Author
Name: Brigham Vaughn
Publisher:
Two Peninsulas Press (Indie/Self-Published)
Publication
Date: November 20, 2018
Word
Count /or Page Number: 145,480 words
Formats/Price:
eBook - $6.99
Trust
the Connection is available on KU
Please add Trust the Connection on Goodreads
Blurb
Scars run
deep but run loves even deeper
After a lifetime of being
told he’s worthless, Evan Harris is forced out of the closet and the only home
he’s ever known. Jobless and homeless, he makes a desperate call to a couple he
barely knows. They give him a place to stay at their place in Atlanta while he
gets back on his feet. But he’s too shy to explore the big city and go after
what he wants: a relationship.
Physically and emotionally
scarred from a devastating car accident, Jeremy Lewis struggles to reconcile
the brash, outgoing man he used to be with the social recluse he’s become. He’s
resigned himself to being alone, but an encounter with an ex-boyfriend shakes
up his dull existence and brings Evan into his life.
Loneliness draws Evan and
Jeremy to each other, but a strong mutual attraction isn’t enough. At
thirty-six, Jeremy is convinced a relationship would be holding
twenty-one-year-old Evan back.
Evan must be strong enough
to fight for what he wants and Jeremy must let someone close enough to see his
scars. Otherwise,
they’ll miss out on the love of a lifetime.
Excerpt
“I won’t have filth in my house.”
Filth meaning … him.
Evan’s stomach dropped, and a sudden
burst of terror-filled adrenaline rushed through him. He needed to leave, had to get out of there. Now. Wiping
away the tears, he grabbed a gym bag from his closet and snatched wildly at
things, stuffing them into the bags as fast as he could. He didn’t have much: a
few articles of clothing, an old, beat-up laptop, and a few personal mementos.
He stared at the suits hanging in the closet and suddenly realized he had
nothing—no job, no home, no family. He had no friends and nowhere to go.
He paused, hand on the sleeve of the
somber black suit. He did have one
friend. Russ.
His hands shook as he dug his phone
out of his pocket and tried to pull up Russ’ name on his pathetically small
list of contacts. Slippery with sweat, his fingers hit the wrong buttons half a
dozen times before he finally managed to select Russ’ name and dial. The phone
rang once, twice, three, four times … until Evan began to doubt he’d answer.
Just when Evan was about to give up, he heard Russ’ voice on the other end.
“Hey, Evan. Sorry, I was in the
shower.” He heard soft laughter from the background and Russ shushing
someone—presumably his boyfriend, Stephen. “You okay?”
Oh, God, what if Evan had
interrupted something private? He flushed and almost hung up.
“Evan?” Russ sounded worried. “Shit,
are you okay? If you don’t answer, I’m going to assume the worst and call the
police.”
“I’m fine,” he croaked, voice
shaking as much as his hands had been. “I mean, not fine, really, but I’m not
hurt or anything.”
“Shit. Tell me what’s going on. You
don’t sound good.”
“I—I don’t know what to do, Russ.”
He closed his eyes, humiliated that he was so weak, so helpless. “My dad … he
knows, and he won’t stop yelling. I got fired, and he’s kicking me out of the
house. I don’t have anywhere to go, I’m homeless and jobless, and I’m so
fucking scared. I don’t know what to do.” Evan’s voice rose, pinched and tight
with fear, bordering on hysteria.
“Pack your stuff and get out,” Russ
said, tone firm. “Does your car belong to you? Is the title and registration in
your name?”
“Y-yes.”
“Once you’re packed, drive straight
to Atlanta.”
“But I—I don’t have anywhere to
stay. I have a little bit of money saved, but it won’t last long if I have to
pay for a hotel.”
“You’ll stay with us.”
“No, I couldn’t,” Evan said weakly.
“Let us help you, Evan.”
“Stephen won’t care?” God, Stephen
intimidated the hell out of him.
Although muffled, Evan heard Russ
speak. “Evan needs our help and a place to stay. You okay with him crashing on
our couch?”
Without a second’s hesitation, Evan
heard Stephen say, “Absolutely.”
“You heard that?” Russ asked.
Evan nodded before he realized Russ
couldn’t see him. Stupid. “Y-yeah.”
“Pack your bags and get out of the
house. Once you’re sure you’re safe, text me to let me know, then drive
straight to Atlanta. I’ll send you our address, okay?”
“Okay.”
Russ’ voice softened. “It’ll be all
right, Evan. You’re not alone.”
Review
We first met Evan
in ‘Partners’ when he worked in the funeral home and Russ (from
the Equals Series) befriended him. Evan is gay and has been hiding the fact
from his family and the town he lives in. When his secret is revealed his
father kicks him out of his home and in his desperation he turns to Russ who
doesn’t hesitate but immediately offers him a place to stay in the apartment he
shares with Stephen.
Jeremy is Stephen’s
ex and has been trying to rebuild his life after a devastating car crash left
him alone, scarred and with permanent injuries. In the process he has become a
bit of a recluse. He goes out to work but doesn’t have a social life and
doesn’t believe he’ll ever be in a relationship again now he’s as damaged as
deems himself to be.
Neither man has a
whole lot of confidence. Both view the world and their place in it with suspicion.
Evan would like to hope but doesn’t believe his dreams could ever come true
while Jeremy has all but given up on hope and just tries to make it through his
days without giving into despair.
When the two men
meet, they engage in what can best be described as a slow and tenuous dance.
The attraction is strong on both sides but neither man believes that the other
could possibly feel the same. Throw in Jeremy’s hang-ups about his scars and
limitations and a coming together appears very unlikely, until they do connect
(pun intended). But, sometimes love alone isn’t enough and Jeremy and
Evan are learning that the hard way.
Jeremy
and Evan charmed me as often as they infuriated me. For every time I wanted to
squeeze them in a tight hug and comfort them I had a moment when it was all I
could do to not shout at my Kindle that they should just talk to each other,
stop introspecting and start believing. But of course, that is what this story
is all about; Jeremy and Evan’s journey to the moment where they are able to
believe in themselves and in each other—the moment when they can both trust
that they are good enough and that together they’re perfectly imperfect. And
seeing Evan find inner strength and confidence was as beautiful as watching
Jeremy as he overcame his insecurities and stopped looking at himself as only
half the man he used to be.
Evan
and Jeremy’s journey in this book was heartbreaking and delightful, sad
and funny, frustrating and uplifting. Most of all, their journey was beautiful
and memorable and I can’t recommend it highly enough.
The review above is
the result of my combining two earlier reviews I wrote for Connection and Trust
separately. If you’re interested in those original, longer reviews you can find
them here: Connection
| Trust
Author
Bio
Brigham Vaughn is on the adventure of a
lifetime as a full-time author. She devours books at an alarming rate and
hasn’t let her short arms and long torso stop her from doing yoga. She makes a killer key lime pie, hates green
peppers, and loves wine tasting tours. A collector of vintage Nancy Drew books
and green glassware, she enjoys poking around in antique shops and refinishing
thrift store furniture. An avid photographer, she dreams of traveling the world
and she can’t wait to discover everything else life has to offer her.
Her
books range from short stories to novellas. They explore gay, bisexual,
lesbian, and polyamorous romance in contemporary settings.
You can keep up to date with Brigham's writerly adventures here: Newsletter
Social
Media Links
Email:
brighamvaughn@gmail.com
Jay lives just outside Bristol in the West of England. He comes from a family of writers, but always used to believe that the gene for fiction writing had passed him by. He spent years only ever writing emails, articles, or website content.
