We had SNOW Saturday, so it was the perfect time to cuddle up with this anthology!
About BABY, IT’S COLD OUTSIDE Anthology:
Outside it may be frosty, so turn the heat way up with these stories of desire!
Can a determined woman executive and a playboy billionaire survive being stranded together in a snowstorm? Jennifer Probst depicts an encounter almost too hot to handle…
Drew and Kate play an encore to Tangled in this sexy take on a “Christmas Carol” by Emma Chase. When a Christmas Eve argument condemns Drew to a troubled night, three dream women teach him that no gift could be more tantalizing than Kate…
With Kristen Proby, ski slopes are quite delightful. Grace Douglas is sure she’ll never learn to ski, but instructor Jacob Baxter could teach her lessons of a different kind…
Can a southern California transplant survive Montana’s deep snows? Melody Anne, author of the bestselling Andersons series, melts the icy drifts completely away with the heat between sexy Hawk Winchester and brand-new teacher Natalie Duncan…
What could be hotter than a firefighter? Kate Meader shows how hot it can get as Beck Rivera and heiress-turned-tattoo-artist Darcy Cochrane discover that nothing ignites holiday flames like rekindling a lost love…
Review:
We had our first snow of the season this weekend, so it was the perfect time to cuddle up with a quilt and read this anthology. It’s chock-full of reader catnip: second chance romance, enemies-to-lovers, stranded with a billionaire, sexy firefighters, new takes on classic stories and appearances from some favorite series characters–all wrapped up inside five quick-to-read HEAs. Even though some of these are part of series, they all work well as standalones.
“It’s a Wonderful Tangled Christmas Carol” by Emma Chase was an absolutely delightful read. Drew is hands-down my favorite male narrator ever–his snarkiness and sexiness are a lethal combination. (Check out his debut in Tangled if you haven’t yet–you’ll thank me.) This mashup of A Christmas Carol and It’s a Wonderful Life was so much fun. I had way too many highlighted bits for such a short read! It was easy to believe that Drew could have lost sight of what’s really important in life, and completely satisfying seeing how his life with Kate is turning out. The series characters who played the “ghosts”? Brilliant!
A favorite line:
During my research, I also discovered that sociopaths and CEOs share a lot of character traits–but we’ll talk about that another time.
Rating: 5 stars / A
I had almost as many highlighted lines in “Rekindle the Flame” by Kate Meader as in “Wonderful”–she’s a new-to-me author, but I’ll definitely be reading more from her in the future. Beck was a to-die-for firefighter hero who likes to sprinkle his seduction with Spanish (yum!) and he’s definitely met his match with Darcy. After the way he ended their first relationship, he has a lot to make up for in this second-chance story. Fortunately he’s up for the task–and it’s such an enjoyable read.
A favorite line:
They were ancient history and dredging up the whys and whats was about as useful as Matthew McConaughey’s shirt collection.
Rating: 4 1/2 stars / A-
“Saving Grace” by Kristen Proby is part of her Love Under the Big Sky series. Grace, a clumsy schoolteacher, finds herself spending the weekend at a nearby ski resort to prepare for an upcoming girls’ weekend with her best pals. A mistaken identity and her natural lack of grace (she tells Jacob at one point, “I think my parents named me Grace as a cruel joke”) make for some very funny moments. Their HEA felt a bit rushed, though and the story definitely could have worked well expanded into a full-length novel. More Jacob-and-Grace time would have been nice. 🙂
A favorite scene: when Grace literally walks into a door after a kiss. Totally adorkable!
Rating: 4 stars / B
“Safe in His Arms” by Melody Anne featured fire chief Hawk and elementary schoolteacher Natalie. It had a cute premise and the hero and heroine were likable, but I found it hard to connect with their romance. Perhaps if they had had more page time and the conniving townspeople had less, it would have worked better for me.
A favorite line:
One of Natalie’s worst faults, or at lease what she felt was one of her worst faults, was that she’d get so lost in her own head she’d tune out the rest of the world. A vivid imagination was great when you were teaching young children, but not so great when trying to hold normal conversations with other adults.
Rating: 3 1/2 stars / C+
“Searching for You” by Jennifer Probst is part of her Searching For series, and the owners of Kinnections, the exclusive matchmaking agency the series is based on, make a brief appearance to match up the hero and heroine. I really liked the second chance/enemies-to-lovers plotline here and Dylan and Riley were likable characters, but somehow this story, like first in the series Searching for Someday , just didn’t quite make it. Possibly a longer story would have allowed us to better understand Riley’s issues? The quick synopsis she gives Dylan isn’t quite enough. Fans of the series will probably enjoy it, though.
