Earning Her Trust
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Average rating4
15
Ratings1
Average rating4
She ran from her past… right into his arms. Marrin Braxton is scarred—physically and emotionally. As a result, she separates her college life from her personal life and makes a point not to trust anyone. Especially guys. So when she secretly starts sleeping with her hot neighbor, Damian Wane, she makes it clear it’s just sex. Good, kinky sex. And boy, is it kinky. In the bedroom, Damian is everything Marrin needs. He’s dominant, bossy, and says the filthiest things. Damian makes her submit in ways she never thought possible, and when he’s in charge, she’s able to let go of her need for control and just be. But it’s how Damian makes her feel outside the bedroom that threatens to tear down the walls Marrin has built around her life and her heart. It’s a loss of control she’s not sure she can handle, and when a man from her past shows up to terrorize her, it’s a loss of control she’s not sure she’ll survive. Damian Wane is used to getting what he wants. He’s rich, handsome, and gifted with the kind of soulful eyes every person, pet, and vegetable dreams of getting lost in. After his first night with Marrin, he’s hooked. She’s everything he needs in the bedroom. She’s eager, submissive, and wants him in ways no one ever has before. But it’s the ways he finds himself wanting her, the scars he wants to show her, that have him unable to keep things between them casual. He doesn’t want to let her go, and he’s not willing to share. But Marrin’s keeping secrets and Damian doesn’t want to be one of them. If he can earn her trust, he just might make Marrin his. But if he pushes too far, pries too deep, he might lose everything.
Featured Series
2 primary booksBraxton Arcade is a 2-book series with 2 primary works first released in 2018 with contributions by Adore Ian.
Reviews with the most likes.
~WRITING - PLOT - PACE~
So the parade of trying out new authors continues, and again I am legit blown away by how good this book was. Especially considering it is the author's debut book. It would have been a 5-Star read if not for Marrin (more about why in the heroine section). That aside, the writing was fantastic. The pace was good. It was maybe a tad too long, but I never got bored or felt the need to skim. The plot was engaging. The setting was unique (an arcade bar). It was told in a dual POV format. Last, it was all wrapped up in a nice HAPPY FOR NOW ending. I assume we will be seeing this couple again in future books.
~HERO~
DAMIAN...Damian was pretty much a perfect hero. A little damaged (what happened to him when he was younger was heartbreaking), but unlike Marrin, it never held him back when it came to their relationship. He was also sexy. He was alpha. He was sweet. He had the patience of a saint when it came to Marrin. I pretty much loved him through the entire book.
~HEROINE~
MARRIN...Marrin is the sole reason why this book isn't getting 5-Stars. I struggled with her closed off attitude, and her constant secret keeping, and with the callous way, she treated Damian at times. I am notoriously hard on heroines, especially when they are paired with wonderful heroes (as was the case in this book). I just never completely warmed up to her. That said, I tried to be understanding of her attitude given her past, and she did get a lot better around 70% in, so yea...
~SECONDARY CHARACTERS~
There are like a TON of secondary characters in this book. I really want to read the story behind Alice and Gavin! Of course, we also have Damian's friends, as well as Marrin's friend and coworkers. Another thing that I noticed was that a lot of the secondary characters (and even Damian himself) are mixed race, or of a non-white background. So kudos to the author for giving us a cast of racially diverse characters.
~HEAT LEVEL~
HIGH...The book basically opens with the main couple already sleeping together. The sex scenes were smokin' and plentiful, to say the least. We have some light Dom/sub stuff, but nothing too over the top. I will say that I found the sex scenes a little more mature than the couple themselves. They are both juniors (I believe) in college, but I kind of felt like when they were into the Dom/sub thing they came across more like two people in their 30s. However, I graduated from college 25 years ago, so what do I know? (lol).
~ANGST LEVEL - SEXUAL HISTORIES~
MEDIUM...There is a good deal of push/pull in regards to the heroine and her reluctance to be more than f-ckbuddies. That is really the sole cause of the angst. Neither were virgins. The hero didn't appear to be a manwhore, but he wasn't anything close to a saint either. There is a little talk about his past sex life which I thought was a bit unnecessary, but didn't really bother me either. There isn't really much said about the heroine's. She has a run in with a guy she had slept with before, but it isn't in a sexual context. There was also no OW or OM drama.
~IN THE END~
Did I enjoy it? Very much so.
Was it perfect? Almost. My uber pickiness about heroines sunk this one a tiny bit.
Would I recommend it? YES! YES! YES!
Who would enjoy this book? I think most readers would enjoy this story. I also think it would be considered “safe” by those who enjoy their books that way.