Introducing Blind LGBT Pride International’s First Serialized Romance:
Crown & Collide
A Twice-Weekly Original Story Event
What starts as a forced professional partnership between two men from opposite worlds becomes a story of unexpected connection, emotional unraveling, and the kind of love that doesn’t just hold you—it heals you. Starting this week, Blind LGBT Pride International proudly presents Crown & Collide, an exclusive original romance series dropping new installments every Tuesday and Friday. Expect slow-burn chemistry, corporate drama, and emotionally raw revelations—alongside special bonus content and interactive segments that will invite you into the world of Crown & Collide like never before.
Meet Luke McAllister. Precise. Private. And trying desperately to stay invisible. Luke is a financial supervisor brought into Vaughn & Sons International to help stabilize operations. What no one knows is that Luke isn’t just good at keeping the numbers balanced—he’s also spent most of his adult life keeping his grief, his past, and his heart tightly locked away. Quiet doesn’t mean weak, though. And when things start to spiral? Luke is the man with the spine of steel and the soul full of storm clouds. Then there’s Noah Vaughn Jr. Charming. Entitled. Beautiful. And crumbling beneath the surface. Noah has been raised as the heir to an empire, coasting on charisma, wealth, and the carefully cultivated illusion of control. But when his parents leave him in charge of the company—alongside Luke—he’s forced to confront a reality he’s been avoiding: he might not be enough. Not for the company. Not for himself. And certainly not for the one man who sees right through him.
They were never supposed to be more than coworkers. They were never supposed to see each other’s scars. But secrets don’t stay buried forever. And neither does longing.
Coming in the first few weeks of Crown & Collide: • A financial discrepancy that could ruin the company—and a cover-up that links Luke and Noah in ways neither of them saw coming. • A kiss sparked by fury, fear, and unbearable want. • A confession in a penthouse apartment that changes everything. • Victor Vaughn’s return—and his first calculated move to tear them apart. • Jaclyn Vaughn’s awakening. A mother reclaiming power, secrets, and maybe the company itself. • Alyssa McAllister’s fierce loyalty as she becomes her brother’s protector—and Noah’s unlikely conscience. • And two men who will discover that sometimes the only way to truly heal is to stop pretending you’re not broken.
And yes—there’s Cinnamon. Technically, she’s Alyssa’s dog. But Cinnamon—a scruffy, opinionated little mutt with golden curls and a well-documented fondness for blueberry muffins—has decided that Luke is her person now. She will tolerate Alyssa. She will be indifferent to Noah. But Luke? That’s her human. We’ll meet her properly soon. She has a lot to say.
Get ready to fall for Crown & Collide. Because sometimes love doesn’t whisper. Sometimes it kicks down the door, throws your spreadsheets in the air, and dares you to feel everything you swore you never would again.
And now…Blind pride, international proudly presents: crown collide.
By Anthony Corona.
The Spark and the Match
Luke had been at Vaughn & Sons International for all of six weeks when he realized three crucial things: 1. The coffee in the breakroom tasted like regret and cardboard. 2. Everyone whispered Noah Vaughn’s name like it was either sacred… or cursed. 3. And Noah Vaughn himself? The golden heir with the midnight eyes, perfect stubble, and muscles that looked like they were sculpted by a Greek deity who got horny halfway through? He was going to be the death of him. It wasn’t just that Noah was beautiful—which he was, unfairly so. It was that he knew it. He walked like the building belonged to him (technically, it would one day), and smirked like everyone else was just an amusing footnote in his sparkling, bottle-service life.
Luke had seen him come in late three days in a row, sunglasses still on, still smelling faintly of bourbon and bad decisions, and every intern still practically genuflected when he passed.
Luke, of course, had spent ten years clawing his way through every rung of corporate finance like a polite velociraptor, so to be handed a cushy but “minor supervisory” title and told to keep an eye on the prince? Hilarious. He hadn’t asked for this. Not the job. Not the office politics. And certainly not the assignment that had dropped into his lap three weeks earlier—one that began in Victor Vaughn’s fortress of a corner office.
Three Weeks Ago – Victor Vaughn’s Office Luke sat stiffly in the high-backed leather chair across from Victor Vaughn’s monolithic desk, feeling both too formal and too exposed. Beside him—too close beside him—sat Noah Vaughn Jr., legs casually crossed, one arm flung along the back of the guest sofa like this was brunch and not a strategic power move disguised as a family update. Victor’s voice droned with authority and finality. “Jaclyn and I are taking the cruise. Three months. The Mediterranean, then a tour of the Adriatic coast. I’ve needed this break for years, and the company’s in good enough shape to run itself. Mostly.”
He turned his eyes, sharp and glinting, to Noah. “You, son, are technically in charge. But Luke here,” he gestured with a nod, “will act as oversight. Quietly. Consider him your second. Or your conscience.” Noah stiffened beside him. Barely. But Luke caught it. Caught the flash of anger and insult ripple across the golden boy’s perfect face.
Luke didn’t want this either. He wasn’t here to babysit the CEO’s playboy heir. But telling Victor Vaughn no wasn’t an option you got more than once.
Victor leaned forward. “I expect you to take this seriously. Both of you.” Luke had tried to keep his face neutral, his spine straight.
Noah hadn’t spoken a word until they were halfway back down the hallway. When he did, it was a sneer through clenched teeth. “Hope you like playing hall monitor,” he muttered.
Luke had just sighed. “Hope you like being watched.”
What Luke hadn’t said—not even to himself—was how unnerving it had been to sit next to Noah that long. To see him up close. To smell the faint trace of clean cologne under that arrogant exterior. He was breathtaking. Raven hair styled like it had never known a bad day. Piercing blue eyes that burned with something dangerous. His body was sculpted, expensive, wrapped in Italian tailoring that hugged every angle like a lover. But it was the mask that fascinated Luke the most. The performative ease. The perfectly timed smirk. Luke had worn enough masks in his own life to recognize when someone else was suffocating under theirs.
