At First Touch by T.A. Chase and Devon Rhodes

18054624Title:  At First Touch

Series:  International Men of Sports, Book #3

Author:  T. A. Chase and Devon Rhodes

Genre:  Gay/Multicultural/Athletes

Length:  Novella (65 pages)

Publisher:  Total-E-Bound Publishing (August 9th, 2013)

Heat Level: Hot

Heart Rating:♥♥♥♥ 4 Hearts

Reviewer:  Laurie

Blurb:  Excelling at the game he loved was everything to King, until Lukas showed him at first touch how much better his life could be…
Ewansiha ‘King’ Kroenig is at the pinnacle of his professional football career, even with a problem knee. He keeps his cool and keeps his head down, and that control has served him well. King is bisexual and has been known to date beautiful women, while he also occasionally satisfies his craving for men with the team’s trainer. It’s a good life, but starting with one bizarre and personal request from his ex, Silvia, his orderly life goes spinning out of control.

Lukas has no problem admitting he’s gay, but with a loudly homophobic team captain, he knows better than to go there around the team. He has his whole career ahead of him and is being groomed to take over for their star player, King Kroenig. If he admires King for more than his athletic prowess, what can it hurt?

No harm, no foul…until a certain trainer who knows them both well decides to play matchmaker, then all bets are off. And once they’ve experienced that first taste, they want more. But it’s not as simple as hooking up or dating when you’re team-mates, with high profiles and little privacy. And when they each suddenly gain responsibilities they never expected, they must figure out a way to reconcile their personal lives with the expectations of others.

Purchase Link: http://www.total-e-bound.com/product.asp?P_ID=2277

Review:  Let’s start by saying that as an American when I hear football, I think of our version of it. Not the football most of the rest of the world plays. And this book is about the version the rest of the world plays. The references to the football are generic enough for non-sports people to understand most of.

I love how the authors have addressed homophobia that still exists within the world of sports, professional sports especially. King Kroenig is actually bi-sexual, always having one of the world’s most beautiful women on his arm. He keeps the need for the occasional man well hidden. He knows that most of his team just wouldn’t understand and he’s afraid of what it would do to his career if that knowledge came out. While the team’s trainer Sergio is gay, nothing is ever confirmed so the team doesn’t seem to have a real problem with it. King and Sergio have scratched each other’s itches on occasions unknown to the team. However, King has his eye on a teammate; too bad, he can’t do anything about it.

Teammate Lukas is gay; he and Sergio have also scratched a few itches between them. Therefore, Sergio reads Lukas’ lusting from afar after King. But Lukas believes the man is straight, so from afar is all it’s ever going to be. Also, he doesn’t want to deal with the ugliness that would happen if his homophobe Captain found out he was gay. So, nothing is ever going to happen unless Lukas gets a little help from his friendly know everyone’s secrets team trainer. Which Sergio is more than happy to set up for them.

Added complications arise when one of King’s ex-girlfriends want him to make a donation to expand the numbers of her family with her steady girlfriend.  Also added to the mix also it the teen kid Lukas rescue from the gay club the guys go to and takes him home. Lukas is going to let the kid stay as long as he needs to or forever he hopes.

Things become a mixed up mess between the set up of King and Lukas, a needy teenage boy, sperm donations, an ex-girlfriend and her ladylove, a gay trainer, homophobic teammates, camera phone pictures and injuries. It’s a fun mix to read and sort though. I loved the characters or most of them anyway. This was a great read, very enjoyable for me a sports fan.