Ben

Unexpected #8

by Cora Rose, Liam DiCosimo (Narrator), Alexander Cendese (Narrator)

It's often said that everything is impossible until it's done.

While I've always known my infatuation with Cash and Ford was meant to remain an unfulfilled dream, I never really lost hope. Hope that the two men, twice my age, would ever see me as more than just a kid. As more than just their best friend's son.

I'm not a kid anymore, and at twenty-one, they're about to see that little meek and quiet Ben is old enough for many things. Old enough to finally attract their attention. And frankly, old enough to know better. To know that these stolen touches and lustful trysts behind closed doors could never really amount to more.

Because everything will crumble as soon as Cash, Ford, and my father find out what I've been up to. I've been keeping secrets from them all.

I can't possibly keep them both. I can't keep them at all. I know our love is impossible.

But, god help me, when has that ever stopped me?

Genres: M M Romance, M M M, Romance, Friends To Lovers, Contemporary, LGBT, Polyamory

10 pages, Audible Audio

Published April 9, 2024

About the author

Cora Rose loves any kind of romance and consumes way too many books each year. She currently lives in the U.S. and spends her days daydreaming about the characters inside her head.

You can email her at CoraRoseRomance@gmail.com or visit her website at www.coraroseromance.com

Reviews

[Renae Reads · Rating 5 out of 5]

My goodness, Ben is one steamy read that I could not put down!!! I really liked how you were able to understand and see the connections between all three characters. You are able to see how much they care for one another and the chemistry is off the charts between all three. This story was such a great unexpected journey that had me laughing and curious as to the ramifications of their relationship, which did not disappoint.

I also enjoyed how each relationship dynamic in this throuple was defined and different from the others. They all have a different connection with one another, which strengthens their overall relationship in such amazing ways.

Overall such a fantastic steamy story that I was glued to the page from start to finish. Super excited about both Anthony's and Angel's stories, they will be so much fun!!!

*** I reviewed a complimentary copy of this story.***

[Kati *☆･ﾟ · Rating 3 out of 5]

3*** stars


I’ve been waiting for this one with baited breath. And what came out was a little unexpected. *lol

I’m the sluttiest slut, […]
No one would guess it. Meek, quiet little Ben. But fuck, I want all the dick. All the time.

Well, as seriously hot as this was, it was basically only a fuck-fest with very little solid plot. Even less than usual. But I liked Ben and his father’s two best friends, Cash and Ford, together.

Still, this could’ve been wrapped up in a cute and steamy novella if you ask me. No need for this much smut (ironic coming from me) only to drag out the book with a silly plot. Honestly, the thrill of the story was gone for me at around the forty percent mark.



***********
Unexpected Series

Book 1 - Whit - 4.25 stars
Book 2 - Sem - 4.5 stars ♡
Book 3 - Emery - 4.5 stars
Book 4 - Luke - 3.5 stars
Book 5 - Lex - dnf
Book 6 - Colin - 4.5 stars ♡
Book 7 - Diablo
Book 8 - Ben - 3.0 stars

[martina (the life of a chaotic reader) · Rating 4 out of 5]

i wanted to say that cora is back, but a more accurate description is that i’m back to being cora’s bitch.

first of all, if you don’t like too much sex in your books, simply skip this. but if you do, you’re in for a treat.

i really enjoyed this so much. it feels like old cora. i’m so happy about this.
i just feel like there was some tension missing at the end, maybe some craziness (i know, it seems absurd but i swear she toned it down a lot).
but i feel like that might change after a reread or two.

i’m trying to wrap my mind around the fact that this made me excited for not one, not two, but three books: anthony, angel and dean. i don’t care about the release order, but i need them. possibly in the near future. and if it’s not too much another throuple for angel. thank you

[V · Rating 2 out of 5]

1.5 stars, rounded. This was fucking awful. Zero plot. Zero development. Zero good characters. Zero romance. Only smut, which was absolute garbage either way. The longer Cora Rose continues this series, the worse it gets. Should’ve ended it at Colin’s book or at least written good ones like Sem, Emery, and Colin. Ben was annoying and an absolute idiot; he was selfish and whiny and his only personality trait was being overworked and horny. Ew. Cash and Ford were simultaneously weird and boring as hell. Diablo and Ben were both abysmal books. Shame.

