A Different Dance by Nash Summers
Summary:
Casey has been in love with Jackson for four years. After years of living in the shadows and waiting for Jackson to finally take notice of him, Casey decides that he’ll profess his love to Jackson one night at the bar. What Casey doesn’t expect is the whirlwind of events that follow.
Jackson is finally paying attention to Casey, but a handsome stranger is threatening to sweep Casey off his feet and making him wonder whether Jackson’s attention is what he really wants. Who will step up to become Casey’s Prince Charming?
***Previously included in the Torqued Tales anthology.
My Review:
So this story…let me tell you a short story first.
I am the girl who has lived on the lonely side of unrequited love most of my life. I was forever in love/lust with someone who never wanted me back. I had this dream, this fairy tale if you will, of the day the boy I fancied would see me and realize I was exactly what their life was missing. Or…that I would meet a random boy who would take a single look at me and see the ME that I wanted all those crushes to see. He would sweep me off my feet and we would ride into the sunset together on a riding style lawn mower with me wearing his straw cowboy hat. Why am I telling you this? Well, Casey is me in a way.
“What if I confess my undying love to him and he doesn’t feel the same way? I just don’t think my poor heart can take it.”
“Impossible, that’s not how fairy tale endings work. You’re going to be the belle of the ball.”
Casey, I get you my boy. I know where you are with Jackson because I could put at least a half dozen names and faces in his place. I get that you have wanted this boy FOREVER and when you get the smallest reaction from him you turn into someone you aren’t, just to hold on. Oh boy do I get it.
But then there is Ethan and just the thought of him quoting Disney in that flannel and those Docs with that megawatt smile has me in a puddle of goo. How can I ever forget Ethan? How can you, Casey? I don’t think I am making sense with this review at all.
A Different Dance…that title hit me hard in the heart when I finished this. I love that moment when you GET the title, when it all makes sense and the story you just read is complete. Le Sigh. This was a perfect bedtime story for me last night; a perfect fairy tale wrapped up in a fairy tale. I loved Casey, Melissa, Kansas and Ethan…I loved the whole freaking fairy tale of this. I laughed, I swooned and I just fell in love with it.
What a great introduction to a new to me author. Sure, there were a few things with the format of the ebook I got but that I blame on the publisher. Even the wonky format of the book couldn’t wipe the smile off my face that is still plastered on 12hrs after reading it.
This will definitely be one of those stories I go to when I need a feel good read.
***Blog Tour*** ~ Review, Excerpt & Giveaway~ Tough Love (Special Delivery #3) By Heidi Cullinan
Summary:
Special Delivery, Book 3
Crescencio “Chenco” Ortiz pulled himself up by his garter straps after his father’s will yanked the financial rug from under his spank-me pumps. He doesn’t need anyone, yet when Steve Vance steps into his life, the prospect of having a sexy leather daddy on tap begins to take on a certain appeal.
There’s a hitch when he learns Steve is friends with Mitch Tedsoe—the half-brother Chenco never knew except through his father’s twisted lies. Despite his reservations, soon Chenco is living his dreams, including a performing gig in Vegas. Now if only he could get Steve to see him as more than just a boy in need of saving.
Steve’s attraction to Chenco is overshadowed by too many demons, ones he knows his would-be lover is too young to slay. Yet as he gets to know the bright, determined young man whose drag act redefines fierce, Steve’s inner sadist trembles with need. He begins to realize Chenco’s relentless tough love might be the only thing that will finally set him free.
Warning: This story contains glamorous drag queens, exhibitionist secondary characters, and no-holds-barred BDSM play, including watersports. Readers advised they may well leave this novel feeling uncharacteristically fierce.
My Review:
A common thought I have when I read a book this good is “How am I going to review this?” How am I? How can I say what reading Tough Love did to me without spilling secrets about myself that you don’t want to know? I can’t and this may be the most babbled review of a Heidi Cullinan book I have wrote yet.
Tough Love, the third book in the Special Delivery series; the deepest and the most intense one for me. This was different. With Sam and Mitch we got this kinky fairy tale in a blue semi. With Randy and Ethan we got the fast paced living of Vegas with the ultimate love story and with Chenco/Caramela and Steve…we get a raw, sensual and breathtaking connection that transcends the norm. Why do I say this? This was more than a boy meets boy and falls in love type of story. I know we get the relationship deal, we get baggage, trust issues, the works in our romances but this…this took the dynamic of love, trust, loyalty and flat out submission (of both men) to a whole new level that as I write this I get goose bumps thinking about it.
Every surrender was another chance to be free.
