His Just Desserts~ Dakota Trace

Blurb
Growing up in a foster home in a small Midwest town, Sean Whitcomb planned from the day he turned sixteen to somehow escape. And he does to the big city of Des Moines at a lawyer’s firm. Now up for a shot at a partnership, Sean needs to deliver the goods, and it's not what he thinks. No, it's family style meal for the founding partners and their spouses. Which causes Sean a major issue, because not only is he single gay man, but he can’t cook to save his life and his boss is expecting a home cooked meal – complete with a family or there will be no partnership offer.

In desperation, Sean turns to the man he left behind in his pursuit of the golden ring, Isaiah Waterston. Not only is Isaiah hot enough to still turn Sean’s crank but he’s also a world class chef at one of the hottest eateries in town. Now all he has to do is convince the man he’d left behind to give him a single night of his time, prepare a mouth-watering meal and pretend to be his lover for a few hours. Sounds easy right? Well it is until Isaiah attaches his own stipulations – he wants an entire weekend with Sean at his mercy.

A Visit from His Just Dessert’s Men: Part I

“Come on!”  Livvy stamped her foot. “These people won’t wait on you forever?  Are you trying to create a mob, Isaiah?” 

Struggling under the weight of two large brown bags, Isaiah scowled at the muse, his dark brow furrowing. “Like I was the one who caused the last mob.  Didn’t anyone ever tell you that going outside in a black corset and short shorts wasn’t a good idea?”  He shook his head. “I can’t believe I let Dakota talk me into this. You’re fn insane.”  Staggering over to the counter which magically appeared, he set both bags down with a sigh of relief.  “I’m gonna have a word or two with Sean. I can’t believe he ended up over on A Little Bit of Naughty with Dakota while I got stuck with you over here at Sexy Erotic Xciting Reviews?”  He glanced around the room. “Not that the site is bad.” His eyes widened and he gave a low whistle. “Day-am…too bad I’m taken. Ms. Evelise has some men on here that would give Sean a run for his money.”  

Livvy snapped her fingers. “Focus, Chefie-baby.”  She propped her hip on the counter. “We have some yummy goodness to make.”  Thrusting her lower lip, she pouted. “Besides you promised me Bananas Foster to celebrate the release of your book, His Just Desserts and I’m not going to let you worm your way out of it.  Chop-chop!”  She chapped her hands together.

“Excuse me?”  Crossing his arms over his chest Isaiah glared at her. “Did you just tell me chop-chop?”

She shrugged. “Isn’t that what they say in the kitchen?” 

His eyes closed and he pinched the bridge of his nose. “Dakota is sooo gonna owe me.”

“Oooo, can it be some of those yummy kolaches you made for Sean?  Slave knows how to make them but refuses to make them for me. Brat.” 

This time Isaiah did groan. “For those of you who are thinking you fell through the rabbit hole, let me clue you in.  I’m Isaiah Waterston from Dakota Trace’s new foodie m/m romance from Decadent Publishing.” He pointed a finger at the grinning Livvy. “And that freak of nature is supposedly Dakota’s muse, Livvy.” 

“I am Dakota’s only muse.  And these peeps know me. I’m a frequent visitor here. I was just by last week with…”  A frown crossed her face and she tapped her finger on her chin, then reached into her corset for her little black book. “I know I have the name in here…damn slave schedules so many of these things I can’t keep them straight…” Mutters to self as she flips through the black book.

“For heaven’s sake. She can’t even remember who she was with.”  Isaiah turned towards the readers.  “Tell you what, how about I give you the recipe for my bananas foster now before Livvy causes another riot?”   Tugging out a paper he placed it on the counter. “I’ll even leave you the supplies.”  He turned to leave.  “Now I hate to cut and run but I think I will go see if I can chase down my man at A Little Bit of Naughty.” Taking a quick glance at the muse, he winked. “And I’ll even leave you with a never seen before tidbit of why my man loves me and what I can do with Bananas Fosters.”

“Don’t forget to tell them about the giveaway, Isaiah.” Livvy asked without looking up from her book.

“Yeah.  For those who leave a comment on this blog or Dakota’s blog will be entered for a free pdf copy of His Just Desserts.  Enjoy!” 

