Without Limits

Cobalt Security #3

by Reese Knightley

Hayden –
Cobalt Security had felt like home to Hayden Thorne for years. But now he needs space and time to get over the fact that Jaxon West was never going to be more to him than his best friend. Quitting his job as a bodyguard to go work for a dark underground group of assassins, seemed like the perfect plan to get over the sexy bodyguard once and for all. It doesn’t help that Jaxon has followed him and is trying to interfere in his new life. Hayden has several things to say about Jaxon’s interference.

So what if someone is trying to kill them, it’s all part of the job, right?

Jaxon –
Jaxon West had taken a job out of state to get some distance from his best friend, only to find out that Hayden had quit. The thing is that Jaxon didn’t want that much distance between them. And if Hayden thought he could find another employer, Jaxon had a few choice words for the younger man…with the first of several being, hell f*cking no . Jaxon needed to keep Hayden safe and within reach.

Now, a long buried secret threatens to destroy their mutual attraction and Jaxon knows he needs to come clean.
Will the lie that stands between them prevent any chance of happiness? Will Hayden walk away for good when he finds out the truth?

Fear can be paralyzing when Jaxon’s whole world is at stake.

Genres: M M Romance, Action, Friends To Lovers, Romance, Military Fiction, Found Family, Suspense

228 pages, Kindle Edition

First published October 9, 2023

About the author

Reese Knightley spends her time creating stories from the characters rattling around in her head. Her love of reading mystery, action and adventure, and fantasy books led to her love of writing. Reese works as a full time writer. She loves to hear from her readers.

Reviews

[Saimi Vasquez · Rating 3 out of 5]

Jaxon ha huido de sus sentimientos por Hayden desde que lo conoció. Pero ya no puede evitar sentir la atracción y el miedo a perder a Hayden, así que decide tomar un trabajo lejos de casa por un tiempo sin decirle nada. El problema es que cuando regresa, Hayden se ha ido de Cobalt Security y esta trabajando para otra organización que se encarga de asesinatos a sueldo. Pero Jaxon no va a dejar que Hayden siga en ese camino, sabe que puede convencerlo de volver con ellos, pero tendrá el valor de decirle lo que siente por él? Sin embargo, las cosas se salen de control cuando apenas están empezando a nacer algo entre ellos, y quizás esto los destruya o los una mas.

Este libro fue mucho mas sencillo, la química que tenían estos personajes en los libros anteriores, casi se perdió aquí. Extrañé mucho al Hayden juguetón, y al Jaxon loco. La relación entre ellos no fue tan "hot" como lo esperaba. La razón por la que se molestaron fue tan tonta, que no le vi ningún sentido. Y sin embargo, la historia me entretuvo todo el rato, y se me hizo ligera y fácil de leer.
En fin, en este libro me volví a perder con la cantidad de personajes de series anteriores del autor, muchos de los cuales no conozco y de los que apenas nos dan un background, por lo que sentí que mas que una serie, es la continuación de otras series y que estos libros los esta haciendo el autor para sus fans. De todas formas, voy a leer el próximo libro, y esperar a ver como se desarrolla la próxima pareja, esperando que tenga mas acción y emoción, y que ahora que conozco alguno de los otros personajes, se me haga mas entretenida.

[Cadiva · Rating 4 out of 5]

A bit messy but still a decent one

Jaxson and Hayden have been around almost since the start, so I was intrigued by the type of story they'd get.

I wasn't expecting this one, with so many different threads, twists and reveals that it was like watching a game of ping pong.

The romance itself is a bit fraught, there's plenty of troubles between the two of them to sort out, but all becomes right in the end.

I did like both men, they behaved pretty much as expected with lots of alpha-ing and trying to not to give much in the way of feelings away.

It's pretty obvious both of them are totally gone on the other though and a few hairy escapes later, all is revealed, loose threads tied up and a happy ending is firmly on the way.

[Bev · Rating 2 out of 5]

2.5 stars

Not my favourite in the series, Hayden's immaturity got on my wick for most of the book, I had to keep reminding myself he was an adult and not still in high school

[Ashley · Rating 1 out of 5]

DNF. The characters were too immature, and the story too messy and hard to follow. This was my first book by this author and I doubt I’ll try anymore.

