What happens when a woman who’s done the unthinkable needs protection—can a man who’s lost his belief in humanity keep her safe?Max Brown doesn’t trust anyone but his team. The former SEAL learned early in life that people let you down—they lie, they steal, and they lie some more. Love is a word that is used to manipulate. Family is meaningless. Max is an island and he prefers it that way.A woman … way.
A woman who needs a safe harbor—but is undeserving.
Cyber genius, John “Tex” Keegan rescued Eva Dawson, a single mother who was forced to do something inconceivable to save her children. Tex somehow sees the good in her when no one else does. She is redeemable. Now, just when she’s getting her life back together someone wants her dead. Tex calls in the Gold Team to help—specifically Max Brown, the man with a past that mirrors that of Eva’s.
A past that clouds the present.
Tex has a plan—he always does. But neither the protector nor woman who’s been marked for death make it easy. Neither of them trust and both will fight to stay in control. If Tex can keep them both alive long enough, he knows the duo is the perfect pair—each of them will be what the other needs to heal the sins of the past.
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An absolute wild ride. Eva did something bad, she left two people to die in the wilderness of Alaska. Tex set her up in Florida after that debacle with her two kids. She’s barely surviving. Max is assigned to shadow Eva and he hates the assignment, as it was his friend that she left to die. They have to trek up to Maryland from Florida and she’s a mama bear about her kids not knowing why they are moving again. He keeps telling himself that she has to remain the villain for his own peace of mind, but all the things she’s done, it’s hard. Especially when she and her kids say prayers for Mark, Zoey and Tex every night. He confronts Eva about this and she says that she needs to hear their names so that she hurts and that she deserves pain, and it’s her penance. She thinks she doesn’t get to be “okay” after what she’s done. The whole Gold team eventually gets involved, even Zane (and he’s his hilarious self, as usual), even Captain Underpants. You can hear a pin drop after Gold Team hears Liam say that they pray for Mark, Zoey and Tex every day. Zoey also has a great right hook, but you’ll have to read to find out who she hits. Oh yeah, and the best part, Tex is a “commando cupid”.
There’s twists and turns galore and I went so many emotions with this story of Mark and Eva. You won’t be disappointed when you read this book. I certainly wasn’t and I can’t say enough about this author and all her stories. They are spectacular. Ms. Riley is a one-click author for me.
I received this advanced readers copy in exchange for an honest review.
What you need to know before you read this book: it is full of emotion, it pours out of every page; you will smile, laugh and cry. And beware you will have a really hard time stopping reading it…you maybe should leave to read it on a Friday night….
Max is strong, alpha, but emotionally cold. He simply gave up. His family is his team and he doesn´t need anything or anymore. Until Eva is put – literally, by Rex – in his life. They struggle, they fight fears and traumas, but finally, they decide to do it together.
A beautiful story, strong characters, a must read!
Max doesn’t trust anyone but his team, and he certainly doesn’t trust the woman who tried to kill a friend. But Tex (and we have a real treat in this book with LOTS of Tex time) has identified that Eva Dawson is in danger, and Max is tasked to protect her and her sons. Constantly reminding himself of her betrayal, he still finds himself getting closer to her and to her sons, seeing so much of his own childhood mirrored in the abuse suffered by Liam in particular. This is an unraveling of Max’s trust issues, of Eva’s determination that she is unworthy, and an ending that will leave you both in tears and rejoicing. And a final chapter that will really make you come unglued!
I received a free copy of this book via Booksprout and am voluntarily leaving a review.
Wow that’s all I can say! When life kicks you down and you can’t trust anyone but your team. Max is assigned to protect Eva and her 2 boys by Tex. [Gotta love Tex that man can get anything done] it’s a page turner you won’t want to put down! Can these two come together and trust each other? Will they have a HEA? Tex knows what he’s doing brining these two together. Get the book and find out you won’t be disappointed! Riley does it again can’t wait for Declan’s book!
I once read an allegory years ago about a traveler who endured much to get to a land of joy. I felt a bit like I was on that journey again with Max and Eva. This story, while much the same as Riley’s previous works, alpha hero, wonderful heroine, suspenseful action, romance, great backstory, and swoon-worthy ending; it was at the same time different. We all witnessed Eva’s mistakes in an earlier book, but now we know the rest of the story.
