Two Chicks Obsessed with Books & Eye Candy

Sharing our love of M/M Romance

Book Reviews

Fated Hearts (Shadow Bound) by Garrett Leigh: Blog Tour, New Release Review and Giveaway

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“He’s not a wolf.”

Devastated by the death of his best friend, Zio is a soldier with one thing on his mind: revenge. Consumed by a conflict that’s raged as long as he’s been alive, he’s had little time or inclination to learn the legends of the shifter world he was raised in. And he certainly doesn’t have time to deal with a shifter of a different kind, even if it’s for the good of the war effort. For the good of his pack. The fact that he’s already crossed paths with the new face in his unit is almost irrelevant.

Almost.

Do no harm. Give life not death: it’s the oath Devan was reborn to live by, so when he’s sent abroad to embed with a wolf pack as their resident healer, he doesn’t hesitate. In the supernatural world, some bonds are instant–soldiers become brothers, pack become family. But others run deeper and before long, Devan’s at the mercy of instincts he can’t control. Zio’s inner wolf is desperate to be with Devan, while Devan struggles to keep the pack safe. But as the war escalates, and new love is tainted by anguish and pain, the battles within might prove the toughest of them all.

“I won’t let him die.”

Length: 60,000 words approx.

Cover Design: Black Jazz Design

Amazon – Kindle Unlimited

Shifters are not always my jam. BUT when it is written by Garrett Leigh, I’ll give it a go. And while shifters still aren’t my favorite, I did enjoy this story.

Wolf shifters are in a bit of a decades old civil war for land in England. Humans know of and tolerate shifters, but barely. During one fight, the healer of the pack defending their land is killed. An entirely differently clan of shifters (not wolves) lends the pack one of their healers. Things get sticky when the healer and the best friend of the slain healer hook up in a club before finding out who they are to each other.

Zio grew up in a pack at war. He has basically not known anything else. So Devan, the healer, is seen by him as an interloper. Besides the fact that he was taking his best friend’s place. Oh, and about that sexual chemistry…

In the middle of a war, battles raging daily, there are Zio and Devan fighting their attraction. Zio doesn’t even understand the mating thing because he was basically raised to be a soldier. Devan understands, though. He also understands the ramifications.

And they are sharing a tent. OF COURSE THEY ARE!

The other shifters we meet are a great play off of Zio and his perpetual bad mood. These guys are his friends, his brothers, his pack. They love each other no matter what. They apparently will hook up with each other just for funsies. Until one of them offers to hook up with Devan. Zio wasn’t too happy with that.

There are lots of supernatural elements (shifters-duh) but also magic of a sort. Zio can move the earth like tiny earthquakes. Another of his pack members can control water, others can mind read. And Devan uses a lot of magic to heal the shifters.

Remember though, they are at war. A lot of the book is spent on war things. Some of it is a little (a lot) brutal- just so you know. Definitely my least favorite parts.

The conclusion was both sad and happy. Lots of doors were open for more books- which I am looking forward to actually because I am going to hazard a guess that there will be a lot less, if any, war. Or maybe there will be.

3.5 Pieces of Eye Candy

Garrett Leigh is an award-winning British writer and book designer, currently working for Dreamspinner Press, Loose Id, Riptide Publishing, and Fox Love Press.

Garrett’s debut novel, Slide, won Best Bisexual Debut at the 2014 Rainbow Book Awards, and her polyamorous novel, Misfits was a finalist in the 2016 LAMBDA awards.

When not writing, Garrett can generally be found procrastinating on Twitter, cooking up a storm, or sitting on her behind doing as little as possible, all the while shouting at her menagerie of children and animals and attempting to tame her unruly and wonderful FOX.

Garrett is also an award winning cover artist, taking the silver medal at the Benjamin Franklin Book Awards in 2016. She designs for various publishing houses and independent authors at blackjazzdesign.com, and co-owns the specialist stock site moonstockphotography.com with renowned LGBTQA+ photographer Dan Burgess.

Website: http://www.garrettleigh.com/

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/garrettleighauthor/

Twitter: https://twitter.com/Garrett_Leigh

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Puzzle Me This by Eli Easton: Blog Tour, New Release Review and Giveaway

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Luke Schumaker designs computer games, working from his home. Every day he walks his dog in the woods nearby, never suspecting that someone who is completely smitten is watching.

