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Quality Control
Dear Author,
See the man on the left, holding that baby? Yes, that’s me. I worked in a condom company as a quality product supervisor. You would think that it would get me lots of dates, right? WRONG. It seems that once people know where I work, all they want is free condom samples. Damn it.
But then I met this guy (you decide HOW) and he has this most amazing baby— I could fall for him, I swear. But then he told me HOW he ended up with the baby. Broken condom. And it’s the condom products from the company where I work. In which I am responsible to supervise the quality.
*head desk*
How can I possibly have my HEA with him?
Photo Description:
Two men stand close together at a park, laughing toward the camera. The man in front holds a baby in a soft, blue denim dress. The man holding the baby has dark brown hair and the one standing behind him has sandy brown hair.
This story was written as a part of the M/M Romance Group's "Love Has No Boundaries" event. Group members were asked to write a story prompt inspired by a photo of their choice. Authors of the group selected a photo and prompt that spoke to them and wrote a short story.
See the man on the left, holding that baby? Yes, that’s me. I worked in a condom company as a quality product supervisor. You would think that it would get me lots of dates, right? WRONG. It seems that once people know where I work, all they want is free condom samples. Damn it.
But then I met this guy (you decide HOW) and he has this most amazing baby— I could fall for him, I swear. But then he told me HOW he ended up with the baby. Broken condom. And it’s the condom products from the company where I work. In which I am responsible to supervise the quality.
*head desk*
How can I possibly have my HEA with him?
Photo Description:
Two men stand close together at a park, laughing toward the camera. The man in front holds a baby in a soft, blue denim dress. The man holding the baby has dark brown hair and the one standing behind him has sandy brown hair.
This story was written as a part of the M/M Romance Group's "Love Has No Boundaries" event. Group members were asked to write a story prompt inspired by a photo of their choice. Authors of the group selected a photo and prompt that spoke to them and wrote a short story.
73 pages, ebook
First published July 21, 2013
1 person is currently reading
74 people want to read
About the author
Cherie Noel
34 books125 followersI’ve been in love with words since before I drew breath, and I don’t see that ever changing. I write stories. Sometimes I write music with them, sometimes they’re poems, and lately, to my great delight, M/M erotic romance.
Yum.
Smexy man to the second…or third power…now that’s the kinda math I can get behind!!
The hair curls or frizzes as it will, the eyes are green and tend to look in two different directions—no, really—and the rest is subject to change. You know the guy who didn’t know if he was a butterfly dreaming he was a man or a man dreaming he was a butterfly? Yeah, that’s me, but substitute drag queen for butterfly and wacky, wild ex-Army chick for man.
Yum.
Smexy man to the second…or third power…now that’s the kinda math I can get behind!!
The hair curls or frizzes as it will, the eyes are green and tend to look in two different directions—no, really—and the rest is subject to change. You know the guy who didn’t know if he was a butterfly dreaming he was a man or a man dreaming he was a butterfly? Yeah, that’s me, but substitute drag queen for butterfly and wacky, wild ex-Army chick for man.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 40 reviews
May 11, 2025
Eleven years ago, I thought this was cute but not great. Today, I found it mostly annoying, lol. I was skimming before I was even halfway through, so I called it quits.
February 18, 2017
Not my cup of tea - but it was free.
July 22, 2019
Me agradó, todo se acomodó para que funcionara en tan pocas páginas, lo que precisamente no le dio más estrellas, y que la narración me confundió un poco.
January 6, 2015
A couple of years ago Paulie worked as a controller at a condom-factory. One fatal day he was suffering from the flu, and that resulted in a lot of faulty condoms, and a lot of unexpected pregnancies.
Paulie has been dealing with the guilt ever since, and are almost done becoming a nurse, when he does a head-plant onto the asphalt, and meets Eli.
Eli and Sasha was best friends in high school, and a decision to have sex (even though Eli is gay), resulted in a daughter when they used a faulty condom.
This was a little too sweet, and a little too insta-love. I also felt like some of the conversations were too unrealistic, and stiff. But there was some humorous moments, and I liked the Doctor Who references.
Paulie has been dealing with the guilt ever since, and are almost done becoming a nurse, when he does a head-plant onto the asphalt, and meets Eli.
Eli and Sasha was best friends in high school, and a decision to have sex (even though Eli is gay), resulted in a daughter when they used a faulty condom.
This was a little too sweet, and a little too insta-love. I also felt like some of the conversations were too unrealistic, and stiff. But there was some humorous moments, and I liked the Doctor Who references.
July 9, 2014
Being left in the quality control room of a condom factory while suffering a severe bout of flu Paulie, succums to his illness and and a batch of defective condoms gets shipped out of the factory. Enter Eli and Sasha, a couple of high school students both wanting to lose their virginity, just their luck that they use one of the defective condoms.
Years later the three end up in a series of situations which will pull their lives together like no other. Paulie is studying to enter a new career after the bungled job at the condom factory. Sasha and Eli are neighbours raising a child but not a couple by any standards. Eli and Paulie find themselves pulled together after an accidental meeting and from there the story develops. Will these two find that they are just what the other needs or will the events at the condom factory keep them apart.
