Thieves' Guild Academy Archives - Page 3 of 3

Oops! Hardened bad*ss accidentally adopts an alien child #FoundFamily #MMRomance

Kayelle Allen 06/17/2023 MM Romance

Is there truly honor among thieves? When an alien child too unruly to train is turned away from the Thieves' Guild Academy, Professor Brinn Halin and Headmaster Kam Zavala must join forces to save the precocious four-year-old girl.

Brinn and Kam soon discover that the child's breach of the system has uncovered a deeper, more insidious hack that threatens the Academy and their newfound love.

But as they risk trusting their well-honed instincts, they must also answer the ultimate question: how much can they trust their long-divided hearts...

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~ Copyright ©2025 Kayelle Allen. All rights reserved ~ Kayelle Allen participates in the Amazon Services LLC Associates program, an affiliate advertising program which provides the means for sites to earn fees by advertising and linking to Amazon.com. Amazon and the Amazon logo are trademarks of Amazon.com. If you purchase an item listed on the site from Amazon.com, Kayelle will earn a small commission. Other sites might be affiliate links as well. These will not result in higher prices for you. Thank you for your support!

My characters may be found in multiple books in my story universe. Pietas images Nik Nitsvetov as Pietas cosplay.

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Thieves’ Guild Academy: A Divided Heart sweeter MM Romance #SciFi #MMromance #Academy

Kayelle Allen 05/27/2023 MM Romance

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~ Copyright ©2025 Kayelle Allen. All rights reserved ~ Kayelle Allen participates in the Amazon Services LLC Associates program, an affiliate advertising program which provides the means for sites to earn fees by advertising and linking to Amazon.com. Amazon and the Amazon logo are trademarks of Amazon.com. If you purchase an item listed on the site from Amazon.com, Kayelle will earn a small commission. Other sites might be affiliate links as well. These will not result in higher prices for you. Thank you for your support!

My characters may be found in multiple books in my story universe. Pietas images Nik Nitsvetov as Pietas cosplay.

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Excerpt: Door slam, halfway to good-riddance and don’t-come-back #SciFi #WriteLGBTQ #MFRWhooks

Kayelle Allen 02/22/2023 MM Romance 6 Comments

A Divided Heart

In a school filled with hackers and thieves, how do you trust your heart?

The Thieves' Guild Academy teaches three things. Honor above profit. Skill above chance. Family above all. So when the Academy decides to turn away an alien child who's too unruly to train, Professor Brinn Halin intercedes. Despite the warnings of his handsome ex, the Headmaster, he fosters the precocious four-year-old girl.

Academy Headmaster Kam Zavala oversees a school full of trainee thieves and hackers, and he's used to their tricks. This latest student, a headstrong but brilliant little girl, has gone beyond a simple hack. Her work threatens to implode the ancient Academy itself. As a disaster of epic proportions unfurls, Kam must take action.

But when the child's breach uncovers a deeper, more insidious hack, the two master thieves must work together. They have a second chance to save the child, the Academy, and restore their newfound love. The question is, will they trust their well-honed instincts, or follow their long-divided hearts...

An MM second chance sci-fi romance set in the Thieves' Guild Academy

In this scene, Kam had gone to Brinn's household to inform him of a meeting Brinn had missed, but he was also checking up on the little girl Brinn is fostering. Each man has feelings for the other, but neither will bend enough to be honest about his feelings. I'll let this excerpt speak for itself.

Brinn glared. "Is this an official inspection?"

"The Academy does require a check-in, and since I wanted to tell you about the board meeting, I said I'd handle it."

"As you can see, we have things under control." Brinn jammed his arms across his chest.

The tension in Brinn's posture had eased when he'd been interacting with Dresden about the mowt, but now it returned, full force.

"She seems really sweet." Kam adjusted his collar. "I'm glad for her. And for you."

"Why would you be glad for me?"

"Because you need to get back to work. I think helping this little girl might do it for you."

"Just what do you mean by that?"

Why was he so touchy about everything? And what had Kam said now?

"Look," Brinn headed for the door, and Kam followed. "Thanks for telling me about the meeting. Don't worry. We'll take care of your mowt. Send a text when you're back and we'll bring him to you." Brinn opened the door.

"Thanks." He stuck out his hand, and Brinn shook it. "See you in a couple days."

Kam hadn't even gotten off the front steps before the door slammed. Okay, maybe not a full slam, but more than a quiet close. The kind of close when unwanted company finally left. Halfway between good-riddance and don't-come-back.

Could Brinn not let down his guard for one minute? No matter how many times or how many ways Kam found to be in the man's circle, Brinn remained indifferent.

