In my new release, Sex and Cocktails, a happy ending was where I wanted to leave my characters, or at least at a stage where it was hinted at. The story had always been intended as a 'hot fling', a short, summery romance, but I also wanted that ending, that moment where it all clicks and they can say their I-love-yous.
Sex and Cocktails
Now, I'm not the biggest fan of insta-love in stories. I'm not saying it's a bad thing or that it can't or shouldn't happen. It's just not something I've experienced or find myself getting behind. Insta-lust, insta-attraction, insta-connection, yes I get that, because that's something I've felt. I've looked at people and been attracted to them. I've caught someone's eye in a situation and thought, you're thinking what I'm thinking, we're going to get along just fine. I've spoken to someone for a few minutes, shared interests, bonded over a drink and small talk, and left hoping I might get to hang out with them again some time. That instant connection with someone I can not knock. I know what it's like to feel that, but labelling it love, proper romantic love, I do find that harder to get my head around.
In Sex and Cocktails, Daniel is on vacation with friends. He's not really looking for anything or anyone. He's just enjoying a night out with his friends and drinking a few cocktails. Then he meets Ty, and what starts as a one-night stand between the men, turns into something more. The story is a little over 20,000 words long. It's not a long time to get two characters who were strangers at the beginning of the story together and in love. Usually, in shorter stories, I prefer to go with an established couple. They do their thing, they can reaffirm their love, and as a writer and reader, by the end I'm sure they have their happy ending. So for this story, I had to make it believable in my own mind and make it work for the word count and the timescale I had decided on to tell Daniel and Ty's story.
The book only really focuses on two key periods of time set two months apart. But the relationship has been building because of how they interact in the time between. I guess I looked to memories of how my relationship with my husband started while we were at university. Sadly no hot Miami beaches were involved or steamy one-night stands, but it was that first meeting, that little warmth in my chest as we hung out and talked and played cards. He was sweet and fun, and there was an attraction, a connection. It wasn't love, not from that first moment, and so like Daniel and Ty, we emailed each other when we were out of town about the silliest things in our days, and we were able to get together just for a chat and a drink in the student bar, before daring to call anything a 'date'.
So I kind of drew on the idea that although they were apart for almost two months, they had those shared moments-emails, phone calls, text messages. Little things that built on that initial connection, so when they did meet up again there was already a start of something more and there was a reason their feelings were deeper. They had already moved beyond a single night of alcohol and sex, and had thoughts about what they wanted, and where they might be heading.
With that in mind, I went on to write what felt right. Right for them as characters, and right to me as a writer, and as a reader. And so I gave them their happy ever after.