A man accustomed to getting what he wants finds himself suddenly attracted to a hard-working woman carrying the weight of the world on her shoulders in this erotically-charged tale of opposites attracting. Keep reading to get a tempting taste of Wicked Billionaire by Sawyer Bennett, along with my impressions of this ninth installment in the Wicked Horse Vegas series, then be sure to add this series-ender to your bookshelf too!
As the prince of a luxury hotel empire, I am as close to American royalty as one can get. I grew up accustomed to a certain lifestyle. One where people give me what I desire and anything, or anyone, else can be bought. Everyone wants a piece of me, yet no one is actually deserving of my time.
That changes when Bailey Robbins, the smoking hot housekeeper in one of my hotels, catches my attention. Sure, she has curves for days but it’s her smart mouth I can’t help but be intrigued by. I may have avoided relationships all my life, but something about her makes me want to introduce her to my world.
The darker, wicked side of Declan Blackwood.
MY IMPRESSIONS OF THIS BOOK:
The Wicked Horse Vegas series has been an erotically-charged smorgasbord of sexy heroes and likable heroines finding a bit of freedom through a club that helps visitors forget all their troubles. Through eight previous books the heat's been turned up, and numerous HEAs have been achieved, in a series of books that I've enjoyed and that are still inspiring my dreams. Though the storylines are familiar at times there are still plenty of decadent delights to be found in a series that I'll re-read whenever I need a steamy escape from the chaos.
This ninth and final installment introduces readers to the commanding Declan Blackwood, a man of wealth accustomed to getting everything he wants. He's a strong-willed man, self-assured when it comes to business and decadent delights. As the heir apparent he's always been expected to excel at marketing the family name...and excel he does. Each new hotel carrying the family name is one more example of his success and another moment of pride for the elder Blackwoods. When it comes to love, it soon shows itself to be a foreign concept in his life, a life valued more for accomplishments. His parents are clearly incapable of showing affection, more concerned with accolades and wealth, and it's made him equally as controlled in his dealings with others. That's not to say that he's incapable of love, he's just extremely guarded and leery of putting his heart on the line. Declan's a character that's a bit offensive early on, a bit too over the top when he's around others as he's a perfectionist at times. In the business world he's a strong presence, but he's even more so in the bedroom in scenes that set the pages on fire. It's here that he and Bailey showed their compatibility, showed how opposites can be truly perfect together in a romance that brought out a more human and likable side to Declan.
Bailey Robbins is one of Ms. Bennett's more likable heroines, a hard-working and supportive woman. She comes from a loving family, a family that she's now a caretaker to. Her life revolves around work, work, and more work as her parent's disabilities require lots of money. A cheating and lying ex husband left his mark on her life too, leaving her with massive debt and a few self-doubts over trusting others. Despite the long hours at work Bailey's still someone who takes time out for her family and it's moments like this that bind them together and show Declan a better way to be. She shows him what's truly important and together they take a scorching and sentimental journey to HEA. From the first page to the last I came to admire Bailey more and more. She never saw her family as a burden and never made them feel that way either as she loved them unconditionally for everything they've done for her in the past. She never took crap from Declan, pushed him when he needed to be pushed, while allowing him to have control during their scorching interludes that made for a satisfying balancing act. She's strong and competent in her work and, courtesy of Declan, she had some intense moments of play that made me blush a time or two while I was cheering them on towards HEA.
On a whole this was an immensely appealing tale of opposites attracting, but it's more than just that as what defines happiness drives this story as well. Declan may come from wealth but it's clear from the start that he's unhappy. He's missing out on something and it's only with Bailey's help that he can discover what that is in a relationship full of give and take. I might not have loved Declan at the start but I enjoyed his evolution and found this story to be an entertaining series-ender in a series of books that were reliably sexy and satisfying. Add in an admirable heroine and you'll find this a winner from the first page to the last!
My rating for this is a B+
*I got this book from the author for review in exchange for my honest opinion.
AUTHOR INFO:
New York Times, USA Today, and Wall Street Journal Bestselling author Sawyer Bennett uses real life experience to create relatable stories that appeal to a wide array of readers. From contemporary romance, fantasy romance, and both women’s and general fiction, Sawyer writes something for just about everyone.
A former trial lawyer from North Carolina, when she is not bringing fiction to life, Sawyer is a chauffeur, stylist, chef, maid, and personal assistant to her very adorable daughter, as well as full-time servant to her wonderfully naughty dogs.
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