I adored the holy hell out of Chenco from word one. When he meets Steve in that alley, I wanted to lift him up and set him in that leather daddy’s arms but that wasn’t my decision to make. Thank goodness it didn’t take long for my want to become a reality. My heart ached for this boy with his insecurities and his fears. He becomes fierce when he lets Caramela out and when he lets her bleed into Chenco, they are unstoppable and can take on anything, anyone and any situation.
Steve…where do I start with you, you gorgeous and sadistic man. I have a soft spot for Doms/Masters who are sadists. There is something about them that fascinates me and while I do not share their love for extreme pain there is a beauty in the power they yield that comes with responsibly for their sub. It’s different with a sadist than it is with a ‘normal’ Dom. Not only do they need that perfect match with a masochist but the patience, the teaching and the aftercare they give makes me swoon and turns me into goo. Steve is stunning; simply stunning and he stole my heart with his wants and his raw vulnerability. Ugh. The man tore me to shreds; I was consumed when he was on the page regardless of the scene, if he was in A scene or just watching his boy on stage and protecting him or having whole day or his love of plugs and ….yeah. I kinda love Steve. Funny I got him as a result of that quiz…
Let me just say that Chenco and Steve have this fire. It smolders, it burns, it flickers and threatens to be snuffed out by unruly animals but it cannot be denied. The push and pull between them, the power play with BDSM, it was insane and I loved every minute of it.
But, what I love about this series the most, aside from the romance and of course sex, is the way it defines family. Chenco is related to Mitch by blood but these men, gangster included, become this dynamic family that would lie down and die for each other. The devotion and selflessness they exhibit throughout each book is amazing. It was great to catch up with Mitch/Sam and Ethan/Randy…Randy you handsome devil and ultimate scene stealer. I swear, even when it’s not your book (points at you ala Lewis Black) you are brighter than the boy called Sunshine and your larger than the sun personality takes over. Not that doing so is a bad thing; where would the boys of the series be without Randy there to have their backs and stack their decks? Have I mentioned before I love Randy? I loved that Sam was more mature and yet still Sam. That Mitch was learning to bend to his ball and chain and accept his past as he let go as well. Ethan with his suits, using the endearment of sweetheart oh I will just stop there before I get overheated thinking about Ethan. Oh boy. These boys….
This was again an absolute joy to read and a great addition to the series. Even the heavy kink, which I happen to love, was done gorgeously and the kink I think may be squicky for most, I wanted more of. Yeah, I admit it. But that scene, THAT scene with Checno and Steve and the decorating *clears throat* damn, it was gorgeous, sexy, intense and so well done. Oh, I cried while I read and experienced it with them. Ack! I can’t forget the drag…I got such a kick out of Caramela and could see her on stage while the crowd chanted Papi! Papi! Papi! and she danced FOR her Papi.
Tough Love…this book just did a number on me…hell this series has done a number on me. I am not sure how Heidi makes scenes in the cab of a blue semi truck so fuckhot but she does. Had I read this series as a teen that grew up in a town full of semi trucks, I think High School could have been a whole different experience if boys such as these existed and…I am just in love and lust with this series. Oh and that end? Best. Ever.
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“So, you told me we weren’t going to be done playing after the trailer, but nothing’s ever happened.”
The comment came from so far out of nowhere Steve had to take a second to form a response. “You’ve never asked for anything else to happen.”
“Steve, I’d like something else to happen. Please.”
Steve’s head filled with crazy, carnal images of pressing Chenco down into the grass, tugging on his hair and taking his mouth in a deep kiss, swallowing gasps and groans. This wasn’t the serene, no-sex control and comfort Steve had given before.
It was, however, what Steve wanted now.
He tried to deflect. “Are you talking about the punishment over what happened with Randy?”
“Not right now, no. I would like that sometime, though, if you’re still willing. I see him wincing and touching his shoulder when he works in the kitchen, and it makes me feel bad.”
Yes, and Steve had left it way too long. Really, it was almost too late. The thought that he’d maybe missed the window to comfort Chenco made him ache with loss.
Chenco ran a hand down Steve’s arm. “I’m not talking about Randy right now. I’m talking about playing. With you.”
Mayday. “Playing how?”
Chenco’s smile sent shivers down Steve’s spine. “However you like, Papi.”
Steve sat up straighter in his chair and caught sight of Randy milling about in the kitchen. There’s your out. “Everyone’s still up. They might come outside.”
“We could go somewhere else.” When Steve kept quiet, Chenco’s cheeks stained red. “Forget it.”
