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Only Sam
When a restaurant goes up in flames, will a spark of love rise from the ashes for a chef and his hero?
When chef Dylan Brookes finds his restaurant engulfed in flames, all he can do is watch his dreams turn to ashes. Shock, hurt and disbelief leave Dylan vulnerable to both the man who wants to love him...and the one who wants to kill him.
Fire fighter Sam Carter has been frequenting the same small restaurant for a year, trying to work up the nerve to ask the chef out on a date. When Dylan’s Omni burns to the ground from foul play, Sam steps in to help.
Now the question is...will his efforts be too late?
Publisher Note: This story has been previously released as part of the His Hero anthology by Total-E-Bound
Reader Advisory: This story contains minor scenes of violence.
When chef Dylan Brookes finds his restaurant engulfed in flames, all he can do is watch his dreams turn to ashes. Shock, hurt and disbelief leave Dylan vulnerable to both the man who wants to love him...and the one who wants to kill him.
Fire fighter Sam Carter has been frequenting the same small restaurant for a year, trying to work up the nerve to ask the chef out on a date. When Dylan’s Omni burns to the ground from foul play, Sam steps in to help.
Now the question is...will his efforts be too late?
Publisher Note: This story has been previously released as part of the His Hero anthology by Total-E-Bound
Reader Advisory: This story contains minor scenes of violence.
58 pages, ebook
First published February 13, 2012
104 people want to read
About the author
Em Woods
33 books95 followersAll about little ol' me? Hmm. Okay, the normal stuff first. I currently live in the Midwest near Detroit, Michigan with my husband and two sons who are ten and seven years old. All three keep me on my toes. I work in the automotive industry making sure all the parts inside the car look pretty along with handling all the paperwork that goes along with that (you'd be amazed at how much there is!).
Not so normal stuff now. I am an eclectic soul, having lived in three out of the four corners of the United States. I can count as personal friends people from many walks of life (dare I say, some are family too?). I think this is what allows me to see past the things that make us different to the things that make us alike. Hence, I am a person who will accept anyone for what they are, almost to a fault sometimes.
I love angst (as you very well know if you've read one of my stories). I adore digging into an issue, touching on it and those people it effects, and then giving it a happily-ever-after. Research is probably one of my favorite parts of writing. Finding out new facts, meeting new people while I do that…asking them questions they would never expect.
Not so normal stuff now. I am an eclectic soul, having lived in three out of the four corners of the United States. I can count as personal friends people from many walks of life (dare I say, some are family too?). I think this is what allows me to see past the things that make us different to the things that make us alike. Hence, I am a person who will accept anyone for what they are, almost to a fault sometimes.
I love angst (as you very well know if you've read one of my stories). I adore digging into an issue, touching on it and those people it effects, and then giving it a happily-ever-after. Research is probably one of my favorite parts of writing. Finding out new facts, meeting new people while I do that…asking them questions they would never expect.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 30 reviews
February 22, 2013
Not really for me unfortunately.
June 4, 2012
Read it as part of the Hero Anthology, which I only got because of this book. I'm happy that I got it with a huge FW discount, as this story was - at least for me - a let-down. Dylan came across as TSTL and there was no chemistry between both MCs.
April 9, 2012
It would have been better without Dylan's too stupid to live decisions. Despite sensible warnings from Sam about not meeting known cornered bad guy alone he does it anyway. In the guys own house.
May 25, 2012
This was a cute short story, both Dylan and Sam are great. Could have really done without the sister, Jenny. But nonetheless a nice read.
January 19, 2016
This story left me smiling. Dylan, the chef, and Sam, the firefighter, are so adorable together, once they manage to admit they are attracted to each other, that is. Unfortunately, it takes a pretty bad crisis to do that, and there are way more obstacles to overcome than they realize, but they are clearly determined to make it work.
Dylan is a great chef, has finally got the restaurant he wants, and the only thing that is missing is a partner to share it with. He’s been watching Sam come into his restaurant for a year, but never had the courage to say something. When Sam offers his help after the restaurant burns down, their relationship finally takes its first hesitant steps.
Sam is determined to make this work. When events overtake them and Dylan’s life is threatened, Sam doesn’t hesitate to risk his own in order to save Dylan. I loved how he stands by him and how playful they can still be, even though the fight they face to bring the restaurant back is pretty ominous.
These two don’t have it easy. But, like a small fire that bursts into powerful flame, the slow and careful beginnings of their relationship soon grow into something real , a strong connection that they can both relay on. If you like stories about firefighters, if men who discover love slowly but aren’t afraid to show it once they’re sure are what you are looking for and if you want a story with burning hot passion, you will probably like this one.