A favorite line:
“What about you?” she practically squealed. “You need clothes.”
He arched a brow. “I’m comfortable being naked. Do you have a problem with that?”
He noted the high flush of her cheeks and the hungry stare. Oh yeah, he had her good. “Yes, I do,” she said primly. “I can’t concentrate.”
Rating: 3 stars / C
I received a complimentary copy in exchange for an honest review.
Excerpt:
from “Rekindle the Flame” by Kate Meader in BABY, IT’S COLD OUTSIDE
He gathered her closer, perversely pleased that she didn’t soften immediately. He deserved to suffer. As their tongues tangled, realization shocked him stupid: no one else affected him like this, sent his heart soaring into the stratosphere and his cock punching against his zipper. A kiss, that’s all it took with Darcy who had once been his fantasy girl, and was fast becoming his fantasy woman. It was like someone had opened a bottle of good lovin’ wine. Vintage, seven years ago.She had closed her eyes and the fact that she still did that during a kiss made his heart ache so sweetly. Slowly, she opened them as if waking from a dream.“Te necesito, Darcy,” he murmured. So strange, only with her did his first language—one he barely spoke anymore—come out. She unlocked that primal part of him.
Their lips met again in a rush of heat and desire, and this time he abandoned his misguided attempt at coolness. It had never been a game with her. She clutched his shoulders, digging into his skin, and he couldn’t get enough of the bite of her. Her soft mouth, her clawing fingers, the fight in her body. She let loose a groan he felt all the way to his balls.
Crowd noise filtered through from the bar, reminding him that they were in far too public a place. Lifting her, he headed a few short feet to the back office and pushed his way through, kicking the door shut behind him. Too small for anything, it was perfect for this. He sat her on the desk, on top of a pile of invoices. Her purse hit the floor. She was breathing heavily, the swells of her breasts lifting her pearls.
“Is there someone else?” he asked, needing to know for a million reasons, none of them good for his sanity.
“Not at the moment.” She reached for his belt and undid the buckle while he pushed her skirt up her thighs. Thick woolen tights covered her legs, and the memory of her peaches-and-cream skin made his mouth water.
“Hurry,” she said, her eyes wild. “Please.”
This was moving at lightning speed, but she’d get no complaints from him. Next time—and yes, there would be a next time—he’d take it slow. Right now, he needed to be inside her, feel the clutch of her silken folds around his cock, find the pleasure he craved after a shitty couple of months. After far too long without her.
Quickly, he produced a condom and rolled it on while she watched approvingly. His hands shot up her skirt, seeking out the top of her tights so he could yank them south, but the snugness of the fabric over her hips made it difficult to get purchase.
“I think we need to—”
“Rip it, Beck,” she whispered.
“What?”
“Rip it.” She dragged his hand between her thighs, and he could feel her pulsing with want right there. A throaty moan escaped her lips as he applied more pressure. “Please. Now.”
Rip it. Get inside her. No waiting, no seduction, no fucking games. Just Darcy with that hot brew of pleading and ordering that destroyed him every time. He pulled the thick wool away from her body and, after a couple of tries, tore it down the seam. Slipping his fingers inside, he pushed aside her panties and found her soaked.
“Jesus, Darcy. You’re—”
“Yes, yes, I am,” she said, grinding her pliant heat on his hand. She hooked a finger in his jeans pocket and drew him toward her. “Do something about it.”
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About The Authors:
Jennifer Probst
Jennifer Probst’s New York Times and USA Today bestselling novels, novellas, and ebooks include the acclaimed Marriage to a Billionaire series, as well as Searching for Someday and Searching for Perfect. She lives in upstate New York. Visit her at www.jenniferprobst.com.
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Emma Chase
Emma Chase is the New York Times and USA Today bestselling author of Tangles, Twisted, Tamed, and Tied. She lives in a small town in rural New Jersey with her husband and children. Follow Emma on Twitter and Facebook, or visit her at www.emmachase.net.
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Kristen Proby
Kristen Proby is the New York Times and USA Today bestselling author of Loving Cara and Seducing Lauren, as well as the popular With Me in Seattle series. Kristen spends her days with her muse in the Pacific Northwest. Visit her at kristenproby.com.
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Melody Anne
Melody Anne is the New York Times bestselling author of the indie published Billionaire Bachelors series, the Baby for the Billionaire series, and the Surrender series, and she has a new series coming soon from Pocket Books. She lives in
the Pacific Northwest. Visit her at www.melodyanne.com.
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Kate Meader
Kate Meader is the author of the sexy new series Hot in Chicago, coming soon from Pocket Books. When not writing she works in an academic library in Chicago. Visit her at www.katemeader.com.
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