Get a fucking grip, Steve. He swung his body to face Chenco. “I’m not saying no. But I need to know what you want.”
“Well, I want sex, but I assume you’ll still tell me no.”
That’s right, it’s not happening, Steve wanted to say, but once Chenco looked at him, sauce mixed with shy, fire dancing in the back of those hesitant eyes, he was undone. He didn’t speak, only stroked the side of Chenco’s face. Those brown eyes softened, guards coming down.
Chenco nuzzled tentatively into Steve’s hand. “Do you want to have sex with me?”
Yes, Steve did. He ached for it like nothing he’d ever yearned for, a want that terrified him. “I’m too old for you.”
Steve almost laughed at the angry look Chenco gave him. God, to be twenty-four again. Thinking this, though, only made Steve remember how lost and helpless he had felt at that age.
“I do want you.” Steve gentled his voice. “I just don’t know if it’s a great idea.”
“What, do you think I’m going to be some kind of moony stalker? If we have sex, I’ll assume I’m moving in? Why can’t it be about having a good time?”
Because I’m an old, tired man who forgot how to be carefree a long time ago. Because I’d love you to move in, even if I never so much as touch you, and that’s really fucking crazy. “I don’t think you’re a moony stalker.”
“Okay.” Chenco relaxed a little. “I meant what I said. I don’t sleep around.”
Steve couldn’t hold back a smile. “I know. You’re choosy. I like it.”
“Booker says I’m a frigid prude.” Chenco’s face clouded. “Do you know, he hasn’t called me since that night? We’re due for another show soon, but we haven’t rehearsed. He doesn’t know about the trailer—hasn’t asked.” He ran a weary hand through his hair. “I think I’m going to have to move in with Lincoln. I don’t want to, but I don’t have any choice.”
Yes you do. Come stay with me. Play or don’t play, but stay. Let me make everything okay. Steve bit the entreaty back. “You always have choices.”
“I had one choice—to let my mother turn me into someone I wasn’t, or to go off on my own. I chose my pride, and this is what it bought me. I live the real-life version of those romantic stories where the duke’s daughter runs off with the stable hand. They don’t live happily ever after. They live in abject poverty, miserable, cold, hungry. They have each other and nothing more, and pretty damn quickly it isn’t enough.”
“Do you wish you would have gone the other way?”
Chenco shook his head. “I don’t. But…I wish the fairy tale were real.”
Steve couldn’t bite his tongue anymore, not without taking it clean off. He couldn’t stop this train, but if he schooled himself, if he did his job, he could keep it under control. Straightening in the chair, putting his hands on his knees, he looked Chenco dead in the eye.
“Kneel.”
Pleasure curled in Steve’s belly at how gracefully Chenco complied with the command. The boy was nervous, yes, self-conscious, afraid of rejection, afraid of being mocked—but he was determined too, and he was here, obeying. Playing. Brave, beautiful, proud Chenco, kneeling before a man.
When Steve’s hand slid into that dark, curling hair, Chenco shuddered, and the reverberation rang all the way into Steve’s soul. So much want. So much yearning, so much need, but so much strength.
This confident man wasn’t Gordy. How had he ever seen the two of them as the same?
You don’t deserve him. You don’t deserve someone like this.
Jesus, nothing was ever more true, but when Steve started to draw back, Chenco looked up at him, wounded, confused, and it was over.
With a sharp pull, Steve drew Chenco’s face right into his crotch.
The sharp, hot breath of surprise against his fly was better than any caress. Steve watched, want and pure, red lust burning as Chenco’s lips parted, as he stared at the bulge in front of him. The saucy bottoms Steve had tricked with in his youth would have leered up at him and reached for his fly. Gordy would have nuzzled in like a grateful bear cub, sucking up musk.
Not Chenco. He hesitated, yearning but holding back, wanting but not daring to take. There was fear there, but it wasn’t of Steve. It wasn’t even trepidation over kneeling, no hesitation of being caught giving a blowjob beneath the stars. Chenco feared being seen, period. Of being tough without his drag. Exposing his vulnerability to anyone, no matter how safe they were. Letting Steve take his control away, being the one who played that game.
He feared it, but he faced it. Oh, baby.
For the first time in fifteen years, it was Steve who choked. It was Steve who didn’t have the guts to reach for his fly, who couldn’t bring himself to force Chenco’s face into his groin, though it was what they both wanted. Fucking hell, he wanted Chenco stripped down while he knelt, wanted to fuck his face so hard everyone came out to see what the ruckus was about. He wanted them all to see, wanted them to know this boy was his. He wanted— He wanted—
Steve gripped Chenco’s hair, yanked it until his boy’s hot breath burned against his leg, half of Chenco’s face pressed into Steve’s thigh. He kept him pinned there by his hair, clamoring for control.
