Down & Dirty (Lightning, Book 1)

TRACY WOLFF

Synopsis from Goodreads: This hard-bodied football star is used to scoring. But he needs all the right moves to get past a fiery redhead’s defenses in a steamy standalone novel from the bestselling author of Ruined.

Emerson: Talk about bad first impressions. I have too much riding on this job to show up late on my first day looking like the winner of a wet T-shirt contest, all thanks to an arrogant quarterback who drives like he owns the road. Hunter Browning thinks that because he’s famous, he can fix everything with a smile and a wave of his hand. He’s too bronzed, buff, and beautiful for his own good. Or mine. I can’t let on that I’m a fan . . . no matter how much fun we’d have in the sack.

Hunter: Hitting that puddle was my best play since winning the Super Bowl with a touchdown pass. Sure, it’s not my preferred way to get a girl wet, but I’ll make an exception for Emerson Day. She’s got a sharp tongue and a red-hot temper, even with her soaking clothes plastered to her every curve. Now I know exactly what my next play will be: hire Emerson as my personal real-estate agent, save her job—and see if I can take her off the market.

Stats for my copy: .pdf ARC, Loveswept, 2017.

How acquired: Instafreebie.

My thoughts: This story combined elements that I like with elements that I'm not crazy about, and it all worked. I love an alpha hero. Cocky, arrogant, bring it on. Professional football player and star quarterback Hunter delivers. Witty, cutting banter will always draw me in, and Hunter and Emerson delivered. I laughed out loud several times at their exchanges. A hero who enrages the heroine. Score another point for Hunter. A hero with young kids. Ok, they aren't actually Hunter's kids, but a niece and nephew are close enough. A heroine who turns her nose up at the hero's money and fame. While secretly awed (because she is a football fan), Emerson refuses to let that show, which of course makes her different from every other woman Hunter knows, and therefore more desirable. (Although there is a scene involving a hundred dollar bill that was hilarious.) Characters falling deeply in love in a very short period of time. Not a big fan of instalove, as I like watching a relationship grow, but doesn't bother me too much. First person point of view, present tense. My least favorite tense. But Ms. Wolff does it so well it didn't bother me at all. So score one for her.

Throw in some mega sexy times, and a lot of heart. I cried. More than once. Hunter is the kind of man I would find insufferable in real life, but as I got to know him, and to understand him, I adored him. The narrative alternates between Hunter's and Emerson's points of view, but I felt it was a little more his story than hers. Which was just fine by me. I loved this book. 

One Night: Promised (One Night, Book 1)

JODI ELLEN MALPAS 

Synopsis from Goodreads: Livy notices him the moment he walks into the coffee shop. He's heart-stoppingly stunning, with a blue-eyed gaze so piercing she's almost too distracted to take his order. When he walks out the door, she thinks she'll never see him again. Then she finds the note he left on his napkin . . . signed M.

All he wants is one night to worship her. No feelings, no commitment, nothing but pleasure. Every defense mechanism Livy has adopted during her solitary life is at risk of being obliterated by this confounding man. He's obnoxious but well-mannered. He's a gentleman but aloof. He's passionate but emotionless. Yet the fascination is so powerful, Livy can't deny him... or herself.

M awakens something in Livy, something deep and addictive that she never knew existed -- and that she fears only he can satisfy. But she senses that behind the fast cars, fancy suits, and posh apartment, he's aching inside. To have him, body and soul, she'll have to brave his dark secrets. Delving into his world and breaking down his defenses become her obsession - an obsession that could shatter her heart beyond repair.. .

Stats for my copy: Trade paperback, Orion, 2014

How acquired: BookCrossing

My thoughts: I had mixed emotions throughout this book. I liked Livy, the narrator. She was funny and self-deprecating. But I wasn't sure about Miller. At times I liked him, I could understand why Livy was attracted to him, but at other times I just thought he was an arrogant douche bag and I wanted Livy to run in the opposite direction.

Livy meets Miller when he comes into the coffeehouse where she works. She's still new at her job, and learning to master the complicated cappuccino machine. Before leaving, Miller writes her a rude note on a napkin.

Livy can't stop thinking about Miller,and it turns out he can't stop thinking about her. They meet again, and he tells her he wants twenty-four hours with her. No strings, no commitment, and nothing beyond twenty-four hours. She adamantly refuses, but eventually she breaks down and agrees.

It's so obvious that Livy is way too young and vulnerable to enter into an agreement like this, and I felt that if Miller were a real man, he would've realized that and not pushed her into it. What follows is lots of fantastic sex, better than Livy has ever experienced before, along with an emotional roller coaster for Livy, where she swings from misery and angst and self-loathing to euphoria and happiness and back again. The first time Livy comes to her senses and forces herself to walk away from Miller I was applauding her. But of course she went back and started the whole cycle over again. I think it's safe to say that for the most part, I did not like Miller Hart and had absolutely no respect for him.

