Smoky Mist by C.J. Baty 💕 Guest Post, Book Tour & Gift Card Giveaway 💕 (M/M Ghost Romance)

This blog post contains affiliate links. Click Here for details.

Jesse Lawson was never afraid of the strange and unusual dreams he had. But lately, they were becoming darker leaving him with a need to discover why he was having them. The Great Smoky Mountains once were the site of many logging camps. It only made sense to travel to the place where his great grandfather had lived and died, since it seemed his dreams were about Jackson Douglas himself.
Carter Thompson never knew his great uncle George Thompson, but he inherited his land, home, and money. George had come here to find work in the lumber camps. Secluding himself from the outside world, no one really knew what happened to make him become a recluse. Carter only knew he loved his home and the bar he owned. Meeting Jesse Lawson was about to turn his world upside down.
There was a secret about a train wreck that killed Jackson Douglas. Now it seemed that something was trying to destroy Carter and Jesse’s growing attraction to each other. Whoever it is will stop at nothing to keep them apart, even if they have to repeat the past to do it.

The Legend of the Ghost Train

Today, people say that on a quiet night in the mountains of Virginia, Tennessee, and Kentucky, you can hear the far off shriek of a locomotive whistle and the rumble of the train’s cars as they clamor across the tracks. The legend claims the train moves through the valleys and mountains searching for lost souls that need a lift to the other side.
In the early Twentieth Century, railroads were not only a way to transport people, they also carried all types of goods across the country. Lumber from the forests of Tennessee, coal from the mines of Kentucky, and tobacco from the fields of Virginia were just a few of the industries that depended heavily on the railroad system. Even the Vanderbilt’s built a train system to carry the products needed to construct the great Biltmore Estate.
The Legend of the Ghost Train series will carry you off to a simpler time before WWII and the Great Depression. It’s about the love between two men that wasn’t spoken of and ghosts of past loves that still linger in the mountains. Some haunt the living looking for a loved one. Some want revenge for wrong doings. And, others are evil and will stop at nothing to repeat the past and kill again.

“Amazing.” Jesse said out loud, causing a rabbit to skitter out of a nearby bush and hop away. He chuckled as the white fluffy tail ran into a hedge by his feet.

“Yes, you are.”

Jesse whipped around at the sound of a voice in the wind.

“Who’s there?” He asked, searching for another person, yet he saw no one.

He knew he’d heard a voice, and yet, it was clear he was totally alone where he stood. A warm breeze ruffled the leaves in the trees overhead. It surrounded Jesse, wrapping him in a comforting embrace. It felt like a hug.

“I missed you,” the same voice whispered in Jesse’s ear.

It didn’t frighten him, that was the surprising part of the situation. He wasn’t afraid. Curious… yes. But definitely not afraid. The name was on his lips and in the air before he could stop it.

“George?”

Icy tendrils snaked around his body causing instant pain. The feeling was so cold, it burned his skin. The ground reached up for him, he relaxed against it. He felt the softness of the new grass beneath his head, and then nothing.

His head hurt when he woke, but not so much that he knew something was very wrong. Jesse knew he was lying on a small bed in a setoff house. They all looked the same. He could smell wood burning, strong coffee, and bacon. A man with his back to him was bending over a black pot belly stove stirring something in a pan.

Jesse opened and closed his mouth trying to form words, but nothing came out. In visions before, Jesse saw through Jackson’s eyes, but he was always in his own body. This wasn’t his body. Something was very wrong.

He could feel the fear rushing through Jackson. He shook with emotion. The taste of bile tinged his words when Jackson finally spoke.

“You’re a monster,” Jackson said throwing the blanket off his naked body.

Jesse didn’t want to be here. This experience was nothing like his prior dreams. It was too real, too painful. When Jackson reached for his pants that lay on the floor by the bed, Jesse noticed the raw rope burns around Jackson’s wrists. Dried blood flakes fell away as Jackson dressed.

Jesse felt everything Jackson felt. All the pain and confusion. This was nothing like what he had experienced with George. Where was George?

Why was this happening to Jesse? Why did he feel the emotions and pain?

The door crashed open with a bang. George looked like a wild beast as he rushed inside the small building.

“Get out!” He screamed at Jesse. “Get out now.”

Jesse grabbed the rest of his clothes and ran through the open door behind George. He stopped a few yards from the setoff house and listened as he dressed.

The two men inside yelled at one another. They were fighting. Jesse could hear the sound of fists hitting flesh. Suddenly, flames shot up in the window. The setoff house was on fire.

“George!” Jackson screamed.

“Remember.” A voice Jesse didn’t recognize screeched at him.

CJ Baty dreamed of writing her own stories from a very young age. Time and life got in the way, but with the encouragement of her two grownup children, she began to follow that dream. She loves a mystery and when you mix in romance and hot men, you can bet there’s going to be a happily ever after. She brings her love of nature and the mountains of the Southern states into her stories too. Too many years spent in an office crunching numbers, left her with the desire to explore new places and experiences. Whenever, possible you can find her in Tennessee enjoying the fresh air and beautiful scenery. Her muse lives there so she visits often. She believes deeply that love is love and love is what binds us all.