He couldn’t do this.
Chenco turned his face into Steve’s leg and bit him lightly through his jeans.
Steve’s hand tightened on the curly dark hair, and he felt Chenco’s scalp fighting the pressure. This wasn’t playing, this wasn’t a scene—and if it was, Steve wasn’t the fucking Dom. Was Chenco, though, or were they flying blind together?
With a whimper, Chenco bit harder. The more Steve tugged, the more Chenco cried out and the deeper his teeth went, until Steve could feel the burn of Chenco’s jaw pressing through the denim into his thigh. God, but it was glorious.
With a choked roar, Steve crammed that wicked mouth to the hot length of his cock. What he should and shouldn’t do was forgotten as he ground Chenco’s face into his rod, fingers digging in as Chenco bit here too. Jesus fuck, but he wanted to pound into that mouth. He wanted to back Chenco against a wall and slam into his sweet face until Chenco came undone around him.
He could do it. He could take him right now. Right here. He’d asked for it, begged for it. Fuck, it’d be so good, so sweet, and Steve could show him, really show him—
“No.”
Steve wasn’t aware he’d pushed Chenco away, not until he was standing over him, looking down at a red-faced, confused boy.
“Did…did I do something wrong?”
“No.” Steve fought for breath, for control. Give him an answer. Not the truth of why you stopped, but give him something. Anything. “You didn’t do anything wrong. But I’m not going to face-fuck you on the patio.”
Chenco sat back on his heels, placing his hands delicately on his thighs. “Because I’m too young?”
“Because I said we’re not. You want to play, you play by my rules, and I said we’re done.” He let out a shuddering breath. “I told you I play with pain. I don’t know if I can ease you in.”
“You mean you think you’ll hurt me not in a good way?”
Steve ran a hand over his smooth scalp. “I mean I can’t make it nice. You rile me up like nobody has in a long time, and I don’t know that you’re ready for zero to sixty. Don’t tell me you are. You don’t know what it is yet I’m talking about doing with you.”
“I would if you told me. I could show you how much I’ll surprise you.”
Steve could not, could not answer, so he clammed up.
Chenco eased a little, reluctant but accepting. “Are we done, sir?”
God yes, get me out of here. “Yes. Get up and go inside.”
It had been the worst scene ever, Steve thought as Chenco rose. He had to give him another round, soon, if only to clear up this mess, but nothing more. Chenco was not Gordy. Chenco was fire and danger, and he deserved so much better. This was a bad idea, and Steve had to stop.
Chenco brushed Steve’s shoulder with his hand as he passed by. “I would have, you know. I would have let you face-fuck me on the patio.”
A howl of pure need clawed Steve’s gut, driving an urge to pull Chenco back. Steve marshaled himself, but only just, and as he heard Chenco slide open the glass door to the dining room, he gave in.
“You can stay.”
Chenco paused with the door half-open.
“You can stay.” This time Steve was able to make his voice a little less rough. “In my house. However long you want. However long you need to, you can stay with me. Your brother is looking for trucking jobs, so he’ll be around for a while yet. You should be here too. I have the room. I enjoy your company. Stay at my house, save your money, figure out what you want, what you need. Even if Mitch leaves.”
For a long time Chenco didn’t say anything. Steve waited for Chenco to ask if they’d have sex if he stayed, and honest to God, Steve wasn’t sure what he’d say. Probably yes, probably he’d sell off any part of his soul if only Chenco would tell him he wasn’t leaving. If they could have more nights together on the patio in the quiet, so he’d see that bright smile and those beautiful eyes every time he sat down to dinner. He’d give anything right then to make him stay, and he was terrified he had no mask and this naked need was written all over his face.
Chenco kept his expression carefully schooled. “I’ll think about it,” he said, and disappeared into the house.
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About the Author
Heidi Cullinan has always loved a good love story, provided it has a happy ending. She enjoys writing across many genres but loves above all to write happy, romantic endings for LGBT characters because there just aren’t enough of those stories out there. When Heidi isn’t writing, she enjoys cooking, reading, knitting, listening to music, and watching television with her husband and ten-year-old daughter. Heidi also volunteers frequently for her state’s LGBT rights group, One Iowa, and is proud to be from the first midwestern state to legalize same-sex marriage.
*Blog Tour* ~Guest Post & Review~ Double Blind (Special Delivery #2) by Heidi Cullinan
Summary:
Know when to show your hand…and when to hedge your bets.
