Hello, Delilah! Thank you for welcoming me here to share my new release! Big Rucking Disaster is the eighth and final book in the Rucked by You series, and I’m hoping readers will love it! My first contribution to the series, Hot Rucking Canadian, was published seven weeks ago.  For the past few weeks, I’ve sat back with nervousness and watched readers’ reactions to that book, as well as the advanced readers’ comments about this new book.

Writing rugby was out of my wheelhouse.  In fact, in more than fifty published stories, I’ve only done one “sports” romance. I use the term sports loosely, as Ace’s Place (free in all retailers) has a couple of hockey scenes, but the bulk of the story is a one-night stand that becomes more.

Still, when a rugby series was proposed by the wonderful folks at The New Romance Café, I was all-in.  I watched a series on Prime.  I learned all that I could about the sport.  I wrote the first story with incredible enthusiasm.  As I waited for that book to be released, though, I realized I had another story in me.  Hot Rucking Canadian is the story of Travis, a rebar worker who goes up office towers under construction for his job, and Isaiah, a rugby player.  Great. Cute story about a one-night stand that becomes more (I’m sensing a theme here…).

As I was writing Travis and Isaiah’s story, I created Isaiah’s rugby team.  From Roger, the blind side flanker and dad to 4 (soon to be 5) kids, to Jason, the scrum half who is about to get engaged. I also created Johnnie, the hooker and captain of the team.  He was always trying to set Isaiah up, without understanding why it never worked (see previous book for that salacious detail).  I wrote one throwaway line about Johnnie having gotten a woman pregnant and that he was ready to marry her.  She lost the baby, and Johnnie claimed to be relieved when the engagement was broken.

Okay, simple little detail.  Not much to see here.  Moving on to Isaiah and Travis’s story.

Except I knew, in my heart, that Johnnie hadn’t been relieved — he’d been heartbroken.  He wanted to be a dad more than anything.  He might not have been desperately in love with his girlfriend, but he would’ve happily married her, and they could’ve made a life.

Still, I had another book to write, and I shelved that knowledge.

After Isaiah’s story was finished and waiting to be published, I kept coming back to Johnnie over and over.  I had other books I was supposed to be writing, but he was an annoying bastard who insisted his story needed to be told. NOW!

Writers will likely know what I’m talking about.  This has happened to me before and likely will again.

So I dropped everything and wrote Johnnie’s story.  I shared his heartbreak and how he entered into a rebound relationship that was proving disastrous.  How he meets Yardley and suddenly he’s intrigued by a man.  That his bisexuality side comes to the fore.  Now. He’s sort of in a relationship that’s crashing badly, so he’s not really available to start something new.  I’ll leave it up to readers to say if I have the right balance, but I think I do.

The book reunites the entire Vancouver Orcas team with the members introduced in the first book as well as some new ones appearing on page for the first time.  I also tied in my Rocktoberfest 2024 book, Grindstone’s Edge as one of the MCs from that book, Hugo, is good friends with Yardley.  They teach at the same school and are both queer, so that slotted nicely.  And of course I connected books — it’s what I do.  Previous reading is in no way required, but Hugo and his love, rockstar Axel, had a special role to play in this new rugby book.

Okay, so I had another rugby novella.  The nice folks at The New Romance Café let me add my book to the end of the series and Johnnie had his story.  I’d say he and Yardley make a great couple.  For now, my rugby writing days are behind me.  That said, I have a great lesbian story lurking in the back of my mind, so if another season comes up, I’m all-in.

Thank you, Delilah, for hosting me today.

Contest: As a thanks, I would love to give away a copy of Hot Rucking Canadian to one lucky commentor.  Just let me know – do you read sports romances?  Is there a sport you’re tired of, one you’ll always grab, or one you’d love to read?  Let me know!  Random will pick a winner.  Good luck!

Big Rucking Disaster

Johnnie

I’m the hooker (no, not that kind) for the Vancouver Orcas rugby squad, and my teammates are like family. They’re nosy like family too, worrying about me, even though I pretend I’m doing fine. But off the pitch, I’m stuck in a bad relationship, struggling to get along with Carly. I hope that volunteering for a local high school might make me feel I’m doing some good in the world. And the kids are great, but it’s Coach Yardley Morrison who feels like someone who might change my life. One look into his dark-brown eyes, and suddenly I’m wondering if I can make different, better choices.

Yardley

I’m convinced Johnnie Leclerc will just swoop in, sign autographs, get the kids excited, and then abandon them. Like my bastard ex-husband. So I play it smart and keep my distance from the sexy, but straight—remember he’s straight, Yardley—rugby star. But as weeks go by, the more he keeps his promises to the kids, staying patient and kind with them, the more attractive I find him. I know better than to hit on a guy like that, of course. Except every now and then, our gazes meet, and I don’t think I’m imagining the heat I see.

Big Rucking Disaster is a 29k word opposites attract, age-gap, bi-awakening, interracial gay sports novella with a by-the-book coach and the hell-raising hooker who wants to change his ways.

Links:
Amazon US: https://www.amazon.com/Big-Rucking-Disaster-Rucked-You-ebook/dp/B0FB7FVF4J
Universal Book Link: https://books2read.com/RuckingDisaster
Add it to Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/235371270-big-rucking-disaster

About the Author

USA Today Bestselling author Gabbi Grey lives in beautiful British Columbia where her fur baby chin-poo keeps her safe from the nasty neighborhood squirrels. Working for the government by day, she spends her early mornings writing contemporary, gay, sweet, and dark erotic BDSM romances. While she firmly believes in happy endings, she also believes in making her characters suffer before finding their true love. She also writes m/f romances as Gabbi Black and Gabbi Powell.

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