Genre: Alternative (MM) Contemporary Romance Heat Level: 3 Word Count: 19, 170 ISBN: 978-1-77339-613-2 Editor: Karyn White Cover Artist: Jay Aheer

Stalking the Kilt by Keely Jakes

Heat Level 3
$3.99
SKU 978-1-77339-613-2
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Stalking Love, 1

When Dane Murphy follows a kilt-wearing man through the airport to alleviate the boredom of travel, he has no idea he is following his future. Then the man sees him, and an immediate connection is made.

Sully McKellen is making his first public appearance in more years than he cares to think about. Shy, reclusive, and lonely, he finds himself intrigued by Dane, who is headed to the same writers’ conference. Instant attraction turns to lust, which deepens as they spend the weekend together, learning their strengths and weaknesses mesh perfectly.

But can Sully overcome his shyness and enjoy being in the spotlight even for one evening? And even more worrying, can Dane and Sully keep a relationship going once they return home again?

Be Warned: m/m sex

 

Excerpt:

Dane Murphy walked across down the airport concourse slowly as he argued with himself about getting back on the next plane home instead of getting on the one going on to San Antonio. So far it had been a hell of a trip, and not in a fun, exciting way. The plane had taken off so late due to weather that his connecting flight had departed before they had even touched down in Charlotte. It then took another twenty minutes once they landed to reach their gate and disembark the small commuter plane.

Dane was grateful that, in the endless minutes before he could escape the plane, he had managed to call his travel agent, who was able to get him on another flight. Only problem was it did not leave for another three hours.

He would be later than he liked checking in, but that just meant the sightseeing around San Antonio that he had hoped to do today would have to wait until later during his stay. He would also miss the casual pre-dinner bar gathering, which consisted of schmoozing with his fellow authors who would no doubt brag about their latest sales and contracts. Something Dane had never been comfortable doing. The actual mystery writers’ conference began late the next morning with him sitting on a panel of five best-selling authors taking questions from the audience and sharing their knowledge about how to write the perfect murder mystery.

Though he was already tired from a late night, or rather early morning, of finishing up the final edits on his next book, and then waking up after three hours of sleep to get to airport for his pre-dawn flight, he didn’t dare try to nap in the airport. He was such a heavy sleeper that he might sleep right through the boarding call. He promised himself that once he was on the plane he would crash. After all, it was a five-hour flight with nothing to do except sleep. He just needed to eat something before heading to the gate for his next flight.

A hermit by disposition, the only reason he had agreed to attend this convention was to hear, meet, and, he hoped, shake hands with T.S. McKellen, the keynote speaker. The best-selling author of Dane’s favorite mystery/thriller series was so reclusive, he made Dane look like a party animal by comparison. Though he had once spent a full day searching online for a picture of his writing idol, the only picture he had found had been of the back of the man’s head, shoulders, and an upraised right hand flipping off the photographer. The conference organizers had proudly boasted this would be the man’s first appearance in ten years. Dane refused to miss this one chance to meet the man. T.S. McKellen was the reason he had become a mystery writer himself, and he needed to thank the man and offer to buy him a drink.

The fact that his agent had signed him up for the book-signing on the last day of the event was secondary. Dane just hoped the books the publisher had shipped had arrived to the hotel on schedule, and that whoever was in charge of guest mail hadn’t sent them back.

After a quick stop in the first men’s restroom he came to, Dane headed for the customer service counter for the boarding pass for his new flight. Then, with ticket in hand, he made for the gate his flight would leave from. With luck, he would be able to find something to eat along the way.

Dane wasn’t overly hungry, but if he did not eat, his blood sugar would crash. The last thing he needed while away from home was a sugar crisis, which would inevitably lead to a migraine, or worse. The pain, nausea, and need to be in a black, silent box would cause him to miss the conference. No, it would be better to eat now and save the snacks packed in his carry-on for later. He knew he would eat them at some point over the next few days.

So caught up in his internal debate, Dane only peripherally noted a man brush past him. A scent that he could only describe as a spicy, exotic, and wild caught his attention.  

