Beautiful Risk

R.I.S.C. #3

by Anna Blakely

Can he forgive himself in time to save the woman he loves?

Former Delta Force operator, Trevor Matthews, has spent years trying to move on from the sins of his past. Nearly a decade later, he’s still haunted by the deaths of his teammates and the woman he cared deeply for. Then, he meets Lexi—the beautiful waitress with an angelic smile—and almost instantly, his soul sparks back to life.

Lexi Hamilton was well on her way to fulfilling her dream of becoming a world-class chef when tragedy strikes. After losing everything that mattered to her, she has no other choice but to spend her days waiting tables and praying for tips. Busy clawing her way back to the life she aspires to have, the last thing Lexi expects is to fall in love. That all changes the moment she meets Trevor.

When the hunky private security expert protects her from a dangerous situation, they immediately form an unbreakable connection. But just as Trevor decides he’s ready to give love another try, he realizes someone wants Lexi dead. Can Trevor fight off his own demons in time to save the woman he loves, or will the ghosts from his past cost him everything?

Beautiful Risk is a stand-alone romantic suspense with a sweet, burning love story and plenty of twists and turns to keep you guessing.

Genres: Romance, Romantic Suspense, Military Fiction, Suspense, Contemporary, Contemporary Romance, Military Romance

262 pages, Kindle Edition

First published May 6, 2019

About the author

Author of the exciting R.I.S.C. Series, Anna Blakely brings you stories of love, action, and edge of your seat suspense. As an avid reader herself, Anna writes what she loves...strong, Alpha heroes and the intelligent, independent heroines they love.

Anna's dream is to create stories her readers will enjoy, and characters they'll fall in love with as much as she has. She believes in true love and Happily Ever After, which is what she will bring to you.

Anna lives in rural Missouri with her husband and children, as well as several rescued animals. When she's not writing, Anna enjoys reading, watching action and horror movies (the scarier the better), and spending time with her amazing family.

Reviews

[Debbie · Rating 5 out of 5]

I absolutely loved this book!!! I enjoyed all the characters and how they just jumped off the pages. I loved how Trevor and Lexi communicated with each other as open books for one another to explore. The relationship between Derek and Trevor was funny as hell.

I felt it all...happiness, joy, terror, heartbreak, suspense and so much more...at times I was laughing, worried, about to cry...kudos Anna Blakely for a job well done.

A recommend read from me...looking forward to reading about Derek now!

[LaTonja · Rating 5 out of 5]

Another R.I.S.C book. Welcome to Trevor and Lexi. Let me say this...each R.I.S.C book gets better. In this book we Get Trevor's protectiveness. Having another R.I.S.C. guy find love makes me swoon.This book is full of suspense. Protectiveness, flirting...and the comedy of a men who watch their friend find the love of his life. Don't get me wrong, there is drama, but the drama that brings Lex and Trevor closer together. Fyi we continue to see the connection of the R.I.S.C. Men. If you want a love story mixed with intrigue here you go. Enjoy.

[Jennifer · Rating 4 out of 5]

Oh look....free book. It's book #3, not a big deal. Wrong answer. Now I want to read all the books in this series, especially the first two. But then am I gonna want the next two series, Bravo and Charlie teams?

Trevor and Lexi had a sweet romance with lots of sexy times, plus there was adventure and suspense. And there's a great team to learn lots more about as they find their HEAs

Don't be surprised if I give in and buy more books in this series.

[Vicky · Rating 1 out of 5]

Oh dear.

Blah blah blah blah blah.

Look, I don't mean to be a bitch ( yeah yeah... I know ) but this is like some sort of 15 year writing in the extra classes that she took and sharing it with her friends... it is just so... un-flowing.

If this is the pattern... having a potential of 2 baddies in the mix... then I really don't know what to say. One thing tho... at least I didn't have to scream, so I guess there is that.

Pretty sure it's 'Martial Law' not 'Marshall Law'... the latter sounds like something someone would call a baby thinking that it sounded cool.

Why would you need a corkscrew for a bottle of champagne?

Do I continue? ( Spoiler Alert: I tried the next one and stopped. I don't want to continue to give negative reviews when it has become patently clear that Anna Blakely isn't my bag.... )

[D Call · Rating 3 out of 5]

Good suspense

MY RATING SYSTEM
5 stars--WOW
4 stars--would read again
3 stars--was good, won't read again
2 stars--read it, but didn't enjoy it
1 star--didn't finish, it was so awful

Do I need to read books before this one: no
Cliffhanger: no

SUMMARY
9 years before the story, Jake and Trevor attend Lisa's funeral. She'd been a CIA agent working with the Delta force. Trevor had been the one to send her and 2 of their team into a situation that Lisa's contact, Hamid, said was safe. What Jake doesn't know is that Trevor and Lisa had been in a casual relationship. Trevor blames himself, and promises himself to never be in another relationship.