Shutting Kam out. Kam was probably reading more into Brinn's actions than he needed to.

But, knowing Brinn, maybe not.

***

Brinn caught the door before it slammed. He might be irritated, but he didn't want Kam picking up on it. Still, it closed hard.

What was he worrying about? Kam was clueless anyway.

Or maybe he wasn't. With that constant stony-faced expression of his, who could tell? Maybe there was more going on beneath the surface.

Why should he even think about the man? It wasn't like they had anything going on. They'd had a few nights together after completing a huge project. That was it. They'd each been too wrapped up in other projects to continue the relationship. Hadn't they?

So why did his heart race every time he and Kam were in the same room? It wasn't like Kam had any interest. The man found every tiny reason to be in Brinn's business. Questioning his motives. Asking him questions. Finding fault with his answers.

Like coming all the way out here to tell him about a meeting. Come on. No, Kam was checking up on him. Of all the nerve.

Okay, maybe Brinn was reading more into it than it was worth.

But, knowing Kam, maybe not.

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Welcome to Book Hooks!
Book Hooks is a weekly cooperative meme hosted by Marketing for Romance Writers as part of the MFRW Authors Blog.
It's a chance each week for you to discover current works in progress or previously published books by possibly new-to-you authors.
Thank you for stopping by. Please say hello or leave a note in the comments.

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~ Copyright ©2025 Kayelle Allen. All rights reserved ~ Kayelle Allen participates in the Amazon Services LLC Associates program, an affiliate advertising program which provides the means for sites to earn fees by advertising and linking to Amazon.com. Amazon and the Amazon logo are trademarks of Amazon.com. If you purchase an item listed on the site from Amazon.com, Kayelle will earn a small commission. Other sites might be affiliate links as well. These will not result in higher prices for you. Thank you for your support!

My characters may be found in multiple books in my story universe. Pietas images Nik Nitsvetov as Pietas cosplay.

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Just dinner — an excerpt from A Divided Heart: Thieves’ Guild Academy #FoundFamily #SciFi #MMRomance

Kayelle Allen 02/08/2023 Thieves' Guild Academy 8 Comments

In a school filled with hackers and thieves, how do you trust your heart?

In this scene from A Divided Heart, Headmaster Kam has invited Professor Brinn to dinner. Brinn accepts, but only after Kam agrees that dinner means nothing more than dinner.

Excerpt A Divided Heart

Dinner went well. The food was amazing and the service excellent. He and Kam had much in common and found it easy to chat about small things. And then the server brought out the dessert. The biggest, darkest, richest slab of chocolate cake on the planet. Maybe the whole Empire.

Fork in hand, Kam looked down at the plate. "I think this is big enough for four people."

Brinn picked up his fork. "I don't mind eating for two if you don't." He dug into the cake. The first bite melted in his mouth, creamy and decadent. He groaned. "On second thought, I could eat for three."

Kam stuck his fork into the middle of the dessert. "Fighting words if ever I heard them."

"This is too good to fight over. We'll have to agree to eating half, and then we'll each lick our own side."

Kam's eyes flashed. "All I heard in that sentence was the word lick."

Laughing, Brinn filled up a forkful and offered it to Kam.

With his gaze locked on Brinn's, Kam stroked the bottom of the fork with his tongue and drew the treat into his mouth.

Heat rushed to Brinn's head...and other extremities.

So much for just dinner.

You'll find these characters mentioned in multiple books in my story universe. Download a printable book list and check them off as you read.

Download a printable book list or a list of trigger warnings for all books. Claim your immortality by signing up for my newsletter

Immortal Reviews Rock & Rule - Join the Review Team

~ Copyright ©2025 Kayelle Allen. All rights reserved ~ Kayelle Allen participates in the Amazon Services LLC Associates program, an affiliate advertising program which provides the means for sites to earn fees by advertising and linking to Amazon.com. Amazon and the Amazon logo are trademarks of Amazon.com. If you purchase an item listed on the site from Amazon.com, Kayelle will earn a small commission. Other sites might be affiliate links as well. These will not result in higher prices for you. Thank you for your support!

My characters may be found in multiple books in my story universe. Pietas images Nik Nitsvetov as Pietas cosplay.

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Door slam: halfway to good-riddance and don’t-come-back #SingleFather #Anthology Amazing single dads who find love #MFRWhooks

Kayelle Allen 06/14/2022 Anthology 10 Comments

My story in Package Deal, a BBB Publishings anthology, is Hacking Planet Fun, a sci-fi MM romance.