Bananas Foster Recipe:

Ingredients:

2 tablespoons unsalted butter
1/4 cup (1.75 ounces) dark brown sugar
1/4 teaspoon ground allspice
1/2 teaspoon freshly ground nutmeg
1 tablespoon banana liqueur
2 under ripe bananas, sliced in half lengthwise
1/4 cup dark rum
1/2 teaspoon finely grated orange zest

Directions
Melt butter in a 10-inch heavy skillet over low heat. Add brown sugar, allspice and nutmeg and stir until sugar dissolves. Add banana liqueur and bring sauce to simmer. Add bananas and cook for 1 minute on each side, carefully spooning sauce over bananas as they are cooking. Remove bananas from pan to a serving dish. Bring sauce to a simmer and carefully add the rum. If the sauce is very hot, the alcohol will flame on its own. If not, using stick flame, carefully ignite and continue cooking until flame dies out, approximately 1 to 2 minutes. If sauce is too thin, cook for 1 to 2 minutes until it is syrupy in consistency. Add orange zest and stir to combine. Immediately spoon the sauce over bananas and serve. Serve with waffles, crepes, or ice cream.

And now for the yummy excerpt!

Isaiah made his movements slow, searching Sean’s gaze for nervousness, amazed when he found none. Desire and something more seemed to pool in the dark blue depths. He shied away from the “more” but took the other as a silent agreement. Looping the soft red tie he’d worn earlier around Sean’s left wrist, he tied the long length around the slotted back of a nearby chair. Once the tie was secure, he checked the tightness of it. Then he moved around the other side of the table, repeating the process to the opposite arm. While the ties would give the illusion of being bound, if Sean pulled hard enough, he’d overturn the chairs. He could get free if he chose to. “You okay? I want to torture you with pleasure tonight, not pain.”

Sean grinned, his smile lighting up his whole face. “I’m good.” Then he wiggled. “But I’m ready for what you promised, baby. Take control, make me scream with pleasure.”

Taking his lover’s words to heart, he hardened his voice, slipping into the dominant role. “We’re moving at my pace, not yours. Now lie still so I don’t nick you.”

Isaiah picked up the shaving mug he’d brought with him. Using a bit of hot water from the cooling kettle, he worked up a thick froth. The light scent of musk filled the air when he brushed Sean’s torso with the lather. Once everything from chest to groin was covered, he picked up the straight razor from the folded towel.

Pressing down on the skin, he scraped the razor over the smattering of hair. A soft sigh filled the air. He paused to glance at his lover’s face. The total bliss he found surprised him. He hadn’t expected this response. Sean’s pleasure sent a shot of desire straight to his groin. He swallowed hard. “I’ve reheated what was left of the caramelized bananas. It’s going to look and taste delicious when I lick it and nibble it from your skin. Almost as amazing as the softened ice cream I took from the freezer.”

Sean moaned softly. “Ah hell…you’re going to use me as a human bowl.”

Now don’t forget to enter! Just comment with your name and email address.  Or stop by Dakota’s blog for Part II and second chance to enter to win this yummy book.

Review

His Just Desserts by Dakota Trace was a stimulating and sexy read that left this reviewer smiling and panting. Sean Whitcomb and Isaiah Waterston grew up together in foster care, forged a bond and fell in love, but for two young men attempting to find their place in the world, love was not enough. Years later, the men reunited with Sean needing a huge favor in order to secure a partnership at his place of employment. The favor; pretend to be the new boyfriend and cook a spectacular dinner for the partners. Easy task, considering Isaiah is a chef- the cooking part at least. The hard part was the fact that both men were still in love with each other, but stubborn pride may get in their way of happiness.

Ms. Trace delivered sexual gratification as Sean and Isaiah rekindled the romance and the always Type A personality Sean submitted to Isaiah sexually, in exchange for his culinary skills. No hardship there. The men created a feast fit for kings and when the party was over, the real feast began.

His Just Desserts was a culinary orgasm as Ms. Trace incorporated food into sexual pleasures and gratifications. Bananas Foster never looked so tasty.

I fell in love with the stoic, rigid Sean as he crumbled under the onslaught of emotions he felt for Isaiah, as he relinquished control. Additionally, Isaiah tugged at my heart strings while he attempted to hold his feelings at bay, all the while the ice melting around his heart as he succumbed to the love he still held for Sean. The two men together were a beautiful symphony as they stoked the fires in the kitchen and bedroom.

The secondary characters were well written and added to the story delivering wisdom and experience in the form of good friends and cheeky bosses. Ms. Trace melded the personalities accentuating the need for their characters in the plight to reunite the two stubborn lovers.

His Just Desserts should not be missed. Sexually charged, hunky men and Bananas Foster-

Yummy!

Definite S.E.X.

A five handcuff review

Dakota Trace Website

Decadent Publishing Buy Link