He’s as ruthless in business as he is in the bedroom… Years ago, I was burned by a woman.I forgave, but I haven’t forgotten, and it’s a road I’ll never go down again.My career has become my life instead. I’m Max Graham, the biggest music agent in the business. Women love me, but I don’t do love anymore. I’ve found another way to meet my needs.Eve Kennedy—stylist to the stars and total … needs.
Eve Kennedy—stylist to the stars and total bombshell. By far, she’s the most daring woman I’ve ever had in my bed with a sexual appetite as ferocious as mine.
We might just have the hottest sex life in Miami and LA.
We don’t date anyone else—although, sometimes, we invite someone for a night. We travel the world, and I lavish her with gifts. But she knows my career comes first.
And the best part? For the past two years, she’s been happy with our arrangement.
Or so I thought.
I’ve survived heartbreak once before, but this one could be the end of me.
There are four stand-alone books in this series:
Signed — Brett’s Book
Endorsed — Jack’s Book
Contracted — Max’s Book
Negotiated — Scarlett’s Novellamore
Contracted by Marni Mann – 5 stars
Third book in this incredibly sexy and entertaining series and it was as breathtaking as previous two.
All books can be read as standalones but I strongly suggest that you read them all because they are just that amazing and deserve all the attention possible.
Marni Mann had proved herself with each book I’ve read and is clearly one of my favorites.
Max and Eve are super sexy couple that had this dreamy no strings attached relationship many desires.
But as in other cases there comes a time when one part starts to desire something more than just hot times and that’s when it gets tricky.
I enjoyed reading this book very very much and just by writing this review I want to read it all over again.
Can’t wait for audiobook to come out.
My emotions were all over the place and heart got pretty heavy many times.
So now that you’ve reached the end of this short but hopefully sweet review get on with one-clicking and start reading for yourselves.
Oh hell. I knew Max wasn’t going to make this easy. I was anxious for like 80% of the story. Especially that beginning (not the first meeting but the current time of the story beginning). I just didn’t know where it was going to go and for some reason I wasn’t all that happy. Don’t get me wrong, that is one of my favorite type of porn to watch, for for Max and Eve I don’t know it didn’t sit well.
Max has his head so far up his ass for most of this story. I was surprised not even the arc of it woke him up. Then the whole ex thing and my damn nerves were SHOT. But I should know to trust Marni in all things. Well maybe not ALL THINGS, I mean read Animal and Monster, maybe I shouldn’t trust her at all. Maybe that was it. Maybe I had those things in my head and knew she could go fuck it all up on us just because she could and has in the past. Damn great authors do shit like that.
I can’t wait for Scarlett’s book. She better be on kick ass heroine. Nothing wimpy over some damn man making her go lose all her strength.
Now to figure out how to tame this damn review so the ‘zon will let it through.
Holy forking shirt this one is so hot. I don’t smoke anymore but I feel like a need a cigarette to basked in the after glow with these two. I really liked Max and Eve in the previous books and oh my stars, these two have some serious freaking hot chemistry together. I’ve really enjoyed all the books so far with these sexy couples with The Agency. I’m moving on to the next one!
Passion into love sometimes has a bumpy road
Loved it. Max is sexy, dominant, a bit stubborn, and sometimes a wee bit slow to realize what’s in front of him. Eve is smart, sexy, knows what she wants, and decides she won’t settle for less. I love the journey from hot hook ups to more. And all so steamy!
WARNING!!! This is not a trigger warning….this is a hotness warning!!! This book is a scorcher!!! If sex scenes bother you, or if you can’t handle sexy talk….this is not the book for you. (Plus there is a sexy surprise in the book, one that I was not prepared for, but it was AMAZING and you will know what I am talking about when you read the book)
Max and Eve have a story that has been told before. Two people with a friends-with-benefits kind of relationship. No feelings. Just sex and good times. But we know how that works out…it doesn’t. But Marni tells the story in a different way.
Max is a workaholic. Being part or a huge company makes him a busy man. Eve is equally as busy being a stylist to the stars. But the main difference in the two of them is Eve makes time for Max. She makes sure she sees him when she can. Max on the other hand doesn’t.
But what happens when Eve’s feeling start to catch up with her? What happens when Eve starts to want MORE?
Will Max do the right thing? Will he lose what he never realized he had? Or will he realize what he had but too late?
Marni write this book perfectly. She has just the right about of sexiness mixed with emotions and feelings. Marni continues to surprise me with her work.
I am not impatiently waiting for Scarlett’s story. I have a feeling it’s going to be a good one!!
A great installment in this The Agency series! I didn’t feel much for Max in previous books, but in this one, I really liked him, even if he was somewhat clueless with “what women want”. A past experience had soured him on romance, and that carried on to his relation with Eve. It was great to read about Max’s growing up pains!
Eve Kennedy is the fashion stylist to stars, she has worked hard to rise and get her business established. Her friendship with James Ryne has helped solidify her status. She’s enjoying success and also enjoying Max. They have been together for two years, exclusive and hot going for each other. They both disdain marriage and kids, and it has worked perfect for them these past two years. Except that Eve fell for Max, hard, and now she wants more…
Max is very ambitious. He works the music performers part of The Agency and he has a lot of clients to handle, plus is on his way to get more. They are opening another branch of the Agency in Hollywood, so there will be a lot of work and a lot of trips. At the moment, Max and Eve meet up every two or three weeks, but now they are both so busy with work it has gone down to three weeks or more. With the new branch, Max has warned Eve that they will have to go down on their meets to once a month. And when Eve hints at wanting more, Max balks…
Max hates California with a vengeance. He had a previous relation in Cali that was serious and headed to marriage and ended badly. This soured Max on marriage and commitment and Eve is getting the short end of what Max is capable to give. Eve’s business is based in California so she can’t relocate. And when Max’s past comes into his present, all hell breaks loose.