A nice little read.
Years later the three end up in a series of situations which will pull their lives together like no other. Paulie is studying to enter a new career after the bungled job at the condom factory. Sasha and Eli are neighbours raising a child but not a couple by any standards. Eli and Paulie find themselves pulled together after an accidental meeting and from there the story develops. Will these two find that they are just what the other needs or will the events at the condom factory keep them apart.
A nice little read.
July 22, 2013
This was so sweet! I loved the characters and really enjoyed Paulie especially. And yay for an awesome female character! Also, I LOVED the Doctor Who nicknames and references. Thanks for a great story!
July 22, 2013
So freaking cute. And funny. And really adorable. And a tear in my eye.
Read it. It's worth it. I wish the author would give us more about these two cuties.
Free from the M/M Romance groups Love Has No Boundaries challenge.
Read it. It's worth it. I wish the author would give us more about these two cuties.
Free from the M/M Romance groups Love Has No Boundaries challenge.
June 11, 2014
DNF.
Silly and boring :(
Silly and boring :(
August 29, 2018
2.5 ✨ A cute little story.
June 27, 2023
I found the premise very interesting. The execution however was very unsatisfying. It lacked focus, I didn't like either protagonist and there was no chemistry between the two.
February 29, 2016
This is a free story written as part of the Romance without boundaries event. This is where writers of M/m romance were asked to select a photo and writing prompt supplied by a fan of the genre and write an original tale.
This story is short but sweet at 73 pages. It does have an unusual plot in that the characters are alkl connected to a batch of faulty condoms that were the responsibility of the character Paulie who was on quality control at the time. He was very sick and did not notice that the warinig lights had come on resulting in boxes full of defective condoms being sold.
Years alter he meets a family who were affected (they now have a daughter). The only problem is the instant and potent attraction he feels towards the father, and that the attraction goes both ways.
I love the relationship between Sasha (Donna) and Eli (spaceman) as well as all the Dr. Who references that they use. That was a great quirky touch. I also liked that they had remained best friends and stuck together to raise their daughter even though Eli was gay.
Whilst the story is funny in parts and very tongue in cheek, it does address body image, self confidence and feelings of guilt. Not bad for a short tale.
This story is short but sweet at 73 pages. It does have an unusual plot in that the characters are alkl connected to a batch of faulty condoms that were the responsibility of the character Paulie who was on quality control at the time. He was very sick and did not notice that the warinig lights had come on resulting in boxes full of defective condoms being sold.
Years alter he meets a family who were affected (they now have a daughter). The only problem is the instant and potent attraction he feels towards the father, and that the attraction goes both ways.
I love the relationship between Sasha (Donna) and Eli (spaceman) as well as all the Dr. Who references that they use. That was a great quirky touch. I also liked that they had remained best friends and stuck together to raise their daughter even though Eli was gay.
Whilst the story is funny in parts and very tongue in cheek, it does address body image, self confidence and feelings of guilt. Not bad for a short tale.
July 23, 2013
I am rating the story for overall.
Truth be told, I wasn't feeling it at the beginning. Not sure if it was the mood I was in when I started it or just the content of it. I just kind of skimmed through it. Perhaps it is because of how Adrianna(Love the name) came to be. Eli and Sasha's relationship was well written.
With that said, I really liked how the story played out. The further along, the better it got. So, I was happy I stuck with it because I would have missed out on a good story if I hadn't.
Poor Paulie. He was so sick and still tried to work, which ended up in disaster. He felt guilty about it all those years. He needed closure and a reason to believe that some mistakes turn out to be good for others.
I also enjoyed how Paulie wasn't played out like he was some runway model. Then he met Eli. Whom he thought was the sexiest man ever, who thought the same about him. Even thought it was very fast pace, I feel they fit well together.
Truth be told, I wasn't feeling it at the beginning. Not sure if it was the mood I was in when I started it or just the content of it. I just kind of skimmed through it. Perhaps it is because of how Adrianna(Love the name) came to be. Eli and Sasha's relationship was well written.
With that said, I really liked how the story played out. The further along, the better it got. So, I was happy I stuck with it because I would have missed out on a good story if I hadn't.
Poor Paulie. He was so sick and still tried to work, which ended up in disaster. He felt guilty about it all those years. He needed closure and a reason to believe that some mistakes turn out to be good for others.
I also enjoyed how Paulie wasn't played out like he was some runway model. Then he met Eli. Whom he thought was the sexiest man ever, who thought the same about him. Even thought it was very fast pace, I feel they fit well together.
July 21, 2013
LHNB Story released 21.7.13
Nudging very close to 4.5 stars
Really nice story. Paulie is a wonderfully imperfect hero, slightly overweight, clumsy and self-conscious. Now finishing his training as a nurse he used to work in a condom factory.... and was responsible for a batch of faulty condoms that caused a rise in the pregnancy rate. On the day of his final exam he meets Eli, who has come to pick up his best friend and mother of his daughter, who has also sat the exam. The pair meet and there is an instant attraction, and concussion... the pair jump into bed a little too quickly for me, and there is also the big misunderstanding, but the final scenes are very well done. Amusingly the story is sprinkled with Dr Who references.
