PASSIONS ARE READY TO POP IN THIS STEAMY NEW ROMANTIC THRILLER FROM AWARD WINNING BESTSELLING AUTHOR LORI FOSTER
Title: Under Pressure
Author: Lori Foster
Series: Body Armor, #1
Genre: Romantic Suspense
Rating: 4.5 Stars
Disclosure of Material Connection: I received this book for review from InkSlinger PR and from the author. I was not compensated nor was I required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own. I am posting this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255: “Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising.”
From New York Times and USA TODAY bestselling author Lori Foster comes UNDER PRESSURE, the first book in her brand-new Body Armor series, featuring her trademark alpha-male heroes and strong-willed heroines, who risk everything to save one another from the deadly forces that seek to destroy them.
Synopsis:
He can protect anything except his heart
Leese Phelps’s road hasn’t been an easy one, but it’s brought him to the perfect job—working for the elite Body Armor security agency. And what his newest assignment lacks in size, she makes up for in fire and backbone. But being drawn to Catalina Nicholson is a dangerous complication, especially since it could be the very man who hired Leese who’s threatening her.
What Catalina knows could get her killed. But who’d believe the sordid truth about her powerful stepfather? Beyond Leese’s ripped body and brooding gaze is a man of impeccable honor. He’s the last person she expects to trust—and the first who’s ever made her feel safe. And he’s the only one who can help her expose a deadly secret, if they can just stay alive long enough…
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My Thoughts:
Leese Phelps comes to the aid of Catalina “Cat” Nicholson. It seems as if danger is nipping at their
heels. Leese has a sidekick named
Justice that had me falling in love with him and wanting to know what his story
was. But back to Leese and Cat. Cat seemed to be a woman conflicted. She wants to believe in Leese but she has
reservations. In this day and age that’s
a good thing but that also means that Leese has his work cut out for him. She also seems to have some secrets. Leese is a self-confident alpha male whose
main job is to protect – he can certainly protect me any time.
There are characters from a previous series that make an
appearance but that won’t stop you from enjoying this one. You don’t need to have read the series to
enjoy this one but if the pique your interest at some point you may want to go
back and check out their stories. So you
may be busy reading some of Ms. Foster’s books for a while.
Cat was a character I had to warm up to. She had me conflicted but having me
conflicted is a good thing because it kept me moving through the story. You will also want to know how this series is
going to progress. One character to
watch out for is Sahara and we’ll have to wait for her story. The ending for Leese and Cat is a happy one
but is it ever after? I can’t tell you that
because I didn’t get any kind of impression one way or another. Since it was their ending I didn’t see a lead
in to the next book so you might consider this a stand-alone but hopefully you
will want to read Justice’s story, which is coming out in April.
Excerpt:
On the couch, arms stacked behind his head, Leese listened to the quiet.
Or more appropriately, to Cat tossing and turning.
He could picture her right now, how she’d look, that particular curious scowl she wore as if she couldn’t decide whether to be pissed, scared, defiant…or turned on.
What a provoking case she’d already turned into, in more ways than one.
Cat might not realize it, but on many levels she appealed to him. Pretty, hell yes. Nice figure, definitely. But it was more her courage, her defiance and spirit that drew him.
Not that he could be drawn. Not during a case.
It didn’t help that she made her own interest so apparent.
The shower had slightly revived him, helping to cool his lustful thoughts while also making him think about everything he didn’t yet know. She had to have a valid reason for leaving everything familiar, avoiding her family and dodging their efforts to help. And then there was the fact that he was hired to protect her.
From what?
Her fear was real but elusive, there one moment, buried beneath pride the next, sometimes taking center stage and sometimes losing priority as other needs—like a nap and food—took precedence.
Tomorrow, as soon as they left the hotel, he’d take the opportunity to question her on the drive. She’d no longer be exhausted, no longer half-starved…
The amount of food she’d eaten still made him grin. The girl knew how to put it away. Her lack of reserve on that front had also been appealing. She showed no artifice, not about her hunger—or her sexual interest.
Nothing about her demeanor resonated with the idea of a rich pampered girl. She had daring, and she had guts.
When the bedroom door opened, every thought fractured beneath the weight of hot awareness. Saying nothing, he waited.
If she tried to sneak out, then what? He’d have to find a way to wake Justice and—
“Leese?” she whispered.
Her voice, rough and low, stroked over him. He watched the shadow of her slim form move closer. “Something wrong, Cat?”
Losing the hesitant edge, she said, “Sort of,” and…sat beside him on the rollaway bed.
Yeah, not comfortable. For one, she was a near stranger, but more than that, she’d already proven herself to be very unpredictable.
With his arms behind his head, he felt…vulnerable.
So he quickly adjusted, coming up to a forearm and half turning toward her. “What is it?”
A slow, audible breath preceded the touch of her hand on his shoulder. “I should be sleeping.”
Definitely. They both should. Had they been awake for the same reason? “But?”
“I can’t quiet my thoughts.”
Maybe they’d have their talk sooner rather than later. He started to sit up, but she said, “Wait.”
For two seconds Leese considered things, then relented, resting back to his arm again.
“This is awkward,” she said. “Bear with me while I sort it out, okay?”
Her nearness no longer worried him, at least not as any sort of threat from a stranger.
No, it had morphed into physical awareness real quick. “Sort out what?”
The silence grew strained, but she didn’t move away.
Leese shifted. “Cat?”
“Could I talk to you without you making assumptions?”
Since he’d already made a dozen or more, probably not. “I’ll do my best.”
“I don’t know what it is about you, but it’s making me nuts. You’re like this assault on my system.”
That didn’t sound good. “An assault?” With every fiber of his being, he was attuned to her cool fingers lightly touching his now-fevered skin.