[Mandy (MP Book Reviews) · Rating 4 out of 5]

Cobalt Security had felt like home to Hayden Thorne for years. But now he needs space and time to get over the fact that Jaxon West was never going to be more to him than his best friend. Quitting his job as a bodyguard to go work for a dark underground group of assassins, seemed like the perfect plan to get over the sexy bodyguard once and for all. It doesn’t help that Jaxon has followed him and is trying to interfere in his new life. Hayden has several things to say about Jaxon’s interference. So what if someone is trying to kill them, it’s all part of the job, right? Jaxon West had taken a job out of state to get some distance from his best friend, only to find out that Hayden had quit. The thing is that Jaxon didn’t want that much distance between them. And if Hayden thought he could find another employer, Jaxon had a few choice words for the younger man…with the first of several being, hell f*cking no. Jaxon needed to keep Hayden safe and within reach. Now, a long buried secret threatens to destroy their mutual attraction and Jaxon knows he needs to come clean. Will the lie that stands between them prevent any chance of happiness? Will Hayden walk away for good when he finds out the truth? Fear can be paralyzing when Jaxon’s whole world is at stake.

I really enjoyed this story of the two best friends who loved each other and the crossed messages and intentions between them. There was lots of passion and danger in this story as the two men fought for their relationship. Easy to read, feel and understand. This was a MM story with mature content.

[Jozey · Rating 5 out of 5]

Contains: Actions, investigations, danger, team dynamics, coworkers, and two best friends falling in love.

I love the way it started. Well, writing. Emotions are being dragged through half of the books. Building up. Developing their chemistry, but not their thrust. The writing is stunning.

The investigations and the lies begin earlier, and we are all wondering what the lies are about. Attempting to connect the dots. And the danger. I love these kinds of action books, the investigations, danger, and adrenaline.

I adore everything about it. The team dynamics, the love, and their ties to each other. I acknowledge that it's very unlikely to have three or four teams consisting solely of gay individuals, but the team dynamic is exceptional, and they all deserve love.

Let's talk about love... The profession of love was EPIC!!! Aaawww, big male alpha getting all romantic, and the proposal sooooo adorable. Love it!!!


One of the only things that don't make sense, in my humble opinion: Why were all the result (lies, secret) made up for years if the evidence possessions collected at the end were already collected a long time ago? At this point, I was a bit lost. Except for this, everything fits together. Each piece.

So now that I'm done with this one... Give me more.

*If you are new to this author, check the reading order. All her books are amazing!!

[Kelsey’s Kindle · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is book 3 of the Colbalt Security series, we met Jaxon and Hayden in the previous two books.
Hayden and Jax are best friends, who have the perk of working with each other. When Jax starts having other than friendship feelings for his best friend, he does the only thing he can think of and takes a job out of state without Hayden. Hayden is hurt by this and decides the only thing he can do to get past his feelings for Jax is to quit Colbalt Security and join a network of underground assassins. When Jax returns and finds out that Hayden has quit and gone to work for Erebus he follows him. When Jax finally catches up with him, there’s an explosion 💥 that changes everything. With a long buried secret that might be hunting them, he’s not sure how to tell Hayden without him walking out of his life for good.

There’s a lot of action and suspense in this one. A nice & spicy scene, found family, best friends to lovers and a HEA! I started and finished this in one day, nice fast passed read that keeps you hooked from the beginning.

I want to thank the author for sending me this book to review, this is my honest opinion ! This book release October 9th, also on Kindle Unlimited!

[Patricia C · Rating 5 out of 5]

As always I am never disappointed with a Reese Knightly story.

I enjoyed reading about the men who are fighting all types of organized crimes from kidnapping, murder, and drugs but find a way to straighten out their love lives. Jaxon and Hayden are best friends but are very attractive to each other. They are having a problem of crossing the line from best friends to lovers. Jaxon took a temp job with Pegasus to try and figure out their situation. One thing between them was a secret Jaxon was holding about Hayden brother. Hayden got mad because of the way Jaxon, that he decided to leave Cobalt Security and become an assassin. When Jaxon returned, he went looking for him and then they were almost killed. Cobalt Securities had to figure out who was trying to kill them. The secret came out about Hayden and Hayden left. Jaxon had to track him down, ask for forgiveness and let Hayden know how he really felt. This book has a beautiful happily ever after and I highly recommend reading.

