Solid friendship, the kind where you know your friend as well as yourself and can be honest about the good as well as the bad, is hard to come by. Clayton and Ronnie have that type of connection; they have been through a lot together, seen each other in the most difficult circumstances, and enjoy each other’s company. As well as they know the other though, that knowledge is limited to reactions and behaviors. As far as matters of the heart are concerned, Clay and Ronnie still have a lot to learn – about themselves as well as about the other. Thank you, Andrew, for a fascinating story of emotional development, unexpected change, and character growth.

Clay has always known he is gay, had the support of his parents when he came out, and has had his share of shorter and one longer relationship. He is currently single again, so when his best friend Ronnie suggest a little “stress release” of the sexual kind when they’re both exhausted after a visit to Clay’s father in the hospital, Clay is tempted enough to give in. After all, he has had a secret crush on Ronnie for years, and he isn’t exactly thinking clearly at that point.

What is even more surprising is that Ronnie doesn’t seem to want to accept that it was a one-time occurrence. Ronnie is curious, begins to discover he may not be into women as exclusively as he thought, and while he isn’t ready to come out and change everything about his life, he wants to know more. But the two men have never functioned as a couple, and Clay isn’t even sure that is what Ronnie wants. And what about the things Clay wants? He is determined not to be a “dirty secret on the side” but has no idea how it is all supposed to work. While he knows what he would like, he can also see that Ronnie may never be willing to go that far.

The experimentation, discussions, and events that follow are realistic, tough on both men, and come close to destroying their friendship more than once. Clay has very few friends he can talk to about what he is going through, and he makes more than one assumption about what Ronnie wants. Getting to the truth of what will work and make them both happy is hard work, and I was glued to the pages.

If you like character-driven stories, if you want to learn more about two men who go from best friends to more, and if you’re looking for a read that is emotionally intense, fascinating, and suspenseful, you will probably like this book as much as I do. A fascinating look deep into the hearts and minds of two men who never expected the discoveries they made along the way of changing and deepening their friendship to the point they become life partners.


NOTE: This book was provided by Dreamspinner Press for the purpose of a review on Rainbow Book Reviews. ( )