Full Balance (The Peachtree Series): Contemporary M/M Romance by Brigham Vaughn ➱ Release Tour with Giveaway
BLOG TOUR
Book Title: Full Balance (The Peachtree Series, Book 3)
Author: Brigham Vaughn
Publisher: Two Peninsulas Press
Cover Artist: Brigham Vaughn
Genre/s: Contemporary M/M Romance
Trope/s: May/December, age gap, hurt comfort, workplace romance, found family,
Themes: Marriage equality, family acceptance/homophobia, exploring light kink,
friends and chosen family, emotional baggage, established couple, adoption.
Heat Rating: 4 flames
Length: 108 000 words
Buy Links
Universal Link | Amazon US | Amazon UK
Love doesn’t always look like you expect.
Blurb
Russ Bishop and Stephen Parker have settled into wedded bliss.
They've moved into a spacious new condo, found professional success, and their connection in the bedroom is as sizzling as ever.
Neither of them ever expected to become parents but when their volunteer work at the Open Doors Shelter makes them realize how many LGBTQ youth are in desperate need of a home, they begin to reconsider.
After a snarky teenager named Austin comes into their lives, their future together will never be the same.
Excerpt
Russ let out a contented sigh.
“I swear it just gets better with time,” Stephen said.
Russ kissed him. “Me too. I had no idea married sex would be so good. If I did, I might have been more eager to get married when I was younger.”
Stephen chuckled.
“This is going to change, won’t it?”
Stephen slipped an arm around his waist, pulling him even closer as he studied his face. Russ’s expression was soft but there was a little edge of worry in his gaze.
“It will,” Stephen said, knowing he was talking about how becoming parents would change their sex life. He ran his thumb across Russ’s cheek. “We’ll have additional responsibilities and stressors. Much less privacy. But it doesn’t have to be a bad thing. It’ll be tougher but that doesn’t mean we can’t find some benefits along the way.”
“Like what?” Russ gave him a curious, inquisitive look.
“Like … it may bring us even closer.” He took Russ’s hand and brought his palm to his lips. “It may deepen our relationship further.”
“I like that.” Russ pulled him closer.
“I think going into this with our eyes wide open is our best chance of success. We need our relationship to stay solid so we can give whoever we bring into our lives the best, most stable home we can. Which means working together to solve problems.”
“Agreed,” Russ said.
“No running away.”
Russ gave him a wry grin. “Got it.”
“Hey that’s not just a reminder for you,” Stephen said gently. “I’ve pushed you away at times too. And I think this will probably bring up a lot of baggage we both have about the ways we were raised.”
“True.” Russ’s expression turned serious.
“So we can’t let that overwhelm us. Or come between us.”
“Absolutely.” Russ hesitated. “Are you excited about this at all though?”
“About the idea of becoming parents? Yeah, I am,” Stephen said. “I remember how satisfying it was to see Evan grow into himself and he was an adult and only with us for a month and a half. The idea of being able to watch that growth over years in someone who needs it even more … well that’s a challenge I never expected to take on. But I am excited about it.”
“Me too.” Russ grinned. “I am really looking forward to calling my sister and telling her she’ll be Aunt Addie.”
Stephen chuckled. “I look forward to that as well. Jeremy is going to be shocked. That should be fun.”
“We have a lot to look forward to, don’t we?”
“We do.” Russ pulled him in for a kiss and Stephen went willingly. “Thank you for making this a very happy Valentine’s Day.”
“You know, if someone had asked me five years ago how I’d feel about making the person I’m married to a father, I would have kindly assured them they were very, very confused,” Stephen said drily.
Russ’s laugh was loud and genuine. “I would imagine.”
“And yet …” Stephen couldn’t quite finish the thought. His heart was too full.
Russ smiled as if he understood. So Stephen leaned in to kiss him again. They had the whole night ahead of them to celebrate this happiness. Why not take the time while they had it?
Their lives were about to change in a very big way.
AUTHOR INTERVIEW
The prized possession you value above all others…
Probably my digital SLR camera/lenses. I’d always joked that if I fell in a river I’d probably try to save the camera first.
When I went hiking in Ireland a few years ago, I was wearing it around my neck when I fell into a bog. Without thinking twice, I used one hand to brace myself on a rock nearby and with the other I scooped the camera lens up and away from the water. I only fell in to mid-thigh, thankfully, but apparently my first instinct was to save the camera, so I guess I was right!
The unqualified regret you wish you could amend…
I wish I’d put my books in Kindle Unlimited earlier. I was right in the middle of a divorce when it was rolled out and I didn’t have the time or mental energy to really focus on it. It took me quite a while to make the switch and it really hurt my sales. I think if I’d done it sooner, it would have been better for my career. I’m really only now recovering from that and it’s been a slow, frustrating process.
The book that holds everlasting resonance…
Margaret Atwood’s The Blind Assassin. It’s lyrically gorgeous and the three interwoven storylines are so deftly done. She’s a master and she writes some of the most beautiful words. This line from it has always stuck with me:
“Touch comes before sight, before speech. It is the first language and the last, and it always tells the truth.”
