This is a fun short story with some great ideas and concepts (the group of four men as a legal marriage unit, for example), and I enjoyed the main characters getting to know each other. There are some pretty hot moments as well. This story idea could go far if more details were worked out. The whole background of this society sounds fascinating, and I want more!Tabansi is still grieving for the loss of his two lovers, who were not enough to let them legally marry. The moment they finally find a forth, they die in an accident, and Tabansi's pain is palpable. He's spent enough time grieving, even if he himself doesn't think so, but moving on requires 'infidelity' to his two dead lovers. As long as he thinks this, it'll never happen.Thank God Maddock, the fourth potential partner of the original marriage group, still wants Tabansi and figures out a way to help.If you like stories set in very different worlds, if you enjoy a bit of mystery, and if you;re looking for a very ht read with four-way action, you will probably like this story. I liked this story quite a bit. I think it had a great potential for the world, but it also fell short of what I needed by way of explanation of the world itself. I had so many world-building questions left at the end, I was confused and very disappointed they weren't answered.The general idea is a world (not Earth, based on the country/city names) where men bond in groups of four. In order to be recognized as an official group, there must be four. Why is not explained. And one of those four must be a coração (means 'heart' in Portuguese and in this story). What one is, why/how they are different, why they are treated differently legally from other men (not allowed to have sex before being married), etc. is not explained. What the "soiree" is is not explained. Is it just coraçãos that are required to go to the "soiree"? Just not explained.So, Tabansi, a coração, has 2 men he loves dearly, but they're not allowed to be married until they have a fourth. Those 2 are killed on their way home to Tabansi to tell him they've met a potential fourth. The fourth knows who Tabansi is, but Tabansi doesn't know who he is. Tabansi will eventually be forced back into the soiree if he doesn't find another group to marry, and he just can't imagine being disloyal to their memory.We eventually meet the man who was to be the fourth, who feels guilty that the other two men were killed and Tabansi was left without them, and he's made it his goal to find Tabansi another suitable group for marriage. And it so happens they're all fairly attracted to each other as they meet.I think this story would be fabulous if it were longer and more fleshed out, but as it is, it does not satisfy my questions about the world and WHY things are like they are, and that takes away from Tabansi's story and my ability to emotionally connection to him.There were also some things which felt inconsistent to me, but those probably wouldn't have bothered me as much if other things (mentioned above) had been explained.2.5 stars because of what I consider to be missing world-building and some "kicked me out of the story" moments. I just wasn't quite satisfied in the end.
What do You think about Steamy (2012)?
Well steamy is a great name for this story. Some very unusual trust in this one.
—louisakiwi
