3.5 stars
Rebecca “Becca” Rowley has worked for tech billionaire Nate Kattenberger for more than seven years. She managed his office while he and a few friends were still an optimistic start up. For the last few years, she’s gone from being his personal assistant to managing the hockey team he bought, the Brooklyn Bruisers. Foolishly walking onto the ice to personally deliver a message, Rebecca falls and gets a concussion. Several weeks later, she’s still not well and fretting terribly about her inability to get back to work. Not helping her recovery, which requires that she rest a lot and stay in a peaceful environment, is the fact that Rebecca shares an apartment with her younger sister, her infant nephew and the baby’s father. Not exactly restful surroundings.
As the weeks progress and Becca doesn’t recover, Nate not only insists she see a specialist, but he whisks her away to his six-bedroom mansion, so she can relax properly and be taken care of by his household staff (his housekeeper is amazing!). Becca worries that she’s taking advantage of their long friendship, being the only person in Nate’s organisation who’s still unaware of his true feelings for her. Nate’s massive crush on Becca has apparently been obvious not just to his current personal assistant, Lauren, but most of the hockey team, as well as several of their mutual friends. When she’s injured and has a difficult recovery, his protective feelings towards her pretty much drive him crazy.
I’m not spoiling anything when I say that Becca and Nate eventually hook up and share a very steamy night together. However, while Becca strictly speaking works for the hockey team, Nate, as the owner of the team is still her boss, so it’s a difficult situation, and the power dynamics are certainly unfortunate. Becca has a bunch of self esteem issues and can’t really believe that someone as rich, brilliant, handsome and important as Nate would really want someone like her. She also doesn’t want to be accused of trying to further her career by sleeping with her boss. Nate, on the other hand, is only too aware of how inappropriate sleeping with your former executive assistant is.
Full review on my blog.
Congratulations on your first review of the year – that’s a hard thing to do for a mom of a little baby. Although maybe not so little any more?
He turns one on the 5th of February, in less than two weeks. I wish I could blame motherhood for my failure to blog, but it’s my work load more than taking care of the soon to be toddler, plus my inability to stop wasting time on social media, that takes up much of my time.
Malin, I keep forgetting to tell you that your son has a very auspicious birthday in terms of my synesthesia. February and the number 5 are both red (which is my favorite color). Good story, Ashley.
Thank you for sharing that. Purple is my favourite colour, but red is probably my second favourite, so I very much like knowing that my child’s birthday is red to you.
:D
Contemporary romance isn’t my bag because “can’t pay rent and has concussion” is too much reality in my escapist fun. And I hear you on the covers!
I’m all for hunky shirtless dudes but the current crop of covers highlight this shredded “I’ve eaten nothing but edamame and water since Tuesday” look that, rather than sexy, screams “somebody get this dude a muffin stat!” And generally the composition of the cover art is a little too giggle-inducing (he’s a smart guy see? HE’S WEARING GLASSES). Somehow I’m able to overlook this when it’s a beefy alpha male in my historicals or urban fantasy because it’s not grounded in reality.
I also find historicals work better as escapism, but have enjoyed Bowen’s contemporaries in the past, and hey, it was free. The cover is particularly awful, though.