The person who influenced you the most…
Probably my high school French/English teacher. She was one of the most unique people I’ve ever met. Very unapologetically herself. She expected a lot of her students and she pushed us hard but she also was kind and supportive. And I’ve tried to emulate that in my life. I think she’d be utterly delighted that I’m an author and that I write LGBTQ romance.
The unlikely interest that engages your curiosity…
Death. *laughs* I know that sounds SO strange but I am actually fascinated by the concept of death and how we deal with it. I wrote about Evan, a character who is a funeral director, in Trust the Connection. In The Ghosts Between Us, Chris is a grief counselor working for a hospice center at a hospital. I really enjoyed the research and have done a lot of reading on the topics long after the book ended.
The event that altered the course of your life…
Reading Twilight. A friend I worked with loaned the books to me. There were a lot of issues had with the books but something about it stuck with me. After a lot of frustration with the ending, I discovered Twilight fanfic. Which led to writing Twilight fanfic. Which led to writing original fiction. Which led to becoming a full-time author. Such a small thing that led to so many huge and wonderful changes in my life.
The unfulfilled ambition that continues to haunt you…
Moving out of Michigan. As much as I love the state and so many people in it, I’ve always wanted to live in a bigger city. None of the cities in Michigan felt like the right fit. I dreamed about moving to Chicago for years but that never really came together.
Three years ago, I went on a six week trip to Ireland. And I sobbed on the flight home because I didn’t want to leave. That sense of home and contentment I felt there hasn’t faded at all.
About six months ago, I began to plan a move to Ireland. I’m doing everything in my power to get my writing career solid enough for me to make that happen. It’s not going to be easy but my goal is to fulfill that ambition in the next year or so. A pandemic is making that even tougher but it has given me a rare opportunity to focus on my work so I am hoping all of the pieces are starting to fall into place to make that ambition a reality!
Your early recollections of writing fiction...
I rarely wrote it down but I have very vivid memories of telling stories with my dolls/Barbies. I’ve always loved stage plays and I think that’s how those stories came out. It’s also probably why I see my characters in my head, acting out everything they do. I read an enormous amount as a kid and I constantly made up stories in my head. It just took me a while to figure out how to get it all down on paper.
The way you would spend your fantasy twenty-four hours, with no travel restrictions…
I’d be on a plane to Dublin and spending time with several friends there that I haven’t seen in three years. I miss them dearly.
The piece of wisdom you would pass onto a child…
It doesn’t matter what everyone else thinks. Find the things that you love and the people who support you and hold onto that.
The treasured item you lost and wish you could have again…
One year when my family and I went to Mackinac Island, I bought a ring with the comedy/tragedy masks on it. I loved it and wore the heck out of it. I lost it at one point for a year or two, then rediscovered it in a pocket in a travel bag. I lost it again at some point and I desperately wish I could find it again.
The philosophy that underpins your life…
Try to leave every person you encounter happier and healthier than when you first met them.
The character you enjoyed writing the most…
Jeremy Lewis from Trust the Connection. He was so snarky and so broken. And I knew the guy he’d been before a devastating car accident but I had to find a way for him to find that guy again. One he did, he was a delight and every time he shows up in another book in that universe, I almost feel excited to see him again. Lol.
The character you found difficult to write…
Lowell Prescott from The Midwest Series. He showed up in the first book, Bully & Exit as the roommate of one of the main characters and he was so alive and interesting and he wouldn’t shut up. He even demanded his own book. But when I went to write his story in Push & Pull, he clammed up and wouldn’t talk to me. So we (and by we I mean Lowell and I) struggled for a long, long time to get his story on the page but once he started talking, I fell in love with him all over again and he pops up a lot in Touch & Go and Advance & Retreat as a side character and I had so much fun with that.
The book you enjoyed planning/writing the most…
Probably my most recent one. I just finished my holiday novel, Cabin Fever, and it just came together SO easily. Kevin goes home with his best friend/roommate for Thanksgiving and accidentally falls in love with his best friend’s dad, Drew. The guys had a great connection right off the bat and were so into each other and I had a pretty clear plan of how they’d get together/make it work. The story just flowed and it felt great to do something a little shorter and lighter than the Peachtree Series books.
And the promo…
Before I leave, I want to talk a little bit about The Peachtree Series and Russ & Stephen. When I first had the idea to write a short story about a guy who slips on spilled coffee in an office stairwell and an older man comes to his rescue, I had NO idea it would turn into 300k words of their relationship.
But over three books and years of their life, I got to know them so well. I came to love them and I am so, so excited to share this final piece of their story with you. I adore Russ and Stephen and the journey they’ve been on together and I know you’re going to love it too.
About the Author
Author Links
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Giveaway
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The links in the giveaway for FB Group and Instagram are incorrect - I suggest using the author links from this post
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