Kam, Master of the Thieves' Guild Academy on the planet Kelthia, deals with a school full of fledgling thieves, con artists, and hackers, and doesn't need attitude from students or faculty. When he rejects a half-feline half-human prodigy for unmanageable behavior, his ex, Brinn, fosters the girl himself.

Brinn handles the unruly child well, and Kam grudgingly agrees she shows great potential as a future thief. Missing Brinn, Kam seeks to win him back. But when the child comes under suspicion as having hacked Planet Fun, an empire-renowned anti-gravity theme park, Kam must decide whether to trust his well-honed instincts... or his long-divided heart.

A twist on academy stories, the male-male science fiction romance Hacking Planet Fun focuses on the staff, and introduces a classroom of tiny precocious thieves who will steal your heart.

---

In this scene, Kam had gone to Brinn's household to inform him of a meeting Brinn had missed, but he was also checking up on the little girl Brinn is fostering. Each man has feelings for the other, but neither will bend enough to be honest about his feelings. I'll let this excerpt speak for itself.

Once the others were out of sight, Kam relaxed.

Brinn glared. "Is this an official inspection?"

"The Academy does require a check-in, and since I wanted to tell you about the board meeting, I said I'd handle it."

"As you can see, we have things under control." Brinn jammed his arms across his chest.

The tension in Brinn's posture had eased when he'd been interacting with Dresden about the pet mowt, but now it returned, full force.

"She seems really sweet." Kam adjusted his collar. "I'm glad for her. And for you."

"Why would you be glad for me?"

"Because you need to get back to work. I think helping this little girl might do it for you."

"Just what do you mean by that?"

Why was he so touchy about everything? And what had Kam said now?

"Look," Brinn headed for the door, and Kam followed. "Thanks for telling me about the meeting. Don't worry. We'll take care of your mowt. Send a text when you're back and we'll bring him to you." Brinn opened the door.

"Thanks." He stuck out his hand, and Brinn shook it. "See you in a couple days."

Kam hadn't even gotten off the front steps before the door slammed. Okay, maybe not a full slam, but more than a quiet close. The kind of close when unwanted company finally left. Halfway between good-riddance and don't-come-back.

Could Brinn not let down his guard for one minute? No matter how many times or how many ways Kam found to be in the man's circle, Brinn remained indifferent.

Shutting Kam out. Kam was probably reading more into Brinn's actions than he needed to.

But, knowing Brinn, maybe not.

***

Brinn caught the door before it slammed. He might be irritated, but he didn't want Kam picking up on it. Still, it closed pretty hard.

What was he worrying about? Kam was clueless anyway.

Or maybe he wasn't. With that constant stony-faced expression of his, who could tell? Maybe there was more going on beneath the surface.

Why should he even think about the man? It wasn't like they had anything going on. They'd had a few nights together after completing a huge project. That was it. They'd each been too wrapped up in other projects to continue the relationship. Hadn't they?

So why did his heart race every time he and Kam were in the same room? It wasn't like Kam had any interest. The man found every tiny reason to be in Brinn's business. Questioning his motives. Asking him questions. Finding fault with his answers.

Like coming all the way out here to tell him about a meeting. Come on. No, Kam was checking up on him. Of all the nerve.

Okay, maybe Brinn was reading more into it than it was worth.

But, knowing Kam, maybe not.

Package Deal

Families come in all shapes and sizes. Divorced, widowed, adopted, blended or fostered, gay or straight -- each family has its own unique tale. Join these authors as they tell stories of amazing single dads who find love in unexpected places. Laugh, cry, get a little hot, and maybe even throw your phone. Don't say we didn't warn you.

https://books2read.com/PackageDealSingleDadAnthology

Join these amazing authors as they show off these amazing single dads! Featuring Stories by: Kayelle Allen, Rae Tina, Rhylie Matthews, L.P. Guleva, C. E. Lashua, Jenni Lynn, and Kaci Rose.

This is a multi-author anthology. Stories may come with a trigger warning and end on a cliff-hanger please be aware before reading.

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A first-time father reminds a toddler of a rule #Excerpt A Stolen Heart #SciFi #MMRomance

Kayelle Allen 07/14/2021 Character Insights 6 Comments

In Luc's hoversine on the way to shop, he taught Senthys an important rule to protect him. Now that they've arrived, how well did the first-time-father get it across?

At the entrance, two women who were leaving both greeted the boy. One wiggled her fingers at the tyke, and each gave Luc an appreciative once over.

He'd grown used to that over the years, but this appraisal had a different impact.

More sweet than sensual.

Interesting. Women found a man attractive because he was with a child. How had he missed knowing that?

