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Reviewed by Bel
"You’re here because I want to touch you.”
Beth Jacobs spends her days slogging away in a corporate
“fish bowl,” as the hard-working assistant for one of North America’s youngest
dot-com billionaires. Aleksander “Z” Zavtra is the definition of dark and
dangerous with a sexy Eastern European snarl. He’s also ruthless. Curt.
Exacting. An infuriating man she loves to hate. While Beth hardly sees him,
it’s as if he’s always watching her . . .
Z doesn’t do romance. But he never expected to be captivated
by a whip-smart, fiery assistant who just so happens to share an uncanny
resemblance to the beautiful face that haunts his dreams. He craves Beth. He
wants to stroke her skin, to feel her heat beneath him. And what Z wants, he gets.
And for one weekend, the lines between employer and employee are blurred as Z
and Beth give themselves completely to the dark pleasures they’ve both been
dreaming about.
Lia Riley’s latest novella from the Off The Map series stands
in stark contrast to the rest of the series. Employer, mega-genius and
mega-millionaire, Aleksander, “Z”, is a private and broken man who is haunted
by a past that he’s reluctant to let go of, let alone talk about. Employee Beth is living frugally
while she digs her way out of the mega debt that her awesome parents amassed in
her name. Beth is his assistant and Z is so fixated on her that it can feel
somewhat stalkerish. Z is not great with people and hides in his office away
from everyone, including Beth with whom he communicates via technology than
face-to-face. Beth is bewildered by her rarely seen boss. His sudden
invitation to spend the weekend with him (thanks to Bran’s goading) is so out
of the blue and absurd that she’s actually going to do it. After all, it may
finally answer some questions about the mysterious Z. It’s during this weekend
that passion ignites, old wounds open and the future becomes more complicated.
This very fast-paced plot rather astonished me and it took some getting
used to. Z is remote and rough around the edges, which is why Beth confounded
me when she easily gives in to him. It’s still a good read and it’s nice to get
to know another one of Talia’s friends. Bran’s brief appearance made me smile, because,
Bran. Need I say more?
Into My Arms rounds out the series nicely. And if you're wanting an eccentric and moody hero (yes, even moodier than Bran!), add this one to your TBR. If you haven't read the Off The Map series, you should get on that soon!
~ Bel
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