COME WITH ME
J.S.HAWLEY
ISBN# 0-7582-1935-0
January 2007
Dafina/Kensington Group
850 Third Ave New York, NY 10022
Paperback
$6.99U.S./$9.99 Can.
319 Pages
Contemporary Romance
Rating: 4 Cups

Jessica Ruth Bishop is the CEO of Utopia, an events and entertainment conglomerate she started with her best friend and partner, Douglas Speigel. Being a black woman in a white man’s world has made her strive for the best in all things from the service of her wait staff to the quality of her venues. Having lived and breathed Utopia into existence with her will alone meant her personal life went lacking, except for the occasional physical release with her sometime escort, Eric Martin. Plagued with personal demons that threaten her sleep, she lives with the thought of impending doom until the day Doug introduces his friend Fred as a possible replacement for himself and she had to walk away.

Chief Mighty Mike Cloud Walker, head of the Cherokee nation and friend to Gideon, Jessica’s brother, had been told to expect his friend’s little sister at their cabin on the mountain. Who he encounters is a razor-tongued beauty that expected five star services even in the middle of the wilderness. Sparks ignite their verbal exchanges at every turn and they are both left drained and exhilarated. Mike Walker absolutely despises Jesse on the surface but underneath, he yearns for the child-like vulnerability she thought she hid behind her take no prisoners attitude. Having worked in Chicago as an attorney he has tried to succeed in the business world but has chucked that world after getting his heart broken, choosing his birthright instead as a way to heal. A mean mountain of a man, his visage crumbles at the sight of Jesse’s wet and forlorn form caught in a violent rainstorm. Will they ever get along?

In the healing process both Jesse and Mike begin to form a friendship and a budding attraction that promises carnal delights with no strings until they are forced to live together when Mike falls ill. Jesse vows to fight her dependence on Mike’s reliability while establishing her own sense of self. Mike meanwhile fights his desire to ravish his friend’s sister every time she smiles at him, forcing him to use his considerable control and frequent cold showers. They both fail to hide their feelings from the other residents of the mountain. Could they ever come to some compromise?

Ms. J.S. Hawley has written a beautiful story full of strong women of power and prestige and honorable men with their act together with bodies to match. I immediately wanted my own Indian chief to come sweep me off my feet but reading about Mike with his care and concern will have to do. It is nice to read about men who honor their heritage and their women with the same reverence. The sex was oh so hot and appropriate. This is definitely a keeper.

Kathy
Reviewer for Coffee Time Romance
Reviewer for Karen Find Out About New Books