Levi Walsh, who recently bought into the Beaux Hommes club, just noticed to his horror that someone is cooking the books. And just as he is wondering what to do about it, who should knock on his door but Senior Criminal Investigator for the IRS, Ms. Harper Banks. Levi is also the headlining exotic dancer at the club and he tries to sweet-talk his way into Harper's good graces, but she's very by-the-book; she seems immune to his considerable charms. Harper suspects that the club is a front for tax evasion and fraud, and Levi wants to find out what is happening before Harper has a chance to look at the books. Harper has personal reasons for being so efficient at nabbing embezzlers, just as Levi is determined not to have his club shut down, be ruined by the IRS, and have everyone lose their jobs. Levi then suggests that Harper visits the club to have a better idea of what goes on. And Levi is dancing that night...

PULLED UNDER is such a wonderful surprise! I expected a fun piece of fluff, given that the hero is a male stripper, which I did find intriguing, but PULLED UNDER has a lot of substance: Ms. Ireland weaves a captivating and suspenseful story, featuring complex and very well fleshed out characters, even down to the secondary ones. Even though it is the third instalment in the Pleasure before Business series, no one misses a thing. PULLED UNDER is all about not judging a book by its cover; it is also a delightful twist on role reversals. PULLED UNDER is exceptionally well-written; Ms. Ireland's prose is flawless, light and elegant, yet eloquent.

Harper is a heroine who has a lot of bite, and Levi seems very sure of himself without being arrogant. The dialogues between Levi and some other male characters - Daniel, Harper's IRS partner and Harper's father - ring especially true. And who could forget the surprising and very funny scene, when Harper first walks into Levi's office! Both Levi and Harper make initial assumptions towards the other, Ms. Ireland handles the issue very cleverly, and they get to know each other better under interesting circumstances. The romance is entirely believable because even though they are attracted to each other, it happens in a reasonable amount of time, and when it does, the sex scenes are tasteful yet very erotic. There is not a weak moment in PULLED UNDER; a book that is not to be missed!