Fire and Hail Carlisle Cops Book 5
M/M Romance
Dreamspinner Press
January 16, 2017
210
Reviewed by: Linda Tonis
Member of the Paranormal Romance Review Team
Brock Ferguson is the newest member of the Carlisle Police Department and as such he is assigned traffic duty. When he stops a speeding car he is shocked to be looking into the face of his ex Vincent Geraldini. Brock and Vincent were lovers in college but at the time Vincent was unwilling to reveal he was gay to his family and so he left Brock. Brock never fully got over Vincent’s leaving and now he finds him back in Carlisle.
Vincent was as shocked as Brock and old feelings came back. He knew that he left Brock rather than reveal who and what he was and now that he is openly gay he knows that he has burned his bridges where Brock is concerned. Unknown to both men a traffic stop would change their lives.
When a call came through about a Corvette with two women inside and two children locked in the trunk Brock stopped the car and when he opened the trunk he was met with two sets of eyes that broke his heart. There was a two year old girl named Penny and her five year old brother Abey. It seems that their mother wanted to ride in her friend’s new car and without a backseat or car seats she decided to put them in the trunk. The first face they saw and the first person to help them was Brock and they immediately trusted him. It is Donald and Carter one of the couples we met previously that came to the rescue. Donald agreed to take the children in until things were settled with their mother trying to limit their distress and knowing that Brock had built a trust with them.
All of what happened was totally heartbreaking to Brock but when it was discovered that Vincent was their uncle and seeing his reaction to them made Brock see him in a completely different light. Vincent is more than ready to take on the responsibility of caring for his niece and nephew and leaving him bewildered as to his sister’s actions. He knew she was not well and made poor decisions in addition to using drugs but leaving her two children alone in a dark trunk was beyond his belief.
They say that it takes a village to raise a child and in this case it was true, Donald, Carter and Brock all take a role in helping Vincent and the kids and before long the kids begin to adjust even though they constantly ask for their mother. I guess a mother is a mother no matter how bad she may be.
Of course it would be so wonderful if everything worked out as we hoped, the kids have a loving uncle and have friends, in addition to having Brock who they love but things rarely go smoothly especially when dealing with children and the court’s desire to have then live with their natural parents. There is also trouble with someone from Brock’s past and it is certainly a case of “it’s a small world” because his ex is involved with more than just him.
Brock and Vincent begin to reconnect since the love they had for each other never died but now they are grown up and different and Vincent has two young children to care for. Can they stay together and be a family? If life were only so simple.
With most of Mr. Grey’s books my emotions revolve around one or more of the main characters and what was done to them by their loved ones because they were gay, however in this book all my emotions were for the children who were absolutely amazing. I also wonder who is looking out for the children since they always seem to fall through the cracks and this is a book that will tug at your hearts. There is explicit M/M sex but also a loving story of two children in need of a home filled with love.
**2017 Paranormal Romance Guild Reviewer’s Choice Award Winner**
3rd place LGBT/ROMANCE