While there is lots of sex, it's actually pretty tame. Miller tells Livy that he will always “worship” her. They have sex, they make love, but they do not “fuck”. And when she tells him she wants him to fuck her, he is horrified, and insists that no, the pleasure must be slow and savored, every time. I kept waiting for him to finally lose control and give her the fucking she wanted. I mean, jeez, loosen up dude!

The events unfold excruciatingly slow, especially in the first half of the book. And then towards the end there is a twist that comes completely and shockingly out of left field, and after that it's tense and compellingly page turning, and I do want to read the next book to see how Livy and Miller will deal with the fall out. 

Take a Chance on Me

DEBBIE FLINT

Synopsis from Goodreads: When the breakdown of her marriage leaves Sadie Turner a single mum, she vows that she will make it on her own. After all, why would a smart businesswoman with a PhD and the prospect of a life-changing deal on the horizon need a man?

But Sadie’s man-ban is tested to the limit when she travels to Monaco to meet her potential investor. There she encounters Mac, a rough and ready playboy billionaire who lives life in the fast lane – and that’s when the real adventure starts!

But Sadie’s heart isn’t the only thing on the line. There’s also the business she’s worked so hard to make a success; the business that could so easily slip out of her grasp if she doesn’t seal the deal within thirty days …

Published under Hot Choc Lit - slightly raised heat level but not erotica!

Previously self-published as Hawaiian Affair. Revised and edited by Choc Lit March 2015

Stats for my copy: Kindle edition, published by Choc Lit, 2015.

How acquired: NetGalley.

My thoughts: This story started out very strong. We meet Sadie, on a business trip to meet with a prospective investor. With some free time on her hands and a borrowed “Open House” invitation, she's at the docks, nervously boarding a yacht under the pretense of being someone posh who might actually want to buy a yacht. After getting thrown off said yacht, she meets Mac, a deckhand on another yacht.

I connected with and loved Sadie right from the beginning. She's a little awkward and self-conscious, she's smart and witty, she's mum to two adolescent daughters, she totters about on her sky high heels, she's got curves, she's a realistic woman. She has a self-imposed rule about no men in her life until her girls are grown. A one night stand with Mac is the perfect way to end a stressful day. Not that she rushes into it. Oh no, she vacillates, and actually walks away, but her libido drags her back. On an impulse she's given him her middle name, and they agree that there will be no talk about their personal or business lives. Just each other's company for one evening.

So naturally the next morning when she walks into the meeting with the investor, who is she shocked to come face to face with but a shocked Mac. And Mac has a very firm rule – he does not mix business with pleasure.

This line is from much farther into the book, but it's a good description of Sadie and Mac at this point:

How could a playboy billionaire ever want to be with a small-town single mother of two feisty teenage girls, with a hippy grandma in tow, and a barely-solvent health food store to run.

The banter between Sadie and Mac was just delightful, and I loved watching them get to know each other.

“Thanks so much for rescuing my bag for me. Are you always such a hero?”

“Of course! Drowning handbags, run of the mil. Damsels in distress, a specialty!”

“Well, if I'm ever in distress, I'll give you a call!”

“Dis-dress, dat-dress, you look good whatever,” he said, then cringed.

Mac gets angry that Sadie didn't tell him who she really was, suspicious that she was playing him because he's rich, but at the same time he kept reminding himself that he was also less than honest, pretending to be a deckhand rather than the billionaire owner of the yacht he was on. He has a lot of trust issues when it comes to women, as billionaire playboys do. But his issues never seem melodramatic and we get into his head enough to have some insight and understanding of his reasoning.

At this point in the story, there is a lot of business talk. Sadie has presented Mac's people with a proposed marketing plan for a hydrating water, Frish, in hopes that he will be willing to invest, and join her in vying for distribution rights. If all goes well, and the company that produces the water goes for her plan, she's looking at finally having some financial security, paying off debt, and being able to provide more for her daughters without having to rely on her scummy ex-husband's help.

And frankly, all the business talk bored me. The plot got a little convoluted and very busy. Now that they're contemplating going into business together, Mac is determined to not have any kind of personal relationship with Sadie, and he often disappeared and avoided her and told her he would talk to her later and then didn't. I definitely enjoyed the story much more when they were interacting together, rather than going off in separate directions.

There are several secondary characters, and they mostly remain secondary. Which was fine, since I wanted the focus to be on Sadie and Mac. Eventually there was a revelation about Simon, Mac's business adviser and CFO, which I thought was unnecessary and a little disappointing. But in the end everything wrapped up quite satisfyingly, and I enjoyed more of the book than what I unenjoyed.