[taylor :) · Rating 5 out of 5]

Praise the lord that old Cora is back. I have been having some issues lately with her books. They have just been way too over the top to me and so extremely silly. I was nervous to read this because I was so excited for it, but I was afraid it wouldn’t be what I wanted. No reason to be scared!!!! This was so good. Extremely good. As good as Sem good. I honestly could go back and re read this.

Here’s the juicy juice.

So Ben is our 21 year old angel baby. An angel baby who loves sex and has a lot of it. And we love that for him. He also has the hots for Cash and Ford, his dad’s besties. At first he was having sex with them separately and then they merged into a big sexy unit, and it was fabulous. So that’s basically the whole plot. Ben has secret sex with his dad’s best friends. But I am not complaining. No complaints at all from me. Honestly this was one of my top reads this year.

Sex talk now. There was so much sex in this book. Like hot damn. I’m talking about sex in chapter 1. But it wasn’t so much sex that the book was boring. Sometimes reading sex scenes over and over can get annoying, you know? But not this. The sex was never repetitive to me. It flowed perfectly with the story line. It was also soooooooo good and dirty. You get all the goodness of MMM sex. Spit roasting and double penetration galore.

I hope Cora continues to write like this. She has a few characters coming up that I’m excited for, so I hope she does them justice just like she did Ben here. Please read this. Thank youuuu love youuuuu

[Lindsey · Rating 1 out of 5]

SO, I took one for the team and read this because my friend was interested but was hesitant and I grumpily obliged even after swearing off this series due to the dumpster fire that was Diablo. I originally gave this three stars, thought about it and then took it down to two.
A few days later I'm like, why? I hated it. Took it down to one.

This entire book was basically Ben was getting railed the entire time. Or was talking about it. Or day dreaming about it. Or complaining to friends about his lack of sex, and how "his hole is empty." Then he’s going nuts as he’s not getting his fix. Alrighty then.

I don’t think I’d say it’s high steam though. I mean, there’s lots of sex, don’t get me wrong, but the scenes felt VERY mediocre, boring and repetitive. Like we get it, Ben is needy. Cash is moody and the other dude who I cant even be bothered to remembered is also down for it. That’s it. That’s the whole plot.

I honestly don’t get how these 3 fell in love. Once again, we’re told about it but not *shown* but I guess sex = love.

Now, Avery and the dad? Or Tatum and mob dude? Heck yes. Maybe even Angel.

It featured lots of Lex and the old ladies from the senior citizens place. Still don’t understand why that’s a thing at all as they’re honestly more annoying than anything. Like for some books I really appreciate seeing other characters interact but in this world, I’d just like to leave them behind once we’re done with them.

Mainly this book is one dude who is very unsure if he’s into men, is suddenly down to ride a train, his bestie who is down to be ridden or topped, and Ben who clearly needs therapy for the addiction he has but won’t because he’s too busy having sex.

[Dani (Daniiireads) · Rating 4 out of 5]

- poly
- secret relationship
- dad’s best friends
- age gap

I was worried that Ben wouldn’t be my jam since I’m not usually a fan of MMM, but I knew since it was Cora Rose that this was about to be fantastic.

From previous glimpses of Ben, he seemed pretty shy, but don’t let Benny boy fool you! He’s actually very naughty! Ben has been hooking up with BOTH of his dad’s best friends without their knowledge, but when they all do finally come together I actually enjoyed their triad dynamic a lot. Ford & Cash are just 😍

This is probably Cora Rose’s smuttiest book by far, and though I did find it a bit lacking in plot, I truly didn’t mind! Ben is just so fun and steamy, full of Cora’s usual hilarious shenanigans, and just all around a good time!

[kaye taz · Rating 2 out of 5]

2 ⭐️
spice: 🌶️🌶️🌶️🌶️.5/5
format: ebook

lmao. no.

i was so excited for this one but it was such a miss for me. this gave omegaverse without any of the fun forced cockwarming. and i feel like i still know nothing about any of the characters. we didn’t get to even see 2 of the 3 relationships start. and the one we did see happened so quickly and unnaturally i have whiplash.

also 105 years between the 3 of these idiots and no one knows how to communicate.

[Miki_reads · Rating 2 out of 5]

These three were just horny with 0 character development. Why does Ben act like an omega in heat when this isn't even a fucking omegaverse? Certain parts were so cringe it seemed like it was written by a very immature 14 year old. This was aggressively mid. The only plus was that some of the smut was decent, that is, if the cringe dialogue didn't ruin it 💀

Cora probably should have called it quits at Colin with this series.

