Bad Beat: A hand in which a player with strong cards is unexpectedly beaten by a lucky draw. Nico Conti has never regretted joining the family business. Through hard work, loyalty, ruthlessness, and dedication, he earned his rank as Capo and his army of soldiers. With the life he leads, a good woman is not in the cards—until one comes along and turns his world upside down.Olivia Miller’s … down.
Olivia Miller’s childhood was anything but conventional. Raised in a brothel, her mother protected Olivia from that life until she became sick. Now Olivia must be the protector.
Taken as collateral by Nico Conti in a business dispute between families, Olivia is desperate to get home—until Nico makes her an offer she can’t refuse.
Or can she?
Because to save the one she loves most, Olivia will need to ignore the sacrifices made for her and barter herself to the man who holds her future in his hands.
Author’s note:
This is a full-length, steamy, contemporary romance novel without a cliffhanger. It is part of a series, but each book is a stand-alone centering on new main characters. Due to sex, language, and violence it is recommended for persons over 18.*** HEA ***
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This book was amazing! The instant love between Olivia & Nico, both so different lives coming to one. Why protected naive Olivia & dangerous tough Nico ever fell in love had you asking at first, but as the story goes on you know in your heart why. A true love story that pulled your heart strings! Couldn’t put it down in the last half!
‘Bad beat’ is the second book in ‘The gamblers’ series but it can perfectly be read as a standalone. However, the readers who have read the first book ‘All in’ will recognize the main male character Nico because he was also a secondary character in that story. And even as a secondary character he made a big impression on me, so I couldn’t wait to read his story.
Let me start by saying that I enjoyed the story, although the story itself was a bit of a contradiction. Because although this was a mafia story, it wasn’t a dark one, quite the opposite, the word ‘sweet’ even comes to mind. Don’t get me wrong, Nico was 100% an alpha mafia guy, he went very far in protecting his mafia family and Olivia. He killed for them. But there was also a sweet, soft undertone to the story. I think part of that was because of Olivia’s sweet, caring character and the gentle way that Nico treated her. I really loved how their relationship was. After he discovered that she was an innocent, he treated her with care and he loved spoiling her.
Although Nico and Olivia were total opposite in character (Nico was cold, dominant, arrogant and Olivia was innocent, warm and friendly) but they had one thing in common. They both had an unusual upbringing. Nico because of his mafia family and Olivia because she was brought up in a brothel (her mother worked there). And even though Olivia’s mother protected her as much as she could, Olivia was still aware what was happening in her surroundings. This made that Olivia was very mature in some ways (even though she was young) but in other ways she was also very innocent.
But this made Olivia and Nico perfect for each other. Just like Olivia’s mother, Nico protected Olivia against the hard world, he became her protector and Olivia accepted Nico just like he was. A man who hid a good heart beneath his hard exterior, he was loyal, very protective and gentle to her but he also had a ruthless side, he did ‘bad’ things, things that were better not to talk about. Olivia had learned that lesson in her childhood. Deep down they were just two people looking for love and they found that and more with each other.
The story is told in both POV’s, the sex scenes were steamy. There was no cheating in the book.
I enjoyed this story and I will definitely read the next book in the series.
This book is only my 4th book by Sarah Curtis and they are still so good! I do have to be honest though and say Nico is my least favorite of the four (#1 Jackson, #2 Marco, and #3 Alec). I think what made him at the bottom was he was just so cold in the beginning. I totally get why he is the way he is since he is the son of the mob boss and who was also getting ready to take over, but with the others I felt more with them. Don’t get me wrong, after time passed, he was all in with Olivia, but I felt more of a connection with the other three.
As for Olivia, she was a sheltered and sweet daughter of a prostitute, but she had such strength in her. Her mother tried to protect her as much as she could but when she became ill, Olivia became fair game. Fortunately, or unfortunately in the beginning, Nico comes along and kidnaps her and keeps her as collateral. As payment for a favor to Olivia, he expected sex. There was a bit of a surprise for Nico that night. It was from here I think feelings started to change for Nico. He felt the connection with Olivia that first night but he didn’t believe it, but when he found out what was in store for Olivia if he returns her, he offers her a surprising resolution.
Even though I mentioned Nico was my least favorite, he is still a Sarah Curtis alpha and they all have some awesomeness in them. Nico could be such a sweet and protective alpha and he was also surprisingly funny, I loved his take on brussel sprouts, he finds them cowardly!! And when he realizes his feelings towards Olivia was changing, he was willing to do whatever he could to make her happy. It really was swoon-worthy. And the sexy times between these two were hot!
There was a bit of suspense in this book, but nothing angsty.
All in all a great read. And again the epilogue was just awesome!!