Title: Fire and Ice
Author: Andrew Grey
Series: Carlisle Cops (Book 2)
Genre: M/M
Contemporary Romance
Publisher: Dreamspinner Press
Release Date: May 2015
Edition/Formats Available In: eBook & Print
Blurb/Synopsis:
Carter Schunk is a dedicated police officer with a difficult
past and a big heart. When he’s called
to a domestic disturbance, he finds a fatally injured woman, and a child, Alex,
who is in desperate need of care. Child Services is called, and the last man on
earth Carter wants to see walks through the door. Carter had a fling with
Donald a year ago and found him as cold as ice since it ended.
Donald (Ice) Ickle has had a hard life he shares with no
one, and he’s closed his heart to all. It’s partly to keep himself from getting
hurt and partly the way he deals with a job he’s good at, because he does what
needs to be done without getting emotionally involved. When he meets Carter again, he maintains his
usual distance, but Carter gets under his skin, and against his better
judgment, Donald lets Carter guilt him into taking Alex when there isn’t other
foster care available. Carter even offers to help care for the boy.
Donald has a past he doesn’t want to discuss with anyone,
least of all Carter, who has his own past he’d just as soon keep to himself.
But it’s Alex’s secrets that could either pull them together or rip them
apart—secrets the boy isn’t able to tell them and yet could be the key to happiness
for all of them.
“It’s okay,” Carter soothed. He parked the car and hurried
around, opened the door, and unhooked Alex from the seat belt. Then he pulled
him out of the car and into his arms. He was shaking like a leaf. “There’s
nothing to be afraid of.”
Alex looked up at the building and shook in Carter’s arms. A
car pulled in behind them, and Donald got out and strode over to where they
were standing. “He’s mean,” Alex whispered as Donald stepped closer to them.
“No, he’s not. He’s just—” Carter smiled. “—grumpy.” He
tickled Alex slightly, and Alex giggled and wrapped his arms around Carter’s
neck.
“I’m professional, not grumpy,” Donald said and walked
toward the front door of the hospital.
Carter followed along behind. “He is grumpy,” he said to
Alex and walked inside.
Donald was already at the desk, and after a few minutes, he
returned and motioned them to the chairs. “We need to wait, but it shouldn’t be
long. I used your name as well.”
Carter looked at the woman behind the desk, and she smiled
brightly at him. He sighed and sat down. Alex stayed on his lap, and Donald sat
next to him. They didn’t talk, but every few minutes Donald shifted nervously.
Carter kept his attention on Alex, but every few minutes he couldn’t help
taking a peek at Donald in his suit and tie, all buttoned up.
Carter knew the exquisite body that lay hidden under those
clothes. He and Donald had… well, they’d had a fling, a one-night stand that
had ended up stretching out over an entire weekend a year earlier. It had been
hot, sweaty, and Carter had thought well worth repeating as many times as
possible, but obviously Icicle hadn’t. As soon as the weekend was over, Carter
realized just why everyone referred to him as Ice, because Carter didn’t just
get the cold shoulder; he’d had his nuts frozen off completely.
“You can go on through,” a nurse said when she came out to
get them. Carter stood and followed her, still carrying Alex.
“I can take him. There’s no need for you to spend your
entire evening here with him,” Donald said and carefully reached for Alex. He
didn’t try to bite him again, but he most definitely was not happy, and after a
few moments, he simply began to cry. Not whimpers, but out and out wailing,
with tears of desperation.
“It’s all right. I’ll stay with him. Maybe he’ll calm down.”
Alex practically jumped away from Donald and back into Carter’s arms. That
seemed to settle things, and they walked together to an examining room.
Carter laid Alex on the bed and hoped he’d stay there.
Thankfully it seemed comfortable enough, and Alex stayed still. Carter found
the switch and dimmed the lights. Alex yawned, and Carter held his hand.
Eventually the little guy fell asleep. “I have no idea how long he’s been
awake.”
Inside the Mind of Carter…
Carter is a very interesting person and I really fell in
love with him. He has a heart of gold
and is willing to put aside his own past hurt and reservations in order to help
see to it that Alex is safe and that includes putting up with Donald, the ice
king. In this story, I did something I
rarely do, Carter and Donald have a past together and not a very successful
one. (They don’t call Donald Icicle for
nothing.) However for Carter there are
things more important than his own feeling and insecurities. I guess that’s what I liked about him the
most. Carter is able to put aside his
own feeling and needs in favor of someone else.
Alex’s needs were of a much higher priority, so he put them ahead of his
own.
Being a police officer, Carter has seen things that most of
us can’t imagine and a lot of people would back away and try to isolate
themselves form that pain and hurt. Not
Carter, he puts himself out there and is willing to take a chance, even one
that could get him hurt, just on the possibility that he can help someone. In short, there’s a lot of heroism in
Carter. True heroism and I’d like to
think that Carter’s kind of heroism exists in many places and in many people in
our lives. He’s a regular guy, doing a
difficult job because he wants to help make the world a better place. Who doesn’t want someone like that in their
life?
Andrew grew up in
western Michigan with a father who loved to tell stories and a mother who loved
to read them. Since then he has lived throughout the country and traveled
throughout the world. He has a master’s degree from the University of
Wisconsin-Milwaukee and works in information systems for a large corporation.
Andrew’s hobbies include collecting antiques, gardening, and
leaving his dirty dishes anywhere but in the sink (particularly when writing) He considers himself blessed with an
accepting family, fantastic friends, and the world’s most supportive and loving
partner. Andrew currently lives in beautiful, historic Carlisle, Pennsylvania.
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