Inside, the store had a clean smell, like freshly pressed linen and well-oiled wood, with an undertone of vanilla.

Senthys drew in a lungful. "I want some cookies."

"It does smell like cookies in here, doesn't it?"

A selection of clothing displayed various sizes and colors of sportswear, casualwear, and in the back, a sign designated formalwear. Formalwear for kids? Did boys need tuxes?

Before Luc could investigate, Senthys tugged at his hand and pointed to a play area near the front of the store. "I wanna go see that."

"What was the rule?"

The boy stuck a finger into his mouth, rocking himself side to side. "Stay with you."

"That's right."

"If you go see it, I can see it." He tilted his head. "Please?"

Luc could find no fault in that logic, nor resist the appeal. "Since you asked politely. Let's go see."

Be sure to check out the other authors in this hop below.

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~ Copyright ©2025 Kayelle Allen. All rights reserved ~ Kayelle Allen participates in the Amazon Services LLC Associates program, an affiliate advertising program which provides the means for sites to earn fees by advertising and linking to Amazon.com. Amazon and the Amazon logo are trademarks of Amazon.com. If you purchase an item listed on the site from Amazon.com, Kayelle will earn a small commission. Other sites might be affiliate links as well. These will not result in higher prices for you. Thank you for your support!

My characters may be found in multiple books in my story universe. Pietas images Nik Nitsvetov as Pietas cosplay.

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When a mean bully attacks, Luc jumps into action #Excerpt from A Stolen Heart #SciFi

Kayelle Allen 04/29/2020 Character Insights 12 Comments

Set up: A Deshai is a student in the Thieves' Guild. A teacher is a Sen'dai. In the Tarthian Empire, training often begins at age three. Luc has taken Senthys shopping in an exclusive store. A human client inside with her young child takes offense at the presence of a "dirty halfbreed" like Senthys. When the woman demands that management throw Luc and Senthys out, she gets what's coming to her and is herself asked to leave. As this opens, she has picked up her child, who'd been standing next to Senthys, and gone out the door in a huff.

"I'm so sorry, Mr. Saint-Cyr." The manager touched his arm.

"Thank you, but I'm more concerned about my Deshai. Excuse me." He turned toward Senthys and held out his arms.

The boy ran to him.

Luc scooped Senthys up. "Did she hurt you?"

The boy's eyes glittered with tears. One slipped down his cheek. "I took a bath."

"Oh, Senthys." Luc hugged him close. "That woman was mean. You are not dirty. Not one bit." He cupped his hand around the child's head, lacing his fingers through the long curls. "I'm sorry she hurt your feelings."

With his head on Luc's shoulder, Senthys sniffled. "It's okay."

"No, it's not. It's never okay to be mean." He traced small circles on the boy's back. "Can you look at me?"

Senthys lifted his head.

"It's okay to admit when you're hurt or feel bad." He wiped the boy's tears. "You don't have to pretend you're okay."

"I don't?" Senthys played with Luc's tie.

The manager and assistant both hovered nearby, adjusting stacks of clothing yet he felt their surreptitious attention as if it were touches. This had turned into a far more public outing than he'd anticipated. Nothing to do but wade in and clean up the mess.

"It's okay to be sad. Everyone is sad sometimes. You don't have to hide pain." Here he was saying the words, when he couldn't do the same thing with Pietas.

"Wili says only babies care about feelings."

"Does he?" Luc adjusted Senthys in his arms, and tugged down the hem of the boy's shirt. "Wili is wrong. It's okay to cry. It's also okay to tell people when they hurt your feelings. Remember how you told your brother he hurt my feelings?"

"Yes, sir."

"If an adult is mean to you, you can come to me and I will defend you. I will try to keep mean people away from you, but if they say anything to you, it's okay to tell me. It's okay to be scared and it's okay to be mad. What is it that we don't do?"

"We don't hit or claw."

"That's right! Good job, Senthys." He hugged him. "You played nicely. Nothing you did was wrong. None of her yelling was for anything you did. You were a good boy."

"I was?" The boy looked so pleased with himself that Luc couldn't help but laugh.

"Yes, you were." He gave him a small squeeze. "Would you like to help me shop now? And then we'll get ice cream."

Senthys wiggled, trying to get down, so Luc put him back on the floor. The boy took his hand and looked up at the manager. "Ma'am, I would like some new clothes, please."

Luc could have burst, he was so proud.

The woman bent toward him. "I'd be happy to help you."

"Thank you." Senthys turned his blue-eyed gaze up at her, offering a blazing smile. "You're pretty," he declared, with a boy's innocent charm.

