Series: Law Duology (Book 1)
When it comes to love, he plays to win
There's only so much frustration a guy can handle before he gets a little nutty. For Jude Jamison, his frustration has a name--May Price. She's everything the former Hollywood bad boy actor came to Stillbrook, Ohio, hoping to find: open, honest, lovable, and full of those luscious curves you don't find on stick-figure starlets--curves May doesn't seem to appreciate in herself. Every time Jude tries to get close to the skittish business woman, to take her in his arms, she thinks he's joking. Joking? Joking does not involve lots of cold-shower therapy.
Time for new tactics. If May can't respond to his sly compliments and sexy innuendos, he'll just have to spell it out for her. Jude Jamison is going to lay down the law for May Price. And after that, she'll have no delusions about just how much he wants her...
Good book. Jude is a former MMA fighter turned actor who has moved to the small town to get away from a Hollywood scandal. He is attracted to May, who is everything that his usual dates are not. He has done everything he can to show her he's interested, but she doesn't take his advances seriously, and it's driving him nuts.
May is the owner of an art gallery and Jude is her best customer. She does her best to ignore his sexy comments. She thinks there's no way he really interested in her plain and plump self and she isn't about to screw up a great business relationship by thinking otherwise.
I enjoyed the development of Jude and May's relationship once it got going. I was a little irritated at Jude at the beginning as all he seemed to be focused on was getting her into his bed. On the other hand, I loved the fact that he liked her body just as it was. May is a sweet woman with a low opinion of her own appeal. She is also cursed with a horrible family. Her parents are selfish, her mom is a drunk, her dad is a philanderer, and her brother Tim is a spoiled brat who blames everyone else for his problems. When Tim borrows money from a loan shark, he goes to May for help when he's told the way to pay it back is to kill Jude. Horrified, she goes to Jude to warn him and ask for his help. This puts May right where he wants her and he's quick to take advantage of it.
The heat between May and Jude is intense. I loved seeing Jude go from lusting after May to wanting more than just her in his bed. I loved his protectiveness when he finds out what is going on. His greatest need is to make sure that May is safe, even if that means protecting her useless brother, too. It was especially sweet to see the way that he tries to make May see just how great he thinks she is. On May's side, we finally see that she isn't so indifferent to him after all. As a matter of fact, she has been crushing on him for years. I loved the scenes where she blows him away with her knowledge of MMA. May also sees the man that Jude is, not just the fighter or actor, something that Jude isn't used to. May is also extremely protective of Jude, something that he finds somewhat insulting. I laughed out loud at some of their conversations as May tries to keep Jude from doing something she thinks is dangerous to him. I also loved her support of him regarding his past. The end is kind of cute as May thinks their time together is over and Jude doesn't want her to leave. He blurts out his ideas for the future in a jumbled mess, until he realizes that he's left out something important.
The suspense part of the story is pretty good. May's idiot brother Tim has gotten himself into a mess and thought it's May's job to get him out of it. The villain of the situation is revealed early along with the knowledge that Tim was set up to get to Jude. There's plenty of tension as Jude faces his need to finally put the past to rest while at the same time making sure that May is safe. The confrontation at the bridge is intense, and the one at the restaurant quite satisfying. There's a bit left hanging at the end that will hopefully be resolved in Murphy's Law.
The secondary characters were wonderful. Denny was my favorite. As a former fighter and trainer, he's so much more than Jude's employee. I loved his quick acceptance and liking for May, and loved how easily he could read her. I also enjoyed the way that he took charge of Tim, seeing that there was, perhaps, something redeemable in the man. I also enjoyed his protectiveness toward May's friend Ashley. Their interactions were pretty funny. I loved Ashley's quirkiness and independence. She may have pushed the independence a little too much at times, potentially putting herself in danger, but her intentions were always good. Her encounters with Quentin Murphy were great and I'm really looking forward to their book. Tim was a character that was easy to dislike. He was spoiled, selfish, and childish. I hated the way he talked to and about May. I loved seeing Denny take him in hand and had hope for him until he went and did something even more stupid. I think he finally started to see the light by the end, but only time will tell.
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