The watcher is Alex Shaw, and he too works from home, designing logic and crossword puzzles. Alex’s options are limited: he’s too shy to approach Luke and his wheelchair won’t let him follow into the woods. His solution? Secret messages for Luke in the crosswords he writes for the local paper.

When Luke decodes them, romance begins, but then they face greater puzzles, like Alex’s interfering sister and what commitment to a man in a wheelchair really takes. And, most puzzling of all, how do you know if love is real?

Cover Design: Reese Dante

Amazon US

Amazon UK 

Universal Link

A mixed, but still positive review from me.

Overall, I enjoyed the story, I just felt it was rushed and could have been fleshed out a bit more. I loved that the beginning had Alex wooing Luke with crossword puzzle clues. And while Luke was having fun with it, he also wanted to know RIGHT NOW who it was. That whole part could have been longer to really bring the romance early.

Both characters are lovable nerds. Luke, who is a video game designer and works from home and Alex, a crossword puzzle designer who may work from home part time? That was a bit unclear. But neither guy is a jerk, neither guy has the proverbial walls up, neither guy says hey let’s keep it casual. They are both grown ass men ready to find that special someone.

There are challenges of course. The biggest is that Alex is in a wheelchair and Luke likes to hike. In the grand scheme of things- this is a work around. Alex never gets upset if he can’t do something- but he encourages Luke to do it without him.

Of course there was a bit of conflict, mostly because Alex’s sister is overprotective and tried to scare Luke off. And there actually could have been a lot more angst and drama- family stuff, work stuff, etc etc. But it was mostly a light hearted romance between two men who really weren’t afraid of commitment. Shocker!

3 Pieces of Eye Candy

Having been, at various times and under different names, a minister’s daughter, a computer programmer, a game designer, the author of paranormal mysteries, a fan fiction writer, and organic farmer, Eli has been a m/m romance author since 2013. She has over 30 books published.

Eli has loved romance since her teens and she particular admires writers who can combine literary merit, genuine humor, melting hotness, and eye-dabbing sweetness into one story. She promises to strive to achieve most of that most of the time. She currently lives on a farm in Pennsylvania with her husband, bulldogs, cows, a cat, and lots of groundhogs.

In romance, Eli is best known for her Christmas stories because she’s a total Christmas sap. These include “Blame it on the Mistletoe”, “Unwrapping Hank” and “Merry Christmas, Mr. Miggles”. Her “Howl at the Moon” series of paranormal romances featuring the town of Mad Creek and its dog shifters has been popular with readers. And her series of Amish-themed romances, Men of Lancaster County, has won genre awards.

Her website is www.elieaston.com

You can email her at eli@elieaston.com


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Confessions: Henri (Confessions Series Book 5) by Ella Frank: New Release Review

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Good and bad. Right and wrong.
Life would be easy if things were always that simple.
That’s never been the case for Henri Boudreaux.

Son of a criminal. Ex-boyfriend to a Priest.
Henri’s made a career out of getting in trouble and avoiding the law.
So when he winds up in bed with it, he knows that things are about to get…complicated.

But what’s life without taking a few risks?
And what’s a risk without the threat of being caught?
No one’s ever accused Henri of being good man.
And Officer Craig Bailey is about to find out just how bad he can be.

Amazon – Kindle Unlimited

Oh yea…we’ve been waiting for Henri haven’t we? If you read the previous 4 books, you know you wanted to know more about him. Priest’s mysterious childhood friend who he seems to have a somewhat rocky relationship with. And we love bad boys. Just admit it.

We pick up pretty much where we left off- at the wedding of Priest, Julien and Robbie. Robbie had invited Henri, and although he showed up, he hasn’t shown his face yet. Until he runs into Bailey, a friend of the trio who is a cop in Chicago. Sparks! They don’t even do anything, but still. Serious chemistry already.

Henri runs, mostly because of Priest. But HA! The universe brings Henri and Bailey back together quickly. And then Henri runs. Do you see a pattern?

