Stories by @mbhoney

Between The Pines

Josie Hayes is always on the run. From bad decisions. From heartbreak. From cowboys. Her latest escape was supposed to be a quiet reset at her family’s cabin in Tennessee—not a reckless detour at a smoky backwoods bar, and definitely not a collision with Lincoln Carter. Rugged and magnetic, he’s temptation in a cowboy hat, and his slow smile makes forgetting her rules far too easy. Their connection is instant, electric, and impossible to ignore. What starts with teasing glances and lingering touches spiral into a series of nights that feel like more—too much more. By the end of the week, Josie does what she does best: she bolts, leaving behind only her name and the memory of a man she can’t shake. A year later, Josie’s done running. With a steady job, a new boyfriend, and her life finally on track, she’s ready to prove she’s not the same girl she used to be. Except her father’s prestigious summer horse training program just brought a ghost from her past straight to her front door. Lincoln isn’t the forgiving type, and now that he’s on the ranch, he’s determined to show Josie exactly what she left behind—and what they could have had if she’d stayed. As old wounds reopen and sparks reignite, Josie must decide: keep running from her past or take a chance on the cowboy who just might be worth staying for.

Powerless

Two childhood friends. Two broken hearts. One impromptu road trip to get away from everything. That’s all this was supposed to be. Afterall, I’ve been living in the friend zone for years now. But hockey heartthrob Jasper Gervais isn’t looking at me like a friend anymore. And he isn’t touching me like one either. To his fans, he’s the handsome, talented athlete on TV. But to me he’s still the lost boy with sad eyes and a heart of gold. The man I’ve loved in secret for years. So when my life falls apart on my wedding day, it only makes sense that he’s the one to swoop in and save me. And when his world comes crashing down around him, I’m there to return the favor. But the more time we spend alone, the more Jasper doesn’t feel like a friend at all. He feels like everything I’ve ever wanted and thought I could never have. Our feelings aren’t straight forward though. They twist and turn around the pain of his past and the reality of my present. Jasper Gervais acts like he wants me. But after years of turning me away, he’s going to need to prove it.

All the Ugly and Wonderful Things

A beautiful and provocative love story between two unlikely people and the hard-won relationship that elevates them above the Midwestern meth lab backdrop of their lives. As the daughter of a drug dealer, Wavy knows not to trust people, not even her own parents. It's safer to keep her mouth shut and stay out of sight. Struggling to raise her little brother, Donal, eight-year-old Wavy is the only responsible adult around. Obsessed with the constellations, she finds peace in the starry night sky above the fields behind her house, until one night her star gazing causes an accident. After witnessing his motorcycle wreck, she forms an unusual friendship with one of her father's thugs, Kellen, a tattooed ex-con with a heart of gold.