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The Rich, the Ruthless, and the Really Handsome #3
Cautiva del italiano
Kathy atendía mesas durante el día y por la noche limpiaba para escapar de los errores del pasado. Su mundo nada tenía que ver con el de Sergio Torenti, un millonario despiadado y guapísimo. Pero una noche, Sergio se fijó en que bajo aquellas horribles batas, Kathy escondía un cuerpo perfecto… y ella le entregó su virginidad. Kathy creía que eso sería todo… pero entonces descubrió que se había quedado embarazada.
Sergio había descubierto el secreto que ocultaba Kathy y, por mucho que dijera que era inocente, no la creía. Quizá no fuera capaz de amarla, pero se casaría con ella y sería el padre de su hijo.
Sergio había descubierto el secreto que ocultaba Kathy y, por mucho que dijera que era inocente, no la creía. Quizá no fuera capaz de amarla, pero se casaría con ella y sería el padre de su hijo.
160 pages, Kindle Edition
First published February 1, 2008
About the author
Lynne Graham
1,920 books1,465 followersLibrarian Note: There is more than one author in the GoodReads database with this name. See this thread for more information.
Lynne Graham was born on July 30, 1956 of Irish-Scottish parentage. She has livedin Northern Ireland all her life. She grew up in a seaside village with her brother. She learnt to read at the age of 3, and haven't stopped since then.
Lynne first met her husband when she was 14. At 15, she wrote her first book, but it was rejected everywhere. Lynne married after she completed a degree at Edinburgh University. She started writing again when she was at home with her first child. It took several attempts before she sold her first book in 1987 and the delight of seeing that first book for sale in the local newsagents has never been forgotten. Now, there are over 10 million of her books in print worldwide.
Lynne always wanted a large family and has five children. Her eldest and her only natural child is 19 and currently at university. Her other four children, who are every bit as dear to her heart, are adopted. She has two 9-year-olds adopted from Sri Lanka and a 5- and a 3-year-old adopted from Guatemala.
In Lynne's home, there is a rich and diverse cultural mix, which adds a whole extra dimension of interest and discovery to family life. The family lives in a country house surrounded by a woodland garden, which is wonderfully private.
The family has two pets. Thomas, a very large and affectionate black cat, bosses the dog and hunts rabbits. The dog is Daisy, an adorable but not very bright white West Highland terrier, who loves being chased by the cat. At night, dog and cat sleep together in front of the kitchen stove.
Lynne loves gardening, cooking, collects everything from old toys to rock specimens and is crazy about every aspect of Christmas.
Lynne Graham was born on July 30, 1956 of Irish-Scottish parentage. She has livedin Northern Ireland all her life. She grew up in a seaside village with her brother. She learnt to read at the age of 3, and haven't stopped since then.
Lynne first met her husband when she was 14. At 15, she wrote her first book, but it was rejected everywhere. Lynne married after she completed a degree at Edinburgh University. She started writing again when she was at home with her first child. It took several attempts before she sold her first book in 1987 and the delight of seeing that first book for sale in the local newsagents has never been forgotten. Now, there are over 10 million of her books in print worldwide.
Lynne always wanted a large family and has five children. Her eldest and her only natural child is 19 and currently at university. Her other four children, who are every bit as dear to her heart, are adopted. She has two 9-year-olds adopted from Sri Lanka and a 5- and a 3-year-old adopted from Guatemala.
In Lynne's home, there is a rich and diverse cultural mix, which adds a whole extra dimension of interest and discovery to family life. The family lives in a country house surrounded by a woodland garden, which is wonderfully private.
The family has two pets. Thomas, a very large and affectionate black cat, bosses the dog and hunts rabbits. The dog is Daisy, an adorable but not very bright white West Highland terrier, who loves being chased by the cat. At night, dog and cat sleep together in front of the kitchen stove.
Lynne loves gardening, cooking, collects everything from old toys to rock specimens and is crazy about every aspect of Christmas.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 106 reviews
August 13, 2016
Okay this is my second read and I really liked this book. I took one star away because she slept with him so quickly. The story starts out with the hero's ex girlfriend, brother's current wife, is trying to seduce the hero. He laughs at her but doesn't let her finish the 'job' she wanted to do. She was engaged to the hero, but had married his brother because the hero had been disinherited and the brother got all the money. Real prize there. The hero takes a call and its security saying that the person who had been touching his non-touchable chess set in his office building is close to being discovered. He is actually enjoying the game the person is playing with him. He loves Chess. And they are playing a game without knowing each other. Well that night he finds out it is the cleaning lady Kathy. She is beautiful too and a virgin. And they play, she has a couple of drinks, and they end up having sex. And you'll never guess what? Surprise the condom breaks! Oh no! That never happens in Harlequin Land!!! LOL. I digress. Okay then he is leaving for ten weeks or is that ten days? I don't remember but he can't stop thinking about her and he calls her four times when he is gone. There is no one else for him either. She then finds out she is pregnant but he then finds out that the watch that got caught in her hair during their wild sex romp, which he tore off and threw to the floor, is missing and his security guy tells him that the cleaner is a thief and went to prison for stealing. So the hero assumes she stole it and she didn't really deny it and they play chess for sex and she wallops him and then she tells him she's pregnant. He takes her off to Paris and says change your name and raise MY child here. Her past is going to be bad publicity for him. She says NO. She leaves and he becomes a debauched loser having stag parties and being totally decadent for a while. She sees it and says hell no and leaves for 7 months. When she is in labor he shows up and offers to marry her and says he missed her terribly and the usual stuff. She will not put up with stag partying nasty men and he says he will explain and she says no and the baby is born. And then they are getting married and his ex from the beginning scene shows up at her hen party and she says he's only marrying you for the baby and then he is going to come back to me because I am now divorced and and I am beautiful. and immoral. It was crazy and there are some other things that happen and at least the heroine has a back bone. He wants her to confess she really did steal but she has learned her lesson and she says no because I didn't and he gets all pissed and then later says I believe you. There is more but I don't want to TOTALLY spoil it all. But it is safe and it is really really good. I loved this book and would recommend it and I will probably read it again. I love cinderella stories and this was one.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
December 13, 2016
Meet cute of the ex-con cleaner and billionaire meeting occurs when his security team notices his chessboard in his office has been disturbed. Surveillance cameras show it is the beautiful cleaning lady who is so good a chess.
