Unconditionally

By Nell Iris

Flamboyant book café owner Luca Moretti and geeky doctor Gus Hansen have been together for six years when the Supreme Court ruling makes same-sex marriage legal in all states. On June 26, 2015, Gus gets down on one knee and Luca screams yes.

On their wedding day, shortly before the ceremony, Luca’s mother explodes in anger, calling him a freak. The reason? He’s wearing a white veil, sprinkled with crystals.

Their relationship has been strained for a long time, and her words trigger traumatic memories. Instead of walking down the aisle, Luca runs.

Away from his mother. Away from Gus.

Gus counts down the minutes when Luca’s mother comes knocking. He realizes something’s wrong, but when he goes to talk to Luca, his husband-to-be is nowhere to be found.

Can Gus find Luca in time and manage to convince him to come back and get married?

• Language: English
• Publisher: JMS Books LLC
• Release date: Mar 4, 2017
• ISBN: 9781634863230

Nell Iris

Nell is a forty-something bisexual Swedish woman, married to the love of her life, and a proud mama of a grown daughter. She left the Scandinavian cold and darkness for warmer and sunnier Malaysia a few years ago, and now spends her days writing, surfing the Internet, enjoying the heat, and eating good food. One day she decided to chase her lifelong dream of being a writer, sat down in front of her laptop, and wrote a story about two men falling in love. Nell writes gay romance, prefers sweet over angst, and wants to write diverse and different characters.

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Unconditionally

By Nell Iris

Published by JMS Books LLC at Smashwords

Visit jms-books.com for more information.

Copyright 2017 Nell Iris

ISBN 9781634863230

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Cover Design: Written Ink Designs | written-ink.com

Image(s) used under a Standard Royalty-Free License.

All rights reserved.

WARNING: This book is not transferable. It is for your own personal use. If it is sold, shared, or given away, it is an infringement of the copyright of this work and violators will be prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law.

No portion of this book may be transmitted or reproduced in any form, or by any means, without permission in writing from the publisher, with the exception of brief excerpts used for the purposes of review.

This book is for ADULT AUDIENCES ONLY. It may contain sexually explicit scenes and graphic language which might be considered offensive by some readers. Please store your files where they cannot be accessed by minors.

This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and incidents are solely the product of the author’s imagination and/or are used fictitiously, though reference may be made to actual historical events or existing locations. Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, is entirely coincidental.

Published in the United States of America.

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Acknowledgements: Addison Albright and Amy Tasukada: a big, heartfelt thank you for your critical eye, your comments, and your encouragement. This story wouldn’t be the same without you.

Dedication: To Stor-Tiggr and Tiggrfanten: this would not be possible without you. Your faith in me and your unconditional love make my world a better place. I am eternally grateful. Älskar er <3

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Unconditionally

By Nell Iris

Chapter 1: When Gus Met Luca

2009

Oh, no, not again.

Gus Hanson groaned when the first notes of last year’s most irritating song started playing. The Big Gay Handbook probably dictated every gay man should love Britney, but Gus just couldn’t. He cringed at her infantile moaning and wanted to forever scrub the image of her in the Lolita schoolgirl uniform from his retinas.

He sipped his beer and wished he’d stayed home and binge-watched the Discovery Channel documentaries he’d DVRed, indulging in a big mug of hot chocolate with whipped cream like he’d planned all along. But when his friend Fred had asked if he wanted to go out for a drink, yesterday’s phone call from his mom had been fresh in his memory. She’d ranted on and on about how it was time for him to meet someone and he’d never do that if he spent all his time working.

"Unless there is some male nurse you think is cute and haven’t told me about, of course."

His mom knew how important his work was to him, how he’d wanted to be a doctor as long as he could remember. She’d encouraged his dreams, and, for his sixth birthday, she’d bought him an old stethoscope in a thrift store, something he still considered his best present ever. He’d spent every moment possible making up diagnoses for his pretend-sick mother, and she’d been patient and asked thoughtful questions, stimulating his imagination.

But his mom also knew how lonely he felt sometimes. Ever since he’d confided in her, she’d urged him to put himself out there, to try to meet someone. Since there weren’t any cute nurses, or other doctors, for that matter, here he was.

As usual, Fred had spotted some hot guy as soon as they’d gotten inside and taken off with him. He was most likely in a bathroom somewhere, getting his dick sucked right this second while Gus hung out by the bar. Alone. Trying his damnedest not to hum along to the terrible music.

Live long and prosper, sir. But aren’t you a little short to be Mr. Spock?

The low, breathy voice in Gus’s ear startled him. What?

He furrowed his eyebrows and turned to look at the speaker. How was it possible he’d been so deep in thought he’d missed a guy coming up to him, standing so close, he could practically whisper in Gus’s ear?

But Gus took a closer look and forgot about everything else. The guy was thin and tall and had to hunch over to get his mouth next to Gus’s ear. He wore a figure-hugging pink sweater, so short it left a strip of skin visible over the waistband of his jeans. His dark brown hair reached his chin and had the slightest curl at the ends. Long bangs covered one of his eyes, leaving only one dark, glittering eye visible and trained on Gus. But his lips stole all Gus’s attention. Full, pouty lips, curved up in an amused smile. Lips that glistened in the dim light at the bar like he’d just licked them or put something on them.

Um…what? Gus asked again. He tried to stop staring—he really did—but it was hard. He’d never seen lips like that, lips that begged to be kissed.

"I said: aren’t you too