Detective Matt Pendleton is still reeling after the death of his wife. Now a single father to his four children, time evaporates between working and caring for them. Desperate to make a connection, he takes his friend’s advice and hires an escort.
Emily Coulter is beautiful, charismatic and the daughter to an influential family. While she has a submissive side, she's also fiercely independent and determined to make her own way in the world, after escaping from an abusive relationship with a vicious Dom.
When she and Matt rendezvous for sex, both are blindsided by their attraction to one another. While their initial meeting is a disaster, Matt finds himself incapable of forgetting the beautiful young woman. Can two people with such contrasting lives overcome their differences and find love?
Strong sales, pseudonym of a well-known author.
Sliding the key card into the slot, Matt pushed open the door and stepped into the hotel room. After the July heat outside, the air-conditioning, which steadily pumped cool air into the plush room, was a welcome respite. He stood uncertainly in the doorway for a couple of seconds, then let go of the handle and listened to the door shut with a quiet whoosh. What the hell was he doing? The cold sweat breaking across his forehead had nothing to do with the heat outside, and everything to do with the reason he was standing in a goddamn hotel room at three o’clock in the afternoon.
He was a cop, for Christ’s sake. This was a mistake, an error in judgment, which he knew he’d be sorry for later. Tapping the keycard against his fingernail, he debated for a minute, trying to decide whether to stay, or if he would turn around, return to the lobby, and check back out immediately.
The problem was, he had been so desperately lonely, a situation which hadn’t improved for eighteen long months. He needed someone, desperately wanted a woman to speak to, to hold. If only for a little while, he wanted to think someone cared about him. Sure he had plenty of people who did care about him – but not the way he needed right now. The ache was constant, building up in his ribs until he thought his chest would explode.
