Former cat burglar Rook Stevens stole many a priceless thing in the past, but he’s never been accused of taking a life—until now. It was one thing to find a former associate inside Potter’s Field, his pop culture memorabilia shop, but quite another to stumble across her dead body.
Detective Dante Montoya thought he’d never see Rook Stevens again—not after his former partner’d falsified evidence to entrap the jewelry thief and Stevens walked off scot-free. So when he tackled a fleeing murder suspect, Dante was shocked to discover the blood-covered man was none other than the thief he’d fought to put in prison and who still made his blood sing.
Rook is determined to shake loose the murder charge against him, even if it means putting distance between him and the rugged Cuban-Mexican detective who brought him down. If one dead con artist wasn’t bad enough, others soon follow, and as the bodies pile up around Rook’s feet, he’s forced to reach out to the last man he’d expect to believe in his innocence—and the only man who’s ever gotten under Rook’s skin.
Review
This another amazing work by Rhys Ford! Rook is a thief, trying to get clean, but stuck in the middle of family drama “that keeps pulling him in”!
Dante is the cop on the case – at first determined to put Rook behind bars, but later determined to keep the man in his bed.
It’s a wonderful story of enemies to lovers with that special, emotionally charged twist that Rhys infuses into all her work. Rook is such a great character – warm hearted, giving, loyal, and totally unaware of how awesome he is.
Dante is the tough, alpha figure who knows a gem when he sees it. He won’t let Rook slip through his fingers and he’s lucky enough to get Rook’s crazy family, too.
The sex scenes were amazing, the love story so sweet and the action/mystery compelling.
I enjoyed the pop-culture references and laughed out loud many times. It was great seeing Alex again and catching up with him a bit. I also LOVED the pet names they had for each other… so adorable!
I can’t wait for this to be an audiobook – it’s going to go up with my Cole McGinnis stories as those books you just read/listen to again and again.
On the run from his old-blood werewolf family, Tim Dirus finds himself in Wolf’s Paw, one of the last surviving refuges from the days when werewolves were hunted by humans and one of the last places Tim wants to be. Kept away from other wolves by his uncle, Tim knows almost nothing about his own kind except that alpha werewolves only want to control and dominate a scrawny wolf like him.
Tim isn’t in Wolf’s Paw an hour before he draws the attention of Sheriff Nathaniel Neri, the alphaest alpha in a town full of alphas. Powerful, intimidating, and the most beautiful wolf Tim has ever seen, Nathaniel makes Tim feel safe for reasons Tim doesn’t understand. For five years he’s lived on the run, in fear of his family and other wolves. Everything about Wolf’s Paw is contrary to what he thought he knew, and he is terrified. Fearing his mate will run, Sheriff Nathaniel must calm his little wolf and show him he’s more than a match for this big, bad alpha.
Marieke’s thoughts:
Tim, aka Little Wolf is on the run. He’s a wolf shifter but only half and that makes him smaller and weaker than most full wolf shifters. He came to Wolf’s Paw because someone he trusted sent him there. But the first day he arrived he made a foo out of himself with the Sheriff. Luckily Sheriff Neri is his mate, and a very powerful yet controlled wolf. He tries to show Tim that he can be patient and trustworthy.
Tim slowly gets used to Nathaniel, even starts to look forward to his visits to the café/ souvenir shop where Tim works. He’s still scared shitless though, and freaks out with every little thing that happens.
But when his room is breached by magic, he runs straight to Nathaniel––without knowing why. Nathaniel takes him home, stating can protect him better there.
Of course then the whole ‘starting to get to know each other’ begins, and Tim learns a lot about Nathaniel but also about himself. He lets himself shift for the first time in years, which is quite the victory for him. The sexual tension is overwhelming and the two end up having sex. But that’s not the end of the problems Tim has.
I loved how Nathaniel cares for Tim, even if I sometimes wished he’d just hurried up and claim the guy already. Tim is frustratingly slow in understanding anything to do with shifters, and I often wanted to hit him on the head. But when you hear his story, you understand why. He’s in denial and his brain won’t let him out of that.
It’s a slow burn book, and you really have to love that to be able to read this. I happen to do love it, so this book was great for me. If you like action and fast paced stories, you better skip this one though.
