Black Dog Inn Series

Rebuilding Charlie

One day at a time, one cupcake at a time, I was determined to win him over.

Charlie Caldwell has hit a breaking point. With more than just his mental health on the line, he makes the decision to move across the country to work for his best friend, leaving his brother and niblings behind. A new start isn’t going to fix him. His dysmorphia isn’t going to magically go away. But his hope is that being in a new place and going no contact with his toxic mother will at least allow him to breathe. 

Teague Mulligan might look like a lumberjack, but he’s really a marshmallow. And he likes it that way. He’s a doer, a fixer, and his wide shoulders are big enough to handle any problem. He’s always going to put himself between the world and the people he loves. But when he first meets Charlie, Teague doesn’t make a great first impression. Fortunately, he gets a chance to apologize and explain. Though Teague is immediately attracted to Charlie, he recognizes the other man has built walls around himself. Teague vows to go at Charlie’s pace, even if friendship is the only thing he can have.

The more they get to know each other, the more the attraction blooms. But Charlie’s past trauma keeps him from leaping. As much as he likes Teague, he knows the road blocks his mental health puts in the way. But Teague is as patient as he is kind, and as the days go on, trust is built. Slowly and surely, Charlie lets Teague in. Neither Charlie nor Teague were looking for love, but day by day, and cupcake by cupcake, love is exactly what they find. 

Content Warnings: cis body dysmorphia, parental emotional and mental abuse, ex-partner mental abuse (shown briefly in memory), mentions of suicidal ideation and self-harm (no act shown on page), animal death (minor, the dogs don’t die!), and religious trauma (emotional, not physical).

Buy Link: Amazon