Rushing her words together, she stretched out next to him. “Could I sleep with you? Sleep, I mean? That nap with you today was the best rest I’ve had in a very long time but I’m still so tired. I just want to sleep, but I don’t dare.” She squeezed him, her small body pressed to his, her face against his throat. Her warm breath teased his skin with her agonized explanation. “I know I shouldn’t trust you, but I keep wanting to anyway.”
Leese tried to relax. “You can trust me.”
As if he hadn’t said that, she continued, “It’s nuts to stay with you, I know that. You’re so far out of your realm it only puts you at risk. I don’t want that on my conscience, so I tried to convince myself to run—”
“Don’t run.” Cautiously, he put his arms around her. Out of his realm? She didn’t have much faith in him.
“Every time I tried to make plans I ended up thinking instead about you being right here. So close and so… Jesus, I hate to say it, but you feel safe.” She tipped her face up to his. “I need you to be safe.”
“I am,” he assured her, tucking her closer, folding his arms protectively around her. He gave her a gentle squeeze.
She snuggled in. “I need to make some big decisions, but tonight it just feels too difficult. I think if I slept well, that’d help.”
“Sleep always helps.” And now, with her body so soft and lax against his, he didn’t want to let her go. Stretching out one long arm he rearranged his blanket to cover her too. “Let your thoughts rest, Cat, and tomorrow we’ll work it out.”
She gave a soft laugh. “Sure. Teamwork, right?”
Clearly she didn’t believe him. “We can talk tonight if you’d rather.”
“No.” Shaking her head, she squeezed him again. “I still haven’t decided how much to tell you—or how much you might already know.”
He didn’t know jack shit, and it frustrated him a lot. “Tomorrow, then.”
She tipped up her face. In the darkness, she studied him. “You don’t mind?”
Every nerve ending in his body sizzled, but… “No.” She smelled sweet and felt soft, and if he let himself, he’d be hard in a heartbeat. But he’d once risked a woman through poor judgment.
He’d never make that mistake again.
“Where is your gun?” she asked.
Where she wouldn’t get to it. “Don’t worry about it,” he said, then promised, “I won’t accidentally shoot you.”
“I figured.” Sighing long and loud, she got comfortable again. “I didn’t want to bump into it.”
“You won’t.” He didn’t mean to, but he kissed the top of her head. “Now sleep. We both need it.”
She said nothing else, and within five minutes her breaths had turned slow, deep and even. Apparently her mind had finally quieted.
Unfortunately, his did just the opposite and he ended up spending most of the night thinking very inappropriate, erotic, explicit things that had no place between a bodyguard and the woman he was assigned to protect.
Lori Foster’s UNDER PRESSURE – Review & Excerpt Tour Schedule:
January 16th
Booknerd1107 – Review
It's All About the Romance – Excerpt
Nice Ladies, Naughty Books – Review & Excerpt
January 17th
Dayreader Reviews – Review & Excerpt
OMGReads – Review & Excerpt
Shahla'sbookcorner – Review
Romancing the Readers – Review
January 18th
Fic Central – Review
As The Book Ends – Review
Books,Dreams,Life – Excerpt
Curvy and Nerdy – Review
January 19th
Books, Coffee & Passion – Excerpt
Cara's Book Boudoir – Review & Excerpt
Obsessive Reading Disorder – Review
What Is That Book About – Excerpt
Shannon's Book Blog – Review & Excerpt
January 20th
Book Munchies – Review & Excerpt
CrystalsBookWorld – Review & Excerpt
Bookish Wanderlove – Review & Excerpt
Two Girls with Books – Review
January 21st
Abibliophobia Anonymous Book Reviews – Excerpt
Lynn's Romance Enthusiasm – Review & Excerpt
Nerdy Dirty & Flirty – Review
Reading Between the Wines Book Club – Excerpt
January 22nd
Adventures in Writing – Excerpt
Book Crazy – Excerpt
Nicole's Book Musings – Excerpt
Romanticamente Fantasy Sito – Review & Excerpt
January 23rd
Amazeballs Book Addicts – Excerpt
GuiltyPleasures Book Reviews – Review & Excerpt
The Sassy Bookster – Review & Excerpt
Thoughts of a Blonde – Review & Excerpt
January 24th
Ashleyz Wonderland – Excerpt
BookWorm221 – Review
Sofia Loves Books – Review
The Silver Dagger Scriptorium – Excerpt
January 25th
All Things Dark & Dirty – Excerpt
E-Romance News – Excerpt
BJ's Book Blog – Review
I'm A Sweet And Sassy Book Whore – Review & Excerpt
Talking Books Blog – Excerpt
January 26th
Book reviews by lexi – Review
Ebook Indulgence – Review
Red's Romance Review's – Excerpt
Shelf_Life – Review
January 27th
The Reading Cafe – Review & Excerpt
IrishdaisylovesRomance – Review & Excerpt
Dog-Eared Daydreams – Review & Excerpt
Renee Entress's Blog – Review & Excerpt
January 28th
G & T's Indie Café – Excerpt
Ramblings From This Chick – Excerpt
reading away the days – Review
TBR Book Blog – Review
Romance Reviews and More – Review & Excerpt
About Lori Foster:
LORI FOSTER is a New York Times, USA TODAY and Publishers Weekly bestselling author of more than 55 titles, beloved for her contemporary romance novels revolving around alpha males and the women they fall for. Lori has been a recipient of the prestigious RT Book Reviews Career Achievement Award for Series Romantic Fantasy, and for Contemporary Romance. For more about Lori, visit her website at LoriFoster.com, or check out these online locations where she interacts with readers: Facebook.com/LoriFoster, Twitter.com/LoriLFoster, Goodreads and Pinterest.com/lorilfoster.
You can also sign up for her monthly newsletter at LoriFoster.com/Newsletter.
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