Heat Wave Series

Brandon Russo can't stand the sight of blood and the current heat wave makes doing almost anything outdoors unpleasant. So when an SUV sideswipes a bicycle right at the gate of the storage facility in Burlington, Vermont, where Brandon works for his aunt, he considers just locking himself in the office and calling 911. But he's rewarded for letting his good nature overcome his squeamishness when the man he rescues from the ditch turns out to be absolutely gorgeous. Scott Seay is a photographer on the trail of a legend. A strong lead has brought him to Vermont for the auction of a storage unit whose owner had been obsessed with Champy, the creature rumored to live in the depths of Lake Champlain. When Scott winds up in a ditch outside that very same storage facility, being rescued by a hot, chivalrous man who literally sweeps Scott into his arms ... well, Scott's always believed in fate.

Just when barbecue boss Spencer Worthington is convinced nothing in the world could be hotter than Colorado Springs this summer, along comes Ethan, sizzling ribs with his dad at a rival booth. Just looking at him makes Spencer sweat, and when Ethan’s dad reveals himself to be a homophobic heckler, Spencer’s temper flares. Conflict erupts, and a passerby proposes a civilized solution: a reality TV cook-off -- such as the one she happens to produce -- to settle the score. May the best meat win. Seeing an opportunity to win a cash prize and Ethan, Spencer signs on. But when his secret sauce goes missing at the height of the competition, all signs point to sabotage, and he neglects to look before he leaps to conclusions. Now the money and Ethan are both on the line, but how can Spencer keep his cool in this heat?

The long, hot days of August have always been the newspapers' silly season, and cub reporter Tara Trent gets the silliest assignments of all. This year it’s a festival of Spiritual Enlightenment in the ancient witch-town of Salem, Massachusetts. There's a twist, though. Anonymous text messages suggest a modern day witch-hunter is on the loose -- a crackpot determined to see the witches of Salem burn in hell. Tara isn't sure if it's a hoax or for real, but one thing's for certain: things are heating up in Salem. Her day gets even hotter when she meets Abigail Powers, a petite, hard-bodied FBI agent working on the same case. The two instantly fall for each other, enjoying a long lesson in erotic massage before turning to the burning question: Is the mad witch-hunter of Salem just a jerk who sends out misogynistic text messages, or a potential woman-killer?

It's hot. Really hot. Stace Whitehall is not a fan of the heat wave drenching the city, but that’s the least of his worries. He’s also in heated lust with his coworker, Jenson Sommers, who’s dating Bransworth Manley, a model. Stace knows he can't compete. However, after a company hike in Stone Mountain Park -- dumb idea in this weather, as far as Stace is concerned -- Jenson announces he's single now. Is it the heat, or is Stace hearing things? The two men end up going out on a date, and everything is perfect until Bransworth turns up with accusations about Jenson that make Stace’s skin crawl. Bransworth and Stace bond over being duped, and then Jenson threatens them with a gun. It could be the hot weather making everyone crazy, but maybe for these Bransworth and Stace, after all they’ve been through, the temperature’s just right.

Danny Masterson is finally getting a place all his own, and he couldn’t be more excited. Since college he’s lived with his best buddy Rob, but when Rob’s pregnant girlfriend moved in, Danny knew it was time to move out. His new apartment has all the amenities, and the sexy neighbor living downstairs named Kyle only sweetens the deal. But a heat wave hits when Rob helps Danny move in, and the apartment’s A/C isn’t working right. Maintenance won’t come out because Danny isn’t listed as a tenant yet, so he’s stuck sweating it out over the long, Fourth of July weekend. Kyle invites Danny to stay downstairs in his apartment in air conditioned bliss, but he has a pretty roommate named Nadia who may or may not be his girlfriend. Danny thinks Kyle might be interested in him, but so far Kyle hasn’t said or done anything to move things forward between them. Will things ever heat up between them? Or is Danny going to end up getting burned?