The H challenges her to finish the match and a one night stand ensues.
The heroine is a virgin and the condom broke and you know that the rest . . .
Read if you enjoy heroines who are falsely accused and finally have the truth revealed.
The H challenges her to finish the match and a one night stand ensues.
The heroine is a virgin and the condom broke and you know that the rest . . .
Read if you enjoy heroines who are falsely accused and finally have the truth revealed.
November 15, 2020
Re-read and still loved it. 4 stars for jerk Sergio and Kathy who disappeared from his asshatness for 7 months.
May 19, 2016
Not as good as the first two books in the series.
This lacked emotion and romance, and both main characters were rather thinly developed. The first half of the book contained a string of passionless sex scenes, so when Kathy admitted to herself that she loved Sergio I wasn't convinced as there was no prior evidence to support this. Sorry, but claiming to hate Sergio in one moment and then eagerly jumping into bed with him in the next moment does not state her case. And in a missed opportunity, the author barely delved into Kathy's past which would have generated some much-needed angst into the story (even then, it was more telling than showing). Sergio's claim of love at first sight was better substantiated, but that's not saying much.
This lacked emotion and romance, and both main characters were rather thinly developed. The first half of the book contained a string of passionless sex scenes, so when Kathy admitted to herself that she loved Sergio I wasn't convinced as there was no prior evidence to support this. Sorry, but claiming to hate Sergio in one moment and then eagerly jumping into bed with him in the next moment does not state her case. And in a missed opportunity, the author barely delved into Kathy's past which would have generated some much-needed angst into the story (even then, it was more telling than showing). Sergio's claim of love at first sight was better substantiated, but that's not saying much.
December 23, 2012
Really unique Harlequin. For once it is the heroine who is broken and has a shameful past and not the hero. Kathy is bitter, feisty, independent and gives as good as she gets. Talk about a spitfire. Sergio our hot Italian tycoon loves her for her strong spirit and when he finds out she is pregnant he proposes marriage. Kathy accepts but she can never forget her prison sentence and she fears her past will come back to haunt her and ruin her marriage and family.
This wasn't a favorite, but still a good read!
This wasn't a favorite, but still a good read!
December 3, 2010
Lynne Graham's writing has degenerated into teenage-style prose. Perhaps degenerated is the wrong term...she was never profound. This is same Lynne Graham who had a previous hero use lame text-speak to arrange an rendezvous, so what did I expect?
She never uses the word MAN when referring to her 6'3" black-haired Italian sex-on-legs super CEO billionare; he's simply and always just a GUY, as in "The guy she loved." Why not bloke or dude or fella? Every third paragraph we are reminded about the heroine's copper-amber-auburn-red hair and apple-green eyes. (What has Lynne Graham got against dark-haired heroines? She's written about 4 in 80 books.) The writer seems to be very confused as to what the color black is. The hero's eyes are alternately black, gold, or dark gold. Pick a color and stick with it.
Admittedly, these are superficial gripes, but it's a superficial book. It's also--with a few exceptions--the same book she's been writing for twenty years.
She never uses the word MAN when referring to her 6'3" black-haired Italian sex-on-legs super CEO billionare; he's simply and always just a GUY, as in "The guy she loved." Why not bloke or dude or fella? Every third paragraph we are reminded about the heroine's copper-amber-auburn-red hair and apple-green eyes. (What has Lynne Graham got against dark-haired heroines? She's written about 4 in 80 books.) The writer seems to be very confused as to what the color black is. The hero's eyes are alternately black, gold, or dark gold. Pick a color and stick with it.
Admittedly, these are superficial gripes, but it's a superficial book. It's also--with a few exceptions--the same book she's been writing for twenty years.
November 10, 2015
Sergio is one major ass hat on so many levels and in so many ways. He seduces Kathy, and, of course, thinks she uses her virginity to extract a greater price because that's what virgins do.
He tries to bundle her off to France because her past holds a sordid secret, and France has better protection against the paparrazzi. Sergio refuses to listen to her protestations of innocence about said sordid secret.
All in all, a whole lot of fun!
He tries to bundle her off to France because her past holds a sordid secret, and France has better protection against the paparrazzi. Sergio refuses to listen to her protestations of innocence about said sordid secret.
All in all, a whole lot of fun!
