, sweetheart,” I said, holding the trench for him to slide his long arms into. “This exhibition will be the safest place for you to wear such an outfit. The gallery will be filled with people leaning so far to the left they’ll fall over—artists, activists, poets and dreamers, baby. That’s our crowd.”
AE Lister is a Canadian non-binary/gender fluid author with a vivid imagination and a head full of unique and interesting characters. They currently live in Ottawa, Ontario with their husband and two teenage children.
On Facebook as Alison Lister
Pronouns: She/her, They/them.
Ellen Mint 