It took only a second for his brain to snap to attention. At the same time, his libido jumped from zero to interested. Turning, he looked for the owner of the scent. It was a testament to Dane’s wildly changeable-in-an-instant luck that there was a momentary lull in the endless parade of people traversing the concourse.

There. The man who had just brushed past him.

Dane dragged his carryon in a circle then began race-walking in the hopes of keeping up with the only man he had ever seen brave enough to wear a kilt while flying around the United States.

The kilt-wearer walked—no, prowled—through the airport, much like a lion on the hunt for his next meal. Dane struggled to keep up without actually looking like he was stalking the man ahead of him. As he walked, Dane made mental notes. As soon as he had the chance, he would write up a character description because this man would definitely show up in a future book. Hell, he might even come up with a new mystery series starring such a badass character.

If only he could have talked to him. Then he would have been able to round out the hot, sexy character that was coming together. The man kept going, not aware that Dane was behind him.

Then Dane lost him in the thickening crowd. With a sigh of resignation that he would now have to build the rest of the character without seeing more than the back of the tall, broad-shouldered man, Dane stopped in the middle of the human flood that parted around him.

After watching for another minute with a silent prayer the man would come back this way, Dane finally gave up.

 

Product Reviews

Score: 4 out of 5 (based on 4 ratings)
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5/5
Redz World
Written by Luna on 4th Mar 2019

Sully hates promoting his books and has managed to do it without showing his face. But that changes with his latest release. He never expected that doing something he detests will lead to someone he loves. Stalking the Kilt is first in Keely Jakes’ Stalking Love series. I enjoyed meeting Dane and Sully. Neither man enjoyed promoting even as they enjoyed writing. Meeting his favorite author is on Dane’s bucket list even as he pushes his latest book at the latest book conference. Falling in love wasn’t in the plans. But an airport quickie changes Dane in ways he didn’t expect. I enjoyed the chemistry between Dane and Sully. Ms. Jakes had them hot and heavy fairly quickly but it fit the circumstances. The heat was instantaneous and happen before even a word was spoken which was quite hot. I love that that very quickness overwhelmed Dane and made him skittish. I thoroughly enjoyed how Sully refused to allow Dane’s fears to derail what could be. Ms. Jakes gave us characters in Dane and Sully that fit in spite of the briefness of their initial encounter. I love that Ms. Jakes mixed humor with desire. I enjoyed the light moments as well as the heat. This story by Ms. Jakes is a quick read that I thoroughly enjoyed. I look forward to returning to this world Ms. Jakes is creating.

4/5
Long and Short Reviews
Written by Fern on 12th Jun 2018

Dane doesn’t like most of the trappings of being an author at the murder-mystery writers conventions. But when T.S. McKellen – the author of Dane’s favorite thriller series – is the keynote speaker, Dane caves in and decides to go along. While waiting for his layover to end, Dane’s interest is snagged by a gorgeous man wearing a kilt. Dane had never been the stalker kind, but the handsome kilt-wearing man is too good an opportunity for Dane to pass up on. I found this to be a lovely, fun and light-hearted sexy romance. For the most part I found it realistic, though I did have to suspend disbelief a little that Dane didn’t click and practically immediately realize that “Sully McKellen” was T.S McKellen. Apart from that and the huge coincidence that Dane would run into his writing idol in the middle of an airport to begin with I found the story well written, sexy and it moved along at a good pace. While the progress of Sully and Dane’s relationship pretty much was the plot, I found it fun and interesting enough that it easily kept my attention throughout the short story. The two men were equal parts adorable and funny, their blossoming relationship was both sweet and erotic, full of chemistry and it totally made me smile. I was also impressed the author wrote Sully’s dialogue with the Scottish accent – how any red-blooded person could go past a man in a kilt with a full-on Scottish accent is beyond me. I loved every moment. For a fun and lighthearted story filled with sexy chemistry and that fun-loving energy all book conventions seem to have, this is a great short story and a quick read that I really enjoyed.