July 21, 2017
Volví a leer esta novelita en su re-edición y me pareció absolutamente infumable. Desde la protagonista que no tiene un poco de amor propio hasta el héroe que es un idiota, no sé por qué la había puntuado con dos estrellas la primera vez que la leí.
December 10, 2022
"You are so hot, you burn,’ Sergio framed....And whatever it takes, I intend to have you," 🔥
Kathy was an office cleaner. Who holds a dark past. When the CEO, Sergio, stumbles upon her one day, he instantly wants to have her. And as soon as their affair begins, he starts learning so many bad things about her past, which ultimately creates many misunderstandings between them.
Their chemistry was sizzling throughout the book. There was unnecessary drama, which is typical of harlequins.
Rating 3.6 stars 🌟
Kathy was an office cleaner. Who holds a dark past. When the CEO, Sergio, stumbles upon her one day, he instantly wants to have her. And as soon as their affair begins, he starts learning so many bad things about her past, which ultimately creates many misunderstandings between them.
Their chemistry was sizzling throughout the book. There was unnecessary drama, which is typical of harlequins.
Rating 3.6 stars 🌟
September 13, 2014
Muchisimo mejor que la historia anterior, y por supuesto el protagonista mil veces superior a Leonidas ( el prota del libro anterior ).
3.5 Estrellas!!
3.5 Estrellas!!
November 10, 2017
Me gustó mucho al principio cuando Kathy no se dejaba amilanar por Sergio. Ver que hacen, en este tipo de libros (muy cortos para ser una historia bien desarrollada al igual que los personajes), algún personaje por fin con algo de carácter, alegra. Lo que pasa es que duran poco. Siempre hacen a protagonistas que se derriten cada vez que él las mira...
No puedo quejarme porque escojo este tipo de libros precisamente porque son historias ligeras y sabes a lo que vas.
Aún así pienso que Kathy perdonó demasiado rápido los desprecias de Sergio pero bueno en este libro ya se sabe... el amor...
No puedo quejarme porque escojo este tipo de libros precisamente porque son historias ligeras y sabes a lo que vas.
Aún así pienso que Kathy perdonó demasiado rápido los desprecias de Sergio pero bueno en este libro ya se sabe... el amor...
November 20, 2008
Waitress by day and office cleaner by night, Kathy is so pretty she just can't be anything else but a golddigging strumpet out to capture the impossibly rich, ruthless and handsome Sergio Torrente, or so he thinks. Even her chess ability is suspect because everyone knows Sergio likes to play chess. Poor Kathy gets steamrolled by the magnificently virile and sexy Sergio and the next thing she knows she's pregnant and he is none too happy. Declining his "help" she leaves Sergio and while he's partying hard on a friend's yacht, she's busy having his babies. She has complications during the end and one of her friend's finally tells him where she is and now that she's unable to fight back, Sergio is able to take control of the situation. They try to make another go at a romance, for their baby and for themselves but unfortunately Kathy's past comes back and tries to wreck her newfound happiness. It's up to Sergio to prove his love by standing up for her and finding the real villain.
Bravo to Kathy. She was pissed and she wasn't going to take it anymore. Sergio let her down for the last time and when she walked out of his life, taking his unborn child with her, bravo! It's rare to read about a heroine who was genuinely done with her hero and she seemed honestly determined to make it on her own. Regardless how difficult she made it for Sergio to find her, he could have searched a wee bit harder because it didn't seem to me that he made much of an effort. He is a billionaire after all and I don't think it's too hard to hire a private investigator. But whatever. Also, he was definitely too stubborn in his refusal to discuss Kathy's past. Alot of unnecessary angst on this one but since that would have taken away half the book, whatever. This was an alright read. He was a little too much of playboy for me but this was still a nice ending to the Rich, Ruthless and Really Handsome series.
Bravo to Kathy. She was pissed and she wasn't going to take it anymore. Sergio let her down for the last time and when she walked out of his life, taking his unborn child with her, bravo! It's rare to read about a heroine who was genuinely done with her hero and she seemed honestly determined to make it on her own. Regardless how difficult she made it for Sergio to find her, he could have searched a wee bit harder because it didn't seem to me that he made much of an effort. He is a billionaire after all and I don't think it's too hard to hire a private investigator. But whatever. Also, he was definitely too stubborn in his refusal to discuss Kathy's past. Alot of unnecessary angst on this one but since that would have taken away half the book, whatever. This was an alright read. He was a little too much of playboy for me but this was still a nice ending to the Rich, Ruthless and Really Handsome series.
July 19, 2008
I was really surprised by just how good this book was. Kathy works as a waitress by day and a cleaner by night. The building she cleans is owned by Sergei, an Italian billionaire. She's so gorgeous, he can't believe she's just a cleaner, but then her manner throws him off. Again and again, he suspects her of being a fortune-hunter or a thief, but he can't resist her. When she gets pregnant, he makes a few fumbling attempts to take responsibility and handle the situation, but he just drives her away until about halfway through the book, he proposes.