Randy Jansen can’t stand to just sit by and watch as a mysterious man throws money away on the roulette wheel, especially since Randy’s got his own bet going as to the reason this guy is making every play like it’s his last day on earth. The man’s dark desperation hits Randy right in the gut. Half of him warns that getting involved is a sucker’s bet, and the other half scrambles for a reason—any reason—to save the man’s soul.
Ethan Ellison has no idea what he’s going to do with himself once his last dollar is gone—until Randy whirls into his life with a heart-stealing smile and a poker player’s gaze that sees too much.
Randy draws Ethan into a series of wagers that leads to a scorching kiss by midnight, but he isn’t the only one with an interest in Ethan’s vulnerability. Soon they’re both taking risks that not only play fast and loose with the law, but with the biggest prize of all: their hearts.
Warning: This story contains high-stakes poker, gangsters with a weakness for kittens, foursomes, and kinky consensual sex.
This book has been previously published and has been revised from its original release.
My Review:
This book hurt my OCD, no it freaking broke it. The poker was fascinating but when it comes to something like this, Randy is right, you learn by playing and I couldn’t grasp what the hell he was saying about it in the beginning. It went over my head. What it did do though was make me want to break out the cards and try to play with the husband. Not something I would normally do, so good job Randy. Well done. But while the poker was a bit overwhelming for this girl, the meaning behind it, at least what I took from it looking back just sat me on my ass. Damn. Just damn.
I have to say, I know this is a re-release of a beloved book and I am so happy I am reading it this time around. Knowing what happened with Randy not only in Special Delivery but then again in Hooch and Cake, I was in the mindset for more of this rough and tumble man with the heart of gold. I wanted to be with him to find what he didn’t think he could or what he deserved. The moment Randy sees Ethan at that wheel…I was just as lost as he was.
Now, I am known to fangirl my ass off when it comes to Heidi and her boys but I will dial that in for this one.
“It’s that you hate to lose, isn’t it?”
“I don’t like anything where you can’t get the best of it.”
“In other words, a game you don’t control.”
Randy, you fantastic beast of a man. How could I not say you were my #1 book boyfriend and earn a badge for it? Come on. I fell for you so hard in Special Delivery and again as you planned Mitch and Sam’s wedding with such care and detail but to see you, quite frankly, lose your shit over Ethan was amazing. You made me laugh, you made me shift in my seat with your sexy flirting/dancing and you made me fall head over heels and down the mountain for you over and over again. Why? It’s…well…
Because Randy is the strangest, most wonderful thing I’ve ever seen and right now he’s the sun I can’t otherwise seem to find, even when it’s right above me.
Yeah, because of that. And then you meet Ethan and you have this bet and watching the two of you count the hours and minutes to see who won, you just killed me. Ethan, your story was heartbreaking and of course having Randy come into your life, to save your life would be the only way it could happen. I adored watching you fight yourself in so many ways and learn as well. All those lessons, boy this whole deal was one crash course in life and love for you and you took it like a champ. It would have to be that way wouldn’t it? Funny that I loved you from the first time I met you but I fell for you about the same time that I fell for Randy in Special Delivery. That, my dear dear man, was HOT! I was not sure where it all was going but that look and when you get all elegant and strong and control…um UNF UNF UNF! There could be no better match for Randy than you. I am not happy that your life took the turn it did for you to meet but, well, you know?
Just like with any story from Heidi, this book will drag you along through every emotion you can gather to feel and back again. You go from the trenches of pain to the exhilaration of pure pleasure all while melting into the biggest puddle of goo imaginable. How she does it, I don’t know but I am addicted to it and I don’t ever want to be off this ride. Heidi knows how to hit you and hits you hard with the feels. I knew I would get emotional with this one but was unprepared for the tears that sprang up once again where normally they shouldn’t…but they should. You see, sex is physical pleasure yes, but when there is that emotion attached, that intimacy that is when it’s mind blowing for me and there were a number no all of those scenes in this book had my heart racing and the ones that had me tearing up were gorgeous. I was a mess though for the last 30% of the book, I can’t lie, a total mess and I am still lost with the boys.
“It’s okay sweetheart. So, should we go pain the town red?”
“I think we’re gonna paint it a little rainbow, but yeah.”
Double Blind, this book for me was full of gambling metaphors for life. What else can you do when a book is set in Sin City. What I took away from it all is this…life IS a game folks. Play your best, toss out your bluffs and your double blinds. Know when to call, when to raise, when to fold and when to claim your pot and leave the table, because baby, you won.
