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Review
4 stars
Aaaahhh, Rebecca Zanetti – you never fail to deliver. A feisty heroine, an alpha hero, hot vampire sex and lots of action, this is a great read, and a fantastic addition to the Dark Protectors series!
Jared is the brother of Chalton Reese (tech genius of the Realm). Jared was introduced in Teased, where his story was hinted at – an ex-pirate and vampire who agrees to help his new sister-in-law by saving the life of her dying best friend, by mating her. Yep, sex and a vampire bite and Ronni will be not only healed of the mysterious poison that is killing her, but immortal as well. With no other choice, and with not long to live, she bravely takes the opportunity to live, even knowing what the consequences of her actions will mean.
“Here’s the deal. I want to live.”
“Good.” His expression smoothed out.
“But I’m not willing to be a mistress.” God, she wanted to live. To see the future. To have children. “I understand we can only have sex with each other, and I do like sex … I’m not a sure thing. Meaning, you have no rights to me.”
He studied her, energy radiating from him and brushing along her flesh. “First of all, no woman is ever a sure thing. Even during my time as a pirate on the high seas, I never forced a woman. Any and every time is your choice, and I would never force you. Ever.”
Her chest settled. “Good. We’re on the same page. And second?”
He leaned in, his nose nearly touching hers. “Second of all, if we mate, I have every right to you. Don’t you forget it.”
Jared’s heart was broken in the past. He has no interest in love or a relationship, and he saves Ronni’s life figuring that having a mate won’t be so bad – in a few hundred years they’ll have children, but he won’t have too much involvement in Ronni’s life. But after their life-saving night together, and once Ronni is healed and well, and back to her spitfire best, he’s captivated.
Veronica was spirit and defiance, and she brought something out in him that felt energized. Absolute. Primitive.
I love this relationship! It’s all fire and passion as two people who don’t particularly like each other share an intense connection and a wild lust for each other that very quickly escalates into more. Ronni is on the hunt for the person that hurt her, putting herself in even more danger, and Jared – being the protective alpha that he is – dives in to save her. They clash over and over again, but they soon find that their attraction is more than purely physical, and they come to care for each other deeply. But with Ronni’s would-be killer getting closer and closer, and a blast from Jared’s past appearing to shake everything up, the two of them are in for the fight of their lives before they can figure out what’s happening between them.
This is such an exciting read. There’s lots of action, excitement, and vampire awesomeness – in and out of the bedroom – the banter and quips fly thick and fast, and Jared’s alpha-ness and Ronni’s smartass sass make for some fantastic interactions. Their chemistry is sizzling through all that they face, and the romance ties in beautifully as they follow their hearts and embrace everything that is happening between them.
“You believe in fate?”
He shrugged. “Have to. You’re too perfect, we’re too good together, to just have been a fluke.” He brushed her hair away from her face. “I’ll spend eternity loving you, baby.”
*swoon!*
Chalton and Olivia are a part of the story, and younger brother, Theo was also brought into the action. The dynamic between the brothers is fantastic, and Theo’s book, Tangled, is set up beautifully – that’s definitely going to be an interesting one!
I really enjoyed this novella, though I feel that Jared and Ronnie got gipped a bit – they were such interesting characters with such a great dynamic, I feel like their story should have been longer. I would have loved this to be a full-length novel so we could get more background on both of them and watched their coming together in more detail. But I loved the story that we did get, and had a great time reading it.
4 stars.
Advanced Reader Copy generously provided by publisher in exchange for an honest review.
See our Dark Protectors/Realm Enforcers series page for more info on the series
Excerpt
For now, he had to figure this out. “Why did you become a shrink?”
“I wanted to help people.” She wiped snow off her jeans. “My dad was a cop, and he said I didn’t have what it took.” She hunched her shoulders inward. “I guess I kind of wanted to prove him wrong. Plus, I have a knack for figuring people out.”
She had a knack because she was empathic. So she was driving herself so hard just to prove herself? That wouldn’t do. However, he liked that she wanted to help people. Smart, spirited, and sweet. That was her. He glanced at her, his hands easy on the steering wheel.
“What?” she asked.
“You’re very likable,” he said, taking a corner.
She blinked. Color tinged her cheeks. Her lips pursed. “Thank you.”
Yeah. The woman knew how to take a compliment. He liked that, too. Her scent of spices and berries wrapped around him, providing comfort with a jolt of energy. The idea that somebody wanted to harm her tightened his muscles. He’d never been a nice guy, and a battle was a battle, but he’d make the asshole who’d poisoned her bleed before dying.
He pulled into the back lot of the tiny restaurant. “You ever been here?”
She craned her neck to check out the innocuous brick building. “No.”
“Best pizza in the world.” He jumped out of the car and crossed to assist her. “Careful. The lot is icy.”
She nodded and allowed him to lead her through the back door. The smells of garlic, cheese, and pretty much heaven hit them both. She breathed in. “Wow.”
“Yeah.” He grinned. “You’ll love it.” Taking her hand, he led her through the hallways to a small private dining area and gave a nod to Theo before surveying the room. Ah, shit. Theo had brought Ginny.
BOOK TRAILER
About Rebecca Zanetti
New York Times and USA Today Bestseller Rebecca Zanetti is the author of over twenty-five dark paranormals, romantic suspense, and contemporary romances. She lives in the wilds of the Pacific Northwest with her own Alpha hero, two kids, a couple of dogs, a crazy cat…and a huge extended family. She believes strongly in luck, karma, and working her butt off…and she thinks one of the best things about being an author, unlike the lawyer she used to be, is that she can let the crazy out. Her current series are: The Dark Protectors, The Maverick Montana Cowboys, and the Sin Brothers series. Upcoming series are: The Realm Enforcers and The Scorpius Syndrome.
Check out our Rebecca Zanetti Author Spotlight for more of Rebecca’s work
