What do you do when you are lusting after your best friend’s little sister? Stay away from her, of course. So how did Lawson Murphy end up GUARDING HER?
 
Lawson has adored his buddy’s sister for years, especially now that she is all grown up, but he knows she is off limits. Even though Gia has been attracted to Lawson for a long time, she thinks he still sees her as the kid sister and she’s ready to give up. After a video goes viral of her in her designer friend’s swimsuits at a waterfall, things go crazy. There are a lot of strange people out there and the innocent video seems to bring them out. She can't leave her friend in the lurch after agreeing to pose for the publicity shots, but the nonsense texts and harassing calls get crazier. When she is attacked by a woman she barely knows in the parking deck, she calls on the one man she knows will come - Lawson!
 
Lawson comes running and takes care of everything, and even manages to become her bodyguard. This means he can't be anything but the guy guarding her - certainly not the guy sleeping with her. No matter what, he will keep her safe and when it's over he will finally get Gia where he wants her - in his life. Or will her brother fight him all the way just as he feared?
 
GUARDING HER is action-packed and amazing! Lawson and Gia are almost the perfect star-crossed lovers, as it seems everything is against them. He is older, she is his best friend’s sister, and he's her bodyguard. See the problem? I loved this story, with its twists and turns. Lawson doesn't want to lose the man he thinks of as a brother, but Gia is his. Gia isn't looking for the limelight but, unfortunately, just helping a friend has her being harassed and attacked. Luckily, she has Lawson, whom she has crushed on forever. He feels deeply for her, but it isn't until he thought he would lose her that he knew exactly what his feelings for her were all along.
 
I will have to say that the bad guy was not the one I had originally pegged. Author Katie Reus certainly knows how to throw several twists and turns at her fans. She leads them down one path before hitting an ultra-sharp curveball and going another way. Also, the added stories of past characters and family members fill out GUARDING HER with a few intriguing moments thrown in - especially the one where the wife thinks she caught her husband cheating. Nice recovery on that one, Ms. Reus, very nice!