Everyone knows that if you play with fire you’ll end up getting burned…
Rating: 4.5 Stars
Told in the first person. Alternating persons.
Disclosure of Material Connection: I received this
book for review from InkSlinger PR and 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".
Synopsis:
What happens when you attend a first responder’s bachelor auction with your best friends? Well, if your name is Madison Kelly like me, your friends end up bidding on a date for you with your high school crush.
That’s right. Even back when I was ‘Fatty Maddie’ to all my classmates, I had eyes for the quarterback of our football team. Not like I was the only one.
Mauro Bianco may fight fires for a living, but he still sets my heart ablaze. One look at the rugged, muscular man he’s turned into and I want to slide down his pole.
One date. That’s all I’m committed to. A few hours and I can tuck him back into that tattered old shoebox in my closet.
As always, the universe has other plans. I never would’ve predicted that in a matter of days he’d turn from my dream guy into my enemy.
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My Thoughts:
The “Note To Readers” is not to be missed. It’s a pleasant surprise to see who wrote it.
Madison “Maddy” Kelly had an awkward and somewhat unpleasant
experience in her school days. And some
things we never forget and it can affect what we do in our future. Mauro Bianco decides he needs a project but
can he play nice.
Maddy is a very smart woman who works for herself and gives homes
a second chance. But will she allow
herself to go for a second chance in her personal life. Mauro puts his life on the line in order to
keep others safe. Our authors created
one secondary character that I wanted to shake the finger of shame at but even
she deserves a second chance.
I loved watching two people skirt around each other. We have one with a lapse in memory and one
who remembers everything very clearly.
Our authors don’t forget about the secondary characters either. We see them just enough to move the scenes
along. They are also very protective of
Maddy. This is why I felt that this was
Maddy’s story – Mauro was just one step up from a secondary character. We’re learning about her and her life. Mauro is just lucky enough to become a part
of it.
Our authors have created a very sweet story that can be sexy but
without giving us too much. There seemed
to be a push and pull between Maddy and Mauro and that’s what had me
continually turning the page. Will
she? Won’t she? Will he?
Won’t he? We need others in our
lives that can help us out of our comfort zone.
Ones who push us. Show us that
there’s more out there than our little bubble.
We see how real Maddy is in dealing with her emotions when she breaks
out her go to. I loved to see how these
authors integrated that into both the story and the ending. It was both happy and funny. I can’t wait to see what they have in store
for me in book two.
Excerpt:
My brothers widen their stances, share a look of amusement and cock their eyebrows at me.
“Hate to break it to you, but Maddie didn’t bid on you. Lauren did.” Luca laughs while Cristian chuckles.
“I’m going out with a Madison and she didn’t go to our high school. Which reminds me.” I pull out my phone.
“Maddie is Madison, you idiot,” Luca says. “Her and Lauren were my year.”
“I went to high school with Madison?” I try to let her face come back to me, and though I can picture her bright blue eyes and long chestnut hair, nothing about her is familiar from high school.
“Yes, but she definitely wasn’t hanging out at the bonfires and football pep rallies.” Luca grabs his helmet off his bike. The only responsible thing I’ve seen him do in the last few years.
“Well, shit and she doesn’t even want to go out with me? Her friend bid on me?”
Luca straddles his bike with a grin. I look over to Cristian, but he’s putting his shirt back on and starts fiddling with his earbuds. They obviously think this conversation is over.
“Yeah, but we’re all in the same boat.” Cristian’s thumb moves over his phone screen. “Maddie’s awesome and I think you’ll have a good time with her.”
“She seemed pretty quiet and way too accommodating,” I say.
Luca kicks his stand up, letting the bike rock a little under him.
Cristian’s hands freeze on the screen of his phone. “And that’s bad?” he asks.
“I want a woman who knows what she wants. Has her own damn opinions. Doesn’t just agree with everything I say.”
Cristian peeks over his shoulder, a look of amusement that matches Luca’s. “You want a girl to come up and grab your nuts?”
“I want a girl who knows what her favorite food is, has an opinion about where she wants to go for dinner, likes whatever sports team she likes and doesn’t default to my favorites.” I stuff my hands into my pockets, digging out my keys for my truck.
“Well then, Maddie might not be the one. Like I said, she’s nice.” Cristian slaps me on the shoulder. “Treat her good though, okay?” He inserts one earbud.
“What do you think I’m going to do, leave her in Garfield Park?”
He puts his other earbud in. “That’s not even funny man. I have a friend in that district and the shit that goes down there...” He shakes his head.
Cristian loses the entire point of my statement—the fact I’m not a jackass. I’m not Luca.
“It’s one date,” I say. “And who knows, maybe she’s nice but still has a wild streak.”
Christian again glances over to Luca who’s smiling like he’s fucking Mickey Mouse.
“Well, good luck on your date,” he says.
Cristian jogs away and Luca’s bike starts up.
I head to my truck.
The conversation is over, but I’m curious now.
Where’s my damn yearbook?
Piper Rayne, or Piper and Rayne, whichever you prefer because we’re not one author, we’re two. Yep, you get two USA Today Bestselling authors for the price of one. Our goal is to bring you romance stories that have "Heartwarming Humor With a Side of Sizzle" (okay...you caught us, that's our tagline). A little about us... We both have kindle’s full of one-clickable books. We're both married to husbands who drive us to drink. We're both chauffeurs to our kids. Most of all, we love hot heroes and quirky heroines that make us laugh, and we hope you do, too.
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