[Ronie Reads · Rating 4 out of 5]

Slow burn my craby patty. Went from cute to smut in 0.5 seconds. I had reservations on getting the audiobook format. But that price was right. Besides it hot to one point...where I left the room. It seemed like the guys needed privacy

[Hanna · Rating 2 out of 5]

Book 8 here we go. I had high hopes for this book because I loved the earlier books, enjoyed Ben popping up in the other ones, and was curious about his story. We have a love story with Ben and his Dad's TWO best friends Ford and Cash.

The beginning started good, then about 30 % it started to wain, 46% I was like oh okay, then 54% I was annoyed. And I stayed annoyed for the rest of the book. This book was mostly about sex, which started hot at first but then quickly got boring because it was in every chapter. I was ready for relationship development, and conversations but no it was mostly sex. There were adorable moments throughout the book but by the like 80% I was ready to be done with the book. If this was mostly going to be erotica, I am not sure why it was not a novella at that point. If you like mostly sex with hardly a plot then you will like this addition. If the series is to keep going, I would appreciate a couple that has decent conversational skills and can do more than fuck each other every day.

[melanatedbookjunkie · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book was a HIGH steam read. There was sex upon sex upon sex. Don’t get me wrong, I looove a book with lots of sexy time….but where’s the plot? I finished this book feeling like I knew nothing about these characters outside of high sex drives and surface level characteristics. I have been quite disappointed with Cora’s writing lately. I will say that this was not as bad as Diablo, because I could not stomach that book, but there is still so much more room for improvement. I feel as though Cora equates sex to being in love. The characters exchange “I Love You’s” and I wonder how we got here. This book would have been better off as an erotic novella.

[Mimi · Rating 3 out of 5]

2.5 🌟
The literal definition of "no plot, just smut"

[⋆｡°✮ Lucy InTheSky ✮°｡⋆ · Rating 4 out of 5]

17th May/25

I read it today, liked it

RTC, because I have to watch EUROVISION now! 🎉🕺

__________________________________

18th May/25

I just finished this book yesterday, half an hour before Eurovision started and I'll just say the contestants that we, the people, really like, never get chosen as the winner, it's all politics and fake, year in and year out, it's not what Eurovision used to be, but I am glad Austria won; this year's favorite for me was definitely Ukraine with their 80's vibe and pink on stage lighting, real artists and a good song, but I digress, so here's the review

I usually don't like throuple books, the attention is never equally on all members of the relationship and I really avoid them altogether, but I did like this one.
The ending wasn't as developed and the author could've left out sex talk at the end, because the book is full of sex anyway, but for 90% of the story, I was very satisfied.

🟢 MMM
🔵 Gay/bi/bi-awakening
🟣 Age gap 21/38/42
🟡 Size difference (one twink with two tall, buff tattooed biker mechanics)
🟠 Dad's best friends
🔵 Longtime two best friends to lovers part that should've been explored more
🌶️ A lot of sex; descriptive and good; oral, penetrative, some rimming; DP scene at the end; b/vers/t

You'll remember Ben from Colin's book, he's the guy who fell asleep on their date and I think it was Cash that came to pick him up from that date.

Ben is almost finishing college and has a crush on both of his father's friends Cash and Ford, the guys who work with him at Ben's dad's auto repair shop.

“This is a dream,” he breathes, and I shake my head.
“Nah, Benjamin. This is your life now.”



He's fucking them both without either knowing and especially without the dad knowing, so when Ford and Cash figure out what Ben is doing, they're immediately up for it, they all start hooking up and it's hot, it's good, the sex is amazing, everyone is taken care of and what I especially appreciated was Cash and Ford's alone moments, even though there weren't plenty. These guys were the true stars of the show and Ben was the twinkaglue that binded them all together, but Cash and Ford were amazing and I needed more of them alone.

“We fit good together. Always have,” Ford says, and I roll my lips between my teeth.
“Yeah, guess you’re right.”
“Always knew it, just had to bide my time. Just so happens that Ben is the one who got you to see reason.”