Trevor and Derek keep visiting Joe's Diner because Trevor likes a waitress, Lexi. Derek gets frustrated that Trevor's not asking her out. When Lexi comes to get their order, Derek, “I think we should branch out tonight. You know, go for somethin’ new. Somethin’ you’ve really wanted but have been too afraid to try. We should all do that once in a while. Ain’t that right, Lex?” Trevor orders his usual. Lexi, “Let me know if you think of anything else you need.” Derek says if Trevor doesn't ask Lexi out, he will. Trevor kicks him. Another customer, Rob, makes lewd comments to Lexi, and she's not friendly. Trevor realizes he's ready to try again because he wants to protect her. The guys get ready to leave. Rob says something Lexi doesn't like and then grabs her wrist. Trevor's there instantly, Derek beside him. They get Rob to let go and leave a nice tip. Trevor gives her his card, writes his personal number on it. "I just wanted you to have my numbers on the off chance that you don’t feel safe or need an escort to your car or something.” He's asking her out when there's a crash in the kitchen.

At home, she texts him thank you. They text a bit, then he asks if he can call. They make plans for dinner the next night. Someone who had followed her home from the diner is listening outside.

After work the next day, Lexi has a flat. She texts Trevor about rescheduling. He calls, is on his way. Trevor arrives, wants to change her tire, but the flat is her spare. She's broke. She thinks of a place to have a nice late dinner. She leads him to the diner's kitchen. She makes him dinner. She'd been going to chef school, but came home when Mom got cancer and died.

EVALUATION
The flirting at the beginning is adorable, and coworker teasing is well done. Regrettably, I didn't connect with either main character.

The suspense is predictable. While the torture described at various instances in the story isn't detailed (thankfully), the emotional agony for Trevor and Lexi isn't, either. And while Olivia points out Lexi will need therapy, Lexi denies she needs it.

RECOMMENDATION
I prefer Susan Stoker, Toni Anderson, and Kay Hooper.

FAVORITE QUOTES
“I’m afraid I’m with Caleb on this one. Even with eyes as old as mine, I can see it.” Don’t ask him. Don’t ask him. “See what?” “The way you look at him when he’s not paying attention.” Damn it. You asked.

“You’re twins? And your parents named you Derek and Eric. Really?”

If her mother’s death taught her anything, it was that life was short. Sometimes you just had to close your eyes, take a leap, and pray you landed safely.

“After everything I went through, I guess I learned that life is short for us all, no matter what our jobs are. I mean, don’t get me wrong...I can’t imagine my life without Jake. But, if something happened to him while he was away on a job, I’d like to think I could at least find comfort in knowing he died doing what he loved...helping those who need it most.”

“It’s never too early when you know it’s right. Too late, now that can definitely happen. You wait too long or don’t make your intentions clear...women don’t like to wait around forever for a man to make up his mind.”

POSSIBLE TRIGGERS (SPOILERS)
Sex: 2-3 scenes, arousal
Language: 49 F words, 68 Lord's name in vain, 56 S words
Violence: torture, kidnapping, knife injuries, vandalism, arson, war scene

[Deb Diem · Rating 5 out of 5]

Beautiful Risk is a fantastic romantic suspense by Anna Blakely. Ms. Blakely has once again impressed me with her storytelling abilities with this action-packed tale. Trevor is former Delta Force and now part of R.I.S.C., a security firm. Alexis is a waitress and Trevor comes to her aid when a patron was bothering her. Alexis and Trevor's story is packed with drama, humor, sizzle, action and suspense. I was glued to this story from start to finish and look forward to my next book by Anna Blakely. Beautiful Risk is book 3 of the R.I.S.C. Series but can be read as a standalone. This is a complete book, not a cliffhanger.

I voluntarily read and reviewed an advanced copy of this book that I received from Bookfunnel. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

[Country Girl · Rating 5 out of 5]

I absolutely loved this book! This is the first story I’ve read by Anna and I must say I’m very impressed. It kinda checks all of my boxes.
I love the connection Trevor and Lexi have from the very beginning. The first few dates were a bust but Trevor is pretty determined. But so is a stalker. Trevor is falling hard for his angel and he will stop at nothing to protect her.
The twists in this story are so good.

[Jen_C · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.25 uneven stars

Some parts were so good...but some were cringe. Suffice it to say, if I get kidnapped, call Katie Reus' Red Stone Security for help not these R.I.S.C. guys. RSS checks traffic cams, doorbell cams, hacks computers etc. & finds clues. Trevor yells, breaks stuff and cries (very unlike a former spec op guy) while everyone misses the clues I thought were kind of obvious and they wait around for one specific way to find the bad guy.
He was great when she wasn't in danger.

Others loved it. I liked it but probably won't read again.

