The Rushes by Richard Natale
The Rushes is a brisk and funny tale of friendship, love and ambition set in present-day Hollywood. Aspiring filmmakers Jamie Alford and his BFF, Carson Thorne, must navigate the industry’s ruthless politics and ingrained prejudices, while also trying to maneuver the treacherous waters of romance.
For years, Jamie has been obsessing on his ex, the tortured Owen Worth. And just as he’s about to start afresh with a dashing young producer, Owen reappears to complicate his life.
Carson, who has put romance on the back burner to focus on his career (much to the chagrin of his friend and former film professor, David Mendoza), falls hard for a wildly ambitious screenwriter.
When Jamie and Carson’s best-laid plans are sabotaged by jealousy and betrayal, they must band together to help one another move forward both in their professional and personal lives. But after all, isn’t that what best friends are for?
Book Information
PUBLISHER: Blazing Heart Publishing
RELEASE DATE: May 22, 2018
GENRE: Contemporary Romance
WORD COUNT: 66,480 words
Format: eBook, Kindle Mobi
LANGUAGE: EnglishStory Excerpt
If it had only been a one-time thing, Jamie would have written off the encounter as the byproduct of adolescent hormonal fever. Even the most devout young man can succumb to temptation. But the next night, Owen was sitting outside his cabin again. And the next night and the next.
Each evening, they headed for the lake where they swam naked and kissed and held on to one another for dear life. And each night the lovemaking got better, until Jamie couldn’t believe that a few nights earlier, Owen had been a virgin; that he’d never even been kissed.
Now Jamie finally understood what it was all about; why wars were waged, kingdoms upended, hearts decimated. All for love.
No, it’s not love, Jamie, it’s lust. You’re too young to be in love.
But what may have begun as lust was growing into something more. He and Owen shared intimacies and affection and laughter. Even during the day, whenever they were within sight of each other, an unmistakable electrical charge passed between them. It was hard to miss, and even Toby picked up on it.
“Hey, what’s up with you and Big Bird?” he asked.
Jamie deflected by mentioning the family connection, but the explanation was paper thin.
“Spare me,” Toby said. “I’ve mooned over guys before. I know the look when I see it. You’re not fooling me and I hope you’re not fooling yourself.”
It was all happening so quickly that Jamie seesawed between euphoria and angst. The most telling sign that his emotional equilibrium had been compromised came during his phone calls to Carson, during which he did not allude to Owen, except for that one time at the beginning of the summer when he mentioned meeting him. “He’s just about what you’d expect. Total loser.”
As far as Carson was concerned, he was still hooking up with Toby. And whenever he inquired, Jamie carefully steered the conversation back to Carson, which required very little effort. Jamie had long ago made peace with the fact that Carson’s favorite topic of conversation was himself – with movies running a close second – and used it to his advantage.