~Guest Post~
Sara asked why I’ve never been to Vegas except for my brief foray in my youth and again just before I wrote Special Delivery: the answer is, largely, because it hasn’t worked out. My vacations are few and far between and usually coincide with an event, like the Kylie concert in Dallas, or last year’s Chicago trip so Dan could say farewell to his favorite record store. I get around a lot for conferences and conventions, but that’s not at all the same as a vacation.
I also never sought out Vegas because I’m very, very much not a gambler in any sense. Even more than Randy, I want a sure thing. I like the academic idea of poker, but not the losing money reality of it. I do want to get to Vegas, sooner rather than later, and it’s on my to-do list, no question. The problem is as my family and friends will tell you, I don’t call and I don’t visit anyone, and that involves just a day or two of planning. Our big goal is to get Anna to Washington, D.C. before she gets too old to want to see it, and we’re two years behind now as it is. My sister is also on my case to come to Vienna before she moves back to the states, and there are a million work events I’m supposed to go to but can’t find the time/money for. So while Vegas is on my mind, it’s way behind a lot of other things right now.That said, if I write another book in this series, I’m thinking I’ll go first to get a firsthand lay of the land. So hopefully sooner rather than later.
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About the Author
Heidi Cullinan has always loved a good love story, provided it has a happy ending. She enjoys writing across many genres but loves above all to write happy, romantic endings for LGBT characters because there just aren’t enough of those stories out there. When Heidi isn’t writing, she enjoys cooking, reading, knitting, listening to music, and watching television with her husband and ten-year-old daughter. Heidi also volunteers frequently for her state’s LGBT rights group, One Iowa, and is proud to be from the first midwestern state to legalize same-sex marriage.
Plan B by S.J.D. Peterson
Summary:
Danny Marshal has always lived his life out loud, but his androgynous appearance is only a small part of who he is. One night at a frat party, Danny meets Lance Lenard, football jock and apparent straight guy. Lance is shocked when he’s immediately attracted to Danny’s feminine side. Danny is happy to be the subject of Lance’s first man-on-man experiment—until Lance begins to struggle with the fact that despite his appearance, Danny is indeed a man.
Lance’s whole life has been focused on his goal of playing in the NFL, and he knows those dreams will be smashed if anyone finds out about his little secret. Although Lance has come to hunger for Danny’s touch, he’s not willing to give Danny what he’s grown to crave: a boyfriend who’s proud to love him for every flamboyant and snarky cell in his body.
Life sends Danny and Lance in different directions, each of them focused on his respective Plan A. But the best-laid plans of mice and men often go awry.
My Review:
Sometimes Plan B is the real dream come true.
Ack! Why the hell did it take me so long to read this? This was perfection. This was amazing. This was romantic and hot and swoony and heartbreaking and agnsty and I fucking loved it!
Danny Marshall is a boy with flair whom I adore. Oh how I love this boy. I loved his friendship with Bo and how being that friend led him to a boy with steel-grey eyes who asks the most insane and inappropriate questions at parties. Danny is fabulous if he is dressed to a T or simply in a T with seats and a baseball cap. He is just one of those boys that have it. What Danny doesn’t have or know he wants at the time is a JOB; a jerk-off buddy. Of course we don’t always get our plans handed to us the way he want and Danny gets his over coffee. I fell for Danny instantly and felt each emotion he was going through. Even the spine tingling ones that had me squirming as I read them.
His body felt so good against mine and he was so gorgeous in his pleasure that I could have come just from watching him. I didn’t want this moment to end, but I couldn’t not move and I couldn’t look away.
Lance…oh good lord, Lance! What a disaster of a boy he was at times and yet the things that could come out of his mouth were so honest it was impossible to not feel for him. From him telling Danny he liked his other look better to his retelling of his lap dance, this boy had my heart in a vice. I wanted him to figure out what he wanted, needed and could handle. Yes, he made me beyond frustrated but I wanted him to be okay. I wanted him to be with Danny.
I promise you, Danny, all of you is part of my fantasy.
The attraction between Danny and Lance was done so well. I bought it hook line and sinker and was floating on a cloud of pure happiness and good while reading their story. This being my first book from the author I am impressed by the work of this wonderful story. I still have a big fat grin on my face and love how it all ended.
Plan B was what I needed at the exact right time. I needed to feel. I needed to fall in love with two boys who were fun, who were flirty and who were so head over heels for the other even when they were so stubborn it was worth it to get that end. Sigh. I am in a wonderful place right now. Just…yeah.
“I admit I was a little freaked out after seeing you.”
“I have that effect on people, I’m kind of freaky.”