Obviously they do get together. And while their chemistry is super hot, Henri has some growing up to do. He seems to still be hung up on Priest. Not cool. He is also keeping most of his life a secret from Bailey. Also not cool. But…he kind of goes all in with the relationship thing, which is admirable.

These guys are SO opposite. Bailey is such a good guy. Beat cop by choice, hangs out with his brothers, helps friends, lives in his childhood home. Henri is a criminal (although his exact criminal activities right now are blurry at best), has no family, keeps his friends at arm’s length and is basically a nomad.

For a cop, Bailey sure let’s Henri get away with a lot. I think Bailey has stars in his eyes for Henri at first. Breaking his one night stand rule. Like I said, we all love a bad boy.

The book is well written and the story flows. Even though this is book 1 of 2 for Henri and Bailey, we do get an answer on one thing, but others are left dangling for the next book. The book kind of sucks you in though. You’re rooting for these guys- especially Henri. Ugh, this poor guy. So tough but so vulnerable. He just needs love!

Ok, ok. If you read the first 4, you will definitely want to read this (and the next). No way around it. You technically can read this one without reading the first 4, but I wouldn’t recommend it. Especially Priest’s story as they are tied together.

So while there are some “character holes” as I like to call them, it’s still a worthy read. I hoped we had gotten more background of Henri, being that it was his book, but I guess not. There are just a lot of years unaccounted for.

4 Pieces of Eye Candy

Pure (Trenton Security Book 4) by J.M. Dabney: Blog Tour, Excerpt, New Release Review and Giveaway

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Innocence wasn’t a personality flaw.

Nicolas “Pure” Warner lived with the curse of a cute face and a terminal blush. He was waiting for his happily ever after. Yet he’d given up on finding his one. His partner and spotter wasn’t the type to settle down but he’d always been drawn to the other man. Pure decided he could live with that, but when powers outside their control took Raul away, Pure would stop at nothing to get Raul back even if that meant leaving the Trenton Security team behind.

Touching the sun only left you burned.

Raul Martinez was a brutal fighter. He’d worked freelance for several years at Trenton Security. There was one dark spot to the perfect job: Pure. The man was sweet and looking for forever. How did the damaged and unworthy ever hope to touch the sun without getting burned? And touching Pure would be a dream come true. When Pure endangers his freedom to save him, how could Raul convince his boy that letting him go was the only option?

Title – Pure

Series – Trenton Security Book 4

Author – JM Dabney

Word Count – 46,000

Genre – MM Romantic Suspense, Daddy/boy

Cover Design – Reese Dante

Release Date: 08.17.19

Amazon

 

He still felt Raul staring at him and it pissed him off, “I said go away.”

“Not happening.”

“Hey, Pure, back to see me again?”

He lifted his head to see the usual ER doctor breeze in. The man was handsome, probably about his age. His visits normally correlated with this doctor’s, his name was Carlton and the man had asked him out for coffee. He’d politely declined and it hadn’t been brought up again.

“Not by choice.”

“I see that,” Carl said with a friendly smile. The man turned to where Raul stood. “Sir, will you leave us so I can–”

“Like that, wouldn’t you, pretty boy?” Raul started to push away from the wall.

No one might think he paid much attention to the dangerous man other than when they were fighting but that wasn’t true, he knew what the man was getting ready to do. “Raul!”

Raul pivoted with the grace of a trained warrior and glared at him. “What?”

“Quit being an asshole.”

“He wants–”

“Shut up, he wants to know if he should call the cops in case I’m being abused.”

“I would never fucking put my hands on you, Pure, what the fuck?”

It was odd to see Raul looking offended and slightly hurt. They fought, a lot, but he never once thought Raul would ever hit him. The man seemed obsessively protective of him. Which was weird since he was at least three inches taller and about fifty pounds heavier than Raul. Raul was a fighter. Brutal when it came to his work. And, yes, the man was an asshole but he wasn’t bad when Raul wasn’t ordering him around.

“It’s standard procedure when someone has as many visits as Pure does and you always seem to be the one with him. I’m aware of his profession, but that doesn’t erase the chance of domestic abuse. Let’s check you out.”

Raul was strangely quiet. The man was eerily silent on most days, an observer, and Raul didn’t miss a thing. Except when Raul had anger rolling off him in waves, he knew the man was ready to strike. They’d spent several years anticipating their moods and moves, they worked as a perfectly synchronized team.

