Billion Dollar Beast

Seattle Billionaires #2

by Olivia Hayle

My brother’s billionaire best friend is my new boss.
The same man who’s hated me for years, you ask? Yep, the very one.

Nicholas Park has the worst reputation in the city. He isn’t a man you befriend—trust me, I’ve tried.

No, he’s made it crystal clear what he thinks of me. Vain. Spoiled. Underserving. I could probably continue, but then I’d have to ask Nick for his list, and he’d say no.

Courtesy of my brother, Nick reluctantly offers me a consulting job at his firm. He expects me to turn it down, of course.

I accept out of spite.

Three months of arguments and dark stares. Of sudden, stolen kisses at company parties. The heat between us grows, bursting into a wildfire that threatens to consume me whole.

Nick has pushed me away all these years for a reason. For your own good, as he says. I’m not the man for you.

But I refuse to listen.
We're done playing it safe.

Genres: Romance, Enemies To Lovers, Contemporary Romance, Billionaire Romance, Audiobook, Workplace Romance, Contemporary

282 pages, Paperback

First published October 30, 2020

About the author

Hi there! I'm Olivia.
I write romance with billionaire heroes (despite never having met one in person). They're strong, ambitious, they don't need love... until they meet the women who change their minds.

I love witty banter, smart heroines, big cities and perfectly tailored suits. You'll find all four in every one of my books! 💜

➡ Explore the bonus content: https://oliviahayle.com/bonus-content
➡ Visit https://oliviahayle.com

READING ORDER
You can read any of the books as standalones, because each book follows a new couple. But if you ask me? This is my personal preference...

The Connovan Chronicles
- Best Enemies Forever
- The Perfect Mistake
- One Wrong Move

New York Billionaires
- Think Outside the Boss
- Saved by the Boss
- Say Yes to the Boss
- A Ticking Time Boss
- Suite on the Boss
- 12 Days of Bossmas

Seattle Billionaires
- Billion Dollar Enemy
- Billion Dollar Beast
- Billion Dollar Catch
- Billion Dollar Fiancé

Brothers of Paradise
- Dark Eyed Devil
- Ice Cold Boss
- Red Hot Rebel
- Small Town Hero

Standalones
- Arrogant Boss
- Look But Don't Touch
- The Billionaire Scrooge Next Door
- How to Honeymoon Alone

Reviews

[Dora Koutsoukou · Rating 3 out of 5]

3,5 ❤️❤️❤️🌟s❣️❣️❣️

This billion dollar series is very enjoyable, with amazing characters and engaging plot!

Nick and Blair might have been opposite characters but their chemistry was fabulous and their banter full of sparks!!
The story was very well written and developed, caught my interest from the start until the end.

I would have liked a little more development regarding Nick’s past and the reasons that morphed his character.

I am looking forward for Ethan’s billion dollar story!!!

[Travelogged Blogs · Rating 3 out of 5]

I liked the first book featuring Cole & Skye but something was missing in this one. I liked Blair and her determination but when she said she had a crush on Nick and he treated her like shit for so many years, ignored her and was rude to her, I don't know what she saw in him after all that tbh. It is mentioned that Nick is a billionaire and does well for himself but then why did he think that if he was seen with Stella in her social circles, it would lessen her status somehow? That was pretty illogical and I kept waiting to discover the reason behind him not wanting to give relationships a try but all he explained was his poor background and what happened to his parents wasn't even explained in detail. I felt like I could connect with Blair but Nick on the other hand lacked depth and his backstory was so flat. And the reason behind pushing Stella away just because she was his bestfriend's sister was so stupid, if he had just talked it out with Cole, I bet their circumstances would have been a lot more different. But I loved the brother-sister dynamic between Cole & Blair and some parts of the story were cute and romantic. It was a fast paced read but it was enjoyable so if you're looking for something quick and cheesy, this story is for you.

[Lucía · Rating 2 out of 5]

I was excited to read this book since I loved Billion Dollar Enemy, but this was a disappointment.

Nick was a 31 year old with the mentality of a 10 year old, so inmature with all his decisions and attitude.
I thought the way he acted was because of a bad past, but the author doesn’t mention anything about it, so I guess he was just childish.

I never skim books but this book was the exception.
It got to a point that the story was very plain and bored me.

[Elisa ♡ · Rating 4 out of 5]

for some reason this author is addictive!

when Blair met her brother's best friend she had a crush on him but he's rude to her, so to this day they don't get along.
after a strip poker night, they can't stay away from each other.

[benevolent bastard · Rating 1 out of 5]

Nick was so bland, yeah you had a poor up bringing but now you’re a rich loser. Seek therapy. Like what are you running from?? Blair. Why. Why would you let him walk all over you like that sometimes. Ugh.