I expected this book to totally suck, but the characters and the chemistry were great. A lot of romance novels leave me feeling like "They're both decent human beings, but there's no reason why they should've fallen for each other like that." Kathy and Sergei were a great mix. Normally, I hate characters like Sergei; he's arrogant, pushy, and constantly disrespects Kathy. What made it palatable this time was that FINALLY, the heroine refused to take it. She insulted him back, walked out on him, vanished from his life at one point, and basically really put her foot down, forcing him to change his ways and become a decent human being. I hate heroines who just take the abuse and let the hero gradually morph into a human being on his own. Kathy truly did not put up with his crap. Even though the book, like so many romance novels, had the two of them irresistibly attracted to one another, she still wouldn't relent. By the time he proposes, it's clear he has strong feelings for her and that she has managed to gain most of the control of the relationship.
I expected this book to totally suck, but the characters and the chemistry were great. A lot of romance novels leave me feeling like "They're both decent human beings, but there's no reason why they should've fallen for each other like that." Kathy and Sergei were a great mix. Normally, I hate characters like Sergei; he's arrogant, pushy, and constantly disrespects Kathy. What made it palatable this time was that FINALLY, the heroine refused to take it. She insulted him back, walked out on him, vanished from his life at one point, and basically really put her foot down, forcing him to change his ways and become a decent human being. I hate heroines who just take the abuse and let the hero gradually morph into a human being on his own. Kathy truly did not put up with his crap. Even though the book, like so many romance novels, had the two of them irresistibly attracted to one another, she still wouldn't relent. By the time he proposes, it's clear he has strong feelings for her and that she has managed to gain most of the control of the relationship.
March 27, 2021
Nice story of a stupid selfish womanizer with good looks and big money. He sees heroine and is immediately attracted to her, she’s a maid and she has a past, they have some sex and she gets pregnant. When she tells him he wants to hide her away as a dirty little secret but she refuses. He throws a tantrum and they part. Some days later she sees a picture of him at a party with some strippers and decides to leave for a new beginning. When she’s in labor her friend who until that moment didn’t reveal where she was, informs the H and he runs to her and persuaded her to marry him. Ow drama. Heroine past drama. Eventually she was innocent and hero grovels and declares he never looked at another woman since they met. Entertaining reading, I appreciate this strong and intelligent heroine who left when hero behaved like a sob. Hero was really stupid, TSTL indeed. What do these heroines find in those men, apart from money, looks and bp, I don’t understand.
August 19, 2016
2.5 stars.
January 18, 2019
***2.0-2.5 Stars***
At times this story seemed all over the place and it simply didn't flow for this reader.
The hero was awful. He refused to believe in the woman he fell for. She had gone to prison for theft but she had been set up. She was innocent. He even married her still believing she was a thief and he wanted to move her to another country and have her name changed because he was so sure she would be an embarrassment. He refused to listen to her side of the story. The court convicted her so she was guilty and that was that, he thought. Mostly throughout this book I felt sad. The hero caused her so much pain, distress and heartache. He broke her heart time and time again. He just beat her down and I felt beat down, as I read.
He kept secrets about his past and had he shared those with her she wouldn't have gone through such misery.
This is certainly not a book I would want to re-read.
At times this story seemed all over the place and it simply didn't flow for this reader.
The hero was awful. He refused to believe in the woman he fell for. She had gone to prison for theft but she had been set up. She was innocent. He even married her still believing she was a thief and he wanted to move her to another country and have her name changed because he was so sure she would be an embarrassment. He refused to listen to her side of the story. The court convicted her so she was guilty and that was that, he thought. Mostly throughout this book I felt sad. The hero caused her so much pain, distress and heartache. He broke her heart time and time again. He just beat her down and I felt beat down, as I read.
He kept secrets about his past and had he shared those with her she wouldn't have gone through such misery.
This is certainly not a book I would want to re-read.
January 19, 2022
I have been on mile long streak of reading harlequin and old Mills & Boons books lately, and I have yet to see anyone do angsty emotional upheavals as satisfyingly as Lynne Graham at her best. And this is decidedly one of her best. Strong heroine who has the courage of her convictions and stands on her ground and tells off the hero at every turn and regards marriage as leveling the playing field instead of melting on the spot like heated butter. The betrayal of trust, misjudgment, hurt feelings, pride, and an array of other delicious emotions playing out as well as the satisfying comeuppance of evil sidekicks, and winning the loyalty of new allies. It had everything, and I strongly recommend it for a highly satisfying harlequin experience.
June 14, 2013
I found all books in this series as just ok. Kathy experienced a very traumatic past and Sergio is understandably skeptical and and also a jerk. Their personalities are original. However,
Both keep swinging back and forth between jumping each other and fighting. Hence I had difficulty believing that they indeed fell for each other. There doesn't seem to be a bond or connection forming between the 2 and trust is certainly weak. Impending parenthood forced them to grow up quickly but again, that does not equate bond/ relationship formation.
Both keep swinging back and forth between jumping each other and fighting. Hence I had difficulty believing that they indeed fell for each other. There doesn't seem to be a bond or connection forming between the 2 and trust is certainly weak. Impending parenthood forced them to grow up quickly but again, that does not equate bond/ relationship formation.
December 13, 2009
Seriously episodic and inconsistent story.
July 3, 2010
I liked this romance. The girl is not your typical doormat but stands up to the hero from the very first. He was an ass but she didn't really let him get away with a thing.
August 25, 2017
I've read Lynn Graham in the past and liked her books so I thought I'd give this one a go. This book just didn't pull me in. The hero and heroine had no sexual chemistry, and every scene between them seemed forced. Surely there's another green thing to compare the heroine's eyes to besides apples? That reference got old real fast.
