Popcorn Love (49 page)

“No.”

“Try it because you love me.”

“I do love you,” Elena told her, leaning forward to
kiss the side of Allison’s calf.

Allison threw a piece of popcorn at her head. “I love
you too.”

“I’m still not trying it.”

Allison threw a whole handful at her. “Try it!”

“You’re going to wake my son,” Elena said, grinning,
so Allison whispered as loud as she could so that she sounded like
she was hissing the words.

“
Try it
!”

Elena let out an exaggerated sigh. “Why is it so
important that I try this ridiculous concoction of yours?”

“Because it is delicious.” She then put on a straight
face, as solemn as could manage, and clasped a hand around Elena’s
ankle. “It’s because I love you, Elena.” She stressed the words
dramatically. “I don’t want you to miss out on the delicious things
in life.”

“Well, it looks disgusting to me.” Elena shook her
head and poked Allison’s side with her toes. “Even the description
of it sounds disgusting.”

Allison smiled. “That’s the thing, though, you know?
It’s part of why I love it, even more so now that you and I are
together.”

“What do you mean?”

Allison popped another handful of her popcorn and
Reese’s into her mouth before crunching it down to nothing and
swallowing. She then pulled Elena’s foot up toward her face and
pressed a kiss to the inside of the brunette’s exposed ankle. “It’s
us,” she said.

Elena stared at her curiously, and Allison pointed to
the popcorn. “This stuff,” she said. “It’s
us
, you and
me.”

“You and I are popcorn and candy?” Elena asked.

“Totally.”

“Dear, you are going to have to elaborate.”

“Two things that maybe were never meant to go
together,” Allison said, one hand rubbing up and down Elena’s shin.
“Two things that people look at or even just hear about and
automatically sneer at or assume it won’t work. It’s two things
that are completely different and that shouldn’t go so well
together, but they
do
.” Allison squeezed Elena’s leg. “It’s
us. You get it?”

Elena stared at her for a moment and then a soft sigh
escaped her. She shifted on the couch and climbed over Allison’s
legs to get to the bowl in her lap. Reaching in, she pulled out a
small handful and funneled it into her mouth. She chomped it down,
somehow managing to make it look graceful, and then shrugged a
shoulder. “It isn’t terrible,” she said, “but it isn’t heavenly
either.”

Allison laughed and pulled her down into a long kiss.
“I can’t believe you tried it.”

Elena grabbed the bowl of popcorn and moved it to the
small table nearby before settling more comfortably in her lap. She
rested a hand over Allison’s heart and pressed a kiss to her lips.
“You’ve always had a way of winning me over.”

Allison ran her hands down Elena’s back. “Same.”

They kissed each other, long and languid. Their
fingers tangled together, squeezing and holding tight, as those
slow, soft kisses grew deeper and hotter. Their bodies moved
together, slowly beginning to grind to the rhythm of Allison’s
quickening pulse.

“Momma?”

Elena instantly jerked up at the sleepy sound of her
son’s voice, slipping off of Allison’s lap, and Allison followed.
They turned to find the sweaty, pajama-clad toddler standing a few
feet away and watching them as he rubbed at his eyes.

Clearing her throat, Elena patted at her hair and
pulled her shirt down where it had ridden up. “What’s wrong,
baby?”

“I’m thirsty.”

Elena let out a soft breath, and Allison began to
shake with muted laughter. A few moments later and Lucas probably
would have walked in on something a little more heated than a quiet
kissing session. “Okay, munchkin,” Elena said. “Let’s get you some
water.”

She smacked Allison’s shoulder as she rose from the
couch and scooped up her son.

Allison just continued to laugh as she pushed off the
couch. “Maybe we should hire a babysitter,” she said as she
followed Elena.

Elena glanced over her shoulder and smiled, arching a
brow.

Allison narrowed her eyes at the look. “
No
,
not a hot one. I’m the only hot babysitter allowed.”

Elena let out a soft laugh and disappeared into the
kitchen.

Allison shook her head, smiled, and followed.

She knew she had a lot of trying times ahead.
Graduation was looming, and that meant the end of the last four
years of her life. That meant saying goodbye to Macy, her closest
friend and the only family she had ever had in her life before
taking the babysitting gig that turned her world upside down and
gave her more than she could have ever dreamed possible for
her.

She knew she and Elena would face challenges, and
that things wouldn’t always be like this, so easy, so perfect, but
those thoughts faded from Allison’s mind as Elena’s laughter
spilled into her ears. Her heart was so full in that moment that
she could feel it in every part of her, beating out the rhythm of
this new life and this new hope. This was only the beginning.
Whatever the future held, she wasn’t concerned. She wouldn’t face
it alone, and neither would Elena.

Whatever it was that had always been missing, she
knew they had found it in one another.

They found home.

###

KL Hughes is an American poet and fiction author
writing in multiple genres. Growing up in a small town of just over
1500 people, she spent much of her time inventing various ways to
entertain herself as well as others. Whether it was through vocal
performances of original children’s songs or theatrical
re-enactments of books, movies, and actual events, Hughes showcased
her extensive imagination and creativity at a very early age.

She began writing poetry at the age of nine, a
passion that rapidly grew and expanded to include short stories,
novellas, and eventually novels. Throughout elementary school and
high school, Hughes won several contests and competitions focused
in original poetry and short-story composition.

After graduating valedictorian of her high-school
class, Hughes went on to pursue and earn a Bachelor of Liberal Arts
degree in Theatre Arts and English Literature. Her collegiate
studies allowed her to develop and hone her skills in poetry,
playwriting, screenwriting, and fiction prose.

