Wood, Screws, & Nails

This is a pretty straight forward May/December story. Aaron is a contractor, fixing up his own house with the help of his son, Julian, and Julian’s friend, Malachi. Aaron got his high school girlfriend pregnant, so though there is a considerable age gap (16 years), it isn’t that large. At this point, everyone is over 21 and well over the age of consent.
It becomes evident early on that Mal finds Aaron attractive, but Aaron tries to do the right thing and abstain. Temptation gets too much and much hot, hot sex ensues.
Meanwhile, Julian acts like an ass, discovers their secret and Aaron breaks up with Mal for the sake of doing the right thing, again.
But… Aaron doesn’t want to leave things as a painful ending and he tracks down Mal and a HFN is what we are left with.
**
I really liked the characters, Malachi especially. He was brave and hot and temptation on a stick. Aaron was a little less likable, mostly because I didn’t like how he let his son get away with acting like a douche so much of the time.
The sap in me wanted the story to end on more secure footing. We never really got to see them as an “out” couple, and it’s hard to judge the success of a relationship based on the hotness of the sex, but I got the impression that things looked optimistic for Mal and Aaron to make things work long term. Since this is the first in a series, maybe (hopefully!) we will see more of them over time.

It feels so great to read a story that although it deals with a complex subject matter, the authors manage to make it a light sensual read that leaves the reader wanting so much more from the characters.
I loved Malachi. I admired his integrity, his maturity and the way he let go of himself to explore his attraction to Aaron. Mostly I loved that his heart was in the right place and that he never lost his head.
Aaron was a great character too. You had to admired the great lengths he went to make his son a priority. It was great to see how frustrated he became when confronted with Malachi's presence. He tried so very hard to fight the attraction he felt to Malachi. But maybe if that was all they shared, it could have been easier. But it wasn't. Although his connection to Malachi progressed over the course of the story, it was always an ever present entity--taunting him, challenging him until he relented.
I have to hand it to the authors, their work was one packed full of the elements I have come to love from the genre. There was the deep connection that grew and strengthened with every interaction exchanged. The was the humor mixed in between and last but certainly not least were the emotions. From hesitation to acceptance all the way through joy and disappointment, the range in emotions was enough to bring forth the characters' state of mind to the surface without dragging the story down.
As for chemistry, well that you just have to experience for yourself. That first encounter alone had so much tension that it made worth all the anticipation I experienced until it happened. Hot. Very, very HOT!
All in all, a great romantic read with the unlikeliest of pairings but so very enjoyable.

I'm gonna fangirl here, I LOOOOOVE this book. Piper Vaughn is one of my few auto-buys, and this one didn't disappoint. The authors deliver a fantastic tale with great emotions, smokin' hot nookie, and the mother of all embarrassing scenes. OMG, I cringed in sympathy, my face red hot as I read it. Aaron and Malachi are an absolutely wonderful couple to read about. There was fun and feisty, sweet and smexy, and heart tugs galore. I highly recommend this book. I've read it three times already. And I hear a sequel is in the works! Woot! Yes, please. Gimme mooooaar!