Another problem I had with the book were the major time lapses and hardly any explanation for what went on. Kathy becomes pregnant, she fights with Sergio over wanting her independence and next thing I know, nine months has passed and she's in labor...literally! I had to go back to double check I didn't accidentally skip ahead. There was no warning and only a brief paragraph of what those nine months were filled with.
I also couldn't stand Kathy, this woman drove me nuts! One minute she hates Sergio and the next she's in love with him. He treated her like trash so I have no idea where that love stemmed from, my guess she confused the emotion with lust because from where I'm standing, that's the only real emotions either of them felt and displayed.
All in all, I just couldn't believe that they genuinely loved each other because there was no chemistry and both had major trust issues.
Another problem I had with the book were the major time lapses and hardly any explanation for what went on. Kathy becomes pregnant, she fights with Sergio over wanting her independence and next thing I know, nine months has passed and she's in labor...literally! I had to go back to double check I didn't accidentally skip ahead. There was no warning and only a brief paragraph of what those nine months were filled with.
I also couldn't stand Kathy, this woman drove me nuts! One minute she hates Sergio and the next she's in love with him. He treated her like trash so I have no idea where that love stemmed from, my guess she confused the emotion with lust because from where I'm standing, that's the only real emotions either of them felt and displayed.
All in all, I just couldn't believe that they genuinely loved each other because there was no chemistry and both had major trust issues.
July 26, 2020
The chess meetup was really clever... I think the book never got better from that point.
He was an a** — really judgmental and a snob, for sure. He handled her shock pregnancy pretty badly. (Not the worst ever... looking at you, Atreus.)
It was hard to like the story, but it did have some solid angst. You felt sad or gut-punched at times, with no corresponding happy times to balance it. Not much romance in here. Uneven plot points, weird time gaps. You’d swear paragraphs were missing at times.
The supporting characters were great and likable.
I liked her pretty well. I’m glad she left, he deserved it. I actually think she would have been fine without him in the long run because she was determined to build a decent life for her and her child (other than his specialist help with the baby).
He had shown some promise early on, but then he went into epic fail. Only his alleged celibacy for 7 months of her pregnancy made him potentially redeemable. Had she not gotten pregnant, I’d doubt anything beyond short-term interest because he was self-focused and felt he was better than her. Not sold on the HEA.
He was an a** — really judgmental and a snob, for sure. He handled her shock pregnancy pretty badly. (Not the worst ever... looking at you, Atreus.)
It was hard to like the story, but it did have some solid angst. You felt sad or gut-punched at times, with no corresponding happy times to balance it. Not much romance in here. Uneven plot points, weird time gaps. You’d swear paragraphs were missing at times.
The supporting characters were great and likable.
I liked her pretty well. I’m glad she left, he deserved it. I actually think she would have been fine without him in the long run because she was determined to build a decent life for her and her child (other than his specialist help with the baby).
He had shown some promise early on, but then he went into epic fail. Only his alleged celibacy for 7 months of her pregnancy made him potentially redeemable. Had she not gotten pregnant, I’d doubt anything beyond short-term interest because he was self-focused and felt he was better than her. Not sold on the HEA.
September 20, 2017
Kathy labors to forget her traumatic past. Until the evening when impossibly rich, ruthless and handsome Sergio Torrente takes her virginity.It doesn't take Sergio long to find out about Kathy's damning history--or that she's carrying his baby. He cannot love her, but he will marry her and be a father to their child!
December 13, 2022
My only 1 ⭐️ LG. Quite a disappointing boring read.
The h is a beautiful girl but works as a cleaner. She’s had some prison history so she accepts this as a job and always watches her back incase someone’s looking out for her.
The H notices her when she comes to clean his office. More because she plays on his chessboard and he’s stunned by her smart moves. Long story at that. He insists on a ONS and the h agrees. Two seconds later he’s telling her to leave and also accusing her of stealing his watch.
The h was good in the sense that she rebukes him and speaks her mind. Sadly her body operates differently. She has no issues with being called a thief plus easy and jumps at any tiny opportunity to get into bed with him.
Soon enough there’s a baby. The h runs away from him since he’s still accusing her and calling her something or the other. The H finds her right before the baby’s here and asks her to marry him. Despite all her toughening up and growing some 🏀 she readily agrees to marriage.
I zoned out post their HEA. It was dreadfully boring with no sparks. The h sounded like his grandma and him like her grand dad. Scolding each other 🙄🙄
The h is a beautiful girl but works as a cleaner. She’s had some prison history so she accepts this as a job and always watches her back incase someone’s looking out for her.
The H notices her when she comes to clean his office. More because she plays on his chessboard and he’s stunned by her smart moves. Long story at that. He insists on a ONS and the h agrees. Two seconds later he’s telling her to leave and also accusing her of stealing his watch.
The h was good in the sense that she rebukes him and speaks her mind. Sadly her body operates differently. She has no issues with being called a thief plus easy and jumps at any tiny opportunity to get into bed with him.
Soon enough there’s a baby. The h runs away from him since he’s still accusing her and calling her something or the other. The H finds her right before the baby’s here and asks her to marry him. Despite all her toughening up and growing some 🏀 she readily agrees to marriage.