Little spoiler alert
In the end there is action, and suspense so you do get it. But you have to wait for it. Tim’s uncle, who you think is the evil bastard in this story, ends up kind of stealing my heart….kind of, because he’s still an ass. But, not an asshole like his right hand, who I truly wanted to end up dead…alas, that wish didn’t come true. Thank God he did get some sort of punishment.
In the end, this was a very pleasant read for me, even if it sometimes was a bit too frustrating that Tim was so clueless and Nathaniel so reluctant to force the issue. Another good story in this series that I adore.
The Secrets Collection are sexy short stories by four different authors. The stories are linked by the common theme of secrets.
June 5, 2015: Top Me Maybe? by Jay Northcote June 12, 2015: Cheeky Hipster & Jocks by Posy Roberts June 19, 2015: Toy With Me by Annabelle Jacobs June 26, 2015: (to be confirmed) by Teegan Loy
Please visit Blanket Fort Press for full details on the other stories in the Secrets Collection
Excerpt:
“What do you want to talk about?”
Tyler thought for a moment then answered, “Sexual fantasies.” They hadn’t had that conversation yet. Not in any detail anyway.
“Okay.” Duncan sounded a little dubious. “You can go first then. Seeing as it’s your idea.”
“God. I have loads… where to start? Okay, one of mine is deflowering a Catholic priest or a monk or something—someone who’s taken a vow of celibacy, but in the fantasy I’m so hot they can’t resist me.” Tyler’s cheeks heated at the admission, but somehow it was easier having this conversation in the dark when Duncan couldn’t see his face. “Another is having sex in public…. Not in the park or something—that would be a bit skeevy—but somewhere people have come expecting to see it, like a live sex show. Or maybe being in porn, knowing that people were watching me and jerking off watching me fucking someone else…. That would be hot.” He stopped because Duncan hadn’t reacted. “Well? It’s your turn now.”
“I feel really boring in comparison,” Duncan said. “Your imagination is wild.”
Tyler chuckled. “Yeah… well I was a late starter in the practical side of things. Didn’t even kiss a guy till I was seventeen, so I spent a lot of time wanking in my bedroom thinking about stuff like that. Anyway, come on. There must be something you fantasise about. It doesn’t have to be something you actually want to do for real. I don’t think I’ll ever actually shag a priest or make a porno, but it’s fun thinking about it. It turns me on.” He wriggled a little closer to Duncan, pressing his thickening cock against the curve of his arse and combing his fingers through the hair on Duncan’s chest.
He waited for Duncan to respond, and the silence stretched out long enough to get a little awkward.
“Hey, you don’t have to if you’re not comfortable sharing,” Tyler said. Suddenly he was worried. Maybe Duncan was into something really kinky? Maybe Tyler didn’t want to know what his fantasies were. “Don’t worry about it, we can—”
“I think about being fucked.” Duncan’s voice was quiet, a deep rumble that vibrated in his chest under Tyler’s hand.
Surprise hit Tyler at the admission. It wasn’t what he’d expected to hear from Duncan at all. But he didn’t react, waiting for him to elaborate. But he didn’t, so Tyler prompted, “And?”
“That’s it.” Duncan took a deep breath, his ribs expanding under Tyler’s arm. “I’ve never bottomed. But I… I fantasise about it. About being fucked by another guy.”
Author Bio:
Jay lives just outside Bristol in the West of England, with her husband, two children, and two cats.
She comes from a family of writers, but she always used to believe that the gene for fiction writing had passed her by. She spent years only ever writing emails, articles, or website content. One day, she decided to try and write a short story–just to see if she could–and found it rather addictive. She hasn’t stopped writing since.
Duncan has a secret fantasy, but is Tyler the right man for the job?
Tyler’s new policeman boyfriend, Duncan, is gorgeous. Tall, broad, and über-masculine, he’s the epitome of the dominant top—in appearance at least.
When they discuss their sexual fantasies, Duncan confesses to a secret desire that surprises Tyler. Luckily for Duncan, Tyler’s happy to oblige and is determined to give Duncan a night to remember.
Review
This is a super sweet short story about two guys in the very beginning stages of their relationship. Neither is comfortable asking for what they want and both are trying to be what they think the other wants.
Once they begin to trust each other they get EXACTLY what they dreamed of!
I liked it because it felt authentic and real, yet had the kind of “fantasy” feel to it as well. Very well rounded and developed for such a short story.
The sentiment is very sweet and the sex is very hot and my only complaint is that it’s so short! But it is very satisfying and I loved it!
Blurb
