Reviewed by Tammy

TITLE: Admissible Behavior

SERIES: Marked Men #2

AUTHOR: Jenna Byrnes

PUBLISHER: Pride Publishing

LENGTH: 181 pages            

RELEASE DATE: February 28, 2017

BLURB:

Take one smart, sexy lawyer with tattoos covering his body. Add a macho, handsome Texan with a liquid-gold accent and enough hang-ups to drive a lawyer to commit a crime.

When Alex West told his parents he was gay they said, “Okay. What do you want for supper?” He grew into a happy, well-adjusted man and a sharp-as-a-tack lawyer. He has it all—except someone to call his own. Meeting Kyle Harbor for the first time, lots of thoughts run through his mind. Most of them dirty. Finally, someone sexy and available, and what a catch.

Kyle Harbor grew up with a homophobic father who spent years convincing him what ‘real men’ did and didn’t do. They definitely didn’t fool around with one another, and Kyle got a summer at Bible Camp to convince him. Married for nearly twenty years, he finally decided his beautiful wife deserved better and divorced her. Now he’s looking for love in all the wrong places when he stumbles upon Alex and sparks fly. Can he battle his demons from the past, or is their relationship doomed before it even gets a chance?

Reader Advisory: This book contains references to homophobically motivated physical child abuse, some brief references to drug use, one brief reference to gang rape, and implications of a ‘gay conversion program’ in backstory.

REVIEW:

Alex West is addicted to tattoos he has seventy-seven and counting! Just because Alex is a lawyer doesn’t mean he can’t enjoy decorating his body with art, his way. It doesn’t hurt that Alex happens to be one of the best lawyers in his field. Alex is gay and proud of it, he doesn’t shout it from the rooftops but he also doesn’t hide it in any way.

Kyle Harbor is half owner of Harbor-White Construction Company, his partner is Lucinda White the widow of his best friend and former partner Sydney. Kyle and “Cinda” are building a big housing development in downtown Chicago but they’ve hit a snag. The Historical Society of Downtown Chicago has bought an injunction against them, with the hopes of getting the development stopped because it will compete with one of the business owners in the area! Since they can’t carry long delays Kyle and Cinda employ Alex to fight the charges.

When Alex and Kyle meet for the first time there is an instant attraction on both sides but Kyle is still living in denial and refuses to acknowledge anything even though he divorced his wife because he could no longer live a lie. Whereas Alex hasn’t had a relationship or even a date in months Kyle has gone a little bit wild and visits clubs and rent boys almost nightly. When Kyle was in the seventh grade, his father caught him “carrying on” with one of his football teammates and because he was the sheriff of the small town they lived in people followed his lead. Not only did Kyle never see his friend again he got some sense beaten into him with a belt and spent a summer at Bible Camp. Because of this, Kyle got married out of high school and had a daughter.

Alex is so taken with Kyle he finds it very hard to stay away, it doesn’t help that Kyle is sending mixed messages. Whenever they get close Kyle gets cold feet and pulls away. It takes Alex a long time to get Kyle to confide him about the reason behind his confusing behavior but when he does Alex goes all out to convince Kyle there is nothing wrong with being gay! It takes Kyle even longer to admit to himself, Cinda {although she always knew!}, his ex-wife and his daughter that he is a gay man who is in love with another man. Kyle’s father traumatized him something fierce with his homophobic attitude and behavior whilst he was growing up so of course he’s not going to forget those lessons in a hurry!

Admissible Behavior is a fantastic second book in Jenna’s Marked Men series. It has everything romance, angst, denial as well as shock and dare I say horror when Kyle’s ex-wife finds out the truth. Please, don’t wait to get your copy! If you haven’t read the first book Acceptable Behavior, I urge you strongly to get a copy, sit down and start reading!!

RATING:  

BUY LINKS: 

Pride Publishing

Amazon