Release Blitz: Leaning Into Always by Lane Hayes

Title:  Leaning Into Always

Series: Leaning Into Stories, #1, Part 2

Author: Lane Hayes

Publisher: Self Pub

Release Date: September 5

Heat Level: 4 - Lots of Sex

Pairing: Male/Male

Length: 30k

Genre: Romance, Bisexual, Established Couple, San Fran, Beach, Surfer, Geek, Opposites Attract, Friends to lovers

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Synopsis

Life is good for Eric Schuster. He owns a highly successful tech company, has a great group of buddies, and he’s about to marry the man of his dreams. Eric is pleasantly surprised to find the transition from friends to lovers has been easier than he thought. However, after running into an overly friendly ex-boyfriend on an impromptu trip to their shared hometown, Eric realizes things are about to get complicated.

Zane Richards is a quintessential California surfer dude turned professional sailor. His laid-back approach has helped him navigate difficult times in his life. Eric may not share his easy-going mindset but Zane knows without a doubt Eric is the one. However, carving a future together may require confronting a piece of the past Zane thought he’d left far behind. Both men will have to decide if they’re willing to risk what they know for a chance to lean into always.

Excerpt

“Hmm. I want to drop this, but…I have one last question. What did you mean about ‘being from here?’ I know San Francisco is home now but this is a nice place too. I always thought it would be kind of cool to move back someday so I could—”

“No. No way. Never,” I replied emphatically.

I tried and failed again to make a getaway. Zane pounced on me and held me down, snaking his arm across my chest to keep me next to him.

“O-kay…where’s this coming from?”

“I can’t explain it. You wouldn’t understand.”

“Try me.”

“It sounds stupid.” I met his patient gaze, hoping he’d cut me some slack, but he didn’t budge and I had a feeling he wouldn’t until I spit it out. “Fine. I was teased pretty mercilessly for being a geek from kindergarten through high school. I never fit in. I wasn’t blond, athletic, or particularly charming. I was smart. Smarter than I appear to be now,” I huffed.

“Who bullied you? I’m gonna kick some ass. No one messes with my man,” he said, nuzzling my neck.

I chuckled, running my fingers along his spine. “Thanks. I told you it sounded lame. I’m a perfectly well-adjusted adult when I’m not here. And I’m actually pretty good when I come for quick family visits, but this feels different. It feels like I’m being thrown back in time and forced to hang out with the cool kids. Today was a great example. I made a fool of myself out there and I made you mad. Yeah, I was jealous but that was only part of it. I also wanted to prove I’d grown up a little and that I wasn’t the same sunscreen-caked dork who’d sit under an umbrella and read when he went to the beach anymore. I guess I still am.”

“You seem to be forgetting one major detail, Er.”

I traced the laugh-lines at the corner of his eyes and pushed his hair from his forehead. “What is it?”

“I like you just the way you are. I don’t expect you to change and develop a sudden passion for things I enjoy doing. Just be you. And if that means you’d rather finish a chapter lounging in the sand than jump in the water, that’s okay by me.”

“Thank you.”

“Don’t thank me. It comes with the territory. I wouldn’t want to spend the rest of my life with you if I didn’t love all your weird habits,” he teased, pulling us both to sit up.

“Weird? Me? I bet you can’t name three weird things about me,” I declared as I sauntered toward the bathroom.

“I bet I can name ten. I’ll give you my list at breakfast. Jump in the shower while I call housekeeping and ask them to change our sheets.”

I stopped in the doorway and frowned. “Just tell them I spilled water on them or something.”

“Why lie? I’m going to tell them my boyfriend got jizz on my side of the bed and…”

I shook my head mournfully and turned on the shower to drown out his silly speech about being stuck with a messy lover and crusty sheets. I chuckled at his ‘put upon’ tone and called for him to join me before stepping under the spray. I stopped abruptly and backed up to look at my reflection. My cheeks were flushed, my eyes were bright, and my smile spanned my entire face. I was incredibly happy and if I said so myself, it looked good on me.

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5 Stars

Zane and Eric are going strong and still so much in love. They are busy with life, their careers and, of course, planning a wedding. After a return trip to their hometown, Zane accepts the task of finding a vessel for a client, and this brings Zane's high school friend and old flame, Dean, back into their lives. Eric is suspicious of Dean's intentions from the beginning, but Zane doesn't see a problem. This begins to cause a rift between the lovers, and causes Eric to feel once again like the insecure person he thought he'd left behind when he left home for good and headed off to college.

First things first!! I absolutely hated Dean. He was a complete and utter asshat!! I just wanted to throw him off the yacht and send him out to sea.  Phew! Okay, on to my review!

I know many dislike reading the continuation of a story featuring an established couple that contains conflict. For me, yes, it's frustrating to have an author cause heartache for a couple that you love, especially ones you thought had a rock solid relationship, but it makes them much more realistic. Life and relationships aren't perfect and it takes hard work, compromise, trust and, of course, lots of love to make them work and Eric and Zane have all that in spades, so I wasn't too worried about them.

I fell in love with Eric and Zane when I first met them in Leaning into Love, so I was thrilled that Lane was extending their story. She managed to recapture the love and passion between Zane and Eric. The chemistry between them was as explosive as ever and it practically comes off the pages at you. And the sex was off the charts hot!

This was a great addition to Zane and Eric's story and to the series, as well. It's well-written, paced well and filled with emotion. It was enjoyable and definitely recommendable, in fact, pick up the whole series, it's amazing and you won't be disappointed!

*copy provided by author/publisher in exchange for an honest review*

5 Stars

Leaning into Always is part 2 of book 1 in the Leaning Into series by Lane Hayes and it absolutely needs to be read in order as it follows Zane and Eric on their way to the altar.

I absolutely love Eric. I found him relatable and sweet and real, my heart broke when his insecurities started to arise and I kind of wanted to slap Zane when he was being so oblivious and dismissing Eric's dislike of Dean like he did and I just wanted to make it better for Eric. Don't get me wrong, I love Zane, but really he was quite clueless here. I adored Zane and Eric together, though, their chemistry, their love for each other, the unbelievingly hot scenes Lane Hayes gave us. OMG, I was afraid my kindle was going to catch fire for a bit there. *fans self*

Dean was a jerk and a bully and he deserved all he got and more so much more. *kicks him and pushes him over board into the shark-infested sea* I loved catching up with Nick and the rest of the guys, though.

Overall, I loved Leaning into Always and was very glad to read the continuation to Zane and Eric's story, even if my tummy was in knots during a lot of the book dreading what could happen. Still, it was definitely worth it and I'm already looking forward to the next book in the series. Very recommendable!

*** Copy provided to Bayou Book Junkie for my reading pleasure, a review wasn't a requirement. ***

Meet the Author

Lane Hayes is grateful to finally be doing what she loves best. Writing full-time! It’s no secret Lane loves a good romance novel. An avid reader from an early age, she has always been drawn to well-told love story with beautifully written characters. These days she prefers the leading roles to both be men. Lane discovered the M/M genre a few years ago and was instantly hooked. Her debut novel was a 2013 Rainbow Award finalist and subsequent books have received Honorable Mentions, and were winners in the 2016 Rainbow Awards. She loves red wine, chocolate and travel (in no particular order). Lane lives in Southern California with her amazing husband in an almost empty nest. Books by Lane Hayes: Better Than Good, Better Than Chance, Better Than Friends, Better Than Safe, The Right Words, The Wrong Man & The Right Time, Leaning Into Love and Leaning Into the Fall, A Kind Of Truth, A Kind of Romance, A Kind of Honesty, A Kind of Home AND A Way with Words

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