[Coco.V]

🎁 FREE on Amazon & on Apple iBooks today (8/24/2021)!🎁

[Jane · Rating 5 out of 5]

Beautiful Risk ~ R.I.S.C. Alpha Series ~ Book 3, by Anna Blakely, author has an alpha hero, Trevor, a beautiful brave woman, Lexi, a sweet love story and not one but two bad guys all connected to an operation that went bad nine years ago.

The R.I.S.C (Rescue, Intel, Security, and Capture) alpha team works to save Lexi, knowing the kidnapper is hurting her, starting with a fire at the restaurant where Lexi works, no intel as to who took her or where she is located or the motive behind the threat from the mentally off and evil CIA agent. The kidnapper sends messages but the team tech expert can't break find a way back to him.

I love strong military heroes with a sweet and gentle side for the woman they love and brave, strong and supportive women and a happy ending to a love story full of action and Beautiful Risk had all three of these.

[Lisa · Rating 3 out of 5]

This one just didn't really do it for me.

I think the main problem was that I didn't feel a connection to Trevor and Lexi, nor did I feel like they had a connection with each other. So I was reading the words on the page, but never caught up in what was happening because I didn't really care about the characters.


The story begins with the hero, Trevor, going in to a diner with one of the other R.I.S.C. members. They've been going to this diner for several weeks, even though it's 20 minutes away from their headquarters, because Trevor wants to ogle the waitress, Lexi. Trevor is really drawn to her, but has hardly spoken to her and is light years away from asking her out.

This introduction to our hero and heroine is part of why I couldn't get invested in their romance. Trevor was too timid in their interactions. His emotions just didn't burn hot enough for my liking. He gave every impression that he'd have kept going to the diner and watching her like a creep forever, never getting up the courage to ask her out, if fate hadn't intervened.

A loud and lecherous regular, grabs Lexi by the arm and demands she go on a date with him. This makes Trevor and the other RISC guy, Derek, come to her rescue. Again, this would have played much better if Trevor had been by himself for this scene. Having Derek there took away from the romantic "he's protecting his woman" feel of the situation. First of all, Derek was cracking jokes the whole time he was on page, which detracted from the suspense of the situation. And second, if Trevor hadn't been there, Derek would have handled this creep on his own because that's the kind of people the RISC guys are. So him being there made Trevor seem irrelevant and interchangeable to the scenario. There was nothing "special" about Trevor and Lexi's interactions up to this point. Derek had been with them the whole time they'd been visiting the diner, and he'd done most of the talking too since Trevor was so tongue-tied.

But anyway, they chase the creep off and Lexi proves she's got the self-preservation instincts of a moth near a flame by insisting the creep who had just manhandled her was "harmless." Right. Because a guy who thinks nothing of grabbing you and trying to yell you into accepting a date with him in front of a diner full of witnesses and only stopped because two bigger men forced him to is CLEARLY harmless. Definitely not the type of sniveling little egotistical coward who will blame her for "embarrassing" him and just wait to get her on her own so he can make her pay for his bruised ego.

Lexi thanks Trevor and Derek for the save and she's giving Trevor ALL the signals that she'd totally go on a date with him if he'd only ask her. But he doesn't. He almost does but then loses his nerve. Yeah, gee, this is one sizzling romance. Be still my heart. He does give her his business card and insists she get an escort to walk her to her car when she gets off shift that night. Another hero might have insisted on being there to escort her himself but not Trevor.

Nothing happens that night, though, and Lexi decides to take the initiative to message Trevor. She uses the excuse of letting him know she got home okay but really she just wants to take their relationship to the next level and realizes if she waits for Trevor to make a move they'll be in their 80s before anything happens. So they chat a little via text, and then on the phone and finally Trevor asks her out. They agree to have their date the following night, after she gets off work.

The next night she comes out of the diner alone and finds one of her tires flat. So she calls for a tow truck and then lets Trevor know she won't make their date. He calls her immediately and tells her to go back in the diner and wait inside. He also tells her to cancel the tow truck. She does go inside but for some reason forgets to cancel the tow truck. Trevor arrives and finds that Lexi doesn't have a spare so he can't just change the tire for her.

Then she cooks him dinner at the diner and we get her backstory. She wants to be a chef. She was in a prestigious culinary school and on track to achieve her dream when her mom got cancer. Lexi dropped out of school to spend 2 years nursing her mom until she eventually died. The medical bills wiped out all the saving Lexi had for opening her restaurant and now she's flat broke. She also, apparently, had a job waitressing at a high-end restaurant but lost it because she had to call out so frequently when her mom got bad.

