A Valentine Challenge
by
Kiru Taye
Contemporary, Multicultural, Romance
Challenge Series – Three friends. Three challenges.
Are they willing to risk everything for love?
Book 1 – A Valentine Challenge
Life is good for ex-soldier turned entrepreneur Michael Ede. Or so he thinks. When his friends set him a challenge to exorcise the memory of a woman from his past, he expects it to be a walk in the park.
Socialite Kasie Bosa is spitting fire at men. Her long-term boyfriend has asked for a break via text message of all things. Fuming, she’s told him to go take a dive off the nearest bridge. So the next man who crosses her path is at risk of being shredded with her spa manicured nails.
Bad news for Michael who has chosen her as the object of his challenge. But neither of them can deny the sizzling chemistry between them nor control their responses, it seems. It’s the season of love. Will they escape unscathed?
REVIEW:
How do you melt an ice princess? Take two broken hearts, toss in a bet by his two best friends, and add a dash of true love. Sounds like a recipe for a steamy romance to me!
Micheal is a well off, self-made millionaire with businesses as far as the eye can see. He has the money, the toys, and good looks. What he doesn't have is the girl of his dreams. Having been burned in the past by a spoiled, little, rich girl, he's hesitant to jump into love without very careful consideration. His two best friends hat seeing him alone and challenge him to woo a woman from an obviously well-to-do family. The trick is to do so as a lowly chauffeur or risk losing his beloved plane. The only thing they didn't do was triple dog dare the poor fella.
Kasie has problems of her own. She and her family are on the outs. Her boyfriend broke up with her and then lied about why, adding more strain to her family bonds. She travels for her job and isn't in the slightest happy with her new driver. However, there is something about his forceful presents and his good looks that she can't ignore. Unlike the other men in her past, he stands up to her and shows her a good time without trying to impress her. Can she overlook his job as her driver? And what will she do when she finds out who he really is and about the bet?
I have to say it. I loved it! The tension balanced the story nicely. While not a long story, there's a lot going on here. Micheal's past bad experience with rich women and Kasie's crumpling family bond make both characters very easy to relate to. Both are strong-willed individuals, but on the inside, both are vulnerable. I wanted to cheer when Micheal told off her sister! The flow and pace is great. This one was a real page turner. I give Kiru Taye's A Valentine Challenge 4.5 stars!
Are they willing to risk everything for love?
Book 1 – A Valentine Challenge
Life is good for ex-soldier turned entrepreneur Michael Ede. Or so he thinks. When his friends set him a challenge to exorcise the memory of a woman from his past, he expects it to be a walk in the park.
Socialite Kasie Bosa is spitting fire at men. Her long-term boyfriend has asked for a break via text message of all things. Fuming, she’s told him to go take a dive off the nearest bridge. So the next man who crosses her path is at risk of being shredded with her spa manicured nails.
Bad news for Michael who has chosen her as the object of his challenge. But neither of them can deny the sizzling chemistry between them nor control their responses, it seems. It’s the season of love. Will they escape unscathed?
REVIEW:
How do you melt an ice princess? Take two broken hearts, toss in a bet by his two best friends, and add a dash of true love. Sounds like a recipe for a steamy romance to me!
Micheal is a well off, self-made millionaire with businesses as far as the eye can see. He has the money, the toys, and good looks. What he doesn't have is the girl of his dreams. Having been burned in the past by a spoiled, little, rich girl, he's hesitant to jump into love without very careful consideration. His two best friends hat seeing him alone and challenge him to woo a woman from an obviously well-to-do family. The trick is to do so as a lowly chauffeur or risk losing his beloved plane. The only thing they didn't do was triple dog dare the poor fella.
Kasie has problems of her own. She and her family are on the outs. Her boyfriend broke up with her and then lied about why, adding more strain to her family bonds. She travels for her job and isn't in the slightest happy with her new driver. However, there is something about his forceful presents and his good looks that she can't ignore. Unlike the other men in her past, he stands up to her and shows her a good time without trying to impress her. Can she overlook his job as her driver? And what will she do when she finds out who he really is and about the bet?
I have to say it. I loved it! The tension balanced the story nicely. While not a long story, there's a lot going on here. Micheal's past bad experience with rich women and Kasie's crumpling family bond make both characters very easy to relate to. Both are strong-willed individuals, but on the inside, both are vulnerable. I wanted to cheer when Micheal told off her sister! The flow and pace is great. This one was a real page turner. I give Kiru Taye's A Valentine Challenge 4.5 stars!
Chapter One
I love those who can
smile in trouble, who can gather strength from distress and grow brave by
reflection. ~ Leonardo Da Vinci.
Trouble. He could spot it a mile away.
A man accustomed to dealing with danger in all guises, he'd
come across its varied forms from the killing fields of Sierra Leone to the
marshy jungle of the Niger Delta. Danger came in the form of men with machetes
or AK47s and explosives packed into cars in crowded markets. Though scarred, he'd
dealt with trouble and survived.
Yet, standing outside the front entrance of Park Hotel,
Enugu, the light morning breeze fanning Michael Ede's face, his gut twisted
with the awareness of a different kind of trouble.
Today, danger was disguised as a woman. A stunningly
beautiful woman.
Sure, she had the poise and elegance of a well-bred lady. A
white shirt and high-waist black trouser suit enhanced as well as hid a curvaceous
figure in silk swatches, feet encased in black shiny leather peep-toe
high-heeled pumps, jet-black hair pulled back in a chignon, blood-red lips matched her toe nails, she exuded
sophistication and class.
Perhaps it was the way she avoided eye contact or the
vicelike grip she had on the Louis Vuitton satchel she clutched in her left
hand, but some vulnerability seeped out of the exterior shell of elegance and connected
with a part of him—the part currently buried under the rubble of a demolished
heart. A flame ignited in his gut, licking his skin with hot yearning.
Danger signals resounded within his head, veins churning
with rising adrenaline, all his attention focused on the object coming toward
him, a sixty-kilogram missile made of flesh and bones.
Get out of here!
Ignoring the screeching warning, he stood his ground. A born
fighter, he was no yellow feathered bird ready to take flight at the flicker of
a storm. He never ran from danger.
Sashaying toward him, lips in a glorious pout, eyes
amber-brown and captivating, she came to a halt more than two long strides away
from him.
Did she know, if she came any closer he might not be able to
keep his hands off her? He wanted to touch her caramel skin. Slide his tongue
along the curve of her collarbone. Would she taste as delightful as the sweet?
Squeeze. Release. He
curled fingers into his palms and unclenched them at his sides; the sound of his
pounding heart rivalled the drumbeats heralding Obiagu masquerades.
Hot blood scorched his veins, his body ablaze with desire. It had nothing to do with the early morning
sun burning his back.
And everything to do with the woman standing before him. Trouble!
A lover of books, as a teenager Kiru Taye used to read novels under the blanket during lights-outs in boarding school. These days, with a young family to take care of, she's still sacrificing sleep for the pleasures of a good book.
During the day though, she transforms her wildly vivid imagination into sensual, atmospheric romance stories with passionate characters.
When she’s not writing or reading, she'd hanging out with family and friends or travelling. Born in Nigeria, she currently lives in the UK with husband and children.
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Follow her blog for latest news and giveaways: http://kirutayewrites.blogspot.com
Read book excerpts and free short stories on her website: http://www.kirutaye.com
You've just made my day, J. You really have. Thank you so much!
ReplyDeleteThank you for sharing. Have a great weekend.
ReplyDelete