About Fringe Benefits
Written by James Buchanan, KIL Kenny, Zoe Nichols, and CB Potts
237 pages / 75000 words
ISBN: 978-1-60370-602-5, 1-60370-602-X
Available file types - html, lit, pdf, prc, paperback
Zoe Nichols turns in Wunderkind, a sweet, contemporary semi-historical, set during the early days of internet marketing, while CB Potts explores the classic hurt/comfort dynamic in When the Cat's Away. See what these four talented authors of erotica have to offer, and sign up for your Fringe Benefits today!
Review
Angela Benedetti, author of In the Driver's Seat, writes:
"Accessibility Beta" by KIL Kenny is a long, tense ride. There were
times when I was uncomfortable reading it, but POV character JJ is
nakedly honest in his own confusion and discomfort and drew me along.
His internal contradictions bother him as much as they did me and that
made it all right. It's obvious from the beginning that the key to the
story is in JJ's missing, drunken memories, and the knowledge that
there's something there that'll pull everything into focus made it safe
to continue through a situation which felt very iffy on the surface.
Torsten (called "Tory") is a magnetic personality; he draws people to
him and projects an aura of perfection which serves him well as a
salesman. His obvious success puts him that much farther into the realm
of fantasy -- the sort of person one would expect to admire but never
have a chance with, especially from the perspective of junior programmer
JJ. But Kenny skillfully balances the two characters, from early in the
story when JJ touches Tory's always-perfect hair for the first time and
laughs when he finds it's crunchy with gel and hairspray, to later on
when Tory responds heroically to an accident victim, then collapses
himself. These scenes -- lighter early on and then heavier later when
the stakes are higher -- let JJ as well as the reader see that Tory is
only human, and make him very touchable. They also give JJ, who's
off-balance and on the defensive through most of the story, the
perspective and confidence he needs to carry through to the end. Good
stuff; I'll be reading this one again.
"Just Business" by James Buchanan takes Treat, an almost-model who never
quite made it and is now working as a paralegal, back to the art world.
He's closeted because of his job, and has a well-meaning friend trying
to set him up with women, but he's so tense about what he really wants
that he can't even bring himself to make a move on that sexy guy down in
Repro.
While ducking out of a swingers' event, he runs into a hot artist taking
a breather away from his fans. In a dark office, it's all shadows and
silhouettes and anonymous sex.
What happens later on isn't any surprise to the reader, but that's fine.
James gave me a chance to enjoy knowing more about the situation than
Treat does, which let me kick back and have a fun read, looking forward
to his moment of realization.
DJ in Zoe Nichols's "Wunderkind" is a young man loaded down with
responsibilities. His younger brother is a five-year-old in a man's body
and his mother is bedridden with a brain tumor. A thirty-day contract
job to build a web site for a textbook publisher is a windfall he needs
badly, and his attraction to the company president, Vincent Graves,
gives him an outlet he needs very badly. But as time goes on, he
realizes he doesn't want their office-sex arrangement to end when his
contract does. Zoe has a wonderful way with characters, and everyone in
the story with more than a line or two was vivid in my mind -- not only
DJ and Vincent, but baby brother Jay, Mama, and even Mrs. Prudence,
Jay's nanny. Workaholic Vincent needs DJ too, although he's more
stubborn about admitting it; I was engaged enough that I wanted to smack
him a good one at the end of Chapter Seven.
The pacing is perfect and I liked very much that it didn't all wrap up
with a bow on top at the end. Some things even great sex can't cure, and
the death of a beloved parent is one of them. DJ and Jay are both
changed by the loss of their mother, but life goes on and I think their
life with Vincent is going to be at least a little happier than it would
have been for them alone. An excellent read.
"When the Cat's Away" by CB Potts is something different and a great
wrap to the anthology. Beautiful Brad is set up by one of the VPs at his
company and then given an ultimatum -- be the man's whore or lose his
job. With a load of student loans hanging over him, Brad is forced to
agree. Morgan the janitor is watching and listening, though, and knows
exactly what's going on. It's not right, and he decides to help.
