Review: Hard Deal

Hard Deal by Stefanie London was another already-downloaded book on my Kindle that I randomly picked to read while traveling thanks to the airplane's flaky wifi. Harlequin Dare only ended up lasting three years, but London released two books in the Melbourne After Dark duet in the first year (2018), of which this is the second title. It stands alone just fine.

Imogen Hargrove is an executive assistant wound so tight she's practically pooping out diamonds. She's smart, efficient, and dresses in monochrome colors. Three years ago she found out her husband, whom she married after a whirlwind courtship, was a serial cheater to the point where she got a full STD-screening work-up. She's trying to dip her toes back into the dating pool but it's been hard. Nobody sees her. Nobody makes her feel desirable. Well, except for Caleb Allbrook, her boss's black sheep son. But while she will drool over him behind his back, he's strictly off limits. Besides being her boss's son, he's a major player. Imogen is not about to get fooled again.

It's Imogen's trust issues that have her sneaking into a high society masquerade ball. Her younger sister is engaged and Imogen saw Daniel in a bar recently with an attractive woman. She's convinced he's cheating. He's going to this masquerade ball while her sister sits at home (another red flag!) so she decides to gate crash.  Unfortunately through a series of misadventures she misses her sister's fiancé and lands in the crosshairs of Caleb (it's pretty funny actually). Anyway turns out he knows her sister's fiancé and in exchange for helping Imogen dig up dirt he wants a date, one date, with her. 

This started a little slow for me but it picks up steam quickly and there was plenty of emotional heft to keep me engaged.  I tend to be more of a heroine-centric reader, but Caleb is who ultimately sold this story for me. His baggage is really fantastic.  He's his father's second, and unwanted, child. Caleb's Mom is Wife #2, the "trophy wife," his father's first wife and his older brother's mother died due to illness (I can't remember now if the author discloses what - cancer? A mysterious Romance Malady?).  Anyway, his older brother is the heir apparent being groomed for greatness, while Caleb is seen as the screw up even as his father and brother take credit for his ideas. One of the best aspects of this book for me was Caleb learning to stand on his own two feet and breaking out of his toxic family's shadow. 

Unfortunately there's Imogen who is one of those heroines who doesn't swear. Seriously, she says "smurfing."  SMURFING!!!!! I understood why she was wound so tight, the betrayal of her first marriage would certainly do that to anyone, but SMURFING!!!!!  Ugh. The only thing that really saves me from hating her entirely is that the Black Moment is great. She has major trust issues which eventually becomes a breaking point for Caleb. That moment when he verbally smacks her and confronts her with her trust issues - whoa boy. Good stuff. In the end Imogen does take a good, long look in the mirror and for that I was willing to put up with smurfing. Seriously, smurfing. 

I never got heavy into the Dare line, but this one has interesting emotional baggage and some nice steamy love scenes that lean in on vanilla kink (voyeurism). It's more hot contemporary than erotic romance, but it was a spicy, quick read that kind ripped my heart out a bit at the end. 

Final Grade = B