NOW OR NEVER BY HELENA STONE : RELEASE BLITZ & BOOK REVIEW
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Now or Never (The Blowhole #3) by Helena Stone
Karl’s carefully erected walls are crumbling. Giving up sex and relationships made perfect sense when he was eighteen. For a decade, he poured all his time and effort into his flourishing career. Doubts crept in the first time Karl met Leo and now, after two years of avoiding him, Karl is in charge of training Leo.
Leo loves his life in The Blowhole. Entertaining the guests during explicit shows under Roger’s guidance meets Leo’s needs and keeps his demons at bay. When Roger leaves, Leo’s job expands but he’s assigned to work with Karl, the General Manager who appears to detest him, and Leo’s anxiety blossoms. It wouldn’t be so bad if Leo hadn’t been attracted to Karl from the first moment he saw him.
Two men. A truck-load of insecurities and an attraction that can’t be denied. When the full horror of Leo’s past comes to light, will their fledgling connection be strong enough to weather the storm?
REVIEW
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
This is book 3 in the Blowhole series and can be read as a standalone. The first two have an m/f pairing and take place in the same setting.
The Blowhole is Ireland's largest all inclusive adult playground. Where your every fantasy will be fulfilled.
Karl is the general manager at the Blowhole and oversees the administrative part of the business.
He has never once ventured into the BDSM section of the resort or watched a single public demonstration. But here he was, captivated by the blond sub who stood there restrained by chains. Everything about him and the act was erotic, illicit and enthralling.
Karl wasn't a dominant and he definitely wasn't attracted to Leo, no matter how breathtaking he was, but he couldn't take his eyes off him for the entire performance.
Leo is passionate about his job, working in the dungeon section of the resort at Blowhole. When he gets an unexpected opening to take on the role of an assistant manager, he would be working in close quarters with Karl, a man bent on avoiding him at all costs.
A year ago, Karl experienced desires he never knew he had, after witnessing a performance of Leo in the dungeon. Now the beautiful blond has taken up a position working under him. He wants to keep their relationship professional but the intense attraction between them, is making it hard for him to resist.
Will Karl find it in himself to lower his barriers and acknowledge his desire for Leo or will kept secrets tear them apart first?
I just know you are what I need to make my life all it can be. You turned my never into a now, and I’m going to do what I can to make our now last a lifetime.
This was one steamy, hot read!
I loved the dynamics of the Blowhole and how everyone there is non judgemental and professional. It was interesting getting to read about the backstories of our characters. Karl and Leo were so intense together and their chemistry was off the charts.
If you like an age gap, hurt/comfort, opposites attract romance with light kink, this might interest you!
Karl approached the table, put the white ball on its spot, bent his large frame forward, and took his shot. Karl’s cue action was so powerful, the colored balls parted as if a fuse had been lit underneath them. Leo fully expected at least a few of them to disappear into the pockets, but much to his surprise, none went down.
“Your turn.” Karl stepped back from the table.
“I’m spoiled for choice.” Leo grinned as he got in position for his first shot. He picked his ball, pulled back his cue arm and gently rolled the red ball into the pocket behind it.
A few minutes later, after he’d pocketed all the solid colors as well as the winning black eight-ball, Leo straightened and turned to Karl, unable to keep himself from smirking.
“Fair enough.” Karl laughed. “That’s my arse well and truly handed to me.” He approached the table, gathered the balls and set them up for the next game. “No more Mister Nice Guy.”
It took all Leo had not to spray his mouth full of Bacardi and Coke across the room. Until recently ‘Mister Nice Guy’ would have been the last words he’d have used to describe Karl. Then again, the Karl he’d worked with these five past days had been kind, patient, and accommodating. If it hadn’t been for the few times Leo had caught Karl staring at him with a slight frown on his face, Leo would have thought he’d only imagined Karl’s remoteness in the past.
Afraid he’d lose himself in his mostly inexplicable thoughts again, Leo returned his glass to the shelf and approached the table. After he put chalk on the tip of the cue and made sure the white ball was in the right spot, Leo bent forward. For a moment he swayed, and he had to reposition his feet to get his balance right. Then he moved his arm back and gave it his all as he shot the white ball toward the triangle of colored and striped balls, fervently hoping at least one of them would go down.
“Damn.” No such luck. Leo turned around, fully expecting to find Karl smirking at him, only to find Karl’s gaze fixed on his…groin?
“Your turn.”
Karl raised his head and stared at Leo, clearly shocked by his brusque tone. Leo understood his surprise: he wasn’t sure where that sound had come from, either. The red flush on Karl’s cheeks, on the other hand, was unexpected.
Leo took a long drink from his glass as soon as he reached it before facing the table so he could watch Karl pot the first striped ball. Was he really looking at my package? Leo side-eyed his cocktail, wondering if it had been a drink too many after all. Surely there was no possible scenario in which Karl, the man known for never showing any sexual preference or interest, would be checking Leo out?
As Leo’s mind spun with unanswerable questions, Karl continued potting balls, one after the other. Just as Leo had in the previous game, he looked set to clear the table in one visit. Leo smiled. Karl was a worthy opponent.
“Fuck.” Karl whispered the word under his breath, but not too soft for Leo to hear him.
One glance at the table told Leo what Karl’s problem was. Karl only needed to pot the black in order to win. But, the white and the black ball were positioned in such a way that unless Karl shot the white at two or three cushions before hitting the black, it would take quite a stretch to make the shot.
Karl took up position next to the table and lifted his left leg, resting it on the edge, before bending at the waist and stretching.
Leo had meant to watch the shot. He’d had no intention of focusing on Karl, but he did, and his breath faltered for a moment. The material of Karl’s black pants gripped the thigh that rested on the table, showing the feint outline of muscles. And…Dear God…Karl’s arse was glorious under the stretched fabric.
Karl straightened and Leo snapped out of his daze. He threw a quick glance at the table and saw the black ball had disappeared. In the end he hadn’t even seen Karl make the shot. Because you were too busy admiring his arse. Leo almost groaned out loud when he remembered how he’d wriggled when he’d lined up his shot to start the game. Karl had been looking at an arse, too, which was at the same height as Leo’s groin. So when Leo had turned…
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Thank you for hosting me and for that wonderful review. That's my Monday made!
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