Dirty Little Secret

"In every other aspect of my life, I need control, but this, in these moments and if I find the right Dom, I'm able to get out of my head and just be." "I know how much you want to be good for me, Professor, and I want that too." "You want to keep me your dirty little secret?" "You are my dirty little secret." "You're allowed to do this, little dreamer. You're allowed to have this." "I want you to be proud of me. I want to be the best boy you've ever had. Pleasing you pleases me, Sir." "You don't even know what you do to me, James. I'm so f****** addicted to you." "This man is so f****** beautiful, so f****** mine. I don't ever want to let him go. I want more, yes, but maybe I want it all." "It's such an honor to be wanted by him, to be chosen by him, and I will spend the rest of my life cherishing that." "I'll be your Sir, your boyfriend, your partner, your best friend. We're in this together now, for as long as you'll have me." "I've never wanted someone this much, never craved someone the way I do him, and not just for sex either. I want to crawl inside his brain and figure out what makes his tick. I want to learn all I can about him--how to please him, torture him, how to ease the pain I know lives inside him." "I'm his good boy, his good hole. I please him and pleasure him, and it makes me feel more at home doing this for him than almost anything else does." This was such a phenomenal book. I have loved everything Riley has written and this story is…

Dirty Little Secret is a tender, steady‑burn MM romance with power dynamics, caretaking, and unexpected family at its heart. This story surprised me in the best way. I went in expecting a professor/student romance with a D/s edge, and I got that…but what really hooked me was how deeply emotional and grounded Colton and James’ journey becomes once life throws them something neither could have prepared for. Colton, 28, is the kind of caretaker Dom who doesn’t posture or perform. He’s steady, observant, and quietly protective, he’s the kind of man who notices when you haven’t eaten, when you’re spiraling, when you need grounding more than you need rules. James, 40, is brilliant and composed on the surface, but underneath he’s lonely in a way that aches. Their early meetups, anonymous, app‑based, uncomplicated, have this simmering chemistry that feels both intentional and inevitable. And then everything shifts. James’ mother dies, and suddenly he’s guardian to two siblings he never knew existed: Sadie (11, heartbreakingly guarded) and Nash (15, angry at the world and trying not to show how scared he is). Watching James try to step into this role, fumbling, grieving, overwhelmed, was so raw. Watching Colton quietly step with him was even more powerful. The professor/student twist is handled so well. Colton walks into class expecting a normal semester and instead finds the man he’s been kneeling for standing at the front of the room. The shock, the tension, the recalibration…

James is 40 and a professor who loves his job but lives a solitary kind of life. He doesn't really go out or have friends even when some try. He's never been the best at socializing or making friends. But what he does enjoy and crave is to submit. For this though he takes to a BDSM site where he gets his needs met and this is how Colton enters his life. He may only be 28 but their kinks align and he gives James more than what he needs. More than any Dom he's ever played with. So much so that he sets up a scene with Colton a second time though he rarely goes to the same Dom multiple times. But there's something about Colton and how James feels when he's with him. And Colton feels it too. They share a spectacular evening but James knows he can't see Colton again even if Colton is more than willing. But James can't get attached so even if he feels the need he knows he shouldn't contact him again. And what solidifies that stance is the call he gets about his mother passing and child services telling him he has two siblings he didn't know about already in the double digits of their lives and that James is the only family they have left. And if James doesn't take them in then they'll likely be put in foster care and most likely separated. James has a very particular way he likes things. He likes control since he never had it in his childhood but if his mother treated his siblings anything close to the way she treated him then even though he's scared and overwhelmed he goes to get…

I don’t usually read professor/student. It’s just not personally my thing. But I did really enjoy this. I loved that the dom character was younger and the student. That was a really interesting dynamic to see explored. I loved Colton so much. The way he just immediately started taking care of James in every way he could was so nice to see. I know James had never had something like that before and just having someone making food for him, and helping him out, and telling him he was proud of him must have been such a relief. I loved James too. I love how hard he tried to make his siblings feel like they were safe with him, and that he cared about them, when he had never had a good example of that himself. He had to kind of learn as he went, but he put a lot of effort in and did a good job. I thought the guilt he felt around stuff he found sexually satisfying was also realistic and well done, and it was nice to see Colton seeing that in him and helping him understand he didn’t need to be ashamed about it. The children characters were also so good. They had a completely understandable level of distrust of everyone, and fear of anything good or nice that happened to them. It was so nice to see them slowly getting over that in a place where they could finally feel safe. My biggest complaint is I feel like it ended too fast. Conflicts came up at the end, and they had just started working on them when suddenly it was the epilogue and everything had been solved during the time…

For a book that focuses on a couple that is part of the k!nk community this one sure had me in tears half of the time. James and Colton were exactly what I needed and I am so glad I got to find this story. From the first moment I heard about a bdsm student-teacher pairing where the student is the Dom I was convinced I had to get my hands on this book. And let me tell you, Riley Hart DID NOT disappoint. For a book this smuty DLS for sure is such a sweet love story. All the emotions this book brings to the surface... crazy. I loved the dynamic between Sir and his boy, and omg, the way they are so perfectly aligned k*nk wise is everything. I loved reading about the struggle James constantly had whenever he was thinking about his Dom/s relationships with Colton. It was not easy for his mind to grasp the fact that his Dom is not only younger than him, but also his student. ( this is not a spoiler, this is in the blurb and also in the first chapters ) The way they played with fire and how James allowed himself to trust and feel showers how much he grew as a character. He was held back by his past, and Colton came into his life at the right time to free him. Colton's attraction to James was obvious from day 1... well, obvious to everyone except him and J that is. He never got him out of his head no matter how much he tried and when they got to meet again he can't deny it anymore... James Valentine is the one for him. The way he comes undone for him is addictive and our boy…