The Barracks

But We're Bros! #15

by Heath Grayson

Muscular military men in tight quarters – something, or someone, is bound to go down.

I had always wanted to fly, and after some dumbass decisions on my part, I wasn’t upset that I had to join the Air Force. The only issue is, for as technically welcoming as the US armed forces have become, it’s still annoying to come out. Dating is out of the question, and you can only hog the last stall in the bathroom so many times. But a guy has needs, you know? It can get pretty hard. Especially when one of the guys you’re bunking with in the barracks is exactly your type.

Stryker had the top bunk next to mine in basic. We bonded over our love of all things aerospace in boot camp and were happy to be assigned to the same room on base. It’s been great, except that he’s so hot I can hardly focus when he’s around. It doesn’t help that he’s the kind of guy who thinks that people in the military should have no shame about being in the buff all the damn time. Stryker’s muscular frame, jet black hair, and deep blue eyes make me do stupid things. Like, stare at him slack-jawed and drooling after he's come in from a run, totally stripped off and sweaty, chugging water at the sink.

Then there’s the fact that I haven’t had physical contact with another human being for so long that I can’t even remember the last time. I let my fantasies of Stryker get the best of me and decided to do something risky. With great risk comes great reward, right? Or so I thought. Sometimes you’re just left with a bad taste in your mouth. I need to make sure it doesn’t impact my career. Victory can come in even the tightest of places, after all.

91 pages, Kindle Edition

Published September 28, 2022

About the author

Heath Grayson writes erotic fiction featuring men who've just found out there may be more to life than they ever imagined. His debut series, But We're Bros!, depicts guy friends crossing lines that bros typically don't. Heath is fascinated by the quiet moments between men, how a single stare, repeated joke, or the simple brush of a hand can turn into something much more. The first time with your good bro can change your world.

Reviews

[⚓Dan⚓ · Rating 5 out of 5]

OMG! This novella was so hot. But what makes it so enjoyable is Heath's way of character building.
The story not only has a sexy element but a bond to the protags in every story he tells.
Loved it!

[loverexreads · Rating 4 out of 5]

4.25⭐️

[J · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book brought many memories of my own days in the military. Grayson writes about a different time than when I was in, but the undercurrent of hidden affections and attractions is still there, even if for different reasons. I was really taken in by Stryker. I felt a lot of empathy with his situation because it mirrored my own in so many ways.

[SJ · Rating 1 out of 5]

This one of an enjoyable series went off the tracks with some odd writing where some statements were contradicted within the next lines. I had to stop and reread to make sense of what I had just read. I never thought one of these hot and heavy stories would suffer the trope of push pull, but it did. A main character was unlikable for how he treated the other MC, a fellow barracks mate who thought they had a friendship. It read like the gay awakening blew his mind and he rejected his friend and not in a polite way.
These novellas are built on a sexual relationship foundation and good character development. I’m at 51% and there has been a shower bj where the one MC split and ignored the giver for weeks after. Where are the hot scenes and the good dialogue? Too much discussion of angst has me leaving. DNF

* I might reread this after reading ‘Tailgate’. I didn’t care much for an MC in that one until I understood his motivations. Maybe the author was going for depth of characters here, too.

[Robert Fontenot · Rating 5 out of 5]

I mean, all of Grayson’s work is hot.

This is hot.

But it also has surprising depth and development for its length and a relationship that grows naturally. It also highlights that weird sense of missed opportunity that can develop in friendships when two people are perfectly matched but just at the wrong stage of their emotional development. I’m glad it works out for these guys.

I also really appreciated that this story avoids the puritanical streak so prevalent in the romance genre but also somewhat antithetical to gay life. While it’s not dwelled on or depicted, the novella does acknowledge that a gay man, while single, may seek out the company of someone who is not their designated soulmate.

[Miss · Rating 5 out of 5]

I wasn't sure where this would go with how it started, but it was a journey I loved taking. There's so much story here in so few pages! Not sure of the author's military experience, but he wrote the experience so realistically for Avery and Stryker. How difficult it must be to know how tenuous the acceptance/tolerance is for gays in the US military. Avery is a gay man keeping it quiet to get through training as smoothly as possible while Stryker isn't categorized due to his upbringing and initial discomfort with his sexual desires. The way this tracks them from basic to bunk mates to an awkward hookup to boyfriends and beyond was just beautiful in how authentic it felt. To cover such ground with real heart and thought in just 94 pages is astounding.

[Vanessa · Rating 5 out of 5]

intriguing series

Stryker & Avery story had so many different complexities, both professionally and personally. I am so happy we got an epilogue with them to see how the relationship progressed..

[BMO · Rating 2 out of 5]

Novellas are always hit or miss for me, specially eroticas but this one…i really didn’t like. And it was because the two main characters were both so unlikeable and while the end of their relationship was great and all…the beginning sucked tbh


P. 2/5
E 2/5
A 3/5
C 1/5
H 1/5

9/5 1.5 stars

[Janette · Rating 4 out of 5]

The internalized homophobia and familial expectations loom large in what is otherwise a fun, sweet, hot love story between Air Force bunkmates. The gradual openness and support between these guys is everything, and I really appreciated their story.

[NTDan · Rating 4 out of 5]

this is fairly decent
good character development and a lot of potential to become a full book

[laura cabezas · Rating 3 out of 5]

avery & stryker: 3.5 stars 🤍🤍

[peter :D · Rating 2 out of 5]

three books to go