If It Flies

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Synopsis

Spencer is a corporate attorney whose long hours at the law firm where he works are sucking the life out of him. He doesn't have time for a relationship and one-night stands aren't really his scene either. When a friend suggests that he accompany him to Market Garden, an upscale club/brothel, Spencer is a little skeptical of paying for sex, but he's no sooner through the door than he's approached by a cocky rent boy who's just his type--or so he thinks. Nick is a Dom and a sadist, and although Spencer is a bit wary of Nick's darker side at first, Nick's special brand of pain mixed with pleasure turns out to be everything Spencer never knew he was missing in his life. Just one night quickly turns into Spencer becoming one of Nick's regular clients, and as time goes on, the lines between business and romance start to blur. When Nick accidentally kisses Spencer passionately in the aftermath of one of their sessions, it throws them both for a loop. Nick doesn't think he wants a real boyfriend, but Spencer realizes he's no longer content with merely being his client. But when Nick ghosts him and Spencer begins to look elsewhere to fulfill his needs, it might be just the wake-up call Nick requires.

Review

If It Flies is the third book in L. A. Witt and Aleksandr Voinov's Market Garden series, which follows a group of rent boys at the exclusive London club/brothel of the same name. In this one, we have Spencer, an over-worked and closeted corporate attorney who always seems to feel stressed out. It's been a while since he's been in a relationship and one-night stands come with their own issues for him, so his friend, Percy, who happens to be the only co-worker who knows Spencer is gay, suggests that he hire a prostitute from Market Garden to blow off a little steam. Spencer is a bit dubious about paying for sex, so he only reluctantly accompanies Percy to the club. He's no sooner through the door, though, when a gorgeous and cockily confident man approaches him. Everything about Nick (another of the Market Garden rent boys who was briefly seen in the first two stories) seems to turn Spencer on, and before long, he's shelling out the dough to take this man home. Nick is a Dom and a sadist who slowly introduces Spencer to the bliss of pain combined with pleasure. Spencer had always felt like something was missing in his past sexual encounters, and he soon comes to realizes that he's a masochist who loves submitting to Nick's special brand of erotic torture. For the next several months, Spencer becomes a regular client, while trying to compartmentalize their sessions in order to follow Nick's rule of it only being a business transaction. But when Nick is the one who slips up, passionately kissing Spencer in the aftermath of one of their encounters, he runs scared, leaving Spencer wondering if he'll ever again see the man he's come to care for and trust like no other and has counted on to always been there for him.

I absolutely loved the first two short stories in the Market Garden series, so I've been eager to pick up If It Flies for a while. Knowing from the cover blurb that Nick was a sadist, I went into reading this one with a little trepidation. I'm more comfortable with the B&D in BDSM and kind of draw the line at leaving marks, but even though the S&M parts weren't entirely my cuppa, I did still enjoy this story. I admit that during the first half or so, I wasn't feeling a strong emotional connection between Nick and Spencer, because of their business-only arrangement, but it was pretty clear that Spencer was longing for more even though he was trying to be pragmatic. However, once Nick loses a little of his self-control and kisses Spencer after one of their more intense sessions, then I could really feel how much they'd started to care for one another and that they were gradually becoming more than just sex worker and client. Of course, Nick almost immediately runs away, scared. I understood that he was just trying to figure things out and that he was afraid of losing his independence if he agreed to a real relationship with Spencer, but I couldn't help being just a tad disappointed that it took him seeing Spencer chatting it up with another Dom for Nick to finally realize how much Spencer meant to him. Spencer, on the other hand, went out to an orgy with Percy during his brief separation from Nick and knew right away that what he needed wasn't there. I simply couldn't help wondering if they'd ever have gotten back together if not for Spencer somewhat reluctantly returning to Market Garden in search of a new Dom. All's well that ends well, though, because after their little reunion, they share their most intense session yet, which led to a heartfelt HFN ending. If It Flies is longer than the first two books of the series, but still only novella length, so it's mostly about the sexy times with limited character and plot development. Because of this, I was glad to see that the next book, If It Fornicates, is also about Nick and Spencer, so I'm hoping that it will flesh out their characters a little more and give them a more solid HEA.

Note: This book contains explicit sexual content, including a dom/sub relationship, sadism/masochism, sex work, and an orgy, which could be objectionable to sensitive readers.

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L. A. Witt

Aleksandr Voinov

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