Much like Sam and Ian's relationship, this book slowly grew on me. At first, I wasn't a big fan of Ian's. The problem with Ian was that he had a preconceived notion of what he was looking for in a guy, and Sam wasn't it. So, needless to say, their first meeting didn't go well. However, there was just something about Sam that got under Ian's skin and he just couldn't stop himself from falling for the guy. 
 I loved Sam. Sam knew that he wasn't the best looking guy around, but he didn't let himself become a victim of his insecurities. He knew that he was skinny and awkward, but there wasn't anything he could do about it, so he had a 'take it or leave it' attitude. Sam knew how he felt about Ian from the moment they met; it was Ian who had to learn to accept himself before he could let himself love or be loved. 
 Nik and Jurgen from Whitetail Rock and The Fix are pretty frequent characters in this book, however I do not feel that it is necessary to have read their stories prior to reading this one. There were a couple of other characters in this story that I look forward to seeing in future books. :)