Flirting with his friend’s father was supposed to be just fun and games for Derek, but what happens when teasing leads to unexpected questions and some surprising curiosity?
Derek has known the unflappable Sean for years and nothing ever gets a reaction out of the attractive older man. Nothing, that is, until Derek senses some unexpected curiosity from the man he always thought was straight. But … straight. But who better than an adventurous switch to help Sean explore his wild side?
Sean knows better than to take Derek’s teasing seriously. There’s a reason he’s always called the impetuous younger man “the pest.” But when Derek’s playful banter leads to some interesting reactions, Sean has to decide what’s more important…hiding behind what he’s always assumed or finally getting to discover who he really was all along.
62k words
Story Contains: M/m sexual content, playful use of the term Daddy, BDSM elements, spanking, a mischievous switch, a fun adult toy store, and a man who always thought he was straight.
Author’s Note: There is no age play in this book, although Derek loves to drive Sean crazy about their age difference.
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This was the story of Derek showing his friend’s father all about loving a man and dipping his toe into the world of BDSM. I loved Derek and Sean! Derek was confident and fun and caring. Sean was open minded and willing to learn new things about himself and try new things. Together, they were sometimes funny and always loving and sexy.
The way both men treated Derek’s roommate Jules made me love them both even more. I can’t wait for Jules’ story. It was great spending more time with Ethan and Christopher from the Beautiful Shame series. Ethan is Sean’s son, and I loved seeing him embarrass his father as he tried to give him advice regarding his sex life. I laughed a lot here, and I loved all the tender moments, too. Considering that a vanilla straight man realized he was truly neither vanilla nor straight, this was really low angst and fun. Great story!
I love Sean’s journey of discovery and how Derrick is there for him and can work together to figure out what each of them need. I love how caring Sean is and not threatened by Derrick’s job or his relationship with his friends.
I listened to the audio version which was enjoyable and well done.
First off, I don’t read m/m. I’m a m/f or occasionally mfm reader. But I am devouring everything written by this author. Sweet romance and hot sex scenes (I’ll confess to a little mental translation to female anatomy but…shrugs). The characters are fun, warm, engaging. Well written, well edited. What a relief to get away from the seemingly required crazed exes, stalkers, abusers violence and angst. Give me romance and warm tingles.
The only way to live is a very good age gap story. Derek loves flirting with Sean his best friend’s father and always has. Though now he is all grown up and he is very attracted to the man. But not only will he have to see if the man is at least bi but could be interested in Derek’s lifestyle.
The characters are all so interesting, I think Jules stole my heart though and I can’t wait for his story. There is a lot going on and the story is fast-paced and interesting.
I will say though that I loved the narration and think Kenneth Obi brought this story and all the characters to life. He always adds so much excitement and really amps up the sex scenes. I adored his voice for Jules.
If you have been kinda interested in a bit of kink, some bondage, a little bit of littles and age play this is a nice soft intro.
If you like age-gap, age play, switches, gay for you, coming out and a good, sweet romance with kink this is for you!
Loved the quirky characters and the development of the relationship.
The Only Way to Live is the first book in the Mechanics of Love series by author M.A. Innes. This story is written in dual POV I love that can really get into both character’s mindset. I feel in this story, in particular, that is very important.
This is an age gap story. I love the age gap stories. And I will always pick those up first. Ms. Innes does a great job of bringing the emotional connection that is really needed to make this kind of story work.
Derek has is own store. He sells adult toys. I loved this character. He is open about who he is, he is proud of what he does, and he is soo kind. He has problems in his love life because he is a switch.
Sean is way more buttoned-up than Derek and needs Derek’s quirky sense of humor to lighten him up. I love that he is willing to try stuff he is a very open character.
He runs the local garage. When Derek starts flirting with him he starts noticing the younger man in a whole new light.
I adored the humor in this book just made it fun to read. I loved the characters. I cannot wait for more from this series in the future.
Five Shooting stars
Omg. Sean and Derek are beyond sweet, and I fell hard and fast. I loved how supportive and open Ethan was with Sean and the changes in his new life! This story was like a big warm comforting hug in the times of uncertainty. and I found it memorable and captivating. Looking forward to Jules and Frank. Too delicious not to anticipate it!!