A new Entangled Indulgence!
THE MILLIONAIRE DADDY PROJECT
By Roxanne Snopek
A Men of the Zodiac Novel
Sign: Leo
He takes control…and gives all kinds of pleasure..
In the space of about a second, successful restaurateur Dane Bergman has gone from millionaire playboy to daddy. Now he’s the sole guardian of a very adorable and willful five-year-old child, and he’s counting on his executive assistant, Pamela Atwater, to save his ass. Even if it means bringing her along on a month-long ocean-side retreat…
Pamela Atwater prides herself on being the perfect assistant. Whatever Dane wants or needs, she’s there—pretending to ignore Dane’s golden charm and drop-dead gorgeousness. On vacation, however, Pamela sees a side of Dane she never imagined. And it’s a side that tempts her to cross the line between professional and personal. But is one month enough time to prove to Dane that his perfect assistant might just be his perfect match?
Review:
Dane Bergman was a great hero. His childhood was far from the greatest, but as a teen he finally connected with a brother and sister who helped him recognize his own potential, gave him a start in what would turn out to be his future business empire, and showed him the true meaning of family. Everything was going great for him–a string of successful restaurants, employees who liked and respected him, a never-ending stream of “Dimbos” (his executive assistant’s term)–until he finds out he actually does have family.
A four-year-old daughter, to be exact. Suddenly his life is thrown into turmoil, and he doesn’t know what to do. Danielle’s grieving for her mom, and wants nothing to do with the often gruff man who insists on baking her bread from scratch instead of buying Wonder and making four-cheese macaroni and cheese with homemade breadcrumbs on the top instead of Kraft dinner.
I know–the horror 😉
His daughter is having no problem connecting to Pamela Atwater, Chief Executive Assistant to “The Great Dane Bergman” (Pam always sees those words as capitalized). Pam’s always been there for him, keeping his office running smoothly, stepping in when he’s in danger of losing an audience, buying consolation gifts for the newest former Dimbo, and keeping Dane in line. She’s got no problem telling him what he has to do to get his daughter to finally trust him–get his head out of his butt and spend a month away from work, making Dani his focus.
But he’ll only do it if she comes along.
And…you know where this is going, don’t you? 😉
As always, it’s the journey–and Dane, Pam, and Dani’s journey is a whole lot of fun to read. It’s sweet and sexy and it made me smile and get a little bit teary. Dean’s epic make-it-all-right-again scene at the end was awesome. The latest Men of the Zodiac novel definitely did not disappoint.
(The only bit that didn’t quite work for me was the identity of Dean’s main protester at his latest restaurant. I was fine with that particular character being introduced into the storyline, but it seemed like a major stretch for that character to turn out to be whom it turns out to be–especially since that person was oblivious to the relationship Dean had with the person she knew. So why did she have it so in for him? It seemed an awkward coincidence, but honestly didn’t really detract from my overall enjoyment of the story.)
Rating: 4 stars / A-
I received a complimentary copy in exchange for an honest review.
Excerpt #2
“Hello?”
“Dani needs some, uh, personal help,” Dane said, without preamble. “How soon can you get here?”
Surprise left her momentarily speechless. Her boss rarely called her at home and never at such an hour. His voice was scratchy, gravelly, like he’d just gotten up. Or maybe hadn’t gone to bed at all. Like his hair might be mussed, and maybe he was shirtless, too. Definitely not The Great Dane Bergman.
She glanced down at her skimpy outfit and felt warmth flood her cheeks, as if somehow he could see her.
Which was crazy and inappropriate and just wrong.
“Is she okay?”
“Yes, yes,” he said. “She needs…a woman’s…help, that’s all.”
That initial stab of fear turned to irritation at his presumption. Whatever his crisis was, it was his. Not hers.
Pamela walked into her small kitchen and set the kettle on to boil. She wasn’t on the clock. He didn’t have the right to commandeer her personal time.
“Rough first night, I take it?”
“She’s alive.”
“And you?”
“Come on, Pam. I’m desperate here.” He tried for a laugh and that little pretense broke through her defenses. “I know I shouldn’t ask.”
“Never mind.” She sighed and turned off the kettle. Who was she kidding? “I’m on my way.”
She dressed in record time. When she arrived at his penthouse, he answered the door with a haggard expression and tight lips, ushering her through the door without a greeting. Not that she’d have been able to answer if he had. The man before her was not the polished, in-control Dane Bergman she knew. This man’s hair was a messy, golden tangle that flopped over his eyebrow. His strong chin was shadowed with stubble and the intimate scent of a body still warm from bed surrounded him. He had a shirt on, thank goodness, but it was a thin, soft T-shirt that revealed tan skin and well-defined muscles beneath. Fleece track pants hung low on his hips and his feet were bare.
An intriguing change from the boss image.
Not intriguing. Disturbing. How was she supposed to work with him at the office once she’d seen him like this? And why was he so nonchalant about it? It was as if it didn’t even occur to him that she might be affected, like she was “just Pam” so it didn’t matter if he greeted her half-dressed.
Well, if it doesn’t matter to him, then it doesn’t matter to me, either.
She tore her gaze away. Tell that to the jumping beans cavorting in my stomach.
“What’s the big emergency?” she asked.
“She’s in the bathroom.”
The jumping beans turned to firecrackers. “You called me here because she’s in the bathroom? I can’t believe—”
She whirled around.
He put his hands up, catching her shoulders, holding her in place. “She’s been in there a long time. I don’t know what she’s doing, and I’d like to keep it that way.”
Pamela pulled out of his grip and shook her head, ignoring the way his shirt shifted, revealing the taut belly beneath. Instead of making him seem more human, his state of undress and the strength of his hands underscored his power, his maleness.
Right. A helpless, willfully ignorant male, she told herself. He was using her.
But no. That wasn’t it. She also heard concern in his voice. Dane didn’t do things he wasn’t good at and he hated asking for help.
She sighed. “Not the way it works, Daddy. But I’ll help you out this time. Go make yourself some coffee. You look like you need it.”
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About the Author:
Stories by Roxanne Snopek are a bit like her life: dramatic, emotional and messy, with dogs, cats and other critters usually underfoot. She believes that the best heroes are cowboys under the surface, even if they deny it. She lives in beautiful British Columbia with her hero of 25 years and whatever kids and pets happen to be around.
FIND THE AUTHOR HERE: @RoxanneSnopek Facebook Website Good Reads Pinterest