She appreciated the cooler breeze on her overheated skin, and the light mist of rain blowing in with it. Only now did she realize the strap of her sundress had fallen off one shoulder, the bodice slipping precariously down on one side. Before she could reach for it, however, Cameron slid a finger under the errant strap and lifted it into place.

 

Her skin hummed with pleasure where he touched her.

 

“Sorry.” He slid his hand away fast. “The bare shoulder was…” He shook his head. “I get distracted around you, Maresa. More than I should when I know you want to keep things professional.”

 

The room was mostly dark, except for a glow from the last light of day combined with a golden halo around a wall sconce near the bathroom. He must have turned that on when he’d entered the master suite and found her sleeping.

 

Dreaming.

 

“What about you?” Her voice carried the sultriness of sleep. Or maybe it was the sound of desire from her sexy imaginings. Even now, she could swear she remembered the feel of his strong thigh between hers, his chest pressed to aching breasts. “I can’t be the only one who wants to keep some professional objectivity.”

 

She slid her feet to the floor, needing to restore some equilibrium with him. Some distance. They sat on opposite sides of the chaise longue, the gathering storm stirring electricity in the air.

 

“Honestly?” A flash of lightning illuminated his face in full color for a moment before returning them to black-and-white. “I would rather abdicate my role as boss where you’re concerned, Maresa. Let my brother Quinn make any decisions that involve you or Rafe. My professional judgment is already seriously compromised.”

 

She breathed in the salty, charged air. Her hair blew silky caresses along her cheek. The gathering damp sat on her skin and she knew he must feel it, too. She was seized with the urge to lean across the chaise and lick him to find out for sure. If she could choose her spot, she’d pick the place just below his steely jaw.

 

“I don’t understand.” She shook her head, not following what he was saying. She was still half in dreamland, her whole body conspiring against logic and reason. Rebelling against all her workplace ethics. “We haven’t done anything wrong.”

 

Much. They’d talked about a kiss. But there hadn’t been one.

 

His eyes swept her body with unmistakable want.

 

“Not yet. But I think you know how much I want to.” He didn’t touch her. He didn’t need to.

 

Her skin was on fire just thinking about it.

 

“What would your brother think of me if he knew we…” Images of her body twined together with this incredibly sexy man threatened to steal the last of her defenses. “How could he be impartial?”

 

Another flash of lightning revealed Cam in all his masculine deliciousness. His shirt was open at the collar, just the way it had been in her dream. Except now, his shirt was damp with raindrops, making the pale cotton cling like a second skin.

 

Cameron watched her steadily, his intense gaze as stirring as any caress. “You know the way you have faith in your brother’s good heart and good intentions? No matter what?”

 

She nodded. “Without question.”

 

“That’s how I feel about Quinn’s ability to be fair. He can tick me off sometimes, but he is the most levelheaded, just person I know.”

 

She weighed what he was saying. Thought about what it meant. “And you’re suggesting that if we acted on this attraction…you’d step out of the picture. Your brother becomes my boss, not you.”

 

“Exactly.” Cameron’s assurance came along with a roll of ominous thunder that rumbled right through the villa.

 

Right through her feet where they touched the floor.

 

Maresa felt as if she were standing at the edge of a giant cliff, deciding whether or not to jump. Making that leap would be terrifying. But turning away from the tantalizing possibilities—the lure of the moment—was no longer an option. Even before she’d fallen asleep, she’d known that her window for selfish pleasures was closing fast if Isla proved to be Rafe’s daughter and Maresa’s responsibility.

 

How could she deny herself this night?

 

“Yes.” She hurled herself into the unknown and hoped for the best. “I know that you’re leaving soon, and I’m okay with that. But for tonight, if we could be just a man and a woman…” The simple words sent a shiver of longing through her.

 

Even in the dim light, she could see his blue eyes flare hotter, like the gas fireplace in the Antilles Suite when you turned up the thermostat.

 

“You have no idea how much I was hoping you’d say that.” His words took on a ragged edge as his hands slid around her waist. He drew her closer.

 

Crushed her lips to his.

 

 

On the Plus Side by Alison Bliss
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

This is book #2, in A Perfect Fit series. This book can be read as a standalone novel. To avoid spoilers, and have a greater understanding of the series, I recommend reading this in order.

Valerie has been in love with her brother's best friend for as long as she can remember. He has never even looked at her with longing. She is still waiting for the day he wakes up, if ever.

Logan has noticed the very hot Valerie. She has no idea what he has done to stay away. When she finds out, she may be very angry. He just cannot resist her. The eyes, that body, everything.

