4 months ago by Hearts on Fire in Authors Q – T, GLBT Romance Authors
Author: Jaxx Steele
Reviewed by: Lucy
Publisher:
Genre: M/M Contemporary
ISBN 13:
Rating: 
This novella starts out so sad. I was immediately feeling for Luke, who had the love of his life in Sean, his love since high school, his only love ever. They had just celebrated their ten year anniversary when tragedy struck. It is now two years later and Luke’s pain has dulled but hasn’t disappeared. When he kisses his fingertips to press it onto Sean’s picture, telling himself, “Time to rise and shine, Luke. Time to start another day”, I just wanted to hug him. It was especially saddening to realize that he believes the only love he will have is gone, and he’s only about 26. Anyone who has suffered a loss can understand the difficulty of just getting up.
Life has that irritating way of moving on even when your heart is breaking, and it is no different for Luke. While he has sworn off dating, he continues to go to work at his bakery, Morning Glory, go out with friends and feel his love for Sean. His best friend, Nick, has been encouraging him to start to move forward, but he just can’t do it. It is Nick’s friend Anthony who starts to turn the tide. Anthony is a web designer, who Nick sets up with Luke to do a web site for the bakery. It is immediate chemistry for Luke, who fights it off completely.
The two become flirty friends, with friends being Luke’s operative word. Things comes to a head one night and Luke must make a decision. Again, when “With a sad smile, Anthony stood and left him sitting on the sofa”, this time I wanted to hug Anthony.
There isn’t a ton of angst in this book, in spite of the sad subject areas, but it is sweet and tender. Their friendship develops over the course of time, so no insta-love either. Completely recommended for anyone who likes the soft side of M/M, the gentle and the warm.