[Martyna · Rating 5 out of 5]

I loved this one much, much better than the fiasco, which was the 2nd book from this series.
When I first encountered Jaxon in other series, I knew I had to get my hands on his book. And boy, I'm not disappointed.
Although I'm not really a fan of obsessive/possessive/controlling type of characters, here it somehow blended so nicely with both the blot and the characters itself that I'm over the moon. And yes I'm talking about Jaxon, but Hayden can definitely take care of himself, so no damsel-in-distress action here, and he definitely gives s*it to Jaxon if he goes overboard, he doesn't let himself be squashed (and that is one of the better things in this book that charmed me so much).
Also a big bonus points for the Erebus blending in nicely, we got to know more and nothing was all over the place as it had a little bit when the Erebus was introduced in "Stealth".
Only minuses:
I wished there were more smexy scenes lol.
The POV changes were a bit chaotic and sometimes I didn't know who was speaking, sometimes I had a feeling that we're read both characters' POV at the same time, that they were intertwined together, it was a bit confusing/frustrating.



Pairing ranking:
1. Jaxon & Hayden
2. Harrison & Ryder
3. Logan & Macy (DNF)

[Cassity Sawyer · Rating 5 out of 5]

Wow is all I can say…..the story of Jaxon and Hayden is action packed with a lot of romance in between. Jaxon realizes after taking a job out of town and coming to find Hayden gone how he truly feels about him. The biggest problem though is a secret he has kept from him for years that could destroy the relationship he wants with Hayden. Hayden on the other hand had to leave colbalt secretly because he needed to forge his own path without Jaxon. He tries but Jaxon comes for him over and over again. There is someone though trying to take out Hayden so Jaxon is going to stay close no matter what. Through this closeness Jaxon finally take matters into his own hands and shows Hayden he wants a life with him. I’m telling you I started this book and could not put it down. It is another great story by Reese knightly.

[Devoted❤️Reader · Rating 5 out of 5]

Us

Longtime friends to lovers makes my heart so squishy! I can’t resist the pull, and add in some of that Reese Knightley magic with action, suspense, and twists; I’m a goner.

“It does take some time to wrap your head around it, doesn’t it?”
“Wrap my head around what?” he croaked.
“Us.”

Gah, Jaxon and Hayden are fantastic! I adore their friendship, their bond, and when push comes to shove, most likely they’re the ones shoving. The tension between them is flawless, and the build up of the mystery, the revelations, and the resolution are superb. I couldn’t put this book down as it sucked me in and wouldn’t let me free until I turned the very last page, grudgingly I may add, as I didn’t want it to end. I adore this found family, the ever-growing members, and how with everything we learn, it makes me crave more.

[Book Hoarder · Rating 5 out of 5]

Jaxon and Hayden were work colleagues and best friends for years until they weren't. Both men had developed feelings they were afraid to show. Instead of talking it out, Jaxon’s answer was to run to a job in California to put space between them before he ruined their friendship. A devastated Hayden then left Cobalt Security for a much darker DoD job; afraid Jason would never see him as anything other than a friend. Chasing after Hayden puts them both in dangerous crosshairs. Lots of action with Reese's delightful parade of badass operators from her interconnected series. In the end, love conquers all and we wait for the next installment to see who else gets their HEA.

[Beth · Rating 4 out of 5]

Jaxson is mentioned in Haven and her we get the next part of his story. This is a friends to lovers story though one that takes quite a while to get there. With a bit secret looming in the background it’s not an easy path for Jaxson and Hayden to get together. They are both a bit too stubborn and they keep getting interrupted just as something is about to progress which gets irritating. I’m also never a fan of the lack of communication trope.

Towards the end when the action ratchets up, secrets are exposed, and we get the big crisis moment things come together in heart wrenching form. The ending is sweet. There are a couple characters who I am now quite curious about and I hope I get their stories soon. As usual, I burned through this book in one sitting.

[Vivany · Rating 1 out of 5]

Hayden giggled

I can't seem to force my self to finish this soup drama where all the man are gorguose and so beautifull , so pretty with a soufti heart and a badass personalty in the same time
And they all have skills and knew how to fight and kill
😏😒🙄🙄🙄🙄🙄🙄🙄🙄🙄

(“The man was gorgeous and there was really no other way to describe Wrath. With his steel blue eyes, shoulder-length hair, and chiseled jaw, Wrath could have stepped out of a movie—like one of those films where hot, ripped men were the focus.”)

Every one in the book is looking exactly like that maybe a little change in the hair and eye colore

[Lindsay Hardin · Rating 5 out of 5]

Jaxon and Hayden are the best of friends and teammates. The two have been through so much together. As their relationship begins to shift will buried secrets end their love before it has a chance to truly begin? There is plenty of action and intrigue with a side of betrayal. The supporting characters are familiar faces from the Reese universe and add depth as well as give an update on beloved friends.

