Always Mine

The Barrington Billionaires #1

by Ruth Cardello

When it comes to getting what he wants, Asher Barrington is a hammer who is known for crushing his opponents. From the moment Emily walks into his office and challenges him, winning takes on a whole new meaning.

The only thing standing between Emily Harris and her goal to open a museum for the blind is an arrogant, sexy as hell billionaire, who thinks sleeping with her will not complicate the situation.

He won’t change. She won’t back down.
But together they sizzle.

**This is book one of a spin off series from The Legacy Collection and The Andrades. You fell in love with Dominic Corisi and Gio Andrade—come meet the rest of the family. All new couples with cameos from many of your favorite characters.

Love reading books set in the same world? Watch for Jeannette Winter's release, One White Lie. Her series will mirror my time line. It won’t be necessary to read hers to enjoy mine, but it sure will enhance the fun.

Genres: Romance, Contemporary Romance, Contemporary, Amazon, Ebooks, Billionaires, Billionaire Romance

220 pages, Kindle Edition

First published November 16, 2015

About the author

Ruth Cardello hit the NYTs and USA Today for the first time back in 2012. Millions of sales are evidence that her books are akin to potato chips, addictive from the first one. She has created a multi-series billionaire world with a combination of escapism and realism that has gained her a faithful following of readers.

What Kindle Reviewers write about her:

"Wow hot at every page. Heart stoping, fear raging, mind blowing wonderful."

"I'm a true fan of Ms. Cardello. I ran on to her first book a few years back and have been hooked ever since. I could go on and on about the story like of this book, but I'm not. All of her books are total page turners, unique, heart wrenching, and I love them all. There isn't two alike in the bunch and I feel like i know the characters personally. I personally read 97 authors books. And I buy every book they put out. This author is in my top 10. Great job and keep them coming."

"Love this series. Got me to start reading again. I look forward to the next book. Thank you for giving me the love of reading back."

Ruth Cardello was born the youngest of 11 children in a small city in northern Rhode Island. She spent her young adult years moving as far away as she could from her large extended family. She lived in Boston, Paris, Orlando, New York--then came full circle and moved back to New England. She now happily lives one town over from the one she was born in. For her, family trumped the warmer weather and international scene.

She was an educator for 20 years, the last 11 as a kindergarten teacher. When her school district began cutting jobs, Ruth turned a serious eye toward her second love- writing and has never been happier. When she's not writing, you can find her chasing her children around her small farm or connecting with her readers online.

Email Notice of New Releases: www.RuthCardello.com/Signup

You can find her on Facebook at: www.facebook.com/RuthCardello

Follow her at Twitter @RuthieCardello

If you'd like to email her directly, you may contact her via her website: www.ruthcardello.com

Lone Star Burn Series
Book 1: Taken, Not Spurred
Book 2: Tycoon Takedown
Book 3: Taken Home
Book 4: Taking Charge

Want to hear the song Charles proposed to Melanie with? https://youtu.be/SGZT5nVKfMs

The Legacy Collection
Book 1: Maid for the Billionaire (FREE on Amazon!)
Book 2: For Love or Legacy
Book 3: Bedding the Billionaire
Book 4: Saving the Sheikh
Book 5: Rise of the Billionaire
Book 6: Breaching the Billionaire: Alethea's Redemption
Book 7: (Novella) A Corisi Christmas

The Andrades:
Book 1: Come Away With Me (FREE on Amazon)
Book 2: Home to Me
Book 3: Maximum Risk
Book 4: Somewhere Along the Way
Book 5: Loving Gigi
Christmas Novella: A Recipe for Love (Maddy and Richard)

The Barrington Billionaires:
Book 1: Always Mine
Book 2: Stolen Kisses
Book 3: Trade It All
Book 3.5: A Billionaire for Lexi
Book 4: Let It Burn
Book 5: More than Love
Book 6: Forever Now
Book 7: Never Goodbye
Book 8: Reluctantly Alpha
Book 9: Reluctantly Rescued
Book 10: Reluctantly Romanced
Book 11: Loving a Landon
Book 12: Loathing a Landon


