Hugely popular author Jill Shalvis has added to her Animal Magnetism series for the pleasure of readers who love animals in their stories. This instalment also introduces wounded veterans who might benefit from owning dogs. Could there be a better mix?
STILL THE ONE follows Darcy Stone, a lady who cares about the welfare of former service dogs now in need of rehoming. Darcy is even obliged to pay for some of these dogs as exploitative people take advantage of her wishes. She's not well off and has other priorities than her appearance. AJ Colton, her boss, can see past the surface and since he's ex-Forces, he admires a practical employee who gets the job done rather than a pampered dilettante. Darcy's learned her lesson with this man, however, and dating him is definitely not on her to-do list. But AJ, a physical therapist, can see she needs some help.
The Idaho location is interesting, with a town so small everyone knows everyone's business but cares about them. Darcy was an experienced traveller but she's still in rehab from a serious car accident, stuck in Sunshine with no transport. She's got a way with big dogs though, and once she's sure a rescue dog is suitable, she places them as therapy dogs. Perhaps this is part of an unconscious longing to find love and a home for herself.
When AJ and Darcy go to a dinner in Boise as a charity fundraiser, they have a chance to get to know each other on a different level. Personally, I found the story a little slow up to that point as there was a great deal of Darcy's thoughts about not wanting to be in the same room as AJ, while simultaneously finding him hot, and he hadn't actually done anything bad to her. I just wanted to get on with the story and for Darcy to think about useful issues. We see the lady getting tattoos to cover her surgery scars, but in her youth she had done such things so it's not an extreme change. No surprise that the tattoo artist, Xander, wants to get closer to her but Darcy is too busy learning to like herself to like anyone else.
With strong language and adult content, STILL THE ONE is a comparatively gritty romance which shows that people who are not perfect can be the most determined, and every good person - and dog - deserves love. Followers of the series will adore this read.
Love is a dare in the sexy new romance by the award-
winning
New York Times bestselling author of the Animal Magnetism
novels and the Lucky Harbor series...
Darcy Stone is game for anythingβexcept sexy Navy vet and
physical therapist AJ Colten, the guy whoβd rejected her
when sheβd needed him most. Now the shoe is on the other
foot and he needs her to play nice and help him secure
grants for his patients. Unfortunately Darcy canβt refuse.
She needs the money to fund her passion project: rescuing
S&R dogs and placing them with emotionally wounded
soldiers.
AJ admits itβDarcy is irresistible. But heβs already been
battle-scarred by a strong-willed, vivacious, adventurous
woman like Darcy, and heβs not making the same mistake
twiceβuntil he and Darcy are forced to fake a
relationship.
Growing closer than theyβd ever imagined possible, Darcy
and
AJ have to ask themselves: how much between them is
pretend?
Whatβs the real thing? And where does it go from here?
EXCERPT
Darcy Stone had never been big on rules unless she was
breaking them. But that was the funny thing about nearly
dyingβit changed you, in a big way. So sheβd taken a good,
hard look at her life and decided that maybe a few
βguidelinesβ wouldnβt hurt.
Number one: Donβt stress the little stuff.
Number two: Never let a certain man into her heart. Ever.
Number three: Donβt take crap from anyone.
It was number three on her mind right now. Todayβs crap
came
in the form of one weasel named Johnny Myers, a dog
trainer
who lived two counties over from Darcyβs town of Sunshine,
Idaho, deep in the Bitterroot Mountains. Johnny was
complete
pond scum, not to mention under investigation for
illegally
importing and exporting exotic animals.
It killed Darcy to do business with him, but if she
didnβt,
heβd send the dog she wanted straight to the kill shelter.
βIβm not paying you seven hundred dollars for a service
dog
you intend to dump for not passing his certs,β she said
into
her cell phone as she walked through the pouring rain and
into work. Hell, she didnβt have seven hundred dollars.
Her wet sneakers squeaked as she entered Sunshine Wellness
Center and rounded the front desk. Cold had started to
seep
through her drenched clothes to her aching bones but she
ignored this. βMake it two hundred,β she told Johnny, βand
youβve got yourself a deal.β
She didnβt have two hundred, either, nor a way to even get
out to Johnnyβs place since she no longer drove highways,
but sheβd worry about that later.
Johnny started sputtering with outrage as she shoved her
wet
hair back from her face, going still when her body
suddenly
went into hyper-alert mode.
Damn. Again? At this rate she could hire herself out as
some
sort of paranormal secret agent . . . except the only
person
whose appearance she could predict was AJ Colten.
Guideline number two, and the bane of her existence.
And sure enough, in walked her boss: six feet two inches
of
solid muscle, testosterone, and attitude. And damned if
she
didnβt have a secret thing for all of the above. Very
secret, since sheβd gone there with him onceβor nearly
anywayβand had been burned big-time.
Never again, no matter how hot he was.
Luckily she had one heck of a poker face, because on a
good
day just a fleeting glance from AJ reminded her that she
was
a twenty-six-year-old sex-starved woman.
On a bad day, every single part of her sent urgent memos
to
her brain that she was practically a re-virginized
twenty-six-year-old sex-starved woman.
It took everything she had not to look hungry.
Or even overly friendly.
AJ made it a lot easier by showing absolutely zero
interest
in her. The only thing she got this morning was a hooded
glance that probably meant he was wondering why heβd even
hired her.
She raised an eyebrow in his direction, trying for
nonchalance while she soaked up the sight of him and the
easy, confident way he moved his big body.
βNot a penny less than six hundred,β Johnny said in her
ear.
βThree hundred,β she countered, tearing her gaze away from
AJ. βAnd Iβm cold and wet and almost late for work. If you
donβt want the money, tell me now, because I need to go.β
Thanks to an unseasonably warm late fall putting Mother
Nature in a mood, rain and wind slashed at the building.
Darcy loved the rain. What she didnβt love was a violent
storm. Not only was she shivering, she undoubtedly looked
like a complete mess.
Her life motto was dance like no one was watching, so she
told herself she really didnβt care what she looked like.
Then she told herself that a few more times while watching
AJβs mighty fine bod move across the room.
βThree hundred is a joke,β Johnny complained. βI bet if I
opened my e-mail Iβd have ten offers that are better.β
βYou go take a look,β she said. βIβll wait.β While she
did,
she shoved her purse into the filing cabinet, but not
before
taking a surreptitious bite out of one of the two
breakfast
taquitos sheβd grabbed on her way in.
When she realized AJ was heading her way, she nearly
choked
in her rush to swallow because AJ didnβt approve of the
love
of her lifeβcrap food. And as he was the boss, owning the
Sunshine Wellness Center as well as being head physical
therapist, she tried to play by his rules. Okay, not
really,
but she at least did her best to hide the evidence.
She booted up the computer and caught an accidental flash
of
her reflection on the screen.
Yep, she was a hot mess, alright, her long curlsβusually
her
best feature, if she did say so herselfβnow resembled a
frizzy squirrelβs tail.
Good thing she didnβt care.
Naturally, AJ was not a mess. Not that he ever was. Nope,
as
usual heβd defied the odds, the rain not daring to stick
to
him. And no squirrel-tail hair for him, either. His
sun-streaked brown hair was short and silky smooth, and as
he took in her hair, his lips quirked in an almost smile.
Bastard.
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