I think this series has me bedazzled! I love the characters, and how hot the sexy stuff sizzles. The banter is right on, and the heat is just turning up. I cannot wait for the next book!


***This ARC copy was given in exchange for an honest review, by Netgalley and its publisher.

View all my reviews

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

  

 

 

  

 

The matchmaker meets her match…in one very persistent tycoon!
 

 

 

 

 

 

 

She was a woman of habit and that would serve him well now. He hoped. He remembered how much she had enjoyed swimming first thing in the morning when they were working together in the islands of Tahiti. He’d accused her of being a mermaid with her daily need to return to the sea, but even when he’d been bleary-eyed from working late the night before, he never missed a chance to swim with her. For safety purposes, he’d told her, and not just because he enjoyed the occasional chance to slide a hand beneath her bikini top or wind the wet rope of her hair around his hand and angle her sea-salty lips for his kiss.

 

When the elevator sounded its dull chime, he slowly looked up. The doors opened and Lydia strode into view. His gaze fell on her long, shapely legs, the hem of her black mesh tunic revealing a hint of thigh.

 

“Ian?” Her voice tugged his attention higher, pulling his focus to her green eyes and creamy skin devoid of makeup.

 

With her hair scraped back into a ponytail, she looked every inch the part of his earthy, warmhearted lover from last summer. He had to remember that she hadn’t been the woman he thought, that he’d been wrong about her, or he might have swept her up into his arms and ridden the elevator back up to her hotel room to remind her how good they were together in at least one respect.

 

Sex. Raw, sensual, mind-blowing sex.

 

His pulse ramped up at the steamy memories, so much so that he had to shut down those thoughts and focus on the present or his plan would be doomed before he even started.

 

“Hope you don’t mind if I join you.” Ian tucked his phone back into the pocket of the cargo shorts he’d slid on over his swim trunks.

 

She halted in front of him abruptly. Then, eyes sliding to the desk attendant, she stepped closer. Probably she did it to minimize the chance of being overheard.

 

Ian liked the opportunity to breathe in the scent of her—the lavender fragrance of the detergent she washed her clothes in and a subtle perfume more complex than that.

 

“What on earth are you doing here?” She glanced over her shoulder. “You realize most of the consultants working on the Foxfire are staying in this hotel? What will they say if someone sees us together at this hour?”

 

“They’ll think we had a whole lot more fun last night than they did.”

 

Last night, he’d paced the floor of his penthouse suite for far too long, thinking through every aspect of a contract marriage and what details he should include in the paperwork.

 

In the end, she would sign. But she wasn’t going to like him forcing her hand, and that bothered him more than it should have.

 

“And that doesn’t concern you? I happen to enjoy a hard-earned reputation as a professional.” Her clipped words and the high color in her cheeks told him he’d gotten under her skin in record time.

 

“If you don’t want anyone to see us together, we might as well hit the beach. Take refuge in the water.” His hand itched to touch her. To rest on the small of her back and steer her out the door, across the street and onto the soft sand. But he had to be careful not to push or she could dig her heels in about his suggestion and delay the whole thing.

 

Now that he’d made up his mind and seen the benefits of a union between the two of them, he couldn’t think of one damn reason why he should delay.

 

After narrowing her green eyes at him for an instant, she pivoted on her wedge sandals and strode toward the exit.

 

He caught up to her in two long steps, holding the door wide for her before as they headed out onto Ocean Drive, which was strangely quiet in the predawn dark. There were more joggers on the beach than bathers; a few runners kicked up sand as they pounded past them.

 

“It’ll be quieter down here.” He pointed out a stretch of the shore where no beach loungers had been set up yet, a spot free from any hotel guests.

 

In fact, he’d claimed the location for them earlier when he’d ordered a cabana and sunrise breakfast. Lydia apparently didn’t notice his preparations, however, instead appearing too absorbed in her frustrated march toward the water, her feet churning through the sand at breakneck pace.

 

The horizon was starting to smudge from inky black to purple as she reached the shoreline and kicked off her shoes. Then she yanked the black mesh cover-up off and over her head. Mesmerized by her silhouette as his eyes adjusted to the light, Ian watched as she ran into the surf and made a shallow dive under an oncoming wave… She was a woman of habit and that would serve him well now. He hoped. He remembered how much she had enjoyed swimming first thing in the morning when they were working together in the islands of Tahiti. He’d accused her of being a mermaid with her daily need to return to the sea, but even when he’d been bleary-eyed from working late the night before, he never missed a chance to swim with her. For safety purposes, he’d told her, and not just because he enjoyed the occasional chance to slide a hand beneath her bikini top or wind the wet rope of her hair around his hand and angle her sea-salty lips for his kiss.