“I wouldn’t use that description.”
“No? What description would you use?”
“Unforgettable.”
Get your Copy: Amazon | Dreamspinner Press | Barnes & Noble
***Blog Tour*** ~ Review, Guest Post & Giveaway~ Special Delivery (Special Delivery #1) by Heidi Cullinan
Summary:
Book One of the Special Delivery Series
When your deepest, darkest fantasy shows up, get on board.
Sam Keller knows he’ll never find the excitement he craves in Middleton, Iowa—not while he’s busting his ass in nursing school and paying rent by slaving away in a pharmacy stockroom. Then Sam meets Mitch Tedsoe, an independent, long-haul trucker who makes a delivery to a shop across the alley. Innocent flirting quickly leads to a fling, and when Mitch offers to take him on a road trip west, Sam jumps at the chance for adventure. Mitch is sexy, funny and friendly, but once they embark on their journey, something changes. One minute he’s the star of Sam’s every x-rated fantasy, the next he’s almost too much a perfect gentleman. And when they hit the Las Vegas city limit, Sam has a name to pin on Mitch’s malady: Randy.
For better or for worse, Sam grapples with the meaning of friendship, letting go, growing up—even the meaning of love—because no matter how far he travels, eventually all roads lead home.
*Warning: This story contains trucker fantasies, threesomes and kinky consensual sex.
Available February 2014 from Samhain Publishing and wherever books are sold. This book has been previously published and has been revised from its original release.
My Review:
When you read a story, you want to get lost in it. Well, I want to get lost in it. I want to crawl inside the pages and see what the characters see, feel what they feel, want what they want. I want this so bad with every book I have ever read and I think for the first time, I actually got it. I was unsure about starting this book. I was reserved going into this; knowing it had been out there for a few years and that it was a reader favorite but how would I react to it? Putting my faith in the author I dug in and started. Within the first few pages my heart began to race, my skin felt alive, tingly if you will and I couldn’t breathe. I read what Sam wanted, as he struggled with his fantasy of who he was and I became Sam. I felt what he was feeling, each rush he got, each touch, each breath each…it was intense to put it mildly. This book didn’t leave me with a book hangover; this book left me mother effing strung out. I still haven’t recovered from reading it weeks later and to be honest, that feeling is back just writing this without looking at my notes/highlights.
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Deeper (Caroline & West #1) by Robin York
Summary:
In this New Adult debut by Robin York, a college student is attacked online and must restore her name—and stay clear of a guy who’s wrong for her, but feels so right.
When Caroline Piasecki’s ex-boyfriend posts their sex pictures on the Internet, it destroys her reputation as a nice college girl. Suddenly her once-promising future doesn’t look so bright. Caroline tries to make the pictures disappear, hoping time will bury her shame. Then a guy she barely knows rises to her defense and punches her ex to the ground.
West Leavitt is the last person Caroline needs in her life. Everyone knows he’s shady. Still, Caroline is drawn to his confidence and swagger—even after promising her dad she’ll keep her distance. On late, sleepless nights, Caroline starts wandering into the bakery where West works.
They hang out, they talk, they listen. Though Caroline and West tell each other they’re “just friends,” their feelings intensify until it becomes impossible to pretend. The more complicated her relationship with West gets, the harder Caroline has to struggle to discover what she wants for herself—and the easier it becomes to find the courage she needs to fight back against the people who would judge her.
When all seems lost, sometimes the only place to go is deeper.
My Review:
I went back and forth A LOT on how to rate this and I am sticking with it being a five star read…
It’s no secret that the genre of New Adult tends to leave me cold. I am not sure if it’s the mass magnitude of it lately or honestly the unoriginality of it but it’s just not IT for me. Having said that they are a few that have knocked my socks off and Deeper is now on that list.
Rare (Roads #2) by Garrett Leigh
Summary:
Paramedic Pete Adams lived through the year from hell watching his lover, Ash, fall apart, and the precarious balance between work and home is becoming more strained. His heart is always home, with Ash, but the dark side to his job is weighing him down.
Tattoo artist Ash Fagin is recovering from a nervous breakdown triggered by revelations about his traumatic childhood. His battle with mental illness is far from over, but with Pete by his side, he’s feeling good again, so good he doesn’t notice something missing until it walks right into his living room.
Ash believes he’s had enough coincidence in his life, but when a voice from the past comes looking for him, it takes the devastating injuries of the one he loves most to convince him to let a ghost become the family he never knew he wanted.