I zoned out post their HEA. It was dreadfully boring with no sparks. The h sounded like his grandma and him like her grand dad. Scolding each other 🙄🙄
February 26, 2025
2.5✨’s
I know these are formulaic-and I admit that I mostly come looking for the angst-but I am always disappointed by the MC’s following the usual roles of jerk hero and heroine who overlooks his behavior because he is so handsome, etc.
I know these are formulaic-and I admit that I mostly come looking for the angst-but I am always disappointed by the MC’s following the usual roles of jerk hero and heroine who overlooks his behavior because he is so handsome, etc.
February 26, 2025
2.5✨’s
I don’t know why I hope that the next Harlequin I read will break the mold.
I don’t know why I hope that the next Harlequin I read will break the mold.
July 7, 2022
Lots of reviews on this one! It has been awhile since I have read a “new to me” Lynne Graham. She was my go to when I first got into reading HP’s a couple of years ago. I am glad I picked one that didn’t disappoint. Of course being me I am starting with the 3rd in a series of 3 so I ended up meeting the couples that are in book 1 and 2 of the series.
Ok so lets meet the players:
Heroine, Kathy is a 23 year old virgin who has not had it easy in the last 5 years.
1) abandoned as a baby, adopted by a nice family, orphaned by 18
2) Plans for college get sidetracked when she is falsely imprisoned
3) Her childhood sweetheart abandons her(this was no great loss as he was tied pretty tightly to his mommy’s apron strings)However, it still hurt as she loved him.
4)Gets shanked in prison because someone thought she “grassed” on them…OOh new prison term I get to bandy about. British slang about ratting out to the police on criminal activity.
5) Works two jobs and does online school
Our h is of the walkway model type with long legs, red hair, and small breasts(which she is self conscious about). She prefers to focus more on her brains than her looks. One positive came out of prison, and that is her BFF Bridgett. Bridgett wasn’t in prison herself, but volunteered as a visitor for those who do not have visitors. Bridgett also employs her at a diner. At nights she works at an office building cleaning and making moves on a chessboard that clearly states hand’s off. She can’t resist, as a mystery player makes moves agains her. Enter Mystery player:
Hero: 31 year old tall, dark, handsome, arrogant Italian billionaire. Like all the HP Italian men that came before him, he is a manwhore. He has had his own knocks in life(not anything like the h’s mind you). Basically, he was cut off by his father when the evil step mom made allegations. Plus, the stepmom was mother to his older 1/2 brother(she was a mistress at one point and had to wait for the mom to die to marry the father). Anyhoo, the father pretty much disowned the hero and left the estate to the 1/2 brother. In the process, the H’s high school.slut..Sweetheart dumped him and married the money which was the 1/2 brother. At this point in the H’s life, he had already had a leg up in the world and had powerful friends. It wasn’t long and he was back on top and far richer than his brother could ever be.
While at his office, he spies a beautiful cleaning lady(our h) and figures that she is a plant. There is no way someone this beautiful could be a lowly cleaner. He figures friends have set him up or this is yet another woman who wants to get into the hero’s well endowed pants. (Remember I did say he was arrogant). The h seems to be blowing off the hero and wants to get her job done. He figures she is playing the hard to get game. He then finds out she is the one playing the chess game against him. So he asks her to play with him. She lets him win. He figures this out and challenges her to another game. IF he wins she sleeps with him. IF she wins she can sleep with him.
The game ends up being a tie. The h actually ends up cashing in her v-card as she is attracted to the H and a little tipsy. The H is very surprised at the virginity revelation and figures the h is trying to play the “lucrative lifestyle choice”by getting knocked up. (He wore a condom and it ripped)
Ok we are now going to enter the phase of the book I like to call hero inserts foot in mouth over and over…
1)After having sex with the virgin h he wants to know what she is up to(no cuddling or warm washcloths here) He never gets freebies. So she must be expecting some sort of “payment”. He prattles on and on. Our h doesn’t lie down and take it. She tells him he is rude and a huge mistake. Plus she most likely isn’t pregnant. If she is, she won’t be subscribing to his Lucrative lifestyle plan.
.She ends up losing her office job. She thinks hero got her fired(he didn’t) He has connections and gets her a new job. He sexes her up in the back of the limo on his way out of town for two weeks. He tells her they will hook up when he gets back. He calls her a lot while away. Kathy is thinking he may actually want to pursue something with her.
2. The H is back in town and the h is collected by car and deposited at his apartment. The h was thinking they were going out. But instead the H decides to accuse her of stealing his watch. Oh and he knows about her prison sentence. He threatens the police. She doesn’t want that. He doesn’t either because he would have to admit he shagged the office cleaner. She challenges him to a game of chess, if she wins then she walks away. He agrees but tells her that she has to sweeten it with some goodbye sex. She wins, they have mind blowing sex then she remembers who she is sleeping with and tells him never to contact her again.
3. Watch shows up. H starts sending h flowers and phone calls. Meanwhile h finds out she is pregnant.
He still believes that she was not innocent of her crime at the age of 18, because the courts found her guilty. He gets her pregnancy confirmed. She tells him to stay away, she needs to think. Then she sees a tabloid with him loving up a blonde model. She isn’t sure he is daddy material. After a few days of not calling the H gets impatient and whisks her to France. He shows her her new home. Her criminal history will be safe here and she can live in anonymity while raising their child. He can visit her in private, they can “reconnect” on his visits, and she will be taken care of. Our h isn’t going to be anyone’s dirty little secret. She pisses off the H by refusing his “generous endowment” and goes back to England.