None of that really explains why she's still working at this diner though. Like, yeah, she was unreliable while her mom was still alive and thus lost that high-end waitress job, but now that the mom is dead she'll be super-reliable, right? Why wouldn’t she get another job at a high-end place? I think we're supposed to admire Lexi for being loyal to the diner's elderly owner but I just couldn't reconcile it in my mind. How is she EVER going to achieve the dream she claims is so important if she stays at this diner forever? She can't even afford to replace her spare tire! Why wouldn't she take steps to better her situation?

Anyway, Trevor is super sympathetic to Lexi's plight and her dead mom and they have a lovely meal together. Lexi is, once again, giving him ALL the go-ahead signals and Trevor finally moves in for a kiss....and they're immediately interrupted by the tow truck driver banging on the door because Lexi forgot to cancel it. Sigh. Trevor drives Lexi home and drops her at her door. She was ready to let him inside and continue their evening if he'd have just made a move but he didn't. He left her with a kiss on the cheek. She goes inside, frustrated. But then the doorbell rings and it's Trevor and he kisses her for real before leaving again. Dude FINALLY grew some balls and made a move.

Then we get a scene from a mysterious bad guy watching all this happening. He decides that Trevor must be in love with Lexi for him to run back to the door just for a kiss. He vows to target Lexi and start messing with her. To show them that he can get to her whenever he wants.

This is the villain of the book and it wasn't handled in the best way. For one thing, the fact that this guy was following Trevor around and our hero had no idea makes Trevor seem incompetent. He had NO IDEA. There was never a scene where Trevor paused, feeling the hairs on the back of his neck stand up or anything like that. And BECAUSE Trevor had no clue he was being followed, when Lexi starts getting attacked by a masked man, Trevor is 100% convinced that the culprit MUST be the creep from the diner. He doesn't even entertain the idea that it might be someone else. Which, again, makes our hero seem incompetent.

Moving on, Lexi and Trevor make plans for another date. She goes to the store to pick things up for it and gets waylaid by the creep from the diner. He demands she go out with him and she says no, again. He gets pissed and guesses she's going out with the meathead from the diner, which she admits she is. He grabs her arm and yells insulting things and she shoves him and tells him she'd never go out with him in a million years. Then she books it for her car. He chases her and pins her against the car, twisting her arm behind her back. This scene got confusing because she was described as facing the car, with him rubbing up behind her and twisting her arm...but then somehow she's able to knee him in the balls? Is she a bird with back-bending kneecaps?

But anyway, she gets away and drives to the police station to report the assault. She stupidly decides to not tell Trevor what happened because she "hates drama" and doesn't want to burden him with the truth. So she just says she can't make their date that night. Of course the cop she's talking to is Derek's twin brother, Eric, (yes, their parents named their twin boys Derek and Eric. Lexi even makes a joke about it). Derek tells Trevor and he goes flying over to the police station. He's pissed that she was hurt and he "wasn't there to protect her" and pissed she wasn't going to tell him. Then he insists she spend the night at his house because the creep could still be out there. She's hesitant because they've only been on one date but allows herself to be persuaded.

At Trevor's condo, things between our H and h are very awkward. They're in this intimate setting, but their relationship isn't at the point where that makes sense yet. Lexi is all in favor of having sex, but doesn't take any initiative and instead waits for Trevor to make a move. He won't, because she was just assaulted and he doesn't want her to think he's taking advantage of the situation to get her into bed. So Lexi goes to bed frustrated and feeling rejected. It takes her half the night of tossing and turning to figure out that good-guy Trevor was holding back out of respect, which makes her feel much better.

She ends up staying there for a couple of days and they do eventually have sex one time. They're gearing up to go at it again when Trevor gets a phone call. He has to leave on a mission and he can't tell her where he'll be, or how long he'll be gone. She understands and leaves.

Trevor's backstory is that 9 years ago he was running a mission that involved a CIA woman named Lisa. She'd cultivated an informant in some enemy nation whom she trusted completely. The mission was set up using this informant's intel but Trevor got a bad feeling about it and told Lisa the informant couldn't be trusted. She was adamant that the informant was legit. Against his better judgment, Trevor gave the order for the mission to go ahead. Two of his team were killed and Lisa was captured. She was horrifically tortured for a week before she finally died. And the insurgents videoed much of the torture and sent it back to the US so Trevor could see what she was being put through. Trevor and Lisa had also been sleeping together for 2 months at that point. They weren't in love, but he'd cared about her. This situation is responsible for all Trevor's hangups. He feels like he can't let himself care about any woman because he couldn't survive seeing something like that happen to another person he cared about.

This call Trevor gets is about that long ago mission. The informant has finally been tracked down and Trevor and the other R.I.S.C. team members go in to capture him and make him pay for betraying them. Only when they get there, they find they're too late. The informant is dead, after having been tortured in the exact same way Lisa was tortured. You'd think this would raise some red flags for the team, but no. They just consider it case closed. They're not worried about who might have killed this guy in such a specific way; they're just a bit disappointed that they were robbed of the privilege of bringing him in themselves.

