Reviewed by Taylin
TITLE: Rescue Me 
SERIES: Under The Uniform #2
AUTHOR: T.A. McKay
PUBLISHER: Aubergine Publishing
LENGTH: 145 pages
RELEASE DATE: July 12, 2018
BLURB:
Sometimes the universe puts you in the right place at the right time, but you can’t always see it at the time. When River Bennett is attacked by a group of men, he can’t see anything good coming out of it. That is until the policeman who rescued him appears at the hospital to interview him.
Madden Sanders.
River had spent his youth lusting over his one-time best friends brother, but when life split them apart, he didn’t think he would see either of them again. Yet here Madden is, standing in front of River in a police uniform and looking better than he did back in high school.
Madden can’t believe that it’s little River Bennett that he’s just saved from being seriously hurt. He remembers his little brother’s best friend, and he also remembers the things he used to imagine about him. When those same feelings come back, it confuses Madden, especially since he has a boyfriend. That doesn’t stop the pull between the men, and when friendship threatens to become more, Madden will need to decide what to do.
The only problem is that when he decides, Madden then needs to prove to River he doesn’t see him as less. He doesn’t see him as weak. What he actually sees is the man of his dreams, but will River ever believe him? Will River let Madden see behind the mask where he hides?
And when the universe puts them in the right place again, will they be able to work out who is rescuing who?
REVIEW:
Rescue Me is a simple short tale of two men, who, as children fancied the shit out of each other, but several problems lay in their path. River was the best friend of Madden’s younger brother, Denny. There was four years age difference, which in their youth, would have put Madden in prison. Also, at that age one didn’t date anyone who wasn’t in their year at school. Then there was the little problem that River believed Madden was straight.
As adults, River’s physique was not that of a muscled bloke. It was more feline. Not that he had claws. River was used to being beaten up regularly. But he had a sharp tongue that could hiss with the best. Sadly, over the years that side of River had been shoved into a shell.
Since Denny left him to go to music school, River had been drifting. One night after yet another beating, the police officer that rescued him was Madden. Each was shocked to see the other, but it was a shock that rekindled old desires. These desires were not helped by the knowledge that Madden had a boyfriend, albeit their relationship was strained. Madden was no cheater.
I picked up this book at the Shimmer Author event in Birmingham, and thought, I’d just read a couple of pages before coming back to it after I’ve finished my current book. Yeah, that didn’t happen – I couldn’t put it down. I don’t know if it was a case of, it fit the bill of my mood or my penchant for friends to lovers’ stories. It’s been a long time since I read an actual paperback and I’d forgotten what a lovely experience it is. Most of the reading I do is on Kindle, but there’s special something in the process of turning a page, then realizing how much one has read by looking at your bookmark instead of reading the percentage complete.
The story is told in the first person from Madden and River’s pov’s with whole chapters under their voices. There is a little bit of overlap in the tale, but it is minimal and timely. The flow is lovely too, leaving sex to the imagination where appropriate and explicit where needed – neither is in excess and compliments the story.
Their journey progresses at a pace that is neither rushed nor dawdled and doesn’t get caught up in unnecessary scene setting. The tale isn’t restricted to just Madden and River – it deals with the issues between River and Denny, and the sense of abandonment it left. With some aptly timed drama, too, this short story ticked all my boxes. I enjoyed Rescue Me so much that I stayed in the car to read, leaving my husband to do the shopping on his own – I helped to pack it in the car.
RATING: 
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