“I don’t have a concussion, I’m not nauseous, my head does hurt but nothing out of the ordinary when you head butt a wall.” He heard Raul’s deep growl and knew what was coming. He didn’t need another lecture. “Raul, don’t start.”

“Why don’t you let me be the judge if you have a concussion or not?”

“Yes, sir,” Pure grumbled.

I feel like I’ve been waiting for Pure and Raul forever! I knew I was going to love Pure, I have such a thing for the wounded bird and he was the very definition. After a teenage trauma, you understand why he’s been saving himself for “the one”…. I wasn’t sure how the type of relationship was going to work with that, and he seemed to get over his hangups really quickly without any therapy or even talking to someone, but.. hey… to each their own, right?

Now, Raul has wanted Pure from the moment he met him, but has kept him in the partners at work and acquaintance category because he didn’t think he was good enough for the innocent man. But Pure, as much as he pushed Raul away in previous books, he was done waiting on him to make a move and when Raul gets arrested for a crime he didn’t commit, Pure makes his move…. Pure makes all the moves, actually, to ensure his Daddy’s safety. I loved watching Pure fight for his man when usually, especially in these tropes, it’s the other way around. I also liked the bottoming Daddy… hot.

What I didn’t like….is that the Crew, none of them took their back, when had it been literally anyone else, they would have. Even Peaches….. all these guys are bordering on insane, but for Pure and Raul, who like Pure pointed out, has gone above and beyond for every one of them at least once, and they were in the wind when it came time for Raul and Pure to need them? It’s unforgivable…

I don’t even think any of them apologized really… not like they needed to, and then Gage had the nerve to talk to Raul like he was the one in the wrong?? Uhm, no sir… I lost a lot of love that I had for the crew in this one, so it wasn’t my favorite. We did get more Horace and Freddie, I really hope they get their own story… I’d love for them to get their happily ever after’s!

I loved Pure’s mom… she was the only one who had their backs no matter what. She was the family that Raul needed and it was good Pure had her, because the guys proved they weren’t worthy of that title in this one. I’m really disappointed about that… and I’m bitter lol

But…. alls well that ends well…it ended beautifully between the two of them and everything Pure ever wanted… I just hope the guys come together in the next one and remember where their loyalties lie and who’s had their back and do better.

3.5 pieces of eye candy

J.M. Dabney is a multi-genre author who writes Body Positive/Diverse Romance and Fiction. They live with a constant diverse cast of characters in their head. No matter their size, shape, race, etc. J.M. lives for one purpose alone, and that’s to make sure they do them justice and give them the happily ever after they deserve. J.M. is dysfunction at its finest and they makes sure their characters are a beautiful kaleidoscope of crazy. There is nothing more they want from telling their stories than to show that no matter the package the characters come in or the damage their pasts have done, that love is love. That normal is never normal and sometimes the so-called broken can still be amazing.

The author is Gender Nonconforming are uses the preferred pronouns They/Them.

Facebook – https://www.facebook.com/J.M.DabneyAuthor/

Twitter – https://twitter.com/jmdabney_author

Instagram – https://www.instagram.com/authorjmdabney/?hl=en

Reader Group – https://www.facebook.com/groups/585182991553194

Amazon Author Page – https://www.amazon.com/J.M.-Dabney/e/B006QZIFLE

Bookbub – https://www.bookbub.com/authors/j-m-dabney

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Kept in the Dark (Locke and Keyes Agency Book 1) by Charlie Cochet: New Release Review *2

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Former Army Ranger turned government assassin Álvaro Montero and CIA Officer Caiden Cardosa crossed paths two years ago in Vienna, where their encounter ended less than amicably—despite the explosive sexual chemistry between them.

Now Caiden is riding a desk at Langley after his cover is blown. And Álvaro—who was “killed”—has a new identity and purpose as Delta/D, an operative for the Locke and Keyes Agency, under the leadership of the mysterious Alpha Orion.

When D and Caiden team up in a deadly black ops mission, the urge to kill each other will have to take a back seat to the desire for revenge against the man who betrayed them both. Surviving the mission won’t be easy. Resisting the passion between them—that might be impossible.

