Blog Tour & Book Review: Wrapped in Love by Lexi Ryan

Wrapped in Love

by Lexi Ryan
Series: The Boys of Jackson Harbor #4
Genre: Standalone Contemporary Romance
Release Date: December 4th, 2018

 

Blurb:

A one-night stand with the boss was never in her plans. Neither was falling in love . . .

The rumors are true. I’m a hot mess with an awful track record at love. Single mom. Down on her luck. Yeah, I’m bad news.

If the hardest part of moving back home to Jackson Harbor was going to be people talking, I’d be fine. I’ve kept my chin up through worse than their decade-old gossip.

I was wrong. The hardest part is resisting my boss. Brayden Jackson is the very picture of tall, dark, and handsome. And thanks to an ill-advised one-night stand we had seven months ago, I know exactly what I’m missing when I turn him down. Every. Single. Delicious. Inch.

But I have my son to care for and my job to keep, so I’ll keep on saying no.

Until my string of bad luck continues, and suddenly my precious four-year-old and I find ourselves with nowhere to live. At Christmas, no less. It’s for my son that I accept Brayden’s offer to stay at his place. One by one, my defenses are falling, as fast as I am. If Brayden was smart, he’d run, because it’s only a matter of time before he realizes he deserves better than what a girl like me can offer.

Unless, for once, my bad luck is leading me exactly where I need to be.

Buy now:
Amazon: https://amzn.to/2EwksG7
Amazon Worldwide: http://mybook.to/WrappedInLoveLR
Apple Books: https://apple.co/2mgsXcq
Nook: http://bit.ly/2NPfXWH
Kobo: http://bit.ly/2Ewm5Uf

Excerpt:

“Oh, and this box wasn’t labeled. Where do you want it?” Brayden pulls open the flaps of the box he set on the bed when he entered. “Looks like there are some washcloths in here. And . . .” He lifts a stack of washcloths and peers at the contents beneath. His eyes go wide. “Oh.”
The moment my brain registers what he’s looking at, I lunge for him and smack a hand over his eyes. I intentionally put that box in my car, separate from the others. And I forgot.
Brayden’s chest rumbles with laughter, and I want the floor to open up and swallow me whole. 
Brayden Jackson just saw my entire vibrator collection.
He gently pulls my hand away, revealing eyes full of mischief.
I squeak. “Don’t look in that box again.”
His lips twitch. “But I really, really want to.”
I point a finger at him. “Don’t you dare.”
He presses his lips into a thin line, amusement dancing in his eyes. Then, as if he can’t help himself, he asks, “Are they all pink?”
“Shut up!” My cheeks are on fire.
His voice is the softest caress of a whisper when he says, “Molly, your cheeks are almost as pink as your vibrators.”
I smack both hands against his chest. “You did not just say that word!”
“Vibrators?” He grins. Not one of his smirks or half smiles, but a grin, and damn me and my stupid chemical attraction to this man, because it makes me want to slam the bedroom door closed and climb him like a tree. “If you don’t like the word, why do you have—”
I throw my hand over his mouth. “Don’t say it. We agreed we’d keep our relationship professional—that’s what we both wanted. So don’t say it. Don’t even think about it.” Then, because I realize his lips are pressed to my palm and it reminds me too much of our night in New York when his lips were everywhere, I back away.
The warm amusement in his eyes turns to heat. “First of all,” he says, his voice like silky steel, “those were your rules, not mine. I agreed for you, not because that’s what I want.” He drags his gaze over me, and my heart pounds so fast it feels like a hummingbird’s trying to escape my chest. “Second, even if I tried not to think about you using your little collection of pink toys, I’d fail miserably.” He dips his head, and I can feel his breath against my ear as he says, “I’m already thinking about it, and I will be for a long time yet.”

About the author:

Lexi Ryan is the New York Times and USA Today bestselling author of emotional romance that sizzles. A former academic and English professor, Lexi considers herself the luckiest girl around to make a living through storytelling. She loves spending time with her crazy kids, weightlifting, ice cream, swoony heroes, and vodka martinis.
Lexi lives in Indiana with her husband, two children, and a spoiled dog. You can find her at her website: www.lexiryan.com

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My review:

This could very well be a 5 star read because the writing was excellent but I just wasn’t as emotionally invested as I was with the first book in this series. Don’t get me wrong, I liked this book a hell of a lot but wasn’t head over heels in love and I don’t even know why. The characters were great, because who doesn’t love the Jackson brothers, and the story developed beautifully.

Molly was an independent woman and a single parent of a sweet boy, and while she was a strong character, she was still somewhat insecure because of her unshakable reputation and of what was done to her by her stepdad.

Brayden Jackson was a very serious and closed-up person as well as a workaholic, but he was also the sweetest and most caring guy in the world. He wanted Molly and although he was her boss he didn’t care about that if it wasn’t for her aloofness.

When Molly needed a new place to stay and Brayden offered her to move in with him, her resistance slowly began to crumble. Though her thoughts of being unworthy still lingered and made it hard work for Brayden to show that he was in it for the long run.

'I've never thought myself weak before, but our night in New York proves I have very little self-control when it comes to this man.'

The story was a slow burn romance and there wasn’t anything overly dramatic until the end, and even that’s arguable. Both characters did a poor job in reading each other’s expressions and feelings, and since they didn't talk openly about them, there were a lot of misunderstandings and misjudgings that caused small but unnecessary drama and hurt feelings on both ends. But I rooted for them from the very beginning and I really liked Molly for most part of this story despite my reservations toward her in the previous books.

I personally didn't like that Molly told Brayden that she wasn't looking for a commitment but at the same time wanted him for herself and was jealous when he spoke to another woman. Argh! Woman it's either have him or not! You can't have both! I was frustrated when she got angry and sad when it was her own fault for not committing to him when he so obviously wanted her and she actually wanted him too.

Brayden needed some time to open up to her, which was understandable considering how brokenhearted he was after his last love just up and left him. But after he told Molly that he wanted her he was nothing but honest about his feelings while she was still guarded, complicating everything with her going back and forth. Poor Brayden had a lot of hard work with her and at some point I even felt like he deserved someone who loved him unconditionally and recognized how amazing he was without him having to prove it first.

I absolutely loved Shay in this book and was so happy that I got to see more of her. Yay protective sister! It made me really excited about her book, though Carter’s comes first.

I truly enjoyed this lovely story and couldn't put it down. I was captured by it and Brayden’s sweet character and good heart right from the start. I liked everything and can't say anything negative besides not getting emotionally involved and not fully connecting with it, which was the reason for my rating. But it definitely was a great read.

-- I voluntarily reviewed an ARC of this book given by Social Butterfly PR. --

My rating: 4.5 of 5 stars
View review on goodreads