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Friday, June 22, 2018

Means (Office Roulette, Book One) by Kennedy Layne

My Rating: 3.5 Stars
Sex Scenes: Yes.
Series: Office Roulette #1
Subject: From office romance to happily ever after. 
Synopsis:
From USA Today Bestselling Author Kennedy Layne comes a sexy trilogy that involves greed, power, and the desire to do it all over again… 

Smith Gallo has everything a man could ever want at the tip of his fingertips, except of course the woman he loves. To what lengths will he be willing to go to make his ambitions come true? 

Laurel Calanthe is one successful stock pick away from making partner when she finds herself in desperate need of an alibi. There’s only one problem. The man who can save her from being arrested is her only competitor and the one who now holds her fate in his hands. 

Greed is a powerful motivator in the game of making money, but desire can overcome even the strongest motive. 
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Get your hands on MEANS now!

































I enjoyed the book, it had a little bit of suspense and a couple of good sex scenes. 

The thing that didn't really make me connect with both characters was that we get to meet them halfway through their story. 
We are told how great the sex has been during this three amazing months but we don't get to read about them getting to know each other and falling in love without even realizing it.

From our point of view this guy out of nowhere turns a booty call into a life long partner, and don't get me wrong, that's every girl's dream right there, but I feel like I needed to know what made her so special and different from every other girl through his eyes.

The story was overall good, the characters are both strong and independent and that creates some interesting sex scenes.

Laurel has some issues with her lack of money growing up and is projecting her insecurities on Smith. She will have to let go of her fears if she wants this thing to work.

Smith is all in, he has been patiently waiting and now there is no holding back, she will be his.

Beware of the cliffhanger, just when things got interesting!




About Kennedy Layne

Kennedy Layne is a USA Today bestselling author. She draws inspiration for her military romantic suspense novels in part from her not-so-secret second life as a wife of a retired Marine Master Sergeant. He doubles as her critique partner, beta reader, and military consultant. They live in the Midwest with their teenage son and menagerie of pets. The loyal dogs and mischievous cats appreciate her writing days as much as she does, usually curled up in front of the fireplace. She loves hearing from readers--find out how to connect with her at www.kennedylayne.com






About MOTIVE (Office Roulette #2) 
Available July 17th 

The Office Roulette trilogy continues with an epic battle between blame and forgiveness…

Rye Marshall had it all—wealth, prominence, and the love of his life.  But nothing lasts forever, and his perfect world came crashing down around him.  When the dust settled, he found himself alone and starting from a clean slate.

Grace Dorrance had made many mistakes in her life, but one stood out above the rest—an epic ending to a complex and passionate relationship.  She left her former lover’s life in complete ruins and tried her best never to look back at the wreckage. 

Seconds chances are hard to come by, but even more difficult when Grace is arrested for a murder she didn’t commit.  This gives Rye the perfect motive to forgive and forget, allowing for new beginnings.  Unfortunately, someone’s playing a game of office roulette with everyone’s lives. 

MOTIVE releases July 17th – preorder your copy now!


About OPPORTUNITY (Office Roulette #3)
Available August 14th 

USA Today Bestselling Author Kennedy Layne brings you the thrilling conclusion to the Office Roulette trilogy…

Gareth Nicollet had been born into wealth, but he’d learned at an early age that money wasn’t everything it was cracked up to be.  Regrettably, he’d made a meaningful choice early on in his life that now threatened his future with the woman he loved.

Cynthia Ellsworth valued many things, but trust and loyalty were at the top of her list.  She’d always known the man who shared her bed had secrets, but she never thought in a million years that he had the ability to destroy her career and her heart with a single blow.

Someone once said that greed was balanced by fear, but that wasn’t entirely true when there was nothing left to lose.  Unfortunately, Gareth’s secret is the very reason the roulette wheel is spinning and Cynthia’s life hangs in the balance. 

OPPORTUNITY releases August 14th – preorder your copy now!



Laurel had always prided herself on maintaining her composure through thick and thin. She never allowed her emotions to conquer her will, yet here she was raising her voice and reacting recklessly to his barbed accusations. And it was all because she’d found the dead body of her boss. 

“You know what?” 

Laurel unbuttoned his shirt she was wearing, albeit jerkily because of all the adrenaline coursing through her veins. She refused to stay here another minute. It was more than obvious they needed some time apart, so she’d be the smart one and simply walk away. How she managed to botch her planned exit was beyond her, but it all started when she began to verbalize her thoughts. Later, she’d realize that’s why spinsters had cats. 

“I don’t need this crap.” Laurel could see she’d surprised Smith with her declaration. Well, he could join the club. She’d even managed to get stuck on the last button, causing her to take it off over her head before shoving the shirt into his chest. “I’m already going to hell. Do you know what thought first crossed my mind when I realized Brad was dead? That I wouldn’t get the partnership I’d worked my ass off for the last six years. Who does that? Someone going straight to hell, that’s who.” 

“Laurel, you—” 

“On top of that?” Laurel began walking toward the bathroom where she’d left her clothes, but she spun back around to finish the speech she should have never given breath to in the first place. “I’m sleeping with you! A man who is definitely way out of my league and a colleague with whom I should have stuck to my original answer that I gave regarding your first invitation. But I didn’t do that, did I? No, I had to have sex with you, didn’t I? Oh, and it had to be good sex. Great sex, as a matter of fact! Probably the best sex I’ve ever had, and look at me now. I’m all fucked up.” 

Laurel began counting off the negatives by raising a finger for each one. 

“No partnership. Our boss is dead. You had to give me an alibi for the murder that everyone is going to hear about. In fact, everyone is going to know we’re having sex by six o’clock this morning because of said alibi. We’re probably both out of a job, give or take a year or however long it’s going to take to close the funds. And… oh, yeah. I’m going to hell!” 

Laurel held up a hand with all five fingers displayed, not expecting him to latch on to her wrist and yank her up against him. What air she did have left in her lungs after allowing the verbal dam to break came out in a whoosh, taking all her anger with it. 

He was touching her face, making this personal. She’d always maintained her composure around him, but his easy acceptance of their affair being made public had crumbled the barriers she always had in place.
“You’re changing our rules,” Laurel whispered, tears burning the back of her eyes. She blinked furiously to get them to go away, but the gentle touch of his palm against her cheek made that impossible. “You don’t get to change the rules like that.” 

“Sweetheart, I hate to break this to you,” Smith murmured, his lips barely an inch from hers. The heat coming from his body had hers responding in kind. “But I made the rules, so I can break them.”







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