Amazon – Kindle Unlimited

A new series by Charlie Cochet? Sign me up!

I unabashedly love her THIRDS series. I am pretty excited for the spin off of that. And I enjoyed her Four Kings Security series, but one of the main characters was just too similar to the main character in THIRDS. Did I still totally devour the books? Yep. Because above all, they are fun, super entertaining reads.

So now we have this series. The Locke and Keyes Agency looks innocuous on the outside, but really it is a cover for hired assassins. But they only go after the bad guys- and they don’t always kill them.

This first book starts with D (short for Delta) who is presumed dead after being shot, and Caiden, a CIA spy who’s cover was blown. Alpha- the person in charge- wants both of them to work together to get a flash drive that has incriminating evidence on it. Including who shot D and who blew Caiden’s cover.

BUT…these guys know each other. They had one super hot night a few years ago, but then D ghosted Caiden before morning. Caiden is still mad about it, but D still wants him.

So they are trying to work together while also trying to fight their attraction. HA! Like that will happen.

So while this book was classic Charlie Cochet- funny, sarcastic, totally action packed, sexy, with two big alpha dudes, the characters definitely didn’t remind me of anyone else. They were unique to her- which made me happy.

Because the book is based in Florida there are jokes about gators- of course. Which is just funny. I mean my aunts moved to Florida (in fact, they moved to where the Four Kings is set) and I joke with them all of the time about gators.

By the end of the book we meet the rest of Alpha’s team of guys AND see them recruit someone else. And I want all of their stories! They were a crack up.

So bring it on Alpha! I want more Locke and Keyes and more guys!

4 Pieces of Eye Candy

Another great start to a new series by the very talented Charlie Cochet, and with the group of guys behind our two MC’s, it looks like this could be a series that takes many wild turns.

D and Caiden were quite the pair, rarely agreeing, but always having each others’ backs. (I’ll admit the back and forth on D’s name was difficult for me to keep track of…didn’t happen a lot, but enough to throw me a time or two.) There was some good humor in this book (not on the level of THIRDS, but that was ok!) which helped break up some of the challenges that these two were facing with trying to find D’s “killer” and Caiden’s bad guy…which by the way…totally took me by surprise!

The final big scene was intricate, and really well mapped out. I feel like sometimes Charlie sits down with little toy soldiers and moves them around to see if it will work. 🙂 Which it always does!

Can’t wait to see more of this series!

4 pieces of eye candy

In Safe Keeping by Victoria Sue: Exclusive Excerpt, Release Day Review and Giveaway

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He can’t save everyone…

Firefighter Lucas Attiker is mired in guilt by his inability to save his young son, who perished in a fire three years ago. When he rescues a troubled young man and his baby daughter from a Colorado forest fire, Lucas finally begins to forgive himself. But the wildfire is only the beginning of the dangers facing them.

Hell-bent on saving his daughter from his crime boss ex, Owen Michaels is on the run with the baby in tow—fleeing both the killers who are after him and the US Marshals Service deputies assigned to protect him. When his desperate flight lands them in the midst of an inferno, the man who saves them offers hope for more than just survival.

They might have escaped a blazing forest and a hail of bullets, but both men will need to risk their lives—and their hearts—to give a little girl a loving family… if they can make it out alive.

Title: In Safe Keeping
Series: Heroes and Babies: Book Two
Author: Victoria Sue
Release Date: September 3, 2019
Category: Romantic Suspsense
Pages: 199

Amazon

Dreamspinner Press

Owen closed his eyes. Sometimes the fight was too hard. He felt a touch on his leg and opened his eyes to see Mia grabbing his sweatpants. Smiling. He smiled back. Or maybe, sometimes to protect those you loved, the fight wasn’t hard enough.

“I don’t know who to trust,” he admitted. “We were in an apartment—some kind of safe house they used—and Terry got a call. I didn’t even get a chance to ask who was on the line because I’ve never seen people move so fast in all my life. Terry grabbed the diaper bag, Barry lifted Mia from the small cot we had and handed her to me, and what seemed like only two minutes later, we were running from the building.” And being fired upon. He swallowed. “I’ve never been so scared in all my life. Barry got hit as we came out—”

“You were shot at?” Lucas interrupted, sounding shocked.