[Canan · Rating 3 out of 5]

çerezlik, hafif bir romans.

[Lorie · Rating 1 out of 5]

Boring...yawn...

This was the most boring office/best friend little sister type of romance I read so far. The guy was so insecure and that wasn't hot. The mc came off as desperate where she push the h to be with her pretty much. There was nothing interesting about the mc. The side characters were shown a lot. Pretty much mc goes to her brother's house constantly and hangs out with her rich friend. What a boring romance. The sex was boring too. Too one dimensional characters and plotline.

[fran · Rating 4 out of 5]

3.75 🌟 don’t know what it is about this one, but i still liked it. and when i say i don’t know why - i mean it.

we literally got like 90% blair and 10% nick. we didn’t get ANY of his backstory, when blair had her whole business fail thing/the new one, cole and skye. i feel like we got more nick’s character in cole’s book than in this one 😭

but it also was good, because their banter and the dialogue was quick and funny. and the poker game… 😀

“Lovely office you have here. The mood seems to be somewhere between a slaughterhouse and a prison. I can’t decide which I’m leaning toward more.” it was in fact funny

“They’re deep in the red. Bleeding cash. Without our added liquidity, B.C. Adams would have gone bankrupt within the month.”
“Sounds like you should get your money back. Did you keep the receipt?” ngl…………..i was loving it

I did that, I ruined her mood as surely as I ruin most things little emo nick here

[belu · Rating 1 out of 5]

boring af

[aya · Rating 4 out of 5]

3.75 💫

I personally am a big brother Bestfriend trope fan, as well as i like the enemies to lovers trope so much thats why I was expecting to love this one more than the first book but ended up liking it less and the reason is we didn't really get enough nick , like the author talked so much about blair her family her life her failure and success but she didn't even give us much of Nick's backstory which annoyed me quite a lot. All we got was 3 lines at the end of the book with no details really and two lines how he got his hand scars..

But NickBlair as a couple has so much chemistry and i believe if the book was a little bit longer with more nick in it would have been better and it might have reached 4 or 4.4 stars to me.

Nevertheless it wasn't a bad read by any means l, i enjoyed it and like the couple.
And i guess we are getting Ethan's book next ? A single dad trope which I'm getting to like more lately so I'm looking forward to it.

[Monique · Rating 5 out of 5]

Loving this series so much! All my favourite tropes and done so so well with so much sexual tension 🔥🔥🔥🔥

[Lori Tremain · Rating 1 out of 5]

Boring!

Nick is the billionaire who buys properties, tears them down and sells them. He is not well liked by everyone.
Blair is a socialite. Her brother Cole is best friends with Nick.
Funny how the bad Boys fall into acting like a child sometimes with their women. Nick is not portrayed as the dark beast as] the author describes him. The author gets his dangerous appearance right but his actions and words are like a10yo. Blair is supposed to be sweet but she is the one who aggressively pushes for Nick. The butterfly has more to fear then the best. But those actions don't vibe with descriptions. Difficult to read thru

Really could not get into this book. Did not enjoy. First book in the series i read, i liked. This one, ugh!

[A.M. · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5🌟 loved the tension, very cold hero but damn I want to know why the hell his pushing the heroine so hard. The only reason being she's his best friend sister isn't enough.

[Magali · Rating 5 out of 5]

Touching
4.5
I really liked this multi-faceted romance, which is still simple: Nick avoids Blair, his best friend's sister. Nick has a reputation for being a raptor in business, there to dismember the companies he bought, and he has built a shell to not react to insults. This shell, he always used it on Blair to keep her away. She hates him for his behavior. Still, a certain chemistry or resentment remains between them, with completely opposite behavior towards others for Blair. When she finds herself working for him to challenge him, she tries to break this very hostile shell.
The story is a good mix of the themes of brother's best friend and enemy/lover. It's very well written with well-crafted and exciting characters, especially Nick's which is extremely irritating, during a long part of the story.
I voluntarily reviewed an Advance Reader Copy of this book

[Sage · Rating 4 out of 5]

3.6 ⭐️
damn bro inflation is hitting these rom writers HARDDDD bc what happened to good ol fashioned millionaires? when did we start necessitating billyss??

[Romantic Critic · Rating 2 out of 5]

Billion Dollar Beast had all the makings of a sexual tension filled romance, but the execution was disappointing. The protagonists had an eight-year antagonistic history (with Nick being the best friend of Blair’s brother) and they had to work together on one of his hostile takeovers. Enemies to lovers and forced proximity are two of my favourite tropes. Outside of that tantalizing strip poker scene, however, the rest of their scenes together would start off promising but end up fizzling, including their long-awaited sex scenes.