My Review:
There is something I rarely do; read authors back to back or a series back to back. I just don’t do it. Maybe it’s my OCD or maybe it’s to take a break so I don’t take the writing or authors style for granted and/or get bored. of that maybe, but with this author and this series, I read both books and both shorts back to back. It’s odd but I couldn’t stand to be away from these boys.
You two are so stubbornly in love with each other, you can face anything together.
Slide (Roads #1) by Garrett Leigh
Summary:
Don’t look back. Don’t you ever look back…
Shy tattoo artist Ash has a troubled past. Years of neglect, drug abuse, and life on the streets have taken their toll, and sometimes it seems the deep, unspoken bond with his lover is the only balm for wounds he doesn’t quite understand.
Chicago paramedic Pete is warmth, love, and strength—things Ash never knew he could have, and never even knew he wanted until Pete showed him. But fate is a cruel, cruel mistress, and when nightmares collide with the present, their tentatively built world comes crashing down.
Traumatic events in Pete’s work life distance him from home, and he doesn’t realize until it’s too late that Ash has slipped away. Betrayal, secrets, and lies unfold, and when a devastating coincidence takes hold, Pete must fight with all he has to save the love of his life.
My Review:
Oh boy. So…the other night I was attempting to read a book but I was really antsy. I put that book away and starting scrolling through my Nook for something else. I can’t tell you when or why I bought Slide but I decided to open it up and take a peek. That peek turned into me reading the prologue and being blown away. WHAT THE HELL WAS THAT? I literally said that out loud. Got out of bed and paced the landing outside my bedroom door so I didn’t wake my husband. It hit me that hard and had me buzzed with crazy anticipation. I wanted to keep reading to find out more but I forced myself to go to bed and ended up laying awake for two hours thinking about that prologue and when I finally dozed off I dreamt of paper tattooed covered walls. I woke up thinking of Pete and Ash. I thought about them as I got my boys ready for school and me for work. They had consumed me, again, just from the prologue. I got to work and instead of doing what I had planned, I opened my Nook and openly read at my desk so lost in this story that I did nothing but read all day. I have no shame and though I now have mini piles on my desk it was worth it.
Summary:
Detective Douglas Brody has only ever known the life of a cop. Raised strict but fair by his police chief father, he joined the academy right out of school, climbed the ranks hard and fast, and now works homicide for the City of Charleston. The job is his entire life. For years it’s kept him happy enough to minimize the side of him that craves what he believes is wrong. An accident on the job puts him on medical leave and everything in Brody’s world changes. He has to prove himself once more to be best cop in the department, all while dealing with Zack – his persistent, sexy, and out of the closet physical therapist.
Zack is tan skin, big grins, floppy hair and tackles his job with the same full-blown enthusiasm he does everything else. When the “patient from hell” is thrown his way by another PT who can’t handle him, Zack is committed to achieving the impossible. His new patient is a head strong and hot as hell homicide detective, who oozes as much resentment as he does sex appeal. Any involvement with a patient, especially a man who is so deep in the closet he can’t see light, is something Zack swore he’d never do. But Brody slowly proves too much to resist…
My Review:
My first book from Sam B. Morgan and it was fun. How could it not be when you have a detective who is in the closet (oh how I love my closet boys) and a laid back Physical Therapist who is out and toss in some attraction, the whole opposites attraction deal and some UST that pretty much fuels this story…
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Nothing Serious by Jay Northcote
Summary:
Mark O’Brien is finally being honest with himself. His relationship with Rachel is over and he’s moving out of the home they’ve shared for six years. They get along, but he can’t fix a relationship when the person he’s with is the wrong gender.
Jamie Robertson, one of the removal men, is huge and ridiculously gorgeous, and Mark is smitten at first sight. When a cardboard box splits, revealing items of a personal nature that Mark never wanted anybody to see, he’s mortified. But it sparks the start of a beautiful friendship with benefits.
As Jamie initiates Mark into the joys of gay sex, the two men get increasingly close and “nothing serious” turns into something rather important to both of them. But communication isn’t their strong point. Will either man ever find the courage to be honest about his feelings?
My Review:
This may come as a surprise but I am an emotional reader. Shh…don’t let that get out, but I am. I pick books based on emotions I am feeling and then feed off the emotions from the book and then start all over again. I am a self-proclaimed angst whore even though I know what those type of books do to me. Why am I saying all of this? Because after books like that, you need a book to remind you again that life isn’t always so heavy. That sometimes there are stories that open up, let you in and give you a warm hug with an occasional inappropriate groping that reminds you why you love to read about love. Love, pure and simple gooey love that keeps a perma grin on your face from the first to the last page. Le Sigh.
The Risqué Redhead Reads 