Armed Response - Janie Crouch (HI #1800 - Aug 2018)

Series: Omega Sector: Under Seige (Book 5)
             Omega Sector (Book 15)

Is the woman he once loved…

The traitor they’re searching for?

Former Special Forces soldier Jace Eakin must find the mole inside Omega who’s leaking intel to a terrorist mastermind. Despite their complicated history and the fact that she is keeping a secret, he can’t believe it’s SWAT team leader Lillian Muir. As they give in to long-denied passion, Jace vows to protect Lillian with his life. But he’s been wrong about her before…

The action and suspense continue in this second chance story. I have been looking forward to Lillian's story since the beginning of the series. I love seeing a strong, capable woman doing a job that earns her the respect and admiration of the men she works with, and there is no doubt that she is a well-loved member of the team. We also saw in the previous book (Major Crimes) that the mole in the Omega team is setting Lillian up to take the fall. He has been successful enough that the head of Omega has called in a friend of his to join the SWAT team and investigate.

Jace and Lillian have a history. They knew each other as kids and teens in the slums of Tulsa where they had done what they must to survive. As soon as Lillian turned eighteen, they were going to make their escape and join the army together. But something happened that sent Jace off on his own, believing that she had betrayed him. As much as that had hurt, he has a hard time believing that Lillian could be the traitor.

I liked both Lillian and Jace. Both had rough starts to their lives and had come out successfully on the other side, though not without a great deal of pain. Throughout the series, we have seen Lillian as a respected member of the team, yet one who has kept a certain amount of distance between herself and others. I was doubly impressed by the way she overcame the physical trauma of her past, though her PTSD from it is never far from the surface. But she is a fighter and refuses to be that vulnerable again. Jace took his anger and bitterness over what he saw as Lillian's betrayal and used it in his career in the army. After a dozen years, he's had enough of the death and destruction and is ready to do something useful with his life. He has purchased a ranch where he will invite veterans to come and heal. But first he will do this favor for Ren and at the same time purge Lillian from his system.

I loved the first meeting between Lillian and Jace. Neither of them backs away or goes easy on the other during their match. I especially enjoyed the growing respect that Jace has as he realizes that he has to work to hold his own against Lily. There is also no doubt that the sparks between them are just as intense as they were in the past. I had a lot of respect for Jace when he turned down her invitation because he didn't feel right about deceiving her. Until he knows for sure that she's innocent, he won't give in to the attraction. Fortunately, proof of her innocence isn't long in coming but opens up a whole new set of problems. I cried for Lillian as she revealed everything that had happened to her, and ached for Jace and his guilt for not seeing the truth. I loved his patience and understanding, as well as his desire to protect her from further harm. I loved the advice he got, that Lillian didn't need someone to protect her physically, but someone to be there for her emotionally. And he truly got it, as he shows here: "I wouldn't fight your monsters. You can do that yourself. But I'll stand with you as you fight them. Every single time."

The suspense of this book was outstanding. The mole has his own agenda to go along with Damien's desire to destroy Omega. His desire to reinvent law enforcement for his own twisted purposes is scary as hell. The team suspects that his plans have something to do with the upcoming law enforcement conference and are intent on making sure that he doesn't succeed. The preparations and conference were a roller coaster of action, including some pretty wild twists. The final confrontation with the mole was intense as they raced against time to stop him. But the action wasn't over yet as Damien still had to be dealt with. That confrontation was even more frightening, as Damien continued his MO of involving others in his dirty work. Though I was certain that Lillian would prevail, the process was both heartbreaking and inspiring. There was some new and interesting information revealed at the end that leads into the next book.

Unwrapped - Katie Lane (Forever - Oct 2015)

Series: Hunk for the Holidays (Book 3)

GOOD THINGS COME IN SEXY PACKAGES . . .

Jacqueline Maguire has a problem tying the knot. After fleeing the altar (again), the runaway bride drives off with no particular destination in mind. Which is how Jac finds herself stranded in a snowstorm with a hot, hard-bodied stranger who treats her to the naughtiest night of her life . . . but come morning, he's long gone.