For a more complete list visit her website at www.ruthcardello.com

Reviews

[Elizabeth Neal · Rating 3 out of 5]

**Liked it, but the numerous mentions, references, and thoughts to his sexual history, women "flocking" to him, etc., were unnecessary and annoying.**

[Debbie Collins · Rating 5 out of 5]

How did Ruth Cardello do it? How did she make me go from wanting to strangle Asher Barrington, to making me want him for my very own, in just one book? "Be careful. When you're a hammer, everything looks like a nail.", is what Asher was told by his father, because that is precisely what Asher Dale Barrington is, a hammer, and he doesn't care who gets nailed if they get in his way. Asher is possibly one of the most infuriating males that I have ever read, well with the exception of Dominic Corisi and Gio Andrade! And talk about having the foot and mouth disease, every time he opens his mouth, he inserts his foot. But even his not so charming personality can stop Emily Harris, from what she has to do, she has to stop him from buying her land. Her most important dreams depend on that land, and she will stop at nothing to see those dreams come true. So there you have it, a spitfire of a woman going up against a bullheaded billionaire, add to that some good friends, both old and new and a whole lot of family members and you have the beginning of what promises to be a fantastic series!!
If you have never read anything by Ruth Cardello, this book would be a great place to start. If you are already a fan of Ruth Cardello, then you sure don't want to miss out on this one. I wish I could give it more than five stars, because it was that good. After you get over wanting to throttle Asher, you will find yourself laughing out loud when he inserts foot into mouth, and then you will swoon over what he does next!!

[Michelle · Rating 2 out of 5]

Asher and Emily. Didn't care for either of these characters. Asher was just a bossy, demanding, overbearing person. "My way or the highway" was I felt he was constantly thinking. Emily - she was determined to keep her property, even though it wouldn't have been a good place for the museum she was doing. She was stubborn (and not in a good way) and her lack of trust in Asher and his family kept me from believing that she could actually care for him. And what's with the "I hate you but let's have sex"?!?!

[Virna · Rating 2 out of 5]

I really had problems with the characters in this book. I just did not see any chemistry between these two, Emily was terribly childish thru the book, she was mad or whining and annoying, she did not want to listed or get any help. Asher was cocky from the beginning but he get better at the end.

[Bette Hansen · Rating 5 out of 5]

Another fantastic "billionaire" novel from Ruth Cardello and the beginning of what promises to be an amazing new series. In this one we first meet Asher Barrington. Hugely successful and power businessman who will do whatever he wants to get what he wants. He meets his match though when Emily Harris barrels into his office, refusing to sell the land his company has been trying to obtain. When he won't listen to reason, Emily decides to hit him where it will really hurt. His family!!

This is a wonderfully written and completely entertaining book. It's filled with fantastic characters that should give us a ton of great stories in the future. I highly recommend this one.

[🦉Maggie Whitworth · Rating 4 out of 5]

Very enjoyable read, loved all the characters and can’t wait to read every book in the series, see them all get their lives sorted .

[Writerlibrarian · Rating 2 out of 5]

Barely 2 stars. That was a catastrophe for me. I hated the hero from page one. It didn't get better or so little better. Emily, the heroine, is kinda letting herself be run over by this, well, allpha hero would be too mild to describe this walking aggression on two legs. I liked the art parts of the story. There are really good plot points in there but the male lead made the whole story leave a very bad taste. I finished it because I am a perfectionist when I should have just stopped reading.

[Rawan AlHamad · Rating 5 out of 5]

Oh my god this was AMAZING!!!!! I just have no words to describe how perfect the story was. I kept imagining Emily's mother's paintings and how would it feel like to touch those paintings.. I loved the story from beginning to end. I totally recommend this book.

[sivan · Rating 2 out of 5]

It’s boring and there is no good chemistry between the hero and the heroine. And the friend of the heroine is annoying. I’ve forced myself keep reading.