The night Trevor returns to the U.S., he decides to go straight to Lexi's house, even though it's late. He can't wait to see her. Meanwhile, Lexi is at home when the power goes out. She goes to check the breakers and notices that the rest of the neighborhood still has power. That's when she's attacked by a guy wearing a stocking cap. He beats her up a bit and she fights as hard as she can. She even manages to break free at one point but he catches her. He says he didn't expect her to be such a fighter and tells her to save her strength because she's going to need it. Trevor hears her scream and kicks in the front door.

This scene lost me a bit. It's pitch black in Lexi's house and Trevor isn't wearing night vision goggles or anything. And yet he can see clearly that the bad guy has his arm around Lexi's throat and is holding her so far off the ground that she's using her very tip toes to try to keep from being strangled. How can he see this? Well he can't. We're just not supposed to think of that. Trevor has the guy at gunpoint and somehow the guy is able to throw Lexi at Trevor with SUCH force that it launches both of them out the picture window at the front of the house.

I'm sorry, WHAT? How is that possible?

The bad guy is standing with Lexi in front of his body, with an arm around her neck, using her as a human shield. So the only way he could push her would be straight out in front of him. So his shove would only have the strength of his arms going from at his side to straight out. It's not like he could get a running start. Or even pull her back behind him and then fling her with a little momentum behind it, because to do that, he'd have to expose himself and then Trevor would shoot him. There's just no way the physics on this works. And we're expected to believe that not only did this miraculous throw push 2 full grown adults out the window, but it also stunned them enough that Trevor couldn't immediately get up and chase after the intruder. So he got away. How convenient.

The cops arrive in record time, along with several RISC team members. Trevor insists Lexi come home with him again and she does. The whole time he's insisting that the intruder MUST be the creep from the diner, who has been on the lam ever since he assaulted Lexi. After all, it would just be too coincidental for her to have been the victim of a random attack so soon after the creep's attack. Lexi, who actually spoke to both the creep and her home intruder, you would think would be able to tell the difference between them. And she kind of says she's not sure the intruder was the creep, but she's not nearly forceful enough in her insistence so the menfolk just ignore her.

At Trevor's house, he goes way overboard trying to order Lexi around. Saying she has to quit her job at the diner and stay under house arrest until the creep is caught. She says she needs to keep working to pay her bills and Trevor says he'll cover them. She gets mad and says she's not a charity case, she MUST keep working. She even starts packing her bags to go stay in a hotel rather than live under Trevor's dictatorial roof. He apologizes for being a dick and they negotiate. She'll stay at Trevor's house for 2 weeks but she'll keep working during that time. He ultimately agrees. He also tells her about Lisa so she understands why he was being so extra about this.

A few days pass and apparently life is great for our happy couple. Trevor is apparently wearing a "goofy grin" around the office. But then two things happen basically simultaneously. They get word that the creep from the diner had been in a car accident in California more than a week ago and had been in a coma ever since. So there's absolutely no way he could have been Lexi's intruder. And right on the heels of that, they get an alert that the diner Lexi works at is on fire. And because our professional bodyguard team had NO ONE watching Lexi all this time, guess what? She's been kidnapped. The fire was set to force her to leave the building and the bad guy snatched her.

The set up a command center at Trevor's apartment but have absolutely no idea who the villain could be. And again, the team, and especially Trevor, come across as totally incompetent. You'd expect them to be doing things like pulling camera feeds from around the diner. Questioning people in the area. You know, something? We were even told that the villain had been in the diner several times and the other waitress there thought he was kind of cute and was considering asking him out. But our hero and team never find out about this because they don't bother to question the waitress. They do ABSOLUTELY NOTHING and say there's nothing they can do but wait and hope the villain makes contact. Lame.

The villain turns out to be Lisa's ex-fiancé. She'd broken up with him before going on the mission so she wasn't cheating with Trevor or anything. And she'd dumped the guy because he'd become controlling and obsessive. In fact, the reason she took the mission was to get away from him. But she apparently never shared any of this with Trevor. She DID, however, share it with her superiors at the CIA because her ex also worked for them. So there was a documented record of his abusive tendencies in the system. A system that our team should be able to access through their contact with Ryker. Ryker was personally there at Trevor's condo trying to find a way to save Lexi...but somehow no one knew about this guy? No one thought it strange that they had JUST come from a mission to capture the informant but found him tortured in the exact same way as Lisa? Come on, guys! The one female RISC agent even straight up says that maybe Lexi's abduction has something to do with Trevor and his work. And yet no one ever even comes close to connecting the dots on this. These guys are just useless.