The start of the Pennsylvania Renaissance Faire means Wes can finally get back to his seasonal job and distract himself from his recent messy break-up. There’s plenty for him to think about at the Faire, such as his role as a wandering flower merchant, the overwhelming August heat, and Carlo, who plays a handsome knight. Carlo is the exact opposite of Wes’s ex, Phillip, who won’t let their relationship die easily. The young knight is sweet and caring and chivalrous, but Wes has sworn to himself he’s not ready to jump back into dating yet. When Carlo collapses off his horse during a joust, Wes has to confront his own feelings for his new friend, as well as Phillip’s constant attempts to win him back.

College sophomore Jace O’Dell is looking for fun and adventure during his summer hiatus after a long, demanding semester and cumulative finals, so he auditions for SUNY Plattsburgh’s summer production of William Shakespeare’s A Midsummer Night’s Dream. Jace is in luck. When he earns a role in the play, he finds more than an adventure waiting for him behind-the-scenes. Black, muscular, intelligent, and charming football jock Germain Bridger captures Jace’s eye. As a record heat wave assaults the city of Plattsburgh, Jace and Germain find refuge from the threatening temperatures, escaping to the refreshing waters of Lake Champlain, the local movie theater, and a car ride to one of Jace’s favorite summer getaways. A promising friendship develops into an intimate exploration between the two as emotions are shared and tested, and true feelings revealed.

Nicole never really came out as a lesbian to her friends, family, and colleagues, and now her relationship with Katie is on the rocks. Katie is tired of being a "dirty secret" and moves out of their shared apartment on a hot Friday in August. Devastated, Nicole goes to her grandmother's farm on the shores of Lake Sunapee, a safe place where she spent happy summer holidays as a child. Nicole hopes for a quiet weekend to reflect, but between her gran's new lodger, the sexy redhead Melissa, and Sally and Bud, two of Nicole's childhood friends, she is quickly roped into an evening's entertainment at the Lodge Saturday evening. Her well-meaning friends try to fix her up with a guy, and in the heat of the moment she blurts out she is a lesbian. Havoc ensues. But in a conversation with her grandmother, Nicole begins to understand her secret hasn't been hidden as well as she thought, and she learns she isn’t the first lesbian in her family. With the new sense of freedom that comes from being true to herself, she has only one thing to wish for, and that is to reach Katy and make amends. But is it too late?

Aaron Jones quits his job as an IT tech and decides to tour the east coast of the U.S. before flying home to Britain. But hitching rides isn’t easy, especially when there’s a heat wave going on. Standing on the side of the road, thumb extended and bottle of water empty, Aaron starts to despair. Seeing a cute guy trying to hitch a ride, trucker Ben Knight picks him up before the cops do. Aaron is relieved to be out of the heat, but gratitude almost instantly heats up into something more potent when he gets a look at his rescuer -- a handsome, mature bear. Ben cannot believe anyone as incredible as Aaron could be interested in an overweight guy with too many miles on the clock. What happens when they finally reach Newark and the heat between Ben and Aaron rivals that outside?

When Zora comes to visit her childhood hometown for the Fourth of July, she expects to be helping with the family business, greeting old neighbors and friends, and carefully avoiding the topic of her sexuality. But then Zora's old mentor introduces Zora to her granddaughter Sarah, a blast from Zora's past, now grown into a leggy brunette who remembers Zora more than fondly. As the two women reconnect over old memories, sweet treats, and tales of the intervening years since they'd last met, Zora begins to suspect the attraction she feels for Sarah might be returned. The sparks flying between them ignite into fireworks celebrating their independence from sexual solitude when they explore a new way to use the town library.

Chris wasn't surprised to find Will on his doorstep on a Friday evening. Standard operating procedure and all that. But going to Tucson Raceway Park in the middle of August was not something he wanted to do after a long day at work. Still, how could he resist spending the evening with the secret love of his life, even if it was just to watch cars go around in a circle? But when they’re together, fast cars aren’t the only thing that can make a heart thunder on a hot summer night. Will's got a surprise in store that will definitely turn up the heat.