4/5
4 stars
Written by Joyfully Jay Kenna on 10th May 2018

Dane Murphy is a mystery writer on his way to a book convention in Amarillo, Texas. He’s hoping he’ll get to meet his idol, T.S. McKellen while he’s there. McKellan is a known reclusive, and this would be the first convention he’s ever attended. While Dane is the airport, passing the time until his flight, a handsome man in a kilt walks past him. Noticing the man’s cologne along with that kilt, he decides to follow the handsome, grey eyed man. Sully McKellen is wandering the airport, waiting to board the plane that will take him to Amarillo. He notices the handsome young man, and soon he approaches him with an offer for dinner while they wait for their plane. The men hit it off instantly, and there is a lot of heat building between them. In fact, there is so much heat, Sully offers the waitress a very generous tip to point them to the employee restroom so he and Dane can head in there for a little tryst. Dane is mortified by his behavior and runs off, leaving Sully alone in the restroom. Arriving at the convention, Dane and Sully meet again. Their attraction hasn’t dulled and between dinners and presentations, they spend the weekend together. Even though it’s sudden, they realize they’re in love, and now they have to figure out how they can be together with an ocean and 3500 miles between them. I really liked the concept of this story. Two shy, reclusive men venturing out of their comfort zones to attend a convention where they know there will be a lot of people, alongside a passion that develops quickly. Airports are ripe for romance, and this seemed to be right up my alley. I liked both Dane and Sully. I felt a kinship with them because I, myself, am very shy and would rather be alone with my books and my writing rather than around a lot of people clamoring for my attention. While I don’t think there was enough time to really develop the characters (Amazon calls this 71 pages), I did feel the author was able to give enough detail about them to flesh them out to the reader. Once they realized they were, indeed, in a relationship and falling in love, it seems like time passed too quickly. Once again, I know this feeling (my husband and I courted online and only saw each other in person three times before we were married). They were feeling some very real emotions, and I didn’t feel as if they were being forced upon me. The sexual relationship between Dane and Sully was rather intense. It suited the story, and I don’t believe the scenes were gratuitous. There was just enough detail to make the scenes hot, but not over the top. I felt there was a nice amount of romance thrown in as well. There was only one other character that played an important role in the story…a rather overzealous fan of Dane’s named Mason. He fancied a relationship between him and Dane, and got angry when he found out Dane and Sully were together. There was never a stalker vibe or any inclination to make Mason a “bad guy.” While he wasn’t a major player in the book, he was enough to move the story along without becoming a distraction. The ending was sweet and predictable. It left me with a nice, warm fuzzy feeling. Also, it left me wishing I could keep in touch with Dane and Sully. I enjoyed reading about them and would love to be able to see how they were doing in six month’s time. This is book one in a series called Stalking Love, and I would very much like to be able to read the future installments.

4/5
Rainbow Book Reviews
Written by Serena Yates on 1st Apr 2018

As it says in the dedication, this book was written “For kilt-wearing men everywhere.” – and it shows. But as important as the several kilts showcased by Sully are, the budding relationship between him and fellow author Dane is, of course, far more critical to the success of this story. They fall for each other in a second, are in bed after mere hours, and find themselves contemplating a relationship at the end of the weekend. Unrealistically fast? Certainly. All the hotter for it? Definitely. And did it bother me? Not in the least. I was too busy following their various kilt-inspired adventures! Dane is on the way to a writer’s conference to promote his books. He is not a huge star, but successful enough as a mystery writer to have gained some fans. The real reason for Dane’s trip is to see his favorite author of the genre, the man who inspired him to write and publish in the first place. The man is a recluse, so there are very few opportunities to meet him, and Dane will not miss this one! Sully is not a fan of people in general, large gatherings, or public speaking. But after ten years his publisher more or less “forced” him into making an appearance. As you can imagine, Sully is not happy to be traveling all the way from Scotland to Austin, Texas, just to do something he hates. Then again – the cute guy he runs into while on a layover may just be the right distraction. Of course Dane and Sully have a super-hot encounter in the airport, followed by instant recognition and more erotic activities at the conference. They complement each other perfectly in and out of the bedroom and want way more than a weekend together… except it takes some doing to make that happen! If you like your romances short, hot, and to the point, if you want to watch two authors fall for each other almost before they know each other’s names, and if you’re looking for a read that is entertaining and very erotic, then you will probably like this short novella.

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