Meanwhile, Lexi is getting beaten to a pulp. Then the villain breaks one of her fingers. He makes a video of himself doing this and sends it to Trevor to taunt him. And yet still our team says their hands are tied. There's nothing they can do because it was a pre-recorded video, not a live stream. There's no computer analysis of metadata or spotting something in the background to tip them off. Nope, they just sit on their hands and hope he sends them a live feed. Which, lucky for them, he eventually does. He shows them Lexi being waterboarded. And finally introduces himself and explains he's doing this so Trevor can feel what it's like to watch the woman he loves get tortured. Trevor says he doesn't love Lexi, in an attempt to save her. Lexi hears this and it breaks her heart that she’d been so wrong about him. I guess we should forgive her for believing this because she was being tortured and thus was in a fagile emotional state but it came across as stupid. I think it was perfectly obvious Trevor was only saying it to try to save her. He was also vowing to kill the villain for hurting her so, gee, who can guess this man’s intentions…

Anyway, the live feed gives them the location they need so they storm the place and save Lexi. She’s banged up and had been stabbed so she lost a lot of blood, but she’s basically fine after a few days in the hospital. She and Trevor exchange ILYs and that’s the HEA.

Overall it just wasn’t that inspiring. Trevor and Lexi’s relationship never felt like it progressed past that awkward “we kind of like each other but don’t really know each other that well yet” phase so I didn’t believe their love. And Trevor was just too incompetent when it came to protecting her.

[Sandy Kelly · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is book 3 in the RISC series and it can absolutely be read as a stand alone, however I recommend reading the first 2 in the series before this one. That way you get an introduction to the characters and understand their relationships with each other more. That being said, this one is about Trevor Matthews and Lexi Hamilton. Trevor has been dealing with something that happened in his past for years but after seeing how happy Jake is, he is finally starting to try to move on and find some happiness for himself. And he believes that happiness could come in the form of Lexi. Lexi is just trying to get her life back to the way it was before it all fell apart. She doesn't plan on meeting anyone or maybe finding the person who could be the one for her. And neither expect for the past and present to collide and put what they have in danger.

I absolutely loved this one!! I was curious about Trevor and what had truly happened to him in the past. He is such a great character in the other books that I definitely was left with wanting to know more about him. And I absolutely loved who he is in this book! He is beyond sweet and protective, he is a man who was hurt and left with demons. But he also realizes this and is finally trying to move past them. Lexi is this woman who went through something heartbreaking but managed to stand strong and still work towards something. She may have struggles but she is one of the strongest women you will ever meet. And she shows that with what happens in this book. I loved it. It was the perfect story for them and even though something horrible happens, they still manage to work it out and communicate what they need. Now I need D's book! And maybe a book for his brother too!!

[Stacy J. · Rating 5 out of 5]

Once I started this book, I couldn't put it down.

The book was beautifully written. Both the male and female lead had some serious baggage they were dealing with but yet were dealing with it in different ways. When the two of them came together they leaned on each other and created a whole.

My heart broke for Trevor. There were times I wanted to reach in the book and shake him and force him to stop the guilt he felt but yet I can't say that if it was me, I would have felt any differently. He is a protective man by default who carrying the decision/choices he makes to heart. This man was amazing.

Lexi is a woman who still morns the loss of her mother. She had to give up everything to care for her and is trying to rebuild that. The parts that I loved about her was that even though she has had the huge thing happen, she is still very kind and warm. She isn't giving up on her dream she just knows that she needs to start over and make new dreams.

The action and suspense in this book was amazing. I stayed up way too late because I had to know how it ended!!

I also liked the dynamic Trevor has with his team. However in this book, there was one standout. His name was Derek. He was sort of the comic relief and there were parts with him that had me laughing out loud. Everyone needs a friend like Derek.

[Monica · Rating 5 out of 5]

This edge of your seat suspense book by Anna Blakely was one of the few suspense books that I couldn't wait to see how it ended, yet never wanted it to end. It was THAT good!!

Trevor Matthews has been slowly putting his life back together after losing two Delta team members and a CIA liaison to bad intel nine years ago. Now he's working with his old team mate in the security field at R.I.S.C. - Rescue, Intel, Security, and Capture. But putting the past behind him is more difficult than he expected when he finds himself falling for the sweet petite diner waitress, Alexis. And when his past puts Lexi's life in danger Trevor may never recover.

Lexi survived losing her mother to cancer but now she's barely getting by working at Joe's Diner. When the same handsome man keeps coming in for lunch with a friend she's just hoping he will finally ask her out. Especially when he comes to her rescue when an overzealous patron can't seem to take 'no' for an answer. However, it seems bad luck is following Lexy around, and it isn't helping that Trevor has become overbearing and demanding in order to keep her safe. So when their worse nightmare becomes a reality will Trevor be able to get to Lexi before history repeats itself?

No cliffhanger.  Would love to see a movie made of this book!