“Yes. There was more than one shooter. Terry bundled me between two cars. It was dark, around midnight, and pretty deserted.”

“Where were you?”

“Just north of Old Town in Fort Collins, but it was a Tuesday and really quiet.” Not like the weekends, which were kind of wild. “Mia woke up at the sound of gunfire. She started crying, so it was obvious where we were. There were footsteps, and Terry just stood up and started firing. He shouted for me to run. His truck was only a few feet away, but he was shot.” It hadn’t been the first time Owen had seen someone killed by a bullet, but he hoped to God it was the last.

Something told him that was unlikely.

“Terry must have shot them. I don’t know if they were killed, but they didn’t come after me.”

“Why are people shooting at you?”

And there it was—the question he had been expecting since yesterday and still didn’t know how to answer. “Are you sure you really want to know?”

Lucas didn’t reply, but then he didn’t have to. His confidence, some deep assurance on a different level screamed the answer to Owen. Trust me.

He glanced down at Mia, not only for the little bolt of courage he needed, but to remind himself of why he was here and why he would fight to his last breath to keep her safe. “Because I saw my ex-boyfriend kill her mother.” Lucas’s eyes widened a little, but he still kept silent. Waiting. Owen half smiled. “That’s a good interrogation technique you’ve got going on there.”

“Patience?” Lucas’s lips tilted upward at the corner, and from out of nowhere, Owen suddenly had the desperate urge to press his lips to that spot. Shocked, he jerked back a little.

“Did you know her?”

Owen refocused himself, pushing the inexplicable urge away. “She was my friend.” And he was the reason she was dead.

Lucas waited again, but Owen knew he had to answer. He would see the disappointment on Lucas’s face. Maybe even judgment. Disgust was a given, but he might as well get it over with. He shouldn’t forget that Lucas had saved his life yesterday, and even though Owen had sometimes been in that strange halfway place between fighting for your life and being ready to give up, he was the only thing keeping Mia from Damien. And if there was one thing he absolutely had to do for his best friend, it was to keep her daughter safe. Especially since he had failed so spectacularly at being a friend.

“I met Mary two days after I left home. A couple of guys followed me after I had used the cash machine.” He had been so clueless. “One pinned me, and the other took my cash and card. He wanted the PIN number, and I thought I’d be hard-core and refuse. Turned out they had a knife.” And really shaky hands. He would never forget the press of metal against his throat and the sheer terror he’d felt as it slid across his skin. “I thought they were gonna kill me, even after I told them, but Mary walked into the alley and called them by name. Told them to stop fucking with me.” And they laughed. He had thought he was going to die, and they had thought it was funny. “They took all the money I had left, but Mary stayed.” She’d even gotten him some water after he had puked his guts up. “That was four years ago.”

He glanced out the window, praying Lucas wasn’t going to want it all. He wasn’t ready for that.

“How did you get a car?”

Owen shot Lucas a grateful glance. Lucas could easily push, and Owen was in no position to say no, but as he focused on the deep understanding in Lucas’s gaze, he knew Lucas was giving him a breather. “I stole it.” He watched Lucas carefully, but again, there was no reaction. “I wish I’d gotten a better one, but it wasn’t even locked, and old cars are easier to hot-wire.”

Lucas’s eyes crinkled with sudden humor, and he laughed quietly. “I’m not surprised, if it was that blue Ford Taurus from the cabins. I think rust was holding it together.”

Owen stared. Lucas didn’t seem to be judging him. He’d done a lot of things over the years he wasn’t proud of.

“How long have you got to wait to give evidence?”

“I was supposed to give evidence to the grand jury three weeks ago so they could indict Damien, before we had to run. Now I’m not sure what will happen.” He didn’t know how he was going to last that long on his own. “I just want to disappear.”

“Not easy with a baby,” Lucas said doubtfully.

“I know.” Owen knew he was right. “But I don’t know who to trust.”

“Have you met Deputies DuPree and O’Connor? They’re the two who came to see me in the ER.”

“I like DuPree. She said her niece was called Mia.” He wasn’t sure about O’Connor, though. “I saw her with Terry a couple of times, once just after we left their offices the first time. I have absolutely no idea if I can trust either of them.”