Cash's bi-awakening is a bit slow, he's serious, careful and takes his time, but he's the exclusive top in this throuple and I liked him best.
He keeps saying

"My best friend. My lover."

about Ford and I really, really wanted more of them together, alone. The hot tub scene was hot, the blowjob was hot, actually they were so close and comfortable with each other all the time and never really did anything

"This isn’t the first time I’ve sat on his lap. I sit on his lap a lot actually."

that they really should've explored more of this between them alone together before unleashing it all on Ben.

I think the feelings and love aspect was talked about too soon, they needed more time to just hang out and hook-up, especially because Ben was only 21 and I think all three of them needed to go through a bit more time together to start talking about love, living together and a wedding, so the story did lose me a little bit in the final few chapters, including the epilogue.

It's a good one though, one of the best in the series. It's hot, a lot of sex and Ben gets his wish come true, so yeah, it's one of the better ones if I'm comparing it to the others in the series.


Tatum is Ben's best friend and was present more in this story because he's Anthony's love interest in The Silencer and I didn't really like him here, I did like Anthony though, so I'm hoping that book is really good.


Next up is Dean, Ben's dad with his roommate Avery and they're a couple already in this book, so I'm really interested in their story.

[Kim Reads · Rating 5 out of 5]

So I definitely ate this book up, whew! What a cute yet incredible spicy story with these three (h0rny) lovebirds 🤭

Ford and Cash are best friend's to each other, and to Dean, who happens to be the dad of Ben. Ben is.. included, at least physically with Ford and Cash, although they don't really know about that. That alone is really spicy and Ben is neeeeeeedy, oh boy 😏 I really do love him though ❤️‍🔥

The chemistry they had was amazing. All three of them are the perfect example that sometimes physical stuff can turn into emotional one, even when you didn't plan to go there at all.

We got some glimpses of Dean and his love interest in this book, and I’m so ready to read about their story now 🥰

[Kat_MM_Reader · Rating 5 out of 5]

Can’t believe I’ve finished this series. Absolutely stunning. Ben, Cash and Ford were super hot together and I loved seeing snippets of Avery and Dean. Next up: The Silencer. Tatum and Anthony already sound amazing.

[Ash’s reading corner ✨🌈 · Rating 4 out of 5]

Tropes:
MMM
Dad’s best-friends
Age gap
Size difference
Secret relationship
Free use
Bi-awakening

[Amy Mc Dowall · Rating 4 out of 5]

Holy mother of Christ, this book is hot!!!!

Inferno level of hot!

Dad's best friends, double age gap, the greediest of greedy bottoms.

This book sent me feral and added at least 4 pairs of panties to the laundry pile!! Slip and slide wouldn't even cover it!!

I adored the dynamic and the differences in all 3 of the guys. Ford was my fav because he had major golden retriever energy but with a filthy filthy mouth.

This this book might have officially topped my fav from Cora Rose.

Very low angst
High heat from the first chapter on.

[Melissa K · Rating 1 out of 5]

Wth?

I've never read a book by Cora that I didn't love, but I actually
hated this one. Its almost like there was no point to the story other than showing 3 guys "grunting,whining and eating each others mouths"
It was just pointless and I stopped reading at 60%

[♡ cal ♡ · Rating 4 out of 5]

❝ The two of them pushing inside of me like a well-oiled machine. As if they've done this a thousand times before. Perhaps in another life, the three of us were together. Perhaps, this is just old souls finding each other once again. ❞

my expectations for miss cora fucking rose were low but this time it was surpassed! i was genuinely surprised. this book was smutty, yes, but the sex between ben and his two lovers, cash and ford, felt right. nothing felt cheap and easy for me. i love how our three main characters complement one another. with ben being more adventurous, with ford feeding ben's energy, and cash being more like an 'alpha' balances the other two. maybe a little part of me wish for the story to have more dramatic/scandalous scenes but at the end of the day i'm happy and content with what i got.

[rebecca · Rating 4 out of 5]

**3.75 stars rounded up to 4 stars**

This was a sex parade from beginning to end and I was fucking here for it.

For some reason though I expected a plot. The beginning of the book kinda suggested it and there were some small indications for a big ending throughout the book which is why I expected more. The plot was rather easygoing and not all that exciting but to be fair all the sex balanced out the lack of a story quite well.
Maybe I wished for more drama. It could have been so good, I think.

Nevertheless I liked this book and the characters very fucking good so it’s a win.