This story is neither romantic nor "fun," but it's gripping, and at the
climax I was torn between shock and a strong desire to cheer. This is
the shortest of the four stories in the book, but it's exactly as long
as it needs to be, like a knife in the gut. Good stuff and a perfect end
note.
Sample
From Accessibility Beta
By KIL Kenny
What JJ remembered clearly was the raindrop patter of his semen falling on the porcelain. That and the sure, stroking grip of warm hands, softened by… something. Oil? Where would oil have come from in the white-tile anonymity of the men's room?
This was not a train of thought to encourage while sitting in a shared office. It was a temporary space, too -- a place to park his laptop for the duration of the conference. He tried to think about the e-mail he needed to answer, about the meeting that would start in twenty minutes, about how much he hated these lousy "general use" office chairs with no arms and no back support.
"JJ!"
"Yeah?" Thank God for distractions.
Donna swept through the doorway and dropped a stack of brochures in her half of the space. "Morning. Main conference room at eight."
"I know." Donna waved and was out the door again. So much for distractions.
Conference weeks were always a merry-go-round, according to Donna. As a software company catering to non-profit clients, they were fortunate to have so many major customer groups in one area. Government agencies, NGOs, educational institutions, all were near to hand in Baltimore. By putting their shareholder meeting up front on Monday, and piggybacking on a medical conference being held at Johns Hopkins at the end of the week, even their modest company could hold a crowd -- admittedly, a constantly-changing crowd -- for five days.
What JJ couldn't understand was what "value" was "added" by hauling him out of Coding Central in Boston for an entire week of expense-account living. The software he was working on hadn't so much as made this year's agenda. He had a feeling that Donna had something to do with the trip, though. In her eyes, any technical person who didn't have at least a smattering of client service and sales exposure was a liability.
And Donna found JJ's specialty a useful selling point. Government clients in particular were concerned with accessibility and accommodation for special needs, and JJ made those things happen in the company's software. No doubt Inez, who oversaw the programmers in the Boston office, had gotten an earful from Donna for weeks before sending JJ on conference detail.
But aside from Donna, would any of the management and marketing types here in Baltimore notice if he just picked up his conference badge and went home? No, wait -- there was the "Application Development Roundtable" on Thursday at four. His name was on the panel list. And wasn't that going to be a snore? JJ sent up a prayer that it would be good weather for everyone to take their clients golfing on Thursday.
Muttering, he logged out of his unread e-mail and went in search of the morning briefing. Most of the conference sessions were scheduled at the Brigantine Hotel across the street, but every morning he was expected to show his face in the office. He hadn't yet navigated to the main conference room on his own, and he was going to leave himself plenty of time to find it. Never again would he wander heedlessly down the wrong hallway and find himself at the mercy of strange hands.
A mixed chorus of "JJ! My man! Yo, JJ!" rolled out to greet him as he pulled the door open. It was a large room, too large for an average meeting. Today, however, it was full. It had been full for the kickoff party last night. And everyone from the party seemed to be there, grinning.
"How ya feelin', buddy?" said a man he didn't recognize. JJ smiled uneasily and edged toward where Donna was already sitting. It was Donna's fault everyone was grinning, of course, but she was safe. She was Boston. She'd seen JJ drunk before. He would forgive her, someday, for dragging him here and then abandoning him to his fate last night.
"Fine, thanks," he responded. "I don't get hangovers." A fresh swell of incredulity and chaff burbled up at this, but most of the room had returned to their conversations before he'd fumbled a chair away from the table. Donna lifted an eyebrow at him. "Really?"
"Yeah. As long as I drink some water before I go to sleep, I'm usually fine."
"And the muscles you must have pulled with those dance moves?"
He flushed. "Shut up."