I've loved all of ALI HAZELWOOD's books. Commonly set in a STEM field with a super, smart main female character who struggles in her male-dominated career. The latest release, NOT IN LOVE, stays true to the norm with a bit of extra heat. Rue Siebert works as a chemical engineer alongside her childhood best friend in a private company owned by her mentor. She focuses on her research to develop a barrier to preserve the shelf life of fruits and vegetables. Rue keeps people at a distance and doesn't do relationships. When her company debt is acquired by a group of investors, she will have to balance her interest for one of the hostile takeover partners (and last hookup), Eli Killigore. As fate continues to throw the couple together, they realize they have more in common than just their growing attraction. With both Eli and Rue resistant to trust and battling for control of the company, they must evaluate how to prioritize their loyalty to their friends when their relationship puts them at cross purposes. The sexual scenes are spicier and more erotic than you expect from Hazelwood. Fast read that I couldn't put down and finished in only a few hours. Interesting setting and storyline with fabulous secondary characters that I am hoping we will see more of in her future books. Maybe best friend's little sister? Triggers of childhood neglect.
A forbidden, secret affair proves that all’s fair in love and science—from New York Times bestselling author Ali Hazelwood.
Rue Siebert might not have it all, but she has enough: a few friends she can always count on, the financial stability she yearned for as a kid, and a successful career as a biotech engineer at Kline, one of the most promising start-ups in the field of food science. Her world is stable, pleasant, and hard-fought. Until a hostile takeover and its offensively attractive front man threatens to bring it all crumbling down.
Eli Killgore and his business partners want Kline, period. Eli has his own reasons for pushing this deal through—and he’s a man who gets what he wants. With one burning exception: Rue. The woman he can’t stop thinking about. The woman who's off-limits to him.
Torn between loyalty and an undeniable attraction, Rue and Eli throw caution out the lab and the boardroom windows. Their affair is secret, no-strings-attached, and has a built-in deadline: the day one of their companies will prevail. But the heart is risky business—one that plays for keeps.