You can't go wrong with a bodyguard and his protectee falling for each other right? Angela Casella certainly didn't. This was a great fun story with plenty of laughs, banter, flirting, and a bit of suspense. It was all centered around two characters that were easy to enjoy.
Sinclair Jones is an actress who is a little lost and has left her famous role in a TV series she's trying to live a normal life. Threats of a stalker, however, have made that not so simple.
Rafe O'Dooley is acting as a discount bodyguard to the famous actress. He sees the spoiled, perfectly primped over-the-top starlet she is supposed to be but time together shows him more to Sinclair. He has his own demons he fights though.
They make a great couple and have a lot of banter and teasing. There were some really great moments between the two that were just a joy to read.
This is part of a series but can be read as a standalone. I have not read any of the others yet and it seems to me that their characters popped up in earlier stories. I admit with the way this starts I wonder if I would have been better reading the others first. Not needed like I said, but I think some background would have been good too.
The Fairy Godmother Agency consists of two PI's (husband and wife team) Nicole and Damien. While they are helping their clients with whatever they need a PI for it seems they like to offer a full fairy godmother service (without letting the clients know of course) which includes finding true love. Great concept, it was fun and the characters of Nicole and Damied were fun additions even though they aren't huge features.
Look forward to getting a chance to read the rest and what's to come.
.
.
.
Sinclair Jones is trying to find where to go from here. Leaving her TV show and the aftermath of her mother's betrayal have left her a little lost. Everything she has tried so far has ended in her feeling more like a failure than before. Being home in Asheville she's hoping to rebuild the broken bond with her brother and sister and to find what she wants to do next. To help keep her career on track Enoch Laskin her publicist suggests she and another local star, Edgar James, start fake dating to keep them public and interesting. While attracted to Edgar initially the public appearances they have made together have been nothing but awkward and uncomfortable, at least for Sinclair.
Rafe O'Dooley lost his last job as a personal trainer at a gym after a client went too far with another member and he stepped in. While the guy deserved what he got it cost him his job. When offered the role of bodyguard to Sinclair Jones his options were limited. Following the starlet around and looking scary on her public fake dates with Edgar James was easy enough. So far her stalker had done little in the way of making any new threats.
Leaving a dinner one night is the first in-person attack that Sinclair faces and Rafe steps in to keep her safe and in return, she stops him from also being hit. From there her family, the PIs, and her publicist agree things might be getting a bit more dangerous and request Rafe come on full-time, not just when she's out in public but staying with her in her home since the stalker seems to know how to get in and out of her building.
Sinclair doesn't want anyone in her safe space. It's the only place she can really be herself and let go of all the worries and stress she carries around.
Rafe can't see how he will cope living with the pampered princess until the stalker is found, but at the same time, the thought of anything happening to her is not ok with him.
The time spent together soon shows them each that there is more to the other than they thought, originally the only thing they could see that they could like was their looks.
As the threat to Sinclair seems to escalate and Rafe learns a lot more of what Sinclair has been through to get to where she is, they soon find that the underlying chemistry has a chance to take root. While wanting to explore what they could be increases Rafe's protective instincts he can't face sharing her even with a fake boyfriend.
'I'm not going to let anyone mess with Clay, not her body or her mind. Maybe she's not mine, maybe she'll never be, but I'm going to watch out for her as if she were.'
Sinclair has to navigate keeping her career from tanking, managing a fake relationship, dealing with a toxic mother, rebuilding her relationship with her siblings, avoiding the clutches of a stalker, and her feelings for Rafe that are growing more every day.
'That's when I understand for the first time - really understand - that's he's more than my friend, my protector. More than someone I'm sleeping with. I'm falling in love with him.'
While Rafe and Sinclair find their attraction turning into more, the Fairy Godmother Agency works to track down her stalker and end the threat to Sinclair, but with the suspect list getting smaller and no one standing out they'll have to work hard to get to her before her stalker does.
Happy Reading.