3.5 stars ( )

Wow. I finished reading this last night, I thought it was a good 4 star book. This morning, when I woke up and realized that I still can't get it out of my head, I realized just how much more awesome it was. Colby and Noah really stuck with me and were perfect together. What could seem like it would be a far fetched story (Colby is obsessed with Noah at 15 and seeks him out when he turns 18 to then find Noah is better than he imagined) was so well written that it was believable. Everything the characters did was so consistent and true to their core personalities. The changes in Noah were so subtle that they smacked him upside the head. He thought he was in control of everything and learned that wasn't the case at all. Colby was so patient and understanding. For Colby being the younger guy chronologically, he was clearly so much more mature, patient, and understanding than you would expect.
I was rooting for these two and I am happy to see them work it all out. I really can't wait to read the next book! ( )

3.5 ( )

While this is an excellent D/s story, with Colby and Noah slowly learning each of their roles, it is also so much more as it shows how each of these men defines love as well as how they see relationships. I loved the slow, almost unnoticeable, transformation the somewhat rough around the edges Noah goes through, all caused by Colby's unerring belief that they belong together. It wasn't what I expected, but I think it was very romantic (totally between the lines) and rather sweet.

Colby is something else. He is fifteen when he first notices Noah, a dancer who owns the studio across the street from where he lives. He is determined to make the man notice him, only to be told he is too young once he does. But Colby's determination knows no bounds, he is patient, and so he goes to collect on Noah's promise to talk to him, so to speak, when he's legal. Colby loves what they do together even more than he imagined, and his quiet determination and belief in Noah is his strongest ally in the fight for more than a simple arrangement as f*ck buddies. I loved him as he never gives up and, in many ways, shows that he is much more mature than Noah.

Noah has had a tough life. Rejected by his family because he is gay, forced to work in questionable clubs and used by the man he works for, he has barely managed to finally get his own life in order when young and naïve Colby turns up and seems to expect way more from him than he is willing to give. He is not interested in a relationship, but somehow it seems he cannot avoid it. It takes a final confrontation with who he was versus who he is now for him to realize what is really important.

Colby is such a natural sub that Noah's inner Dom cannot help but respond to him. At first he believes this is limited to the physical side of what they do, but interestingly enough, it proves the key to their emotional state as well as how they end up solving their issues. The way Colby uses pleas and requests rather than demands is not only very sexy, it also makes Noah realize a few truths about himself. Totally fascinating!

If you like stories about relationships that start out as physical before they grow into more, if you enjoy reading about BDSM and its underlying psychology, and if you're looking for a read that is as hot and exciting as it is sweet, then you will probably like this novella as much as I did.


NOTE: This book was provided by the author for the purpose of a review on Rainbow Book Reviews.
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The MCs were a little off in this one. Noah's actions/personality seemed contradictory, and I think that kept me from really feeling any connection between him and Colby. I understand that Noah's past made him the way he is esp the not having relationships part, but I didn't get the Noah being dominant with Colby, but then calling him Darling or Sweetheart. I guess it's my own stereo-type issue, but I can't see a guy dominating another guy, then calling him Darling. And I couldn't decide if Noah was being condescending to Colby when he called him those names. ( )