[Sania · Rating 5 out of 5]

Standalone/Cliffhanger: Standalone but part of a series.
Ages of H and h: Late 20s early 30s
Multi-Luv'n/Ménages: No
Was There Descriptive Sex: Yes
Descriptive Sex &/Or Drama Between H/h With OW/OM: No
>>If So, Before or After H/h Hookup: N/A
Contains Cheating: No
Amount of Sex In The Book: A decent amount.
HEA/HFN/etc Ending: HEA
Will This Meet My 'Safety Gang' Buddies' Approval: Yes
Any Triggers/Warnings: No
>>Detail: N/A
Do You Recommend This Book: Yes.
Will You Re-read This Book: Yes
Would You Read More Books By This Author: Yes

My Thoughts
My first Ruth Cardello book and I'm in love! I picked this up as a freebie from Amazon, and I found a book that was well written, engaging and a great start to the series. I loved that the conflict that Asher and Emily endured wasn't anything related to cheating, which is the normal nowadays. I really liked the Barrington family and cannot wait to read more about them!

[MaryD · Rating 3 out of 5]

Decent story of a "perfect" family and what happens when a young lady enters their lives who shows the flaws in the members, especially the oldest who prefers to be a hammer in his business dealings.

Emily's dream of opening an art museum for the blind is threatened when Asher's company buys up her neighbors' properties to build a facility there. She goes to confront him and tries to open his eyes to other possibilities.

[Nancy · Rating 4 out of 5]

Nice start to a series.....

No complaints here... The book had a decent pace, the characters were fairly well developed, the focus was where it needed to be, and the ending was sweet. Hopefully, as the series grows, so does the story. Definitely I felt looking forward to the next book of the series....

[Noelia · Rating 4 out of 5]

CAWPILE Rating: 7,36
Characters: 7,25
Ambience: 5,5
Writing Style: 6,75
Plot: 8,25
Intrigue: 8,25
Logic / Relationships: 7
Enjoyment: 8,5

I have enjoyed this book more than I expected. To be honest, I am not much into billionaire romances, but I was hooked up from the beginning with this one.

I must admit I loved Emily more than I loved Asher. There were some behavioral issues I disagree with, and it is said that Emily disagrees too. Even though the reader can see her condemning the behavior, nothing active is done in the book to put a remedy to it. Nonetheless, I was pleasantly surprised to see that it is partially repaired and the reader can see an evolution from it, which is appreciated.

The romance was good, nothing too too too crazy, but it is nice. In my opinion, one of this book's strongest points is the intrigue of what will happen, who will get their way.

Something I found a little bit unbelievable/slightly annoying was the fact that Asher's family seemed to root for Emily all too soon or all too much. I can't understand how can a whole family be in Emily's side and leave their son/brother alone, especially when Emily was a recently met person. No matter how cruel or wrong he could be, he deserved any family member on his side, I think.

I will continue with the series, although I want to read it in order, so I will probably come back for the second book in this series once I'm done with Legacy and the Andrades series.

[Perrin · Rating 3 out of 5]

This story could have been a solid four or five stars for me, but ...

The first two and a half pages are nothing but backstory, backstory, backstory, infodump, infodump -- you get the picture. I nearly removed the book from my Kindle. I mean, the first few pages are indicative of the author's storytelling abilities, and she certainly wasn't winning me over. All the "information" thrown at the reader could have easily been worked into the story elsewhere once we were hooked in media res.

Then Emily arrived at Asher's office. Now, we had a story, the place where the book should have begun. The back and forth and ups and downs of these two were interesting to watch develop and kept me turning pages until the end.

There were a few things that happened I found difficult to suspend disbelief, leading to the three stars. The most important one was Emily's reaction to a major event. I could understand her laying blame at one person's feet. But to make sweeping accusations, especially in light of all that had come before? For her to react the way she did felt too deus ex machina, like, Oh, here's a good place for something overly dramatic. Her reaction simply didn't feel consistent with the character we'd come to know from the previous three-quarters of the story. And I'm glad at least one person didn't readily forgive her idiotic behavior.

