In Case of Emergency by Keira Andrews
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After years alone, Daniel Diaz is finally ready to shake up his orderly, solitary life. He’s about to leave for a cozy Christmas getaway with his new man when he gets the call from the ER that his former stepbrother has been admitted with a concussion and a broken hand—and Cole put him down as his emergency contact. Why the hell would he do that? Daniel barely knows the guy. After all, their parents’ marriage lasted less than a year and it was a decade ago!
But Cole has no one else to look after him and strict doctor’s orders not to be left alone. So fine, Daniel will bring him along on vacation to make sure he doesn’t starve or fall into a coma. This is supposed to be Daniel’s chance to explore romance again after locking down his feelings for too long—except it turns out his could-be boyfriend is more interested in partying and being an obnoxious jerk. Daniel sends him packing, and now he’s stuck with a virtual stranger in an isolated mountain cabin.
Cole Smith crushed hard on cranky Daniel when they were teenagers. Alone with him in a romantic winter wonderland, those feelings roar back to life. Glimpsing the caring, vulnerable man under Daniel’s frosty shell, he yearns to get closer. Christmas is a time for surprises, and Daniel and Cole discover a scorching connection that just might melt their hearts.
This fluffy gay Christmas romance from Keira Andrews features former stepbrothers reconnecting as adults, sexy hot-tub shenanigans, cuddling by the fire, and of course a happy ending.
Review – 4.5 stars
These characters were likable from the very beginning. Daniel has a job as HR Director that he doesn’t entirely love but he takes it very seriously with a fair amount of self-satisfaction with his position. His focus on work is so intent that even Daniel knows that he has no work/life balance. Pam, his best friend jokes that he “is cold and dead inside” convincing him that he really needs to work on that. Daniel is coerced into attending a workshop with Pam her on the topic of changing one’s cadence. Ha! Determined to give it a try, Daniel makes a plan to take a vacation over the holidays with a new love interest, the handsome, spontaneous and exuberant Justin. In one regard, Daniel can’t figure out what all the fuss is about since he has never been sexually attracted to anyone based on appearance and certainly never wanted intimacy with a stranger but he is willing to spend the time to see if there is a connection. Daniel’s vacation plans take an abrupt turn when he is notified that his former step-brother, who he hadn’t seen for 10 years, has been in an accident. Here we meet Cole, the younger, somewhat nerdy, former, once-upon-a-time brother – for six months when Daniel was in high school and Cole, maybe about 13.
Now the story really gets super cute. Daniel is very focused on doing the right thing and even though he has plans and hasn’t seen Cole for ten years, he isn’t about to leave him alone over the holidays with his injuries. When he makes a decision he sticks with it and he decided to take Cole with him to his vacation chalet. Cole has had a crush on Daniel forever and while he doesn’t want to intrude, he couldn’t be happier about spending some quality time with Daniel. At the chalet, surprises await them. Some good but many not so entertaining.
This is a perfect story for anytime, not just during the holidays and I’m a sucker for a real love story where caring is everything. Sure enough, I looked to see what else this author has to pull me out of the post-holiday doldrums. This one is a true gift!