Nothing beats
getting out of the concrete jungle and into the quiet of the forest. Website
designer Scottie Ness is taking a well-deserved vacation from the grindstone,
and he plans to spend it in the solitude of Washington’s Gifford Pinchot
National Forest around Mt. Adams. He’s prepared for everything—except the
lightning storm that traps him in a wildfire.
The firefighter
who rescues him sustains serious injuries and ends up in the hospital. Jax
Quintero might be abrasive, but the guy saved his life, and Scottie wants to
thank him. As they spend time together during Jax’s recovery and exploring the
state’s landmarks when he’s released from the hospital, Scottie discovers there’s
more to Jax than a smart-ass adrenaline junkie. Jax reassesses his opinion of
Scottie as an arrogant city boy who has no business in the mountains. Though
Jax’s wounds prevent them from taking things as far as they’d like for a while,
they can’t deny the heat building between them—and this is one fire they don’t
want to put out.
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Cat gives this one 4 Meows with a 3 Purr heat index...
Scotty is a computer worker that loves to hike and take pictures. He dreams of making coffee table books of mountain photos. There is a lot to take pictures of in Washington where he lives.He didn't know there were threats of a wildfire when he mapped out his vacation plans
Jax and his team of firefighters are on the last leg of their over time mission. They have set their backfire to turn the fire around when they get word of a camper not accounted for and have to find him. Jax is angry at the stupid hiker for putting them all at risk but can't help but like him after he gets to know him.
I liked this story. There was a lot going on for a short story. I loved Jax and Scotties slow build from friends to lovers. The first part of the book had the action of the fire then we had the healing and romance. I loved all the characters. There were some interesting men in Jax's team, and Scotty had a good friend as well. The descriptions were fantastic. I felt like I was hiking with Scotty and on tour with them when they went to Seattle.
I would like to see more of Scotty and Jax and also find out what happened with all of Jax's friends especially Dave.
If you like computer nerds, nature, hikes, hot firemen, heroes, friends to lovers, and some hot romance, I think you will like this.
Excerpt...
“WHAT EXOTIC tropical locale are you going to spend your vacation drunk in?” Carter leaned back in his chair so he could see into Scottie’s cubicle. He smirked. “Or are you hitting the casinos in Vegas to make your fortune and leave all of us to toil away in the trenches alone?”
“Neither. Hiking and camping in the Gifford Pinchot around Mt. Adams.” Scottie adjusted a line of code, and the website header widened. “I’m all set to go in the morning.”
“Seriously? You have a week off in August, and you’re going to waste it trudging through the dirt and pine trees when you could be lounging on the beach somewhere?” Carter shook his head. “Wouldn’t catch me doing that. Aren’t there bears and cougars up there?”
Scottie shrugged one shoulder. “I might see a bear, if I’m lucky. Cougars are actually pretty shy.”
“You want to see a bear?”
“It’d make a great picture.” The website he was working on needed to be visually appealing on both computers and mobile devices, and he was having a hard time focusing. “It’s Friday. Don’t you have some reason to duck out and start the weekend early?”
“Nope. Miranda, Tark, and I are all going out for happy hour at Corrigan’s, but not until six. Don’t try to change the subject. You know you can take pictures at the beach, right? White sand, crystal blue water, and palm trees swaying in front of the setting sun.”
“Dime a dozen. I like living in Washington because we have so many places where I can take beautiful nature photos. Coastline, rivers, lakes, mountains, even the desert, all within a few hours’ drive. Besides, I’m still paying off my student loans. I don’t have money for expensive vacations.”
“Two words. Credit cards.”
Of course. Carter wore name-brand shoes with his fancy suits and never brought a lunch, preferring to order takeout. He’d graduated a year before Scottie, so it wasn’t like he made that much more money. “One word. Stupid.”
Carter rolled his eyes. “Whatever, man. When I take my week off next month, I’m going to Hawaii. Hotel on the beach, coconut drinks, and chicks in bikinis. Any women you come across in the campground will probably be covered in pitch and pine needles.”
“I’m not going to stay in the campgrounds. I’m hiking and camping off the trails, and for the most part, I won’t see any people at all.”
A look of horror crossed Carter’s face. “Seriously?”
He nodded. “I used to go camping with my family all the time growing up. We’d hike, fish, roast hot dogs and marshmallows over the fire. It’s peaceful.”
“Whatever, man. When you get munched on by a bear, can I get your chair?”
It was Scottie’s turn to roll his eyes. “I’m not going to get eaten by a bear, and your chair is the same as mine. Why would you want it?”
“I spilled fish sauce on mine earlier this week, and now it smells funny.”
“Well you can’t have my chair, and I’ll notice if there’s a fish funk on mine when I get back, so don’t even try to switch them. Don’t you have a project to finish? I have to get this done before I leave.”
“Fine, fine.” Carter rolled back to his desk. “Have fun communing with wildlife.”
The number one
question folks ask Alicia when she shares she's a MM romance author: "Why
gay fiction? Why write men when you're a woman?" and her answer is:
"Why the hell not!" Alicia Nordwell is one of those not so rare
creatures, a reader turned writer. Striving to find an interesting story one day,
she decided to write what she wanted instead. Then the voices started... Yep,
not only does she talk about herself in the third person for bios, she has
voices in her head constantly clamoring to get out. Fortunately, with the
encouragement of her family and friends, she decided for her own sanity to keep
writing.
Now you can find
her stories both free and e-published. When she’s not on the computer typing
away, she's a wife and a mom of two in the dreary, yet ideal for her redhead
complexion, Pacific Northwest. Except for when she disappears into one of the
many worlds in her head, of course! She can also be found quite often at her
blog, where she has a lot of free fiction for readers to enjoy or working hard,
or maybe hardly working, as an admin on GayAuthors.org under her online
nickname, Cia.
Social media:
Cia’s Stories: http://www.ciasstories.blogspot.com
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/alicia.nordwell
Twitter: https://twitter.com/AliciaNordwell
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Thank you for the excerpt and review. It sounds like an interesting read just from the blurb.
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Congrats on the new release! I haven't read this series yet but I have it in my TBR list. Thanks for the review as well.
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