She blushed. "Why, thank you."

"You make my Sen'dai happy. He likes you." He tugged Luc's hand. "Right?"

"Senthys!"

"What?" He blinked up at Luc, the image of a perfect angel.

"Kids." Standing, the woman looked up at Luc through her lashes. "What can you do?" With a flirtatious smile, she beckoned to them.

Who knew having a child offered such a distinct advantage with women? With a new appreciation for his young Deshai, Luc followed.

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~ Copyright ©2025 Kayelle Allen. All rights reserved ~ Kayelle Allen participates in the Amazon Services LLC Associates program, an affiliate advertising program which provides the means for sites to earn fees by advertising and linking to Amazon.com. Amazon and the Amazon logo are trademarks of Amazon.com. If you purchase an item listed on the site from Amazon.com, Kayelle will earn a small commission. Other sites might be affiliate links as well. These will not result in higher prices for you. Thank you for your support!

My characters may be found in multiple books in my story universe. Pietas images Nik Nitsvetov as Pietas cosplay.

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Hacking the storeroom #SciFi #SpaceOpera Bro by Kayelle Allen #Excerpt

Kayelle Allen 08/07/2019 Thieves' Guild Academy 3 Comments

Folks in this town never referred to Luc Saint-Cyr by name. You heard the capital letters when they called him the Man, or they referred to him as the Harbinger. Senth's father was the daddy crime lord all the baby crime lords wanted to be.

"Ooh, big scary Man." He thumbed off the device. "Please let this be a job and not him finding out I hacked Planet Fun."

Senth crossed the street and entered the Miraj City Bakery Café. No crowd this early, though a group of professors shared drinks at one of the tables in the back. There were no undergraduate classes this week. Cloak distribution had overturned the beehive.

A clean smell of freshly brewed coffee pulled him deeper into the room.

The android on duty rolled up to him. "Welcome, Blue Shadow. How may I serve you today?"

"Like to use your storeroom a minute." He flashed his father's hand sign. "Private business."

"Of course, sir." The droid offered a keycard.

"Oh, please. I've broken into that room so many times, I prolly owe you guys rent."

On the droid's nametag, a bar of yellow lights indicated confusion. "Pardon, sir?"

"It was a joke. Owing rent for--" Senth held up both hands. "Never mind. No key needed."

He followed the maze of corridors to the back. At the door, he pulled out his lockpick and adjusted the settings. When he pointed it at the lock, the device signaled a lockout error and the tiny screen flashed nonsense letters at him.

What in the worlds did PROBATA mean?

He twisted the tip of the pick and floated the stats as a holovid. Probata Corporation. Wasn't that the system his prof in Premium Fingersmithing ranted about? Something about useless upgrades and pointless codes. What did she say about a bypass trick?

"Think, Senth. You sat there listening to the woman fume for two solid wasted hours."

Oh, no he hadn't.

No, that was the day Senth had flaked out of classes and spent a full day at Planet Fun with his mates. He'd recorded it instead. But had he transcribed it to his code book?

Of course not. And didn't that make this encounter so much more fun? He pinched the bridge of his nose, but his father always did that so Senth stopped it at once.

Why was a lock on a coffee shop's storeroom door harder than a security system at the planet's busiest amusement park? What were they storing in there? The Empress's private coffee stash?

Curiosity over the message from his far-from-patient father burned through his mental pockets. Wait. His father. Surely, he'd have the new codes.

Yes, and then he'd want to know why Senth didn't and no way was he explaining to dear old Dad how he hacked into Planet Fun for "a planetful of fun" instead of going to class.

That fortune Dad paid for Senth to attend classes at the guild academy? Yeah, wasted a full day of it to impress a few girls, which was why he was calling needing a bail out.

And no way was he going back to the droid, stand right in front of a table full of professors, and do the Hey can I borrow your key thing.

Riiight.

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~ Copyright ©2025 Kayelle Allen. All rights reserved ~ Kayelle Allen participates in the Amazon Services LLC Associates program, an affiliate advertising program which provides the means for sites to earn fees by advertising and linking to Amazon.com. Amazon and the Amazon logo are trademarks of Amazon.com. If you purchase an item listed on the site from Amazon.com, Kayelle will earn a small commission. Other sites might be affiliate links as well. These will not result in higher prices for you. Thank you for your support!

My characters may be found in multiple books in my story universe. Pietas images Nik Nitsvetov as Pietas cosplay.

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Tag: Thieves’ Guild Academy

Oops! Hardened bad*ss accidentally adopts an alien child #FoundFamily #MMRomance

A Book Fair for MM Romance Lovers