[Carolyn Spence · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is the third instalment in the R.I.S.C Series and it does not disappoint. Trevor is a security expert who has made mistakes and he has hardened his heart against every feeling anything for a possible partner in the future. He meets Lexi in a diner and keeps coming back as he can't get her out of his mind. Derek spurs him on to do something about it or else he will. Both Derek and Trevor step up when Lexi needs it and she is appreciative. This finally makes Trevor reach out and go for Lexi.

Their dating process is a disaster and not for reasons you would think. The story is gripping and intense, you are on the edge of your seat for the last quarter of the book. Ms. Blakely is a new author, but you would never know it, she's holding her own with all the big names out there. Awesome read.

I received this advanced readers copy in exchange for an honest review.

[Grace · Rating 5 out of 5]

Fantastic read

## Wow. There was a lot to like about this book. The hero was incredible and the heroine was amazing. Their chemistry really shined through with each encounter. The secondary characters were really cool and interesting as well. There was suspense and quite a lot of romance. It was fast paced and easy to follow. The only thing I didn't like was how frequently Lisa was mentioned. She was Trevor's ex hook up who died as a result of bad intel. NINE YEARS AGO. It's mentioned several times that they were casual and NOT in love. Yet most of this story revolved around her. Bleh. What new girlfriend wants to constantly hear about her or be compared to her? Less Lisa, more Lexi. Other than that one issue, this book was awesome. P.S.: no manwhore, no doormat, no secret baby, no cheating, and no cliffhanger. However, there is a detailed torture scene (no rape).

[Meghan · Rating 4 out of 5]

Love When You Least Expect It

Lexi and Trevor. Lexi is new to the series and is a chance meeting that leads to Trevor having feelings he hasn’t felt in years if ever. Lexi finds herself in danger at work and then more danger from an unknown source. The team is part of the story keeping Lexi safe and also picking on Trevor. Derek was the unsung MVP for this story and we learned he has a law enforcement connection in the shape of his twin!! Jake and Olivia are also present for the second part of the book after they get back from their honeymoon and we get to see their love of Trevor on display as a couple and individually as they support him and his new romance, plus their immediate acceptance and friendship with Lexi. Joe is adorable and I loved his role in the book. A solid and quick read!

[Wendy Hodges · Rating 5 out of 5]

A little bit heartbreaking in places but also uplifting. Both these characters have had their share of pain and don't deserve what life chucks at them in this story. I love that these men are finding really strong independent feisty and sassy women, with the jobs they do the women need to be like that to cope when they are away. Again twists and turns keep you on edge and not able to predict who or what, even if you have a slight idea it's so much more. Intense plot and violence which is all related to the story, but there is also a little romance that is really sweet, I loved the almost shyness from Trevor at the start, it made him more real. Great series I have really got gripped by all these books and enjoyed each one.

[Whispers From · Rating 5 out of 5]

Lexi had to return home after tragedy hits. She was about to start culinary school but now she works in a little diner.
Trevor is former Delta Forces but bow works at a security company. A mission went wrong and Trevor doesn't believe he deserves happiness.
Trevor has been frequenting Lexi's diner ever since he saw her there. A customer starts to get handsy and Trevor saves her. They make a date but Lexi's tire is flat and Trevor to the rescue again. When someone breaks into her house and gets rough with her, then throws her through the window, Trevor catches her. It seems she is have bad luck but it could be more than that. When Lexi is taken, Trevor will stop at nothing to find her.
Great story. Action. Suspense. Sex. I really enjoyed this and can't wait to read the rest of the series.

[Kira · Rating 5 out of 5]

I was obsessed with the first two books of the series, which introduced us to the R.I.S.C team, so I was extremely excited to pick up book 3 in this series. Beautiful Risk focuses on Trevor, a member of R.I.S.C, and introduces waitress Lexi. An instant attraction between the two drives the story, but not all goes as smoothly as they both would like with botched first dates and the past catching up to them. They find that leaning on one another for support is the only way they both can truly be happy. I loved the romance, the action, and the tension throughout this story. I am so ready to learn more about the team members on R.I.S.C. and hope we get a book 4 soon!

[Victoria Sturlini · Rating 5 out of 5]

GOOD STORY!😁

I loved Trevor and Lexi. They were great characters. Their romance was sweet and sexy and I liked that they were open with each other. The twists and turns, action and suspense kept me engrossed in the story. This was the first book I had read by Anna Blakely and I know I will read more of her books. I liked a lot the teasing dialogue between the R.I.S.C. team.... Their camaraderie and support for each other enhanced the story tremendously. I highly recommend this book if you like romantic suspense books that are sexy and heartwarming at the same time with very likeable characters and lots of fast paced dramatic happenings!😊

[PepperP0t · Rating 4 out of 5]

Still full of guilt over a mission gone bad where his special CIA friend was tortured and murdered, Trevor Matthews’ been admiring aspiring chef/waitress Alexis ‘Lexi’ Hamilton but didn’t make a move until a boorish, obsessed customer got out of line. That boorish ‘obsess-or’ turns stalker within days leaving Alexis no safe harbor except Trevor’s apartment.

