Sweet Tea and Sympathy

Bluegrass Boys #2

by Shane K. Morton

Being a baseball star has always been my identity, until that kiss hit me like a freight train.

Rusty: I’ve ignored and denied being gay my whole life. Being from a small country town in Kentucky, being gay was not an option. The boys in the locker room would have made my life a living hell, and I was team captain. But something happened over the summer that woke me up and I knew I owed it to myself to discover the truth. That’s when my new roommate walked into our dorm room, and I knew. I tried to resist my feelings for him, but one kiss has led to more than I ever dreamed of.

Now my entire life is up in the air and I’m not sure I have the courage to be my honest self.

He was dressed in cosplay as my favorite super-hero, when he gave me my very first kiss.

Matt: I came to college to escape the fear and ridicule of my past. Here I could grow into the strong gay man I had always dreamed about. College was my chance to finally be me. Then I met my roommate. A jock. The star of the baseball team. The kind of guy who made my adolescent life hell. He is so hot I’m unsure how I can even stand to live with him. I go to the LGBT back to school dance and met someone dressed in cosplay as my favorite comic book character. He kissed me that night and I never even found out his name, but he seems so familiar. My mind is spinning and Rusty is only making it worse. Clothes repel from his body as soon as he enters the room. I’m falling for the kind of guy I wanted to escape.

If he won't step out into the light with me, how can we ever have a future?

Genres: M M Romance, College

230 pages, Kindle Edition

Published July 23, 2020

About the author

Shane K Morton lives in California with his husband and their fur baby. His Novels include: The Point Pleasant Holiday Series, Bluegrass Boys Series, Moray University Collection- Adorkable, The Trouble With Off-Campus Housing, Private Waterloos and The Year of the Cock. Short stories: And We Call It Bella Notte, Ginger in the City and Get off of my Runway. Shane can usually be found at a film festival or performing in cabaret somewhere in a dark dive bar in LA.

Reviews

[Chuck Deets · Rating 5 out of 5]

I'm not good at writing reviews, but Shane you are a great storyteller. The characters are fun and memorable. your books are entertaining and a joy to read!

[Deb Swietek · Rating 5 out of 5]

The quarterback is out, can you be too?

Welcome back to Moray University. My old friends welcomed me home. I love how the angst of college life comes alive. Finding yourself is a rite of passage. You will love this book!
Rusty is the star of the baseball team. He had to be straight, right? But more & more he feels attracted to guys; especially his roommate. Matt is a self- avowed gay nerd freshman. He is attracted to his jock of a roomie. Trying to fit in he goes to an LGBTQ mixer with the group that has adopted him. The DJ is hot, and gives him his first kiss. Too bad they're all in costumes & masks.
Join Rusty and Matt as they learn they are more alike than different. Watch as they explore each other. Feel their angst as Rusty has to decide what's important: having Matt openly or staying closeted. HEA is assured. I loved this book. I usually don't read coming of age books, but Shane does it so well!
This book contains adult themes and language, mm sex and is intended for mature readers only.

[Jeff · Rating 5 out of 5]

There needs to be a sequel

I feel like there story needs to continue. How does Rusty’s parents react to him being gay? How do Matt’s parents react to him having a boyfriend and his GPA. It seems like a big distraction. Ans so many other questions.

Great book. Fast Read

[Shannon Everyday · Rating 4 out of 5]

Sweet Tea is a college age romance that follows Rusty and Matt, who are roommates. Rusty, on the baseball team, finds over the summer, he's more attracted to gusy. Matt, who is out, joins the college's LGBT club. At the club's costumed dance, Rusty and Matt share a kiss, at first not knowing who the other is. Once they both realize who each other is, can Rusty and Matt navigate Rusty's fears about coming out to his team, while building a relationship together? I liked both Rusty and Matt. Rusty's fears were articulated well. I also liked that Rusty and Matt had a solid group of friends that supported them and had their backs. Sweet Tea is a great read if you are looking for a low angst, jock/nerdish, college set romance.

[Robert Fontenot · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was a sweet take on the jock/nerd college pairing and though I mostly liked it, it at times felt overly padded, particularly in the middle. At one point we even get to follow along with a character and listen to a lecture start to finish. I don't know if the lecturer was from a previous series but it was a weird side quest in an otherwise straightforward tale. Still, I did like the characters and the author has a fun, idiosyncratic voice, particularly towards the beginning.

[Ken Cook · Rating 4 out of 5]

3.5 stars college antics

Freshman nerd Matt's unanticipated roommate Rusty is a jock. Morton writes them through complaining into a budding relationship with a coming out. Very freshman drama with nice heat.