I was frustrated by all the misunderstandings, which could have easily been rectified had they just talked to one another. For instance, Nick kept making decisions on Blair’s behalf. He claimed that he knew what was best for her, yet never once consulted her. In the end, he even broke off their relationship because he was worried that his reputation could hurt her start-up, despite her (later) telling him that she didn’t care about that. My biggest frustration, however, was that I couldn’t understand him. He was closed off and he refused to let anyone in that wasn’t Blair’s brother. Nick had a crush on Blair since their first encounter, but he would intentionally goad her to keep her at an arm’s length. I get that it was partially due to the fact that he was worried about losing his only friend, but his walls were actually due to his childhood. It was frustrating that this explanation – where he grew up in abject poverty and had lost his family – came at the 90% mark of the novel. Perhaps his story was already explained in the previous installments of the series, but this novel was supposed to operate as a stand-alone. And then, to add fuel to the fire, Nick’s explanation was delivered in such an evasive and apathetic manner. It was over within a few sentences! I understand that it was big for Nick to even share his past with someone that wasn’t Cole, but without providing details or emotions behind his experiences, I couldn’t connect with him or view him as anything more than the immature asshole that he presented himself to be.

In short, with such an exasperating hero, it was difficult to understand why the heroine was so determined to be with him, especially since their sex scenes were tepid and Nick never really opened up to her, even at the end.

[atomickitten · Rating 2 out of 5]

1.5-2 stars

I'll sum it up very quickly 'cause i'm tired and need to get up early tomorrow:

The heroine, Blair:



And my question to her:



The hero, Nicholas:



My advice to him:



The romance:



The tension/longing/ sparks:



Me when the pivotal point finally arrived , when they split up and it was time for Nick to realise he can't live without her:



This dumb bitch of course took him back like nothing happened.

Me at the epilogue:



Summing up, no, I didn't like this one.
I hated the heroine. She took the word doormat to a whole new level.

Plus, I hate it when it's the heroine chasing after the hero. Especially if the hero keeps showing her how much he doesn't care.

Like, bitch, don't you know what self respect is???

Ugh.

The hero was brooding throughout the entire story, and god knows why.
Plus, he was acting sometimes like a grumpy kid. I wanted to shake him every now and then.

But he was still more likeable then the idiotic heroine.

I couldn't stand her, she was so annoying with her actions and her lack of brain, I just couldn't stop rolling my eyes. She basically ruined this book for me.

I love Olivia Hayle so I'll just treat this book like a drunken uncle who made a blunder at a family gathering and will simply pretend it never happened.

[ReadingInThe6ix · Rating 2 out of 5]

Meh, there was something missing from this and I can’t figure out what. There was too much chasing being done by the heroine to get the hero to give her a chance, no real backstory for the hero (so he grew up poor, so what?), and it gets old reading about rich people and their parties.

Nothing objectionable, just forgettable.

[Ayesha · Rating 1 out of 5]

annoying

[Natasha S ♥ · Rating 4 out of 5]

I genuinely need to pace myself with Hayle's novels or I WILL binge them all in a week and cry desperately. Rating: 4/5 Stars

I think the first one was better simply because it had bookstore themes and vibes but this one was a close second! I enjoyed how the main character had a hobby/interest that was heavily included in the plot line but I was sort of disappointed with the lack of interesting side characters. It felt like the only side characters were the couple from the last book. Also the whole "Nick feeling like he's going to bring down Blair's social status and that's why he can't be with her?" Ehhhhh.... But there was strip poker?? And witty comments? It definitely drew me in and I enjoyed Blair's character arc into being more confident.

This book had Hayle's classic humor which I love and adore, it seems like real people are having conversations and not forced humor that falls flat. It's sarcastic and witty and spot on. I think the romance was cute and although I don't think it compared to Billion Dollar Enemy, I enjoyed some of the fun moments of tension and spice between the two.

Overall, this book was definitely fun to read and I'm excited for the rest of the series! Although I don't think any book will compare to the first, Hayle always has my back and I have a blast reading this fun little romances.

[Ana ✨ · Rating 5 out of 5]

Another great amazing book by Olivia and another serve.

Nick is the cold grumpy man we all love and Stan. I was so intrigued by him on the their book and I was so curious for his story and was so freaking good! I loved his story with Blair. They served so much. And Blair was such an interesting character which I loved knowing more about. She’s just a strong woman who is ready to fight for her dreams and prove everyone wrong. She’s so freaking amazing.