Days later, a man breaks into Lexi’s house and tries to kidnap her as Trevor returned early from a mission and went to Lexi’s house before going home. Trevor’s able to rescue Lexi with minor injuries. The team circles the wagons to tighten protection around Lexi but someone slips through to kidnap Lexi!
Rating: 4stars

[Angela · Rating 4 out of 5]

4 Stars

Beautiful Risk is the third book in the R.I.S.C. Series by Anna Blakely. It is a thrilling blend of romance, action, and suspense that keeps readers hooked from the very first page. The series revolves around an elite private security team - Rescue, Intel, Security, & Capture - whose members are as fiercely loyal as they are skilled. Each book introduces a new mission, a new romance, and a fresh dose of heart-pounding danger.
Each book focuses on a different team member, allowing us to dive into their unique backstories, vulnerabilities, and the romantic connections that bring light to their otherwise dangerous lives.
Happy Reading…

[Dawn Cruikshank · Rating 5 out of 5]

Beautiful Risk

WOW!Another intriguing story by Anna! This story is about Trevor and Alexis. Trevor's past was catching up to him and unfortunately Lexi was the object of the lunatic in getting back at Trevor. When Lexi was kidnapped and tortured, Trevor was ready to lose it. He and his team got to Lexi just before the lunatic took her life. Once the danger was over these two finally confessed their love for each other and started working on their happily ever after. FANTASTIC job Anna! I would recommend this book.

[RedEnigma94 · Rating 4 out of 5]

Thought this was pretty good...love Trevor and Lexi. They both could be very stubborn at times, but they are so cute and sexy together. I read Anna Blakely's other series, and was looking forward to this spin-off series. I'm really hooked. Got this one free, but I wish I would have gone back and purchased Books 1&2 because I hate dropping into the middle of a series. However, it's written really well and the previous couple appear in such a way where you feel like you haven't missed out, but it makes you want to read about them and the others to come. Like I said, I'm hooked!🤷🏾‍♀️🤭☺

[Sharon Ryder Roberts · Rating 2 out of 5]

I found this novel very hard to read.... it was so hard it was painful. The plot was alright, it was just the characters that were not. The two main characters bored the pants of me, i am surprised i finished it to be honest. I thought that both Trevor and Lexis came across as teenagers instead of grown ups" even some of the characters including Derek who is the computer geek. Their names also come from a much older generation, so this left me confused, older? teenagers? Yeah confused as to how old the characters actually were in this novel..

[Karyn · Rating 5 out of 5]

love it

Can never go wrong with Anna

Lexi meets Trevor in the diner where she works. After being her knight in shining armour with a handsy patron, they embark on a tentative relationship.
Trevor has been holding onto the last for too long, but what happens when the past collides with the future.

I love Trevor’s alpha protective streak and Lexi’s badass nature who doesn’t allow him to get away with bossing her around.
Trevor absolutely broke my heart toward the end. I’m so glad they got their HEA

[Will Decker · Rating 5 out of 5]

I really enjoyed the characters in this story. They are all well developed and believable, even the sub-set. Lots of action, some hot spices in the bedroom, a fast moving plot, clean editing, and enough suspense to keep you on the edge of your seat to the end. The scenes felt real, but I got a little peeved with the heroine when she kept doubting the heroes feelings toward her. It almost felt more like insecurities than a strong heroine. Still, it was great romantic read that I highly recommend if you're into romance at all.

[MooseGirl · Rating 4 out of 5]

Trevor is watching the pretty waitress at the diner he visits. Sworn off women, he can't seem to stop dropping by to see her. Lexi is drawn to the enormous man who saves her from an overbearing customer. When things start to get dangerous, she's grateful for his protection and seriously attracted to the man.

I liked this. There was plenty of plot alongside the romance and the steam. I liked the glimpses of other characters (I haven't read the other books, but I wasn't lost without that knowledge). The characters were perhaps a little dim at times. But overall, I enjoyed the story.

[Lindsay’s Little Library 🥀 · Rating 1 out of 5]

I DNF’d this book at around 30%. I was too bored and it was too cheesy for me. The writing and characters were so mediocre. The same stupid phrase was used over and over again. I counted at least 3 times in just chapter 1. “Hell, I bet xyz…” “Hell, I even thought …”

I think it’s weird and demeaning when men call women pet names instead of their name before they know them or are in a relationship. The amount of times this guy called her “angel” made me cringe. If a dude started calling me angel I would be creeped the F out. The character’s were super cliche.