NOTE: This book was provided by Pride Publishing for the purpose of a review on Rainbow Book Reviews.
Dylan is a great chef, has finally got the restaurant he wants, and the only thing that is missing is a partner to share it with. He’s been watching Sam come into his restaurant for a year, but never had the courage to say something. When Sam offers his help after the restaurant burns down, their relationship finally takes its first hesitant steps.
Sam is determined to make this work. When events overtake them and Dylan’s life is threatened, Sam doesn’t hesitate to risk his own in order to save Dylan. I loved how he stands by him and how playful they can still be, even though the fight they face to bring the restaurant back is pretty ominous.
These two don’t have it easy. But, like a small fire that bursts into powerful flame, the slow and careful beginnings of their relationship soon grow into something real , a strong connection that they can both relay on. If you like stories about firefighters, if men who discover love slowly but aren’t afraid to show it once they’re sure are what you are looking for and if you want a story with burning hot passion, you will probably like this one.
NOTE: This book was provided by Pride Publishing for the purpose of a review on Rainbow Book Reviews.
February 25, 2023
3.5 Stars ~ This was short, cute, and sexy. I would've preferred a little more oomph to the story, but the author did a good job with what she had. Sam and Dylan were ridiculously hot together, and who doesn't love a fireman?
October 9, 2017
3.5 *
A cute little story about a fireman who has been visiting a restaurant for a year and crushing on the owner chef who finally makes a move the night the guy's restaurant burns down. The the question is once arson and fraud come to light, what to do about it. Kind of unrealistic maybe but I was in the mood for a fireman and I liked the author's writing. Ran out and got some other books by her.
Are people really that naive though in real life? That they never want to believe that a friend/family member/business partner could be up to no good? You hear it all the time after a crime "Never Billy, he was a nice guy, he wouldn't do that." Um. He did. Maybe I'm just naturally suspicious as hell. There is no one in this would I would say "never" about. I might need some proof but the whole commitment to refusing to believe something WITH proof baffles me. (This got on to a sociological rant unrelated to the book. LOL)
A cute little story about a fireman who has been visiting a restaurant for a year and crushing on the owner chef who finally makes a move the night the guy's restaurant burns down. The the question is once arson and fraud come to light, what to do about it. Kind of unrealistic maybe but I was in the mood for a fireman and I liked the author's writing. Ran out and got some other books by her.
Are people really that naive though in real life? That they never want to believe that a friend/family member/business partner could be up to no good? You hear it all the time after a crime "Never Billy, he was a nice guy, he wouldn't do that." Um. He did. Maybe I'm just naturally suspicious as hell. There is no one in this would I would say "never" about. I might need some proof but the whole commitment to refusing to believe something WITH proof baffles me. (This got on to a sociological rant unrelated to the book. LOL)
February 14, 2012
4.5 and I enjoyed it enough to go ahead and round up. I really like a great Fire Fighter story and this one did not disappoint. I really loved the dynamic between Sam and Dylan and also the many supporting characters. Hot and sweet just what I needed. Would love to read more about Jenny & James and also Ruben & Jones. Highly recommended.
February 16, 2012
Read as a part of His Hero anthology.
Very lovely story, both Dylan and Sam are awesome. I only didn't like Jenny, because I don't like overprotective relatives and pushy and too energetic people in general xD
Very lovely story, both Dylan and Sam are awesome. I only didn't like Jenny, because I don't like overprotective relatives and pushy and too energetic people in general xD
May 18, 2012
I loved the sweetness between Sam and Dylan...but it's not all sweetness....Sam has a naughty mouth when it comes to doing the nasty.
It may be short but this one was packed full of emotion, a tidbit of mystery, a touch of angst and some hot loving.
It may be short but this one was packed full of emotion, a tidbit of mystery, a touch of angst and some hot loving.
Read
June 29, 2012A novella part of an anthology about “heroes”, Only Sam is about an hunky firefighter, Sam, who is able to secure the love of handsome restaurant owner Dylan, playing the role of knight in shining armor.
After one year of dancing around each other, unfortunately Sam has his chance with Dylan when he is called to extinguish the fire that burnt down Dylan’s restaurant. Of course Sam takes home a shocked Dylan, and will bestow upon him love and sex, filling Sam’s mind and body of different memories than the one about the fire.
This is only a novella and so the development is limited, and maybe the ending is a little rushed (I think to stay inside the word count limit). I think it would have been a good novel length story, maybe with the introduction about how Dylan and Sam met, and a longer aftermath.
