My life was just like
any other girl’s until the Maxwell corporate empire ruined my family and
stole my future. I’d given up hoping to see justice done, but then the
way to right this wrong was dropped in my lap. My job with an event
planner can get me into the home of one of Maxwell’s business partners. I
can find evidence of what they did to my father. I can make sure they
pay.
I wasn’t expecting Sebastian.
Sebastian has been hired for security, but he is also the son of the man I despise. I should hate Sebastian purely on principle. I shouldn’t care that he’s sweet and funny and sexy as hell. He’ll always be a Maxwell, and that means he’s my enemy.
I can’t help but want him anyway.
He seems to want me too, but only for a good time. He’s the son of privilege, and he’ll never be serious about me. He’ll also never betray his family. If he finds out what I’m really doing here, he’ll turn on me in an instant. He’ll keep me from finding justice.
It’s just that I keep finding him instead.
I wasn’t expecting Sebastian.
Sebastian has been hired for security, but he is also the son of the man I despise. I should hate Sebastian purely on principle. I shouldn’t care that he’s sweet and funny and sexy as hell. He’ll always be a Maxwell, and that means he’s my enemy.
I can’t help but want him anyway.
He seems to want me too, but only for a good time. He’s the son of privilege, and he’ll never be serious about me. He’ll also never betray his family. If he finds out what I’m really doing here, he’ll turn on me in an instant. He’ll keep me from finding justice.
It’s just that I keep finding him instead.
I’m not sure why and I can’t put my
finger on it, but I think I enjoyed Honor
Bound even more than I did Duty Bound.
Book two in The Protectors series brings us Sebastian’s story as he strives to
break away from the family business and make a name for himself. The security
business he, Levi, Declan and Cole are starting up plays a huge part in how
Sebastian plans to make his own way. Unfortunately, his current assignment was
gained due to his father’s business contacts and he finds himself “protecting”
a man he doesn’t like. There is an upside to the job and her name is Ali.
As much as I admire Sebastian desire
to make his own way, I loved Ali’s character even more. She’s funny,
quick-witted, unassuming, loyal, loving, and just the kind of person you want
for a friend. What makes Ali’s character even more enjoyable is the chemistry
she has with Sebastian. She tries so hard not to like him, convinces herself a
couple of times that he’s like every other Maxwell,
but ultimately she can’t keep lying to herself. While their first kiss was an
absolute surprise to her, those sparks quickly became an inferno that made for
some rather stimulating reading. As Ali works to achieve her goal (you’ll have
to read the book to find out what it is), she finds herself in a position she
never thought she’d be in … falling in love with a Maxwell.
Once again, Ms. Chase and Ms. Adams
have done a wonderful job collaborating on Honor
Bound and have given their readers a great sequel. If you enjoyed Duty Bound then you’ll enjoy this book
and you’ll get a bit of an update on Levi and Harper. I for one, am looking
forward to the next installment in The Protectors series as I cannot wait to
read Declan’s story …. PLEASE let Declan be next.
Cautiously, I
stepped inside, and at a cursory glance, nothing looked out of place. The
king-size bed was made with military precision and everything on the furniture
surfaces looked to be in its place. I wandered further into the room and saw
something that was definitely out of place.
It was that perfect
little butt—today it was encased in slate gray—and it was sticking out from
what I can only guess to be one of the master closets. What in the world could
she possibly be measuring for up here? I knew for a fact that this area was
going to be off limits for the party. No matter how detailed her boss wanted
her damn measurements, they shouldn’t need anything from here.
I didn’t want to
alert her to my presence just yet. I was kind of getting used to this game.
Carefully, I crouched down to the floor. Using my best stealth tactics, I
crawled up until I was right beside her. I was amazed that she hadn’t noticed
me yet. Leaning in, until my lips were almost against her ear, I whispered, “I
can’t help but admire your thoroughness on this job.”
Ali shrieked, and as
she jumped back, she cracked me right across the face with the back of her
hand.
“Oh, my God,” she
cried, as soon as she realized what she’d done. “Are you okay? Did I hurt you?”
I sat back on my
haunches and tested my jaw. It stung like a son of a bitch. When my eyes were
able to focus, I saw that she was devastated by what just happened—but I wasn’t
sure if it was because she smacked me or because I caught her crawling around
again. “You’ve got a mighty strong hand there.”
She blushed, and I
thought she looked absolutely adorable.
“I’ve never hit
anyone in my life.” She covered her face with her hands for just a moment,
obviously trying to pull herself together.
“Well, you did a
pretty good job for your first time,” I said, trying to lighten the mood. I had
hoped that she’d look at me and smile—or laugh—but she did neither. I watched
as she removed her hands from her face and stood up. She straightened her pants
and her simple white blouse before reaching down for her notepad and measuring tape.
“I really am sorry,”
she said coolly. Now she fidgeted with her ponytail. “I’m done in here so you
can do…whatever it is that you came in here to do.”
When she turned to
walk away, I snapped out of my stupor and lunged to my feet. I reached out and
clasped my hand around her upper arm. “Hey, wait,” I said and was relieved that
she didn’t pull away. “What were you measuring for in here? This whole area is
going to be off limits for the party. We’re even installing extra security up
here to make sure that no one gets in.”
Ali averted her
eyes. “Oh, well…I wasn’t sure of that. I know that Mrs. Gentry likes to show
off her possessions and…well…I came up here to see if there were…um…any areas
of the room that we could use to either set up special…lighting…or to pipe in
music from the ballroom. The DJ wants to see if we can rig something up to pipe
music throughout the house.”
I knew a lot about
women. I knew when they were flirting. I knew when they were interested. I knew
when they were turned on.
And I knew when they
were nervous.
And Ali was most
definitely nervous. But why?
I didn’t completely
buy the whole music thing, but right now, I didn’t really care. “Oh, okay.”
Reluctantly, I pulled my hand from her arm and then placed them in my pockets
to keep from touching her again. She felt very delicate under my hands, and it
made me twitch with the need to touch her in other places, too.
“So,” I said, hoping
to indulge her in more casual conversation, “how is your day going, other than
clobbering innocent onlookers?”
She loves travel, art, history, and ice cream. After spending far too many years of her life in graduate school, she has decided to reorient her priorities and focus on writing contemporary romances.
Her second book, a holiday novella titled "The Christmas Cottage" hit #10 on Amazon's Best Seller List on Christmas Eve. It was a great Christmas gift! Watching the numbers rise and fall is a daily roller coaster ride but definitely an exciting one! And on February 25th, she released the follow up novella - "Ever After" - available exclusively on Amazon.
When she's not working on a new story, she spends her time reading contemporary romances, blogging, playing way too many games of Scrabble on Facebook and spending time with her husband of 23 years and their two sons in North Carolina.
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