[Nile Princess · Rating 2 out of 5]

Te.rri.ble. DNF @ 57%. So disappointed. Review to follow.

[- · Rating 1 out of 5]

Plot not found, just cheap porn. At least it wasn’t as distasteful as Diablo lol, silver linings for Cora’s writing after Always Him.

It’s so funny just yesterday I read Luke for the nth time and I get more and more obsessed with the first 4 books of this series. I don’t know what happened to her but it really is a massive disappointment.

[Ivy · Rating 1 out of 5]

DNF. There is not a more annoying trope/side character than the Slutty Old Lady™️

[Amanda · Rating 3 out of 5]

[I received a digital arc for an honest review]

Ben by Cora Rose is the 8th stand alone in the Unexpected series.

Ben is hooking up with his dad's two best friends, but neither of them know about it. When they find out, they surprise him by being ok with the situation. Ben can't let himself get attached because he can't let his dad find out. But both men know what they want, and they won't let Ben give up on them.

Alright so this book is extremely high steam, you might as well categorize it as erotica. The sex was off the charts and fantastic, with lots of DP. Unfortunately the characters development was lost to the wayside. Ben is a very sexually charged young man and not ashamed of it, and he basks in the attention of Cash and Ford. By the end, I was left feeling like all I knew about the three of them was what they got up to in the bedroom.

Overall, If you're looking for a very high steam fluff romance, then give Ben a read. For fans of the series, there's more than a few cameos from past characters.

[Sid · Rating 1 out of 5]

"i'm the sluttiest slut." well that's an understatement holy shit. this is a porn movie not a book. all porn no plot. not even that good smut. can smut books turn someone asexual? asking for a friend. i mean do people really have such high sex drives that it's the only thing on their mind? i thought i was gonna read some cute romance book but noooo. i feel like i need to read some boring ass classic now to wash this out of my mind.

[Sheena · Rating 3 out of 5]

3/5 stars

why do I keep reading this series???

[DeniReadsMostlyMM · Rating 5 out of 5]

***ARC Review***

This is my honest and voluntary review for the ARC I received.

Cora Rose is an exceptional writer. I loved this book from start to finish. Ben is not all that he seems to be during his previous appearances in the Unexpected series. Ben is seriously driven by physical need. It’s impressive. I honestly felt like he has top tier stamina. I was a little worried about him, but luckily Cash kept him fed and hydrated. Lol.

Ford and Cash are Ben’s dad’s best friends. I love age gap romances and this one is chef’s kiss. I appreciated that the progression of the friendship between Ford and Cash to something physical doesn’t happen until Ben is in the mix. It felt natural and like something finally clicked for the long time friends. Ben is a little charmer, so it’s understandable that they both find him so irresistible.

What transpires between Ben and Cash AND Ben and Ford is hot. What inevitably transpires between Ben, Ford, and Cash all together are some of the hottest moments I’ve read in a while. You’ll love it if you enjoy MMM romance. But what’s great is that there’s plenty of good conversations and vulnerability in this book as well. I loved the little glimpses of Dean (Ben’s dad) and Avery in this book. Seeing Lex, William, and the ladies from the senior home was an utter delight as well.

There is a little bit of conflict in this book, but I consider it to be low angst. It’s definitely high heat. You should expect the typical mix of heat, humor, and heart that comes with a Cora Rose book. This one is super captivating, so be prepared to not be able to put it down!

[Courtney Williams · Rating 4 out of 5]

I actually really liked this a lot! I was mainly looking for a palette cleanser after reading mainly serious books lately and this was definitely that but also unexpectedly sweet and I loved Ben, Ford, & Cash so much!

[Ash🍉 · Rating 4 out of 5]

3.5

This was good for the most part but I started to get bored at the end.

I liked Ben a lot but Cash and Ford just felt like extras. The only defining characteristics they had in the book was Cash having bad parents and Ford having a great mom. There wasn’t much else about them or their background.

There was a lot of sex. Not a bad thing just a fact.

This was lacking Cora’s usual extreme unrealistic moments, which I was thankful for. The only thing I did find unrealistic was Dean’s reaction about Ben dating his two best friends. The fact that he was enthusiastic about it just seemed too unbelievable. But maybe it’s just me and the fact that I’d never believe some parent would be happy having their child date their friends 😭 .

Anyway it’s a good read if you want super low angst and lots of steam.