[Karen Rich · Rating 4 out of 5]

Another amazing story from Reese Knightley . I loved the cat and mouse chase between Hayden and Jaxon and Jaxon's not so subtle way of showing his affection for Hayden but he is unsure of Hayden's feeling's towards him with his departure from Cobalt Security and his placement with Erebus. The tension between these two was off the charts.
I highly recommend this series and the rest of Reese Knightley's books.

[Gayle · Rating 4 out of 5]

Good

I enjoyed this story. I haven't read the others in this series, but I might. The only thing (& it really is tiny & probably only me) that annoyed me was the fact that everytime a team member was introduced to the reader, they were always gorgeous, model perfect, walked off the pages of a top fashion magazine etc which I don't like. Not everyone has to be or should be that good looking.

[Demetra Roussakis · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is book 3 in the series and features Hayden and Jaxon. They both work for Cobalt Security and have been friends and worked together for years. They both had feelings for each other but never acted on them. When Hayden is targeted, everything changes. Love this world and looking forward to reading more. Great chemistry and heat between them with lots of action.

[Yvonne · Rating 3 out of 5]

Action packed adventure? Yes. Coherent and well constructed story? No. At times it was difficult to know whose point of view it was, or who said that line of dialogue; at other times when a speaker was identified it simply did not fit. From having read all the earlier books I know that this author can do much, much better than this.

[ANNBOOKSHELF · Rating 4 out of 5]

This series is great! When you need fast action military ops with twist & romance - fills the bill!

Hayden is a happy go lucky until he decides falling n unrequited love is too painful and he needs seperation! Jackson is best friends and works and lives with Hayden his BFF. These two are afraid to cross that line but could they lose it all? MM Romance

[Melissa Polk · Rating 3 out of 5]

I remember really enjoying this series and the other related ones, but this one just.. I don't know. The characters felt super immature, the conflict had no tension for me, the chemistry wasn't there for the relationship. It was a lot of wishy-washy mixed with insta-decisions about feelings before wishy-washing away again. Dunno, the whole thing kind of frustrated me.

[joani · Rating 4 out of 5]

Secret love

Hayden and Jaxson are best friend but each are secretly in love with other. Everyone around them is aware of this and waiting for them to catch up. Don't worry, they do. Someone wants them dead and the whole team comes together to figure all this out but with missing a bit of information. When it comes to light the only thing they can do is save each other.

[Marsha L Respess · Rating 5 out of 5]

Another great book from Reese. I was so glad to find out that Wyatt had been working undercover because the beginning of the book made you sad and mad and you had to wait until almost the end to find out the truth. I am hopeful that there will be another book since Foley is in the wind and you know he won't stay in the shadows.

[Temberley · Rating 5 out of 5]

Maybe?

Action packed adventures with Jaxon and Hayden is always a welcome time! This time there are secrets that could rip the budding romance apart! Cobalt security will never be the same as the bad guys push hard and heavy with shots fired and bombs going off the guys have to figure it out quickly!!!!

[MN Lisa · Rating 4 out of 5]

Jaxon and Hayden have been friends for years and nothing ever happened between them, even though Hayden kinda wanted it to. He quits and goes to work for someone else and Jaxon tracks him down.

I like this story a lot. Their interactions were great and there were very few miscommunications that I was amazed they talked as much as they did.

Can't wait to read more.

[AL · Rating 5 out of 5]

Such a great vibe! A brilliant friends to lovers story with all the signature Reese Knightley action and heat. I enjoyed every single second of the story!
The author has a great knack for creating characters I can’t help getting attached to and these two totally fit the bill! Another hit.

[Beatrice Zibell · Rating 5 out of 5]

A lovely story of friends to lovers. Hayden and Jaxon navigating their new feelings towards each other among the action going on around them. Another great Reese Knightley book with wonderful characters and a captivating story.

[Angelica Holmes · Rating 4 out of 5]

Good read (Pardon the pun)

The beginning of the book was a little of a rough read. It jumps around a little, making it slightly difficult to keep track. However, overall, the story is enjoyable to read. The characters are a treat as always.

[Christopher Babick · Rating 5 out of 5]

Excellent!

I've enjoyed this entire series. I'm looking forward to more. The characters are so real. There is Romance. There is violence. There is sex. There is love. And it's all gay.

[Ellen · Rating 2 out of 5]

Why did the main villain not appear and then everything was tied up neatly off page? Then we got too much information of side characters and not one single female was in this- just one mentioned but never seen. Characters personalities seemed to also change part way throughs then the ending felt rushed. It started so well too. So disappointing