Hi guys, we have Diana Copland visiting today with her upcoming release Michael, Reinvented, we have a great intro & excerpt so check out the post and enjoy! <3 ~Pixie~
Michael, Reinvented
Diana Copland
Cute hipster and interior designer Michael doesn’t do love—not after his ex screwed him over. Sex is a different story, though, and the gentle giant who’s painting the mural in the old mansion they’re restoring might be perfect hookup material. Gil is just Michael’s type with his solid muscle, wicked sense of humor, and the hazel eyes that seem to see into Michael’s soul.
Trouble is, Gil does do love. He wants romance and forever, and he’s set his sights firmly on Michael. Michael’s not going there again.
Yet when Michael is the victim of a vandal who’s been plaguing the men working for Delta Restoration, Renovation, and Design, Gil is the first person he tells. No matter how he fights it, it’s becoming harder and harder to deny he’s crazy about the guy—even if that thought terrifies him. But the true fear sets in when the criminal behavior escalates, and Michael realizes he might have lost the chance to tell Gil how he feels—forever.
Intro & Excerpt!
Hi, Pixie! And thanks so much for inviting me back for the release of Book Two in the Delta Restoration series!
Book Two is Michael and Gil’s story, and today I thought I share the first exchange between my main characters. I think it shows where they are at the beginning of the book, and I also think it shows that Gil isn’t willing to take ‘no’ for an answer! Enjoy!
Michael sipped his coffee as he wove in and out of the active foot traffic, reacting instinctively when his cell phone buzzed in his jacket pocket. Taking it out, he thumbed to his text screen.
Good morning baby, the message read. How are you this beautiful morning?
Michael huffed, pausing next to a building, and set his coffee on a window ledge.
I am not your baby, he replied. What do you want?
I can’t just send my cutie a good morning text?
Michael’s lips curled up at the corners. He couldn’t help it; the man was maddening and endearing at the same time. He was just glad Gil couldn’t see his smile.
Gilbert—What. Do. You. Want.
He could almost imagine Gil sitting in his truck, that snarky smile in place while he tried to compose a witty comeback.
Fine, don’t let me flirt with you.
Michael snorted. We’ve discussed the whole “flirting” thing.
You discussed it, Gil shot back. I didn’t agree.
I will stop talking to you.
There was a pause.
Fine. Please tell David I need those color chips for the Watersons’ today if I’m supposed to start painting the exterior next week.
Why don’t YOU tell David, Michael shot back. You have his number.
I think his phone must be off, because he isn’t responding. I’m guessing he and Jackson are fucking like bunnies. Besides, you are his assistant, aren’t you? Aren’t you supposed to take his messages?
Michael scowled at the small screen. This was why Gil drove him nuts.
Leave him a voice mail, Michael typed back. His fingers were beginning to ache in the cold; his gloves were still in his pocket. My hands are cold, and we’ve had this conversation before.
Gil’s response popped up almost immediately.
But if I leave him a voice mail I don’t get to give you grief, now do I?
Michael huffed another irritated sigh. Piss off, Chandler. I have better things to do and you’re going to make me late.
I’m breaking you down, Michael Crane. Admit it. It won’t be long before you’re putty in my hands.
Michael thumbed off his phone in exasperation without responding, shoved it into his pocket, and yanked his gloves out. He pulled them on and retrieved his coffee before resuming his commute down the sidewalk. His temper was simmering. The man infuriated him, poking at him on an almost daily basis. And Michael honestly wasn’t sure what to do about it.
He’d met Gilbert Chandler the day his best friend, David, bought an entire houseful of beautiful mission-style furniture from him. Gil’s dad had been diagnosed with Alzheimer’s. They’d moved him into assisted living, leaving Gil to sort out the details of his life. One of those details was the furniture, and David brought Michael along as “muscle” on moving day. That had been a joke; Gil’s friends were all built like CrossFit Junkies, and Michael, at five ten and a hundred and fifty pounds soaking wet, certainly wasn’t comparable. But for some reason, Gil, six foot four and roped with muscle, Mr. Clean bald head gleaming in the sunlight, deep blue eyes shining and dimples popping by his mouth, had decided he wanted Michael.
He didn’t just want a casual hookup, either, which Michael might have been amenable to. Who wouldn’t want to climb all those muscles, feel those big arms close around him? He’d admit he wasn’t immune to the idea. But Gil didn’t want a one-night stand; he was looking for happily ever after, and Michael didn’t believe in it. Not anymore.
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I hope you’ll enjoy ‘Michael, Reinvented’ and come back for the next book in the series, ‘Manny, Reborn’!
About Diana!
Diana Copland began writing in the seventh grade, when she shamelessly combined elements of Jane Eyre and Dark Shadows to produce an overwrought Gothic tale that earned her an A- in creative writing, thanks entirely to the generosity of her teacher.
She wrote for pure enjoyment for the next three decades before discovering LiveJournal and a wonderful group of supportive writers, who after gifting her with a “Best New Author” Award encouraged her to try her hand at original gay fiction.
Born and raised in southern California, Diana moved to the Pacific Northwest after losing a beloved spouse to AIDS in 1995.
She lives in eastern Washington with four obnoxious cats, near her two wonderful adult children.