Also the Skye and Cole crumbs? It was everything to me. I missed them so much and omg it was everything >>>>

These books have my whole heart and I’m so obsessed with them. Such an amazing writing and a good writer!!!

[Becky · Rating 3 out of 5]

Nick and Blair have never been able to get along until now.
Fighting their feelings for each other has worked until Blair takes the initiative and does not turn away when Nick tries to push away her ability to work with his company for a project in the fashion industry.
It was cool to see Blair in her element of fashion and Nick in his own "ruthless" element.
Nice pass time read.

[niki ☾ · Rating 5 out of 5]

Ahh I loved them so much!!

* Brothers best friend
* Need-to-work-together
* Grumpy Sunshine 🫂
* Opposites attract
* Enemies to Lovers (not really, more like kind of animosity)

Blair and Nick definitely are my favourite couple in the series so far.

[Mony · Rating 4 out of 5]

4-4.5⭐
If you like a story about a hot 🔥, rich, heartless, terse billionaire, you might want to check this one out. Lots of snappy satire in the dialogue. Writing above the usual in this trope & not as fluffy as other "billionaire" stories.

[fernanda reads · Rating 2 out of 5]

It wasn't bad exactly but the narrative had many visible problems. This feels like a very unbalanced relationship. The entire book is her constantly chasing after him when he keeps pulling away. At some point it just becomes pathetic. Especially when he's been treating her badly for 8 years (for no reason). It's also VERY rushed, feels like it has been only a week since the beginning of the book.

They also never talk about anything. Blair even says they're not good at talking but they're good at the physical stuff. Wow, relationship goals. They don't even know anything about each other.

[Corianne · Rating 4 out of 5]

Don’t be deceived!

The cover and title don’t appropriately reflect the smart and beautiful story in these pages. Olivia Hayle is my new favorite romance author. Great writing, great character development, 🔥 scenes that aren’t smutty… just… amazing. I’m gonna keep suffering through the cheesy titles and covers because I am HOOKED 😂 (The cheesy covers and title thing might just be my personal issue and not really a popular consensus)

[Kate ☕ (semi-hiatus) · Rating 2 out of 5]

Incredibly... boring!
Usually, even mediocre writers can attract me with their E2L stories, it's almost a given. Unfortunately, for me the author has decided to give us push and pull E2L, where the heroine is pushing and the Hero is pulling. Pathetic heroine simply isn't something I will ever find appealing!
I basically skimmed the second part hoping the tables would turn - they didn't!

[asiya · Rating 3 out of 5]

brother’s best friend with a strip poker game oh she was crazyy ? strip games and bachelor auctions will never get hate from me sorry to my feminist sisters ….

lauren’s 21ws men 🤝 olivia’s seattle billionaire men
admitting they’re whipped aloud before i do

[Patricia's Book Kingdom · Rating 5 out of 5]

I absolutely adore the enemies-to-lovers trope so it comes at no surprise that I absolutely loved Billion Dollar Beast. It was so damn good!

If you have read Billion Dollar Enemy , then you have already met Nick, Blair, Cole and Skye and you already know that there is no love lost between Nick and Blair. For those of you who don't know, Nick is Cole's best friend and Blair is Cole's sister (so not only is this enemies-to-lovers romance, but it's also brother's-best-friend romance. Talk about double trouble, of the yummy kind). I was so curious about these two, as I was dying to know whether there was a reason why Nick and Blair do not see eye to eye.

I loved the chemistry between Nick and Blair. They were perfect for each other, but they didn't see it due to their hatred for each other. But you know what they say, the line between hate and love is very thin. Once Blair starts working for Nick, she slowly starts to make cracks in the walls he has put up to keep everyone out expect for Cole. It's a slow process and a lot of times it felt like we moved one step forward only to move two steps back. But the times when we got the glimpse of Nick that he does not want anyone to know was everything. The times when we see him lose control when he is normally so in control of himself made him appear more human. And that strip poker scene? Hot freaking damn!

While I definitely recommend reading Billion Dollar Enemy , it is not necessary as Billion Dollar Beast can be read as a standalone. If you love the enemies-to-lovers/brother's-best-friend trope, this book is definitely for you.

*ARC provided through BookSirens in exchange for an honest review. All thoughts and opinions are my own.*

[els✨ · Rating 4 out of 5]

- enemies to lovers
- brothers best friend trope!!
- i love how much Skye and Cole were in this
- good god the poker game
- okay but Faye and Henry 🥰
- i am hardcore in love with Blair
- Nick is infuriating!! like boo let yourself be happy
- ‘i choose you’ dying rn
- wish we’d learnt more about Nick’s background
- i loved the epilogue omg
- i think i love them more than Skye and Cole and that is an achievement in itself