Larry Myers is a busy guy--he's completing a residency in emergency medicine--with no time to date. He's content to hook up with guys he finds on Grindr, appreciating that there are no strings. But when he comes across a photo that moves him--Hazel Eyes--he finds himself compelled to want something more. The owner of those hazel eyes, Brandon Alcott, isn't any less busy with work himself. A programmer at a software company, he lives in his father's shadow and needs to work twice as hard as everyone else to be taken seriously. He agrees to meet Larry, expecting another random Grindr hookup, but can't help acknowledging that Larry might be right about something more. It's never as simple as just wanting it, though. Work isn't about to slow down for either of them. And Larry isn't out to his mother, who is living with cancer in a nursing home, adding a whole extra layer of complication to anything that might happen between the two of them. Can they make it work? And is a spark of connection worth the effort to see if it can turn into more of a flame?

These two guys...I don't even know where to begin. There's just something about them that I found instantly endearing. The writing here comes across as authentic, and it's very easy to get immersed in their story. They go through quite a bit in a short amount of time, but it serves to help them really understand what they want out of life and from each other.

This is the first I've read by A.J. Thomas, but I definitely foresee myself picking up more if this is any indication of what to expect... ( )