“They can’t all be dirty. Jacko—remember him from the fire? African American? Big guy?”

Owen couldn’t help a short laugh. “You’re all big guys.”

“Well, Jacko comes from a family of cops. His dad and two brothers are on the force, and his uncle is a vice detective.” Lucas grinned. “It took months before his old man forgave him for becoming a firefighter. Anyway, we could ask Jacko to ask his uncle to check into the situation.”

That might work. It was just such a huge risk.

“You can’t run forever.” Lucas pointed to Mia, where she was chewing her fist. “Not with her, anyway.”

No. “So what? You’ll talk to Jacko?”

“How about this? You stay here with me while I sound things out. I don’t even have to mention your name—”

“No? How many witnesses running for their lives do you usually keep around—” Owen clamped his lips closed. He was joking, but his throat had suddenly gotten really tight.

Lucas’s face softened. He’d seen. Owen had a feeling Lucas didn’t miss much. “Why don’t you both plan to stay—at least for today. I don’t think you’re going to be any worse off, and you both need a rest.”

Owen nearly laughed. He possibly would have, if he hadn’t been keeping his lips clamped shut. A rest? When was the last time he’d had that? “I need some things for Mia.”

Lucas stood up. “Help yourself to anything in the fridge for her and make me a list.”

A loving home.

A father who knows what he’s doing.

But they’d start with diapers and milk.

Wow, what a ride!

Lucas is part of the wildfire first responders for the fire department. During a dangerous wildfire, he and his team are sent to check the area and make sure the park and cabins are cleared out of anyone who might be there and in the path of the fire. As I’ve realized over the last several years, and again with this story… the saying, “spread like wildfire” is faster and more dangerous than you realize.
When the team gives the all clear, Lucas chances a glance behind him and sees someone in a car, trying and failing to get it to start. He jumps into action, and that’s where he meets Owen and baby Mia.

Owen is on the run from a very powerful mob boss kind of guy with more power and more reach than any of them know what to do with. Inprisoned by Damien for far too long, he risks his life by running with the baby that was his best friends, who he saw murdered at the hand of the Damien, who happened to be his ex. The things that man put him through will turn your stomach. It was hard to read, at least for me, because I know that these things happen in real life and the police and judges and people of power who are in on it too, make it impossible to tell anyone or escape. So, he run… runs with the baby he considers his daughter, and luckily finds Lucas who isn’t willing to let them go without a fight.

Struggling to deal with his own demons from a life that got taken from him, he feels strongly for Owen and baby Mia. They kind of come in and bring him back to life, when he’d just been going from one day to the next, wallowing in guilt, shame and memories, both painful and beautiful.

Unfortunately, the guys don’t know who they can trust and are surprised a couple of times at who Damien has under his thumb, even someone close to Lucas…. That kind of sprung up out of nowhere, because it was either a small town or Damien’s reach was so long that he just had people sprinkled along everywhere. It seemed a little too convenient, but, whatever. I’d hoped we’d gotten closure from the man’s wife or at least an explanation, so that Lucas didn’t have to live with anymore guilt than he already had.

Being on the run together, trying to keep one another and the baby safe, and having to put all your trust into another person when it was proven that you literally couldn’t trust anyone… had brought these two together and thought was both insta-lovey and slow burny for me… I enjoyed them together. I loved Lucas and the way he was with both Owen and the baby, and I loved how Owen was with both Lucas and the baby… They made a cute little family that would do anything to protect one another and they proved it time and time again throughout this action packed story.

Fortunately, the bad guy doesn’t get away with being the bad guy and everything gets worked out. I won’t tell you how or what happens or why, but it’s a crazy ride and if you like suspenseful reads and don’t mind pricy ebooks, you’ll definitely enjoy this one.

4 pieces of eye candy

Victoria Sue fell in love with love stories as a child when she would hide away with her mom’s library books and dream of the dashing hero coming to rescue her from math homework. She never mastered math but never stopped loving her heroes and decided to give them the happy ever afters they fight so hard for.
She loves reading and writing about gorgeous boys loving each other the best—and creating a family for them to adore. Thrilled to hear from her readers, she can be found most days lurking on Facebook where she doesn’t need factor 1000 sun-cream to hide her freckles.

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