Nudging very close to 4.5 stars
Really nice story. Paulie is a wonderfully imperfect hero, slightly overweight, clumsy and self-conscious. Now finishing his training as a nurse he used to work in a condom factory.... and was responsible for a batch of faulty condoms that caused a rise in the pregnancy rate. On the day of his final exam he meets Eli, who has come to pick up his best friend and mother of his daughter, who has also sat the exam. The pair meet and there is an instant attraction, and concussion... the pair jump into bed a little too quickly for me, and there is also the big misunderstanding, but the final scenes are very well done. Amusingly the story is sprinkled with Dr Who references.
August 1, 2013
Hm...I think this story has great dialogues (I'm a sucker for those that sound natural and teasing and funny). Paulie is on one hand a MC I really like with his little bit of overweight but on the other hand I found him portrayed a bit too clumsy. I shudder to think of what will happen when he starts working as a nurse. So, yeah...a bit conflicted about that.
Eli and Sasha are picture-perfect counterparts to him.
The whole set-up was kind of "okaaaay?" for me but as said in the beginning, the humor and fun made me like the story a lot. Good, light summer read!
Eli and Sasha are picture-perfect counterparts to him.
The whole set-up was kind of "okaaaay?" for me but as said in the beginning, the humor and fun made me like the story a lot. Good, light summer read!
March 22, 2014
3.5 STARS
This was a great little free read. I loved the relationship that Eli had with Sasha. I was, at first, not overly fond of Paulie. He struck me as a bit of a sad sack but once you get to know him he really was an endearing, sweet man. My only criticism would be that it was a little to convenient that all four of the characters found each other and fell in love/lust.
This was a great little free read. I loved the relationship that Eli had with Sasha. I was, at first, not overly fond of Paulie. He struck me as a bit of a sad sack but once you get to know him he really was an endearing, sweet man. My only criticism would be that it was a little to convenient that all four of the characters found each other and fell in love/lust.
September 21, 2013
Light, romantic story. The insta love was handled rather good but in the end I found Eli a tad to overbearing, while Paulie was a bit too clumsy and gave you more the impression of a teenager than a thirty year old.
Overall, fast, enjoyable read with, for a change (like requested) a lovable BFF girlfriend.
Overall, fast, enjoyable read with, for a change (like requested) a lovable BFF girlfriend.
August 4, 2014
A fun, light read in the LHNB event.
Paulie is still doing penance for an error when he was ill 4 years ago. Eli lives daily with the results of that mistake.
Fun and games when they meet, though Eli is quite domineering for a young guy who hasnt dated for 3 years.
I liked this, perfect beach fodder.
Paulie is still doing penance for an error when he was ill 4 years ago. Eli lives daily with the results of that mistake.
Fun and games when they meet, though Eli is quite domineering for a young guy who hasnt dated for 3 years.
I liked this, perfect beach fodder.
Want to read
December 12, 2013
Offered for FREE from the M/M Romance Group's Love Has No Boundaries event. Thank you too all the amazing authors who participated!
April 18, 2015
Sweet and funny. I enjoyed this story, the characters and the romance. Nice interpretation of the photo and the story letter. Thank you Cherie Noel for donating your story, your time and your talent.
August 10, 2013
First I want to say that I think the author did a great job of answering the prompt and did so in such a fun and creative way. This story is so full of humor and good will. Total mess up in the condom factory alone is worth a laugh. But this turns out to so happy for the surprised parents.
September 1, 2016
LHNB-24,309
3.5 read for me.
It starts off good, then it takes a solemn detour for Paulie. But, then comes Eli.
Eli sucks Paulie in so fast.
It was cute and sweet. I loved Eli's controlling side when he gets Paulie into his bed and home.
3.5 read for me.
It starts off good, then it takes a solemn detour for Paulie. But, then comes Eli.
Eli sucks Paulie in so fast.
It was cute and sweet. I loved Eli's controlling side when he gets Paulie into his bed and home.
July 2, 2014
Me gustó la idea y me gustó como empieza, pero es una historia demasiado corta para todo lo que quiere contar la autora. Es todo tan apresurado que resulta ridículo y hace que los personajes sean demasiado intensos, estúpidos y poco creíbles.
July 21, 2013
So sweet and Sasha is such a great character!
We need more of Eli and Paulie...
We need more of Eli and Paulie...
August 16, 2013
This was a short sweet story but I had a hard time getting into the story at first and sort of skimmed through it, but I'm glad I stuck with it.
July 21, 2013
My only issue with the otherwise great story is that the baby in the prompt pic is maybe 4 months old. If that type of thing doesn't bother you it's probably a 4
July 21, 2013
My favorite type of m/m books are with children. This was good but just didn't pull me in like others have.
August 6, 2013
2.5 stars
June 16, 2015
Cute and sweet. Would have liked to see more of this couple.
August 29, 2013
2.5 stars.
September 4, 2013
Cute, fluffy nonsense. Great vacation reading in the hammock.
Displaying 1 - 30 of 40 reviews