~*SYNOPSIS*~
In
the first novel in USA Today bestselling author Claire Kent’s deeply sensual
story of love, lust, and deception, a woman searching for the truth discovers
that she’s sleeping with the enemy.
Portrait artist Kelly Watson keeps
her relationships simple and steamy, with no strings attached. She’s had a hard
time trusting other people since she was a child, when her father was murdered
for trying to blow the whistle on corporate corruption. Nearly twenty years
later, Kelly finds herself in the arms of a seductive stranger—the very same
man who may have ordered her father’s death. And even as she plays him, using
hot sex as a means to revenge, Kelly is tormented by one question: Is she
committing the ultimate betrayal?
“Pet portraits?” the man asked
skeptically, with that same smug laughter in his eyes.
“What’s your point?”
“Nothing.
You’re just that type,
aren’t you?”
“What
type?”
“Pet
portrait artist. At one with the universe. Lover of flowers and trees and all
furry creatures. Filling the world with pretty objects and warm fuzzies. I bet
they call you Blossom, don’t
they?” His tone was bone dry, as if far above such sentiment.
He
probably was. She could tell even from their brief interaction that he was too
intelligent, too experienced, too competent to have patience with anything
trite or saccharine.
She
liked that about him. Despite her intentionally bohemian appearance just now,
she was as far as possible from those feelings herself.
“You
don’t know me at all,”
she said, pleased at the cool aloofness of her tone.
It
just made him smile. When his dog lay down with the Frisbee, panting
blissfully, the man started walking toward him, evidently expecting Kelly to fall
in step with him. “I know a little about you. I know you paint pet portraits. I
know you’re
wearing vegan sandals and are reluctant to cut your hair. And I know you have
on your bracelet various charms of dogs, cats, birds, and flowers.” He arched
his eyebrows. “I think I’ve
got a pretty clear sense of you.”
The
bracelet was stupid, but her clients always liked it, and her hair was indeed
very long, hanging down to the small of her back. But this arrogant man
couldn’t be more wrong.
He might be eerily observant, but
he knew nothing.
“Is
that right?” she replied, giving him arched eyebrows in response. “You might be
surprised about me. But there’s
no way I’d
be surprised about you. I’d
know your type in my sleep.”
“Blossom,
you could know my type in your sleep, if you asked nicely.”
She
felt another tingle of excitement at the sexiness of his tone but ignored it.
“You wear a suit to work every day, don’t
you?”
“What
does that have to do with anything?”
“Nothing.
It’s just your type.
You’re one of those guys
who wears a business suit like armor—going through the world as if the
nameplate on your office entitles you to whatever you want. As if your bank
account makes you superior.”
The
words weren’t
particularly gentle, but he looked interested rather than offended. “What makes
you think I have anything impressive in my bank account?”
“Please.
I know roughly how much that watch you’re
wearing costs.”
Because
of the Watsons, her adoptive parents, Kelly was in good shape financially, but
she didn’t
own anything except her car that cost as much as the watch he was wearing.
“And
I bet you’re
wondering why would I spend money on something so superficial when I could be
donating it to all the homeless animals in the world?” Again, he was teasing in
that intimate way, as if he really did know her.
“I’m not like that,” she told him, speaking
only the truth.
“Sure
you aren’t.”
He flashed her a grin. “What happened to your client, anyway?”
Kelly
had actually forgotten about her client, so absorbed in the conversation had she
been. She gave a little jerk and turned back to scan the park, focusing on the
entrance, but there was no sign of another man with a German shepherd. “I think
I’ve been stood up.
It happens sometimes.”
Just
then, her phone chirped with another text, so she reached in to pull it out of
her bag. “Maybe that’s
him.”
When
she focused on the screen, she realized it wasn’t her client. Are you sure?
I’d make it worth your while. Promise.
She
sighed. Jesse. Why the hell wouldn’t he just give up?
“Not your client,” the man beside her said.
She
glanced up. “How do you know?”
“I’m pretty good at reading expressions. Who
is it? Your boyfriend being annoying?”
He
was actually quite close. Impressive, given that they were strangers. “No. Just
a guy who won’t
take no for an answer.”
“He
has my sympathy.”
She
sucked in a breath. “Why should he have your sympathy?”
He
had that smug, heated amusement in his eyes again. “To get a taste of a hot
little thing like you—and then get the door slammed in his face? Can’t help but feel sorry for him.”
“I
didn’t slam the door in
his face. I was nothing but honest with him. He’s the idiot who ignored what I
told him and keeps bumbling on toward something he already knows he can’t have.”
The
man chuckled and reached out to run his fingers gently down a long strand of
her hair. “It doesn’t
matter what you tell him, blossom. You’ve
got this gorgeous, untouched sweetness about you. It’s like a promise and a challenge.”
Her
whole body went hot at the texture of his words, at the tension and power she
could feel in his hand, his shoulders, his gaze.
She
knew what he was referring to. She’d
been born with clear creamy skin, pink cheeks, big blue eyes, and a
heart-shaped face that gave the impression of innocence. There was no way she
could dress that would change her natural look, even though she’d desperately tried when she was younger.
“Don’t assume the way I look is the way I really
am,” she said, her pulse starting to throb in her wrists and her throat. She
knew how to recognize the look in this guy’s eyes.
He
wanted her.
And
despite his smug superiority—or maybe because of it—she wanted him too.
~*REVIEW BY JODIE RAE*~
Overall,
this is a sexy story about Kelly sleeping with the enemy to discover
the truth and I am excited to read more about these characters!
This
is the first book in the Revenge Saga and the author did a great job
underlining the suspense of this storyline. There are so many
unanswered questions that hopefully will be answered in the second book,
because I need to know!! I rate this book three and half leaves!
Kelly
Watson is not like your average virgin heroine. Over the years, sex has
almost become a necessity for her to function. She enjoys sex and only
with that one person at a time. She never has seconds...until she
meets, Caleb Marshall. Kelly is a pet photographer meets Caleb after
confusing him for a client of hers at the park. Once Kelly and Caleb
start to talk their physical attraction goes off the charts and becomes
very spontaneous.
Kelly
thought meeting Caleb was an unplanned event but their past is
connected in a way that neither of them want to be. Kelly is determined
to have their relationship be more than a one night stand so she can
find the answers she has needed to know. She needs to piece together the
past and discover what happened to her. The sex scenes were extra
steamy!! Though Kelly had an altered motive, she was started to develop
feelings for Caleb. I felt like Caleb and Kelly complemented each other
because they both have a past they can't seem to ever get over.
~*ABOUT THE AUTHOR*~
Claire Kent has been writing romance novels since she
was twelve years old. She has a PhD in British literature and, when she’s not
writing, teaches English at the university level. She also writes contemporary
romance under the pen name Noelle Adams.
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