Random shirtless dude is in the background, so I’m letting this one go.
Genre: New-Adult, Erotic Romance, Contemporary
Pages: 288
Series: Out of Uniform #3 (Can be read as standalone)
Release Date: December 17, 2017 (Originally published in August of 2012)
Publisher: Elle Kennedy Inc.
The first full length novel of the Out of Uniform series and I really like it. I’m still not big on erotica but this is Elle Kennedy. I trust her. Though I did skip a couple of sex scenes but that’s kind of expected at this point. When I’m really into a book, meaning the story the sex is just getting in the way.
The aforementioned story is about Jen. She dumped her extremely clingy boyfriend a few months ago. Only… he’s didn’t get the message that she no longer wanted to date him and, naturally, decided to stalk her. Even going so far as to break into her home. When Jen informed her very protective, Navy SEAL brother about her crazy ex, he asked one of his work buddies to play bodyguard until they could be sure of her safety.
Enter Cash McCoy. Jen moves into his apartment and the chemistry between them is off the charts. But he isn’t allowed to act on the attraction because Jen’s brother has threatened him on multiple levels. One of the threats includes drowning. Jen, being unhappy about not being “allowed” to sleep with a guy who’s clearly as into her as she is him, plans to seduce Cash. It’s only for a casual fling. Cash’s relationships never seem to work and Jen, after being raised by a mother who was always worried and a father who was always away on missions… well, she doesn’t want that kind of life for herself. So no military guys. Meaning no strings with Cash.
Obviously, it doesn’t turn out that way. Cash is a nice guy. He’s not a “bad boy” or a player. He’s very loyal and he does want to be in a relationship. But he’s not good with them. Every single one of his relationships, no matter how hard he tries, goes up in flames because he can’t seem to say or do the right things, and gets dumped.
We’ve read about adokable guys and the smooth ones. Cash is neither. He can be very smooth. But he’s pretty straight forward for the most part. When his girlfriends expect him to woo them with pretty words or read their minds, he can’t do it. It never seems to work out for him. Jen, despite her plans of seduction, is the farthest thing from smooth. She babbles when she’s nervous and because of the constant criticism by her family, has low self-esteem. Still, she’s a happy and funny (often in a self-deprecating way) person and her and Cash make a really sweet couple.
That was the main plot and it was pretty free of angst. The angst came from a subplot involving Jen’s brother Carson, who was having troubles in his marriage due to his profession. Carson’s story was in Hot and Bothered. This subplot helped us better understand why Jen didn’t want to date anyone in the military and brought a sufficient amount of tension. Smart move on the author’s part.
Otherwise, the book was fun. I was afraid that it would seem too long or there would be too much sex, but neither was the case. Elle Kennedy has, once again, written a great novel that incorporates humour, romance and even a little bit of danger (you can thank the crazy ex for that one). I’m really glad I decided to read this novel even though I’m done with erotica. Last but not least, I loved the banter between the guys (from previous and future books) and I’m looking forward to reading about the new characters we’ve been introduced to.
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