Hitch: Pierce Securities Book 8, Anne Conley

When two cases collide, so do those working them and the collision of Dex and Amber is nothing short of incendiary.  In the instance of both cases that's actually literal.  Dex Hollerman is trying to nail down a sketchy spouse, Amber Banks is trying to nail someone with a penchant for setting off minor explosives all over the city.  A few chance meetings bring these two into more danger than they were expecting.

Hollerman's story has been a long time coming and I'm glad he was finally given his page time.  Once a stickler for the rules with grudging admiration for the results the Pierce Security team produced, now he's one of the guys.  He's having a little trouble feeling like he's fitting in, though, like he's in some state of liminality, neither one or the other.  His former law enforcement associates are tight-lipped and shun him because he's retired and he's hitting a wall with his investigation.  Because Simon has a hunch that the case is more than it seems he needs some kind of break.

The break he wasn't expecting was a pair of whisky eyes, chestnut hair, and a killer body in a cop uniform.  Distracted and more than a little intrigued he tries his luck with her.  Shot down by former colleagues and the beauty in a uniform he heads home to think of something else.  A commotion, an explosion, and locked out in his underwear he finds himself hiding behind his neighbor's bushes...until he's staring, again, into whiskey eyes and a tight body in blue.  (Well, I think their uniform is blue...I don't remember =].)

Determining that he's hindering her crime scene Amber cuffs Dex and stuffs him into her patrol car.  From that comes a collaboration to find the person who's leading them both on a chase.  Passion, frustration, and denial in spades take them from one moment to the next.  With the attention of a man like Dex Amber can't find her footing.  She wants him and claims she's worth more than a fling but won't give in to his assertion that he wants more.

I find Amber indecisive and skittish to a fault.  While her strength and courage and determination are out in the forefront of her positive traits she undermines herself so often that I don't feel like I can believe her or back her as the right person for Dex.  There's more to them together but I don't know that I fully believe in them as an ideal pairing.  She needed to grow more as a person and I'm not sure she did that by the end.

Overall the story flowed and connections were made in a believable way.  There were a couple outside elements that I thought would become bigger issues or somehow sabotage Dex and Amber's growing relationship or add another element of danger to the story but they were mild and dealt with quickly and mildly.  I was pleased by the direction of the team as a whole, especially when we get a huge insight into Simon and why he's so against deepening relationships with clients.  It has worked out in every case for each of his men so why wouldn't he ease up on that policy?  Well we now know and his story is going to be intense, for sure.  Looking forward to it!

*$3.00 on Amazon

*Join the Pierce Security team from the beginning for FREE!

When Krista catches her boss doing the unthinkable, the only thing she can do is run--straight into the arms of the eye-candy she’s been trying not to flirt with on her lunch break. But whose side is he on?

Ryan’s security firm is having a hard time getting off the ground, and this may be just the job to help the company out. But pseudo-bounty hunter isn’t really what Pierce Securities is trying to get a name for. When he finds out their target is the classy lady from the park, all of Ryan’s senses go on high alert. What do these men want with her?

Krista is forced into Ryan’s sanctuary in the woods, where she realizes just how wild he is, but she doesn’t want to tame him. He may feel his methods of protection endangered her, but without Krista in his life, Ryan is crazed.