Loving the Boss By: Shawn Lane Series: Loving Book Number: 1 Star Rating: Sensuality Rating:

Purchase Amazon Barnes&Noble

Spoiler Disclaimer

Synopsis

Alan Sommers enjoys his job as legal assistant to Kincaid Malloy. Alan comes into work early every day to make sure Kincaid's coffee is made and his office is prepped before he arrives. Alan has loved Kincaid from afar for a long time, but Kincaid lost his longtime partner to cancer not long before Alan started working for him. After three years though, Alan figures Kincaid isn't interested in a guy like him until Kincaid asks him to pet and house sit for him while he's away at a conference. Alan is happy to oblige, and when Kincaid comes home from his trip early, Alan is surprised by what the other man has to tell him.

Review

Loving the Boss is a sweet and sexy, M/M romance novelette. The characters are likable and the story was quite enjoyable. Alan is a very conscientious employee, always arriving for work early to have his boss's favorite coffee prepared and his office arranged just so. I got the sense that he was a hard worker regardless, but part of the reason he does these things is because he's been in love with his boss from afar for nearly the entire three years he's worked for him. He just doesn't really expect anything to come of it. The entire story is told from Alan's third-person perspective, so we only get to know Kincaid through his eyes. Kincaid is an attorney who lost his partner, Ben, to cancer not long before Alan came to work for him. I thought it was sweet that even though Ben was really the animal person, Kincaid kept all of the animals after he died, and it's quite the menagerie. When Kincaid finally admits to himself that he's fallen for Alan, it led to a nice steamy scene. There aren't any unrealistic declarations of love, which is oftentimes a deal-breaker in a romance, but sometimes actions speak louder than words. I could still feel an emotional connection between these two, and this along with them having known and been attracted to one another so long, made me believe that they definitely had a future together.

This was my first read by Shawn Lane, but certainly won't be my last. Loving the Boss is the first story in her Loving series. It introduces Alan's best friend, Lorrie, who becomes one of the heroes in the next novelette, Loving the Assistant. I'll definitely be checking that one out, as well as Shawn Lane's other work. It appears that Ms. Lane has only written short stories and novellas so far, but she definitely has a talent for it. Her writing in general is quite solid, telling a satisfying story within a short space with few technical errors. All in all, Loving the Boss was a very pleasant way to spend an hour of my reading time.

Note: This book contains a scene of explicit sensuality between two men which may offend some readers.

Visit

Shawn Lane

Themes

Amazing Animals