Jarrod Hunter is desperate. He’s been let go from his minimum wage job, has no money for his rent, no phone, no prospects and no will to keep living. He steals a gun and bullets with the idea to commit suicide when he’s almost hit by a car.
Michael Vernon is the drunk driver of the car that almost hits Jarrod. He’s a spoiled 25 year-old rich boy who’s unemployed, lazy, a loafer who lives off his father’s money and hangs out with a bunch of useless friends.
When Michael screeches to a stop to avoid hitting him, Jarrod jumps in his car, points the gun at him and orders him to drive to Jarrod’s home where he becomes a hostage.
This book was one of the best gay love stories I’ve read. The character development was great. You can really feel Jarrod’s desperation just jumping off the pages. His wish for a job, any job and a better life is palpable. He doesn’t wish for the unattainable just for an average life. Michael’s character is so unlikable in the beginning he’s like a person you love to hate and you can’t wait for him to have his comeuppance. He can’t understand how this has happened to him when he’s always taken what he wants or had it given to him.
The relationship that develops between the two is interesting as they struggle with feelings of attraction, hate, lust, and confusion and even eventually love. They are both perplexed by their mutual liking of each other even in this bizarre situation. How they find their way to love is well written with each character working through different emotions. For Jarrod it’s mainly guilt because he’s never done something wrong, he knows this is wrong and it just gets worse when he starts to like Michael. Michael does a lot of growing up. He finally understands that he has to change his life, that he’s actually lucky not entitled to have money, he comes to terms with being gay and when no one misses him while he’s gone he realizes he needs to make real connections with people not just have drinking and sex buddies.
This is a well-paced story with a great plot line, satisfying love scenes and a happy ending. Well worth the time to read and enjoy!