4. While the h is deciding about single parenthood vs being a kept woman, the H shows up in a tabloid again. Surrounded by a bevy of blondes on his yacht. The word “orgy” was mentioned. His tabloid antics were enough to convince the h that he was as far away from being good father material as one could be.
Her BFF helps her relocate to Devon. She lives there for the next 6 months in complete anonymity. She has a good job. Unfortunately she goes into very premature labor. Her Bff gets ahold of the H who has been looking for her. He shows up and gets the h into the best hospital care and gets her to agree to marry him.
So from here on out we have an ott in love hero who needs to earn the trust of the h. The ex ow who is now divorcing the brother makes sure the h understands that she will be 2nd best and he will most likely divorce the h to marry her. This gets a little under the h’s skin, but it is more of something she keeps in the back of her mind not the forefront. The h and H have a honeymoon while their little daughter is being watched, but neither can stay away too long and they get their little one. Things are going well, time is passing on. The news of the h’s incarceration is ready to hit the papers. The H tells her what she needs to say, basically that she was a youth who made a mistake. She refuses, as she is innocent. Our H has them go away on the yacht so the Paparazzi can’t touch them. He leaves for a few hours but comes to the h and tells her He is sorry. The cynic in him couldn’t believe she was so perfect. He realizes upon knowing her that there is no way she is a criminal.
This is good, because he realizes this before she is proven innocent, which she later is.
We get an epilogue 3 years into the future. Everything is good, and the H proves to be worthy of the h.
I left a lot of things out in this review. There are some secondary characters that get a nice ending. There were a couple of dark moments not included. The H also did a few things after the marriage which made his love for the h very evident. Overall this was enjoyable, especially since the h had a spine and wasn’t willing to roll over on command.
Ok so a couple of things I wondered about.
A very minor, minor character was mentioned Nola. She is the one that helps the heroine when the heroine leaves hero during her pregnancy. However, LG takes the time to mention that Nola is having her 4th child and her husband leaves her for someone else. Later, the h meets the H’s brother. He is married to the gold digging bitchy ow. She notices that he is good with kids and wonders why he doesn’t have any. I couldn’t help it. My romantic brain got all twitchy and was sure that LG would have the divorced brother hook up with Nola who’s husband dumped her. It doesn’t happen, but I wasn’t sure why she included these tidbits as they were not necessary to the story. I felt really bad for this barely there character Nola who’s husband left her. Not so much for the brother as he did pilfer the ow from the H.
On another note I was almost afraid the first chapter was going to be similar to Bought by Her Husband I have not read this yet except for the first chapter, and several reviews which scared me away. Thank goodness LG did not go there!!!!
Ok so lets meet the players:
Heroine, Kathy is a 23 year old virgin who has not had it easy in the last 5 years.
1) abandoned as a baby, adopted by a nice family, orphaned by 18
2) Plans for college get sidetracked when she is falsely imprisoned
3) Her childhood sweetheart abandons her(this was no great loss as he was tied pretty tightly to his mommy’s apron strings)However, it still hurt as she loved him.
4)Gets shanked in prison because someone thought she “grassed” on them…OOh new prison term I get to bandy about. British slang about ratting out to the police on criminal activity.
5) Works two jobs and does online school
Our h is of the walkway model type with long legs, red hair, and small breasts(which she is self conscious about). She prefers to focus more on her brains than her looks. One positive came out of prison, and that is her BFF Bridgett. Bridgett wasn’t in prison herself, but volunteered as a visitor for those who do not have visitors. Bridgett also employs her at a diner. At nights she works at an office building cleaning and making moves on a chessboard that clearly states hand’s off. She can’t resist, as a mystery player makes moves agains her. Enter Mystery player:
Hero: 31 year old tall, dark, handsome, arrogant Italian billionaire. Like all the HP Italian men that came before him, he is a manwhore. He has had his own knocks in life(not anything like the h’s mind you). Basically, he was cut off by his father when the evil step mom made allegations. Plus, the stepmom was mother to his older 1/2 brother(she was a mistress at one point and had to wait for the mom to die to marry the father). Anyhoo, the father pretty much disowned the hero and left the estate to the 1/2 brother. In the process, the H’s high school
While at his office, he spies a beautiful cleaning lady(our h) and figures that she is a plant. There is no way someone this beautiful could be a lowly cleaner. He figures friends have set him up or this is yet another woman who wants to get into the hero’s well endowed pants. (Remember I did say he was arrogant). The h seems to be blowing off the hero and wants to get her job done. He figures she is playing the hard to get game. He then finds out she is the one playing the chess game against him. So he asks her to play with him. She lets him win. He figures this out and challenges her to another game. IF he wins she sleeps with him. IF she wins she can sleep with him.