The groundwork laid for the rest of the family is more than adequate to pique the reader to follow into subsequent books. But if there's all the infodump backstory at the beginning of those, too, I won't bother to read beyond the first few pages of the next book in the series.

[Elizabeth Edwards · Rating 5 out of 5]

I love finding new author to me ... I found this beauty within Audible Romance Package ... just started that not to long ago and loving ever minute ... this was a suggestion to read on up. I love listening to new books, new authors ... such a great read. Robin Rowan was the narrator ... new to me ... love finding an appealing voice to listen too ... I always wonder how the authors pick them!! Great pick to me. Wow, it looks like there are plenty books to dive in by Ruth ... I gotta get to it ... hoping to find more reading space soon enough. I loved this read or listen ... quick one for me. I love a female who is a tough cookie and take no crap. Well developed plot, awesome characters and a fun ending. Must read. ( ;

[Erin Lewis · Rating 4 out of 5]

4 star review of Always Mine (The Barrington Billionaires #1) by Ruth Cardello

Book one in the latest series from Ruth Cardello and is Asher Barrington and Emily Harris story.

Asher knows what he who and what he wants and he has set his sights on Emily. Both are equally determined to get their own way, neither prepared to give in.

I had a hard time relating to Asher or Emily. There were times that both frustrated me, particularly Asher as he acted like an arrogant jerk at times and Emily appeared immature at times.

The chemistry between them built as the story progressed. Although not my favourite book from Ms. Cardello it was well written.


















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[Marvinia · Rating 4 out of 5]

It was good 4.5 stars

It was good. However, I did not like Kenzie much. I hope I can like her in her book.
Yep.....

[Kim Whitehead · Rating 4 out of 5]

Sweet story.

[Coco.V]

🎁 Part of The Barrington Billionaires Books 1 - 4 which is FREE on Amazon today (4/18/2022)! 🎁

[Tina "IRead2Escape" · Rating 3 out of 5]

Hotness Rating 3 out of 5

Review to come...

[Isha Coleman · Rating 5 out of 5]

Ruth Cardello stepped out of her comfort zone to create a new kind of love story with Always Mine. The characters are bolder, the story sexier and the female lead is a tough cookie. Art imitating life perhaps. Emily was a spitfire. Her determination to keep a promise despite every obstacle Asher threw at her was so out of character for a Ruth Cardello novel. I admire that. Asher is a bulldozer with a cash register for a heart. He measures success by what he has acquired whether it be money, buildings, people or material things. Emily is the complete opposite. She measures happiness by the joy brought to others through simple acts of kindness. These two characters never should have fit as a couple yet they do. They not only fall for each other but learn about themselves along the way. They also learn from each other as well. Ruth Cardello took two complete opposites and made a story that turned out to be a wonderful love story and a life lesson as well. Treat others how you would want to be treated and with kindness and determination anything is possible. I received an ARC of Always Mine in exchange for an honest review.

[Emily · Rating 2 out of 5]

Even though this finished a little stronger than expected, the rating remains low.

In the beginning, the awkward dialogue and abrupt emotional swings of the main characters was just too distracting to overcome. The author gets into a better groove when the rest of the Barrington family is introduced into the story. Unfortunately, the hero’s transition from alpha asshole to supportive lover just never feels authentic—or even possible in the story that was written.

The time skip of the two weeks in Paris was a bad editorial choice. Why completely skip the interactions of the protagonists when they presumably fall in love? Instead we get a short summary in the memories of our heroine. It’s a major complaint in too many romance novels that “tell” instead of “show” the relationship. And, no, sex scenes are fine by me, but they don’t count as showing the development of a love story.

The engaging Barrington family is tempting, but not quite enough for me to seek out other titles in the series.

