Rating: 4 ‘Max and Anders’ Stars

Publisher: Portia Blake

Genre: Gay Romance

Tags: Contemporary, Fake Relationship, First Time, Kids, Opposites Attract, Romance, Royalty

Length: 145 Pages

Reviewer: Cindi

Purchase At: Amazon

Blurb –

I wasn’t planning to get fake-engaged to a king. Cowboys and royals don’t usually mix.

Christmas was supposed to be quiet: me, my kid, and as many holiday decorations that I can fit in our house.

Then I walked into the wrong room for a contracting job interview, and now the tabloids think I’m His Majesty’s new fiancé. Apparently, he was looking for a scandalous fake relationship to keep from getting matchmaked, and when he saw me, he assumed I was the scandal.

One look in his desperate eyes, and I know I can’t leave him hanging. The man just came out. I can’t let him lose face in front of the world.

Next thing I know, me and my son are flying to his snowy Scandinavian kingdom.

He’s a widower and single dad just like me, but he’s also polished, proper, and wears suits that cost more than my truck.

Still, when he looks at me under the mistletoe, this doesn’t feel like pretend.

Review –

Glen is a contractor in Mistletoe Springs, Nevada. He’s a good old country boy. He wears a cowboy hat, speaks the lingo (not always a good thing as far as this particular southern girl is concerned), and he lives a relatively simple life. He’s in the middle of hanging mistletoe near a big Christmas tree in the airport lounge when King Erik of Solberg, the smallest Scandivanian kingdom, arrives with his son, long-time advisor, and bodyguards. With all the excitement of royalty arriving, somebody bumps the ladder Glen is on and he’s falling through a glass window, bringing the Christmas tree and ornamants with him. Of course King Erik notices him. When their eyes meet, there’s serious attraction happening for both men. There’s no time to think about it because the king is rushed out of the airport and that’s that.

Only it’s not.

Neither man can stop thinking about the other. Both widowers, this is the first time since their spouses died – husband for Glen, wife for Erik – that either one has felt anything even remotely close to attraction to anyone. It doesn’t help that only one other person even knows that Erik is bi, and that’s his advisor Olav.

A serious mix-up has the two men meeting again. Long story short, Glen is suddenly being introduced to the media as the king’s new fiance. His original plan was to fake a relationship with a local woman, a countess (I think?), but she’d not arrived before the big announcement, and what do you know? Glen accidentally walked into the wrong private room of a restaurant. It was a misunderstanding on Erik’s part and an oops! moment on Glen’s.

Before long, Glen is being asked to go to Solberg for Christmas – as Erik’s fake fiance – and then fly back home to Nevada a week later. The plan is to have a ‘the long distance relationship didn’t work for these guys so they went their separate ways’ announcement in a few months.

They don’t expect to fall in love.

Then there are the kids. Max, 8, is Glen’s son, and Anders, 16, is King Erik’s. I loved both sons. Max was your typical eight-year-old, and Anders was your typical moody teenager. These two immediately took to each other, something I found to be super sweet. They also conspired with each other, but that happens later.

“My aunt made my dad go on a date last year. He cried when he got back. He pretended he didn’t, but he did. I saw.”

“I don’t want to make your dad cry.”

“You better not. I know where you keep your weapons.”

“I suppose they are rather on display,” I admit. Olav must have taken them through the armory.

“I guess I could have another friend,” Max says finally.

Something in my chest loosens. “I’d like that.”

“And if you mess up, I have access to an iron fllail.”

Erik and Anders secretly want Glen and Max to stay after the week is over, and Glen and Max definitely don’t want to leave.

Glen and Erik kiss and play around a little, something Erik has never done with a man. Everything is really nice until the reality of their relationship is made public. What happens next is one of the most frustrating yet sweetest things ever. Frustrating because by the time King Erik has his A ha! moment, it’s almost too late. Sweet because of how it ends. That was also pretty funny.

I really liked Erik and Glen together, and the two sons were a blast, especially young Max.

Neither son was against their father falling in love again. They actually encouraged it, with their feelings being pretty obvious toward the end. I loved that.

“Come on, old man,” Anders says, heading for a flickering board above us, as people murmur and raise their cellphones in our direction. “Let’s get you a happily ever after.”

This is a nice Christmas story. It wasn’t too long, and while there was a slight misunderstanding, it didn’t drag out. There was a little humor thrown in, and some pretty smart kids. Olav got to be a bit annoying, but the rest of the cast of characters were pretty much okay. A few times Glen got annoying with his okie dokie, reckon, don’t instead of doesn’t…. typical southern speak that I’ve always said is fine in the real world, but it doesn’t carry over in print. Thankfully, the author didn’t go too crazy with it.

A nice story by an author I don’t think I’ve ever read before.