From Noah’s side, the view hadn’t been much better. Luke had that annoying kind of understated good looks that didn’t try. Sandy brown hair that curled just slightly when he got annoyed. Green eyes too observant for comfort. A runner’s build—lean, strong, deliberate. Nothing showy. But the kind of man who stood up straight even when no one was looking. Noah hated how much he noticed him.
“You know you don’t have to micromanage everything, right?” Noah’s voice was silk laced with annoyance.
He was leaning against the doorframe of Luke’s office, arms crossed over his designer shirt, smirk in full effect.
Luke didn’t look up from his spreadsheet. “I don’t micromanage. I prevent implosions.”
“Oh,” Noah said, straightening, “is that what you call being an uptight prick now?”
Luke’s head shot up. “Wow. Did you rehearse that in the mirror this morning or did it come to you on your sixth vodka soda?”
Noah laughed, deep and throaty, and stepped inside. “You really don’t like me, do you?”
Luke turned back to his screen, jaw tightening. “You make it very easy.” But he did like him. That was the problem. He liked the sharp lines of his face, the arrogance that practically steamed off him, the flash of something real he saw on the rare occasions Noah let his mask slip. And now Luke had found something that could destroy it all.
It had started as routine. A few numbers off. A vendor invoice too vague. But Luke’s gut never lied to him. And when he followed the trail—quietly, carefully—he discovered Noah had made a deal. A bad one. Lazy, ill-advised, and potentially criminal. Funds moved where they shouldn’t be. A risk that could have bankrupted a subsidiary and left the whole company exposed. Luke spent six nights undoing it. Quiet transfers. Reallocations. Phone calls under aliases. Legal loopholes slipped through like whispers in the dark. No one would ever know. But Noah did. Because Noah wasn’t stupid. And because Noah had watched Luke watching him.
The confrontation happened in Noah’s father’s office. The very office he wasn’t allowed to use but had claimed anyway. “Want to explain why there’s a deleted trail in last quarter’s audits?” Noah said without preamble, spinning Luke’s laptop around with a self-satisfied grin. “Or should I?”
Luke exhaled slowly, his hand twitching. “You don’t want to do this with me.”
“Oh, but I do.” Noah stalked closer. “You think you’re some white knight, huh? Coming in, fixing messes behind everyone’s back like you’re better than the rest of us?” “No,” Luke snapped,
standing. “I don’t think I’m better. I think I give a damn. Something you’ve never done for longer than it takes to pop a bottle of Dom.”
That hit. Noah’s face faltered—just for a second—and then darkened. “You think you see me, but you don’t know shit.”
Luke stepped in. Closer. Too close. “I see exactly what you are. You’re terrified. Of not being enough. Of your father being right about you. Of screwing up because deep down, you know you’re coasting on charm and nepotism.” “You’re an asshole.” “You’re a coward.”
Their breathing synced in rapid fire. Heat radiated off them like they were standing in a furnace. And then, the silence stretched—just long enough for thoughts to rush in.
Noah’s inner monologue: God, he’s close. Too close. And I should hate him for it—but I don’t. I want to—hell, I want to shove him away, but more than that I want to grab him and let this mask fall for just one second. But if I tell him what I’ve been hiding… if I show him the truth, then he’ll have all the power. He could ruin me. He has every reason to turn this mistake into a weapon and take my crown. So why hasn’t he? Why is he saving me? What the hell does he want from me?
Luke’s inner monologue: He’s hiding so much. I see it in the way his voice cracks when no one’s watching, in the way his shoulders drop for just a second before the bravado returns. He’s wearing that $3,000 suit like it’s armor. But I know better. Because about a week and a half ago, I followed him. I needed to see if he was playing a longer game. What I saw… changed everything. I saw him in a place no one else would think to look, being someone no one would ever expect. Unguarded. Kind. Completely… real. And now I can’t unsee it. I don’t want to.
“You should’ve let me fail,” Noah said, his voice quieter. Almost… raw.
“I couldn’t,” Luke said, teeth clenched.
“Why not?”
Because I wanted to protect you, Luke thought.
Because no one’s ever protected me, Noah thought.
And that was when it broke. The kiss came fast, brutal. Teeth. Tongue. A desperate crash of want and fury. Fingers digging into shirt collars. Groans swallowed in mouths that shouldn’t fit this well. Years of sarcasm and disdain turned molten in seconds. And under it all—electricity. A jolt. A need. The kind that ran bone-deep. The kind that whispered you are safe here. Luke felt it in the pressure of Noah’s mouth. The way his body pressed too close but didn’t overwhelm. There was a question hidden in the kiss. And it wrecked him.
Noah felt it in the shake of Luke’s hands. In the hesitation before surrender. And something inside him, something old and bitter and lonely, began to unravel.
When they finally pulled apart, gasping, Luke’s forehead was pressed against Noah’s.
“Because I believe in you,” Luke whispered. “Because I see what you could be if you stopped pretending life’s just one long frat party.”
Noah stared, stunned. His hands still clutched Luke’s waist like he might vanish.
“I covered your ass once,” Luke said. “I’ll never do it again. But I’ll never betray you either. It’s done. Buried. You’re safe.”
Silence. Noah’s eyes searched his, wild and confused.
“Then what now?” he asked, voice breaking like a boy’s.
Luke smiled. Sad. Soft. “Now you decide if you’re going to be the prince everyone rolls their eyes at… or the king your father hoped you’d become.” And he walked out. Leaving Noah standing there, lips swollen, heart hammering, and wondering if he’d just been given the greatest gift of his life… or the one chance he was destined to waste