Contractor Patrick McPherson is deeply committed to his bachelor lifestyle. No strings, no rings. As the Christmas season approaches, however, Patrick still can't quite forget his curvalicious one-night stand. Then Jac shows up unexpectedly, and all holiday hell breaks loose. Because this year, Patrick is getting the biggest Christmas surprise of his life . . .

Fun book about two people who are very different and what happens when they find each other. Jac is desperate to get married. Her late aunt had stipulated in her will that Jac had to be married to inherit and she is running out of time. She has tried twice, but each time chickened out at the last minute. Her latest attempt sends her off in a Halloween blizzard, where she promptly wrecks her car. Fortunately for her, she is rescued by a kilt-wearing vampire - at least that's what she thinks.

Patrick has just come home from a Halloween party and is still wearing his kilt and the realistic fangs when Jac bursts into his life. She has him so flummoxed that he forgets about the fangs when the urge strikes to kiss her and is dismayed when she faints. After realizing that she's injured, he takes care of her, until the sparks between them flare up again. The heat generated between them makes an impression on both of them. But when Jac wakes up in the morning, Patrick isn't there, but a local deputy has found her wrecked car and gave Jac a lift into town. Patrick is stunned to find her gone when he gets back from a grocery run.

A month later, neither has been able to forget the other, but Jac has an unexpected reminder. While she plans to keep the baby, she's determined to return to Denver to see Patrick again and exorcise him from her mind. However, things don't go quite the way she planned.

I really liked Patrick. He's a straightforward kind of guy who doesn't play games. He isn't interested in getting married, but he does like the ladies. His aunt is determined to see him hitched and has been throwing women at him left and right. They make such an impression on him that he can't even remember their names - though he has no trouble remembering Jac's. He's also serious, hard-working, and an animal lover.

I had a little more trouble warming up to Jac. She first gives the impression of being a materialistic ditz. She goes on and on about doing whatever she has to in order to get her aunt's money, even possibly marrying older men that she doesn't care about. Then there's her wild imagination. Patrick is a vampire, there's a man trying to kill her for her inheritance, and it was Bigfoot that made her run off the road. Her attempt at a disguise to see Patrick was laughable as was the story she concocted. But as the book went on, things about her past make her actions a little more understandable.

I enjoyed the development of their relationship. The sparks between them haven't died down any, and they aren't all the attraction variety. There is also a good bit of antagonism as Jac insists that she'll raise the baby on her own and Patrick isn't having it. He wants to be a father to their child. He proposes they get married, and since that suits her needs, Jac agrees. But things don't immediately become unicorns and roses. Patrick immediately returns to his workaholic ways, and a bored Jac is sure to get into trouble. Her methods are a bit manipulative, which comes back to bite her when Patrick finds out. But a good Irish vs. Scottish shouting match brings about compromise and meeting of minds. I loved seeing Jac and Patrick get to know each other and enjoy spending time together, not just in bed. What neither expected was actually to fall in love, and neither quite knew what to do about it. Unfortunately for Jac, she had never told Patrick her initial reason for agreeing to the marriage, and when he finds out, the hurt and anger are intense. I ached for both of them during that confrontation. I loved the advice that Patrick got and what he did with it. The ending was awesome.

The secondary characters were the icing on the cake of the story. Patrick's Aunt Wheezie was a hoot with her machinations. She was an interfering old lady, but her heart was in the right place. Jac's sister Bailey was as pragmatic as Patrick, but she was also very protective of Jac. I loved the way she rode to the rescue when Jac first returned to Denver. Her meeting with Patrick and his brothers was great. I also loved their friend Gerald. He was a great foil for Patrick's over-the-top alpha maleness. One of my favorite characters was the street bum with the long white beard who kept turning up. It was pretty obvious who he was, and I loved each of his appearances. The rest of Patrick's family were fun and crazy and obviously loved each other. Their Christmas craziness was fantastic.