This is also very high on the sexy scale, making this an Erotic Romance bordering in Erotica. The author is not shy to show her heroes during their intimacy, and both Dylan and Sam plenty enjoy to incite the “safe” flames between them, actually Dylan has also a bit of top from the bottom attitude.
http://www.amazon.com/dp/B0082A6766/?...
After one year of dancing around each other, unfortunately Sam has his chance with Dylan when he is called to extinguish the fire that burnt down Dylan’s restaurant. Of course Sam takes home a shocked Dylan, and will bestow upon him love and sex, filling Sam’s mind and body of different memories than the one about the fire.
This is only a novella and so the development is limited, and maybe the ending is a little rushed (I think to stay inside the word count limit). I think it would have been a good novel length story, maybe with the introduction about how Dylan and Sam met, and a longer aftermath.
This is also very high on the sexy scale, making this an Erotic Romance bordering in Erotica. The author is not shy to show her heroes during their intimacy, and both Dylan and Sam plenty enjoy to incite the “safe” flames between them, actually Dylan has also a bit of top from the bottom attitude.
http://www.amazon.com/dp/B0082A6766/?...
October 25, 2013
Em Woods is a new author for me, and I'm pleased to say that she did a good job here. Her prose is nicely descriptive -- I thought she did great with the descriptions of the fires, especially -- and her characters are appealing. This story was too short for a whole lot of character development, but she got some nice backstory and side-character action crammed in there without wasting much time on telling-not-showing, and I loved Dylan's half-crazed sister.
My one major gripe was a serious incident of TSTL from both the main characters -- -- but, other than that, this story was a nice, if too brief, diversion.
3.5 stars, rounding up to 4. And I may have to see what else Woods has written.
My one major gripe was a serious incident of TSTL from both the main characters -- -- but, other than that, this story was a nice, if too brief, diversion.
3.5 stars, rounding up to 4. And I may have to see what else Woods has written.
June 3, 2012
Short but sweet story about Sam and Dylan, who have been secretly interested in each other for a year but don't take the next step until Dylan's restaurant burns down. Sam is a knight in shining armor, and these two are lovely together. There is a bit of suspense, mystery and drama with a side of good lovin. A very enjoyable read.
May 6, 2015
2.5*
I felt like this had been a longer story chopped down into a shoter format. It seemed to chop about quite quickly to me.
Dylan and Sam have flirted for a year at Dylan's restaurant. But a fire that destroys the restaurant brings them together.
I felt like this had been a longer story chopped down into a shoter format. It seemed to chop about quite quickly to me.
Dylan and Sam have flirted for a year at Dylan's restaurant. But a fire that destroys the restaurant brings them together.
November 16, 2016
For a short book, the plot was quite thick. So kudos to the author for that. But otherwise I didn't like this book. It was way too fast-paced when it came to the romance and I just didn't feel it.
1.5 stars
1.5 stars
January 25, 2012
3.5 stars
Only Sam has been published as part of the His Hero anthology, a copy of which I own.
Only Sam has been published as part of the His Hero anthology, a copy of which I own.
May 9, 2014
Read as a part of His Hero Anthology.
Re-read on May 9, 2014.
Re-read on May 9, 2014.
March 5, 2012
3,75 stars
May 6, 2015
Read as part of His Hero Anthology
May 22, 2012
Excellent plot to the story, I just wish it were a little more descriptive so it didn't seem so much like a summary.
March 12, 2016
Short and Sweet.
Great little afternoon read!
Great little afternoon read!
June 15, 2012
3.5 stars, rounded to 4.
August 4, 2012
Super short review: Short, sweet and sexy, AND with a fireman? What's not to like?
I definitely enjoyed reading and I'm looking forward to checking out the authors other work.
I definitely enjoyed reading and I'm looking forward to checking out the authors other work.
Want to read
August 4, 2012Part of His Hero Anthology
January 6, 2016
Needed to be longer to be satisfying. Not bad, just not reaching its full potential.
February 22, 2013
For a second there I thought we were going to lose Dylan...but then we didn't. Yea! Oh, and I love firefighter stories, and this one's just yummy. :)
October 2, 2013
Short and sweet! Totally adored the EPILOGUE! :)
01-mm-tbr
August 26, 2015new author
April 8, 2017
** spoiler alert ** VERY raw notes, may contain spoilers but probably nothing major. I write my reviews on my smart phone so autocorrect sometimes does interesting things. You've been warned.
Displaying 1 - 30 of 30 reviews