[Nancy Brady · Rating 4 out of 5]

A contemporary romance that features Emily Harris, an artist on a mission, and Asher Barrington, a ruthless billionaire businessman.

Willing to fight for her tactile museum, Emily takes on Asher, and finds the love of her life. Yet, unwilling to back down, Asher fights her, only to find that she is his, always. Getting there will take fights, laughter, and spicy love-making.

As for the museum, will it come to fruition? Will love really win out, or will they part company forever?

A few hair-tucking incidents and the obscenely wealthy character, but no obvious green-eyed characters round out the What-the-tuck trends. Overall, a refreshing romance that has characters that seem genuinely warm and caring. One bright spot included some cheesy jokes throughout, making this just one reason to read this one.

[Kristy Mills · Rating 2 out of 5]

I originally put this as DNF. But I only had 2 hours left I decided to just plow through, I hate giving up on a book.

I think it was a combination of the writing and the narrating, but this book was SO corny. The narrator had a deeper voice for a woman, so she spoke higher for Emily and it came off sounding ridiculous and unemotional almost.

Emily is trying to turn her deceased mother’s dream into a reality by turning their family home into a museum and Ashers company has bought up all the land around her to develop it. Emily goes to the city to try and convince him that what she is trying to do has value. Blah blah blah he ends up falling in love with this boring woman, his family adores her and tells her their lives are better for having her in it . Ugh whatever, so dumb, I’m glad I’m finally done with it.

Just wasn’t for me.

[Heather Powers · Rating 1 out of 5]

in all honesty i didn't read the whole book. i couldn't get past chapter 4 wherein asher takes emily's phone (her only way of communicating) until she 'calmed down' (a.k.a. complied with his wishes). after making a lot of inappropriate sexual comments to her (i.e. 'i've cleared my schedule for two days and i want to spend them in bed with you' and 'you know we'd be good (in bed) together, just admit it'). a lot of what he says comes across as rape-y, and creepy.

the way i interpret this whole scene (on his plane to look at her land) is asher basically expecting emily to prostitute herself to keep her land. she doesn't have the money to fight him in court, and he knows this; but if she'll sleep with him he may let her keep her land and build the museum she wants.

[Aron Pongo · Rating 2 out of 5]

Sorry, not logical and very explicit.

1. Not logical - why shouldn't/ couldn't she move the museum to some other place? The vicinity was abandoned, the museum was totally out of the way and would be hardly attracting any one passing-by. Maybe this was explained later, but I didn't get there... I just couldn't comprehend her behavior. Very badly made out plot.
2. The sex scenes/ thoughts were very explicit. I know I can just ignore those pages, but in this case this would mean to basically leave out almost everything what the man thinking/doing.

[Pamela · Rating 5 out of 5]

Fantastic Read.

Asher he always got what he wanted.....or did he
Emily had a dream and no one was going to take it awsy......or would they. Ruth has written a amazing journey that has you emotionally charged and wanting to read every page to see whars next. I can wait to read more about this strong family

[patricia fay · Rating 5 out of 5]

Oh,oh,oh,brilliant?!

This book earned the five stars I gave because it was different in so many ways, I loved the strong mindedness of Emily and the way Asher didn't to begin with, know how to handle her, and the sexy bits were tantalisingly erotic!, so glad they both got their happy ending, left me feeling good! well done Ruth Cardello, loved the way you write!

[Lonette · Rating 1 out of 5]

Not good

I have read books from this author before and loved every detail of it. This one was very disappointing, it lacked description, feeling, connection and mostly intimacy. I didn't really connect with th characters and feel who they really was personally. The story was really not coming together in some areas and colluded in other areas.

[TJ · Rating 1 out of 5]

Wish I DNF

I did not care for the main characters or the supporting characters. The only person I seemed to like was Kenzi. Emily was judgmental, whiny, self absorbed and not very bright. Asher changed too much too fast for Emily and I really did not feel he was that bad initially. I never connected with any of the characters and I will not be reading any more of this series.