The game ends up being a tie. The h actually ends up cashing in her v-card as she is attracted to the H and a little tipsy. The H is very surprised at the virginity revelation and figures the h is trying to play the “lucrative lifestyle choice”by getting knocked up. (He wore a condom and it ripped)
Ok we are now going to enter the phase of the book I like to call hero inserts foot in mouth over and over…
1)After having sex with the virgin h he wants to know what she is up to(no cuddling or warm washcloths here) He never gets freebies. So she must be expecting some sort of “payment”. He prattles on and on. Our h doesn’t lie down and take it. She tells him he is rude and a huge mistake. Plus she most likely isn’t pregnant. If she is, she won’t be subscribing to his Lucrative lifestyle plan.
.She ends up losing her office job. She thinks hero got her fired(he didn’t) He has connections and gets her a new job. He sexes her up in the back of the limo on his way out of town for two weeks. He tells her they will hook up when he gets back. He calls her a lot while away. Kathy is thinking he may actually want to pursue something with her.
2. The H is back in town and the h is collected by car and deposited at his apartment. The h was thinking they were going out. But instead the H decides to accuse her of stealing his watch. Oh and he knows about her prison sentence. He threatens the police. She doesn’t want that. He doesn’t either because he would have to admit he shagged the office cleaner. She challenges him to a game of chess, if she wins then she walks away. He agrees but tells her that she has to sweeten it with some goodbye sex. She wins, they have mind blowing sex then she remembers who she is sleeping with and tells him never to contact her again.
3. Watch shows up. H starts sending h flowers and phone calls. Meanwhile h finds out she is pregnant.
He still believes that she was not innocent of her crime at the age of 18, because the courts found her guilty. He gets her pregnancy confirmed. She tells him to stay away, she needs to think. Then she sees a tabloid with him loving up a blonde model. She isn’t sure he is daddy material. After a few days of not calling the H gets impatient and whisks her to France. He shows her her new home. Her criminal history will be safe here and she can live in anonymity while raising their child. He can visit her in private, they can “reconnect” on his visits, and she will be taken care of. Our h isn’t going to be anyone’s dirty little secret. She pisses off the H by refusing his “generous endowment” and goes back to England.
4. While the h is deciding about single parenthood vs being a kept woman, the H shows up in a tabloid again. Surrounded by a bevy of blondes on his yacht. The word “orgy” was mentioned. His tabloid antics were enough to convince the h that he was as far away from being good father material as one could be.
Her BFF helps her relocate to Devon. She lives there for the next 6 months in complete anonymity. She has a good job. Unfortunately she goes into very premature labor. Her Bff gets ahold of the H who has been looking for her. He shows up and gets the h into the best hospital care and gets her to agree to marry him.
So from here on out we have an ott in love hero who needs to earn the trust of the h. The ex ow who is now divorcing the brother makes sure the h understands that she will be 2nd best and he will most likely divorce the h to marry her. This gets a little under the h’s skin, but it is more of something she keeps in the back of her mind not the forefront. The h and H have a honeymoon while their little daughter is being watched, but neither can stay away too long and they get their little one. Things are going well, time is passing on. The news of the h’s incarceration is ready to hit the papers. The H tells her what she needs to say, basically that she was a youth who made a mistake. She refuses, as she is innocent. Our H has them go away on the yacht so the Paparazzi can’t touch them. He leaves for a few hours but comes to the h and tells her He is sorry. The cynic in him couldn’t believe she was so perfect. He realizes upon knowing her that there is no way she is a criminal.
This is good, because he realizes this before she is proven innocent, which she later is.
We get an epilogue 3 years into the future. Everything is good, and the H proves to be worthy of the h.
I left a lot of things out in this review. There are some secondary characters that get a nice ending. There were a couple of dark moments not included. The H also did a few things after the marriage which made his love for the h very evident. Overall this was enjoyable, especially since the h had a spine and wasn’t willing to roll over on command.
Ok so a couple of things I wondered about.
A very minor, minor character was mentioned Nola. She is the one that helps the heroine when the heroine leaves hero during her pregnancy. However, LG takes the time to mention that Nola is having her 4th child and her husband leaves her for someone else. Later, the h meets the H’s brother. He is married to the gold digging bitchy ow. She notices that he is good with kids and wonders why he doesn’t have any. I couldn’t help it. My romantic brain got all twitchy and was sure that LG would have the divorced brother hook up with Nola who’s husband dumped her. It doesn’t happen, but I wasn’t sure why she included these tidbits as they were not necessary to the story. I felt really bad for this barely there character Nola who’s husband left her. Not so much for the brother as he did pilfer the ow from the H.
On another note I was almost afraid the first chapter was going to be similar to Bought by Her Husband I have not read this yet except for the first chapter, and several reviews which scared me away. Thank goodness LG did not go there!!!!
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
October 24, 2015
Oh my! My blood been boiling from the time I read this book until almost the end. The characters in the book is like.. Especially Sergio. Act like spoilt brat. Think he's rich and mighty. Always jump to conclusion and don't believe others. Hated the way he accused Kathy of stealing his watch. And hated the way he deny Kathy when she want to explain her innocence of her past theft to him. -.-"
September 14, 2019
I just never really bought that the woman could feel anything beyond lust for the dude. He was just so shitty to her. Too arrogant by far.
It's weird, this is the first book in this series that I noticed and was interested in based on the blurb/preview. But of the three, this was by far the weakest.
It's weird, this is the first book in this series that I noticed and was interested in based on the blurb/preview. But of the three, this was by far the weakest.
April 15, 2009
Extremely cheesy title but honestly not a bad read. I'm a sucker for an Italian hero anyway.
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