Working as a writer full-time, Hughes lives in the
United States with her wife and their Dalmatian. When not writing,
she enjoys theatre and film, travel, visits to old cemeteries and
haunted houses, putting on one-woman musicals for her wife, long
walks and hikes, and family time.

CONNECT WITH KL Hughes:

Tumblr:
http://chrmdpoet.tumblr.com

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G Benson

ISBN: 978-3-95533-342-3 (mobi), 978-3-95533-343-0
(epub)

Length: 132,000 words (350 pages)

A successful anaesthetist, Anna is focused on
herself, her career, and her girlfriend. Everything changes
abruptly when her brother’s and sister-in-law’s deaths devastate
her and her family. Left responsible for her young niece and
nephew, Anna finds herself dumped and alone in Melbourne, a city
she doesn’t even like. She tries to navigate the shock of looking
after two children battling with their grief while managing her
own.

Filled with self-doubt, Anna feels as if she’s making
a mess of the entire thing, especially when she collides with a
long-legged stranger. Anna barely has time to brush her teeth in
the morning, let alone to date a woman—least of all one who has no
idea about the two kids under her care.

Just when Anna finally starts to feel as if she’s
getting some control of the situation, the biggest fight begins and
Anna really has to step up once and for all.

Emily O’Beirne

ISBN: 978-3-95533-346-1 (mobi), 978-3-95533-347-8
(epub)

Length: 128,000 words (367 pages)

Nineteen-year-old Claire Pearson knows she needs a
life. And some new friends.

But brittle, beautiful, and just a little bit too
sassy for her own good sometimes, she no longer makes friends
easily. And she has no clue where to start on the whole finding a
life front, either. Not after a confidence-shattering year dogged
by bad break-ups, friends who have become strangers, and her
constant failure to meet her parents sky-high expectations.

When Robbie and Mia walk into Claire’s work they seem
the least likely people to help her find a life. But despite
Claire’s initial attempts to alienate them, an unexpected new
friendship develops.

And it’s the warm, brilliant Mia who seems to get
Claire like no one has before. Soon, Claire begins to question her
feelings for her new friend.

L.T. Smith

ISBN: 978-3-95533-396-6 (mobi), 978-3-95533-397-3
(epub)

Length: 77,000 words (295 pages)

Beth Chambers’ life is no fairytale, even if she
feels like a damsel in distress.

After four years in a destructive relationship, Beth
has decided enough is enough and leaves her girlfriend, taking with
her only her dog Dudley, her broken spirit, and a shattered view of
life.

At her lowest point, she meets Amy Fletcher, a woman
who has it all—and whom she believes would never want more than
friendship.

But what Beth fails to realise is that there are
definitely two sides to every story.  Could Amy Fletcher be
Beth’s Princess Charming? Could her story end with a happily ever
after?

Jae

ISBN: 978-3-95533-239-6 (mobi), 978-3-95533-240-2
(epub)

Length: 91,000 words (369 pages)

Falling stars are supposed to be a lucky sign, but
not for Austen. Her new job as a secretary in an international
games company isn’t off to a good start. Her first
assignment—decorating the Christmas tree in the lobby—results in a
trip to the ER after Dee, the company’s second-in-command, gets hit
by the star-shaped tree topper.

Dee blames her instant attraction to Austen on her
head wound, not the magic of the falling star. She’s determined not
to act on it, especially since Austen has no idea that Dee is
practically her boss.

www.ylva-publishing.com

Cindy Rizzo

Elizabeth Morrison has ascended the ranks of her
industry and now runs one of the most successful publishing
companies in the US. But even after three decades, she has never
been able to get past the devastating end of her relationship with
the beautiful and brilliant Ruth Abramson. As Elizabeth approaches
her 30
^th
college reunion, she must face the woman who
long ago acceded to the demands of her father, a famous Russian
dissident, and married the young man who’d been chosen for her. It
doesn’t make it any easier that Ruth, now divorced and living
openly as a lesbian, is the class luncheon speaker.

As the two women face one another and attempt to
reconcile their past, Elizabeth finds she must wrestle with a
number of issues she has avoided confronting. And she must
carefully decide whether she is more distrustful of Ruth or of
herself. Is she headed for another fall with this woman? Or does
she want to get close again, so she can be the one to walk
away?

When it comes to reuniting with the love of your
life, it’s not always easy to know the difference between getting
back together and just getting back.

Caren J. Werlinger

Teresa Benedetto and Ellie Ryan couldn’t be more
different, at least on the surface.

Teresa still lives at home. As much as she loves her
boisterous Italian family, she feels trapped by them and their
plans for her life. Their love is suffocating her.

Ellie has been on her own for years, working hard to
save up enough to live her dream of escaping from Pittsburgh to
travel the world. Except leaving isn’t that simple when she knows
her brother is out on the streets of the city somewhere, back from
Vietnam, but not home.

When Teresa and Ellie meet and fall in love, their
worlds clash. Ellie would love to be part of Teresa’s family, but
they both know that will never happen. Sooner or later, Teresa will
have to choose between the two halves of her heart—Ellie or her
family.

Set in 1980, the beginning of the Reagan era and the
decline of Pittsburgh’s steel empire,
Cast Me Gently
is a
classic lesbian romance.

Popcorn Love

© 2015 by KL Hughes

ISBN (mobi): 978-3-95533-266-2

ISBN (epub): 978-3-95533-267-9

ISBN (pdf): 978-3-95533-268-6

Also available as paperback.

Published by Ylva Publishing, legal entity of Ylva
Verlag, e.Kfr.

Ylva Verlag,
e.Kfr.

Owner: Astrid
Ohletz

Am Kirschgarten 2

65830 Kriftel

Germany

www.ylva-publishing.com