Guilt and shame. Those two traveling companions can genuinely be annoying and soul-sucking traveling companions. When the choices you have made come back nightly to haunt your waking and sleeping hours, the toll on your psyche is brutal. Throw in an inability to trust, and it does not surprise the damage we can do to ourselves when we fail to let go. Max and Eva needed to learn to let go. Unfortunately, they could not see this; fortunately, Tex (yay TEX!) could. Thank you (beloved) authors, for keeping this vital thread that is Tex continually threading through stories and series that only stitch us up tighter to these unforgettable characters. Now, where was I? Oh yes, Max and Eva. Without giving anything away, watching the renaissance of good things in these two is more than worth the read.
You need to read this book for many reasons:
1. It’s the next to last book in the Gold Team series, and it leaves us with several enticing things for the future.
2. We get to see Red team members and other Gold team members with their usual banter that we all love.
3. Watching those two nasty traveling companions of guilt and shame get changed into joy and happiness (darn that right there is a 2-crying pillow thing), is worth everything.
4. Max and Eva. I’m so glad that Tex convinced Riley that these two were perfect for each other.
5. Cross-overs.
6.Declan.
7. Blue Team
8.Kyle and Anaya.
9.The power of prayer and forgiveness that runs all through this book. It spoke loudly and lovingly.
10. Tex. That. Is. All.
This is a great action packed, suspense filled book that grabs you right from the beginning and doesn’t let you go until you’ve read the entire thing. Eva has had a hard life. She was forced to choose between trying to protect her two sons and committing a crime by stranding a couple in the middle of Nowhere Alaska. She and her sons were saved by Tex and relocated to Florida. There is now a problem though and someone has put a hit out on Eva. Tex sends Max from Z Corps to the rescue. He is brash and rude and he and Eva butt heads right off. Max has his own set of problems but when he sees Eva with her boys he softens. He never had that kind of love growing up. Max is tasked with getting Eva to a safe house in Maryland while Tex tries to figure out who put the hit out and who the hitman is. Along the way there is an attempt on their lives. This book has an explosion, abduction, a road trip with kids, cute kids, forgiveness, letting go of the past, learning to trust and love.
So many twists and turns, I almost have myself whiplash keeping up with Riley Edwards story telling. I never saw the climax coming. I was totally surprised. Excellent romantic suspense. By far the best book in this series.
I received a free copy of this book via Booksprout and am voluntarily leaving a review.
I love reading a Riley Edwards novel because I get to immerse myself in a fabulous story the is written intelligently, filled with deep emotions that are fully explored and has amazing characters who are richly complex and thoroughly likeable. Z Corps Gold team members and their women are present in Maximus and Tex plays a prominent role. There’s some mystery, suspense, danger and white hot sexiness. But, above all this is a love story between two people whose lives have been everything but sunshine, rainbows and roses.
Max and Eva’s debilitating and destructive pasts make them kindred spirits and uniquely matched to one another. Life has left them both distrustful. Love is not a word in either of their vocabularies especially since neither one of them have ever been recipients of that emotion. Now they are thrown together by a perilous threat and it will become a life altering experience for each of them.
OMG! What a story! I have read every book in the Gold Team series as well as most of Riley Edwards other books and this series just keeps getting better and better! If you have been reading the series you know that Max is a skeptical, tight lipped, grouchy team member. He trusts few into his inner circle and even those few don’t know his whole story. When he is assigned to protect a woman and her two young sons by Tex, livid doesn’t even begin to describe his feelings. One thing we all know about Tex is that than man knows what he is doing. How…who knows but Tex knows all! Eva has had a rough life and in doing so has made some poor decisions but as any mother knows, we would do anything for our children’s safety and even if it meant doing something wrong, we would probably do it to protect them. That is what Eva did in her past and now Tex has settled her into a quiet, safe life in Florida until one day Max turns up on her doorstep and shatters her illusion of safety. The last thing that Eva wants is some man coming into her and her sons lives and uprooting them from their new normal no matter how insistent he is that it is a matter of life and death! I could go on and on about Max and Eva’s story but that would ruin the reading experience for you so just know that these two jaded people are going to have to work together to keep Eva’s past from coming back to destroy her and her young sons. Maximus stands alone in the Gold team series however I recommend reading those books so that you get to know all of the connecting characters and as with all the other books in the series it is told from dual POV and has an over the top alpha male, a woman with a spine of steel that refuses to bend, heat, angst and lots of love!