I loved both characters, they are both ambitious, great friends, passionate and kinky. I felt that Max had been in love with Eve all the time, but he was deluded in that he could prioritize work first and Eve would understand her second place because she was as busy and ambitious as him. He saw his business partners enjoying their relations with their women, giving time to their relations, and he just didn’t get it. He was too busy, too many trips, too much to do. He just didn’t understand how they did it. Wow, he had a lot of growing up to do!
Eve loved with her whole heart. She was generous with her body and her heart until she felt she was spiraling down into self-destruct letting Max call the shots. She was clear on what she wanted and Max was clear on what he didn’t want.
This book was very riveting, great pace and great writing. I really enjoyed reading Max’s and Eve’s journey to each other and love.
There is not much I cannot say about this book it is HOT, sexy, angsty, intriguing, and just plain WONDERFUL! Marni Mann This whole series is, but they can all be read as standalones. I promise if you start at Signed, you will not want to stop there… these are the best books ever… I think Contracted has hit my #1 Marni Mann book of all time, and that is saying a LOT since I’ve read them all. Now, I have changed my reviews to not give anything away of the story, but I can tell you that Max and his sexy ways and Eve with her little surprises are just OUT OF THIS WORLD!!
A sexy and exhilarating contemporary romance that has all the feels and more…
I was so excited for Contracted, since I first met Max and Eve in Signed. I absolutely love this series. Well, I don’t think it’s an actual series but they are interconnected standalones. Marni Mann really has a way of turning romance into so much more. I love that she doesn’t keep it light, but at the same time this is such an easy read. It’s so hot too. Like, really hot. I just couldn’t put it down. I was swallowed whole from the moment I went in and when it ended, I still couldn’t stop thinking about this story.
The plot itself isn’t your usual friends with benefits trope. There is a lot more that lies beneath the surface and with the other characters that I’d already grown to love thrown in the mix and their stories developing in the background it was just such a fast paced and electrifying read. Saying that, Max and Eve’s story never leaves the spotlight, and to me that is just some brilliant plot management on Ms. Mann’s part. Her writing is sublime and sexy, it has this beautiful draw and pull that has you hanging on her every word. I also really liked that as far as romances go, that it didn’t follow your usual structure. Max and Eve are already in a sort of relationship at the beginning and the story itself is about them building on it and taking it to a more serious level. You would’ve thought that the way the pair of them feel about each other would’ve made their journey straightforward and easy going, but you would be very wrong. There are twists and turns that for hurdles and that go against their grain. All I can say is that this was a really original storyline.
The characters themselves were a delight to get to know on a personal level. I liked that Eve was strong and feisty, but at the same time she still had elements that made her a soft and easily empathiseable romance heroine. Yes, she has an element of stubbornness and for e that just made me want to get to dig deeper and unearth her reasons for being the way she was. I’d be lying if I said that there weren’t times that I found her infuriating, because there were a couple of times that I want to reach into my kindle and slap some sense into her. But then again, I was more than ready to do the same with Max. I never once doubted that his feelings for Eve were genuine, the real deal, but due to his past he has trouble recognising those feelings that were hurt before. He is a very much alpha male and although he is painted as a bit of a playboy, i actually didn’t see him that way. He is faithful to Eve even though they aren’t in a proper relationship. At least not according to them, but as a reader, I found their relationship to be real and genuine. I think for me that’s what made this story so good, it was about them realising that despite their rules and boundaries, that they were actually in a loving relationship…with quirks of course.
Honestly, I just adored Contracted. It had all the feels and more. It took me on an unexpected and exhilarating rollercoaster ride, and when it came to an end I really just wanted to jump on again. This is a perfect summer read, and one that I will be lounging around the pool with during my holiday. I cannot convey just how much I loved it, all I can say is that this is a book that you will be bummed to miss.
I am hooked with this series!
I am always looking forward to the next installment in this series because I want to know what’s going on with each individual working at this agency. Since we had some glimpses of Max and Eve in the last two books, I was anxious to find out what their story was going to be like.
Even though Max and Eve had a great relationship (with no strings attached) they did feel more for each other but weren’t ready to express how they really felt. Well at least Max wasn’t since he had been burned before, he wasn’t looking for anything serious but it seems like things were starting to get a little more intense and serious between him and Eve especially since his buddies and her friend had already settled down.
Well what happens when one of them gives the other an ultimatum. Fast and easy wasn’t enough anymore, at least not for Eve. So Max had to make a decision, a decision that will forever change both their lives. Either they make things official or they go their separate ways.
This whole series has been nothing short of spectacular. I think every book just keeps getting better and better.
I love Marni Mann and her writing always has me hooked!
Contracted by Marni Mann was a sexy, hot entertaining erotic romance with angst thrown into the mix. Mann entices readers to be drawn to her main characters as they are engaged in a sexual relationship that works but what happens when a no strings attached romance leads to one of them developing feelings. So can two sexually perfectly compatible couple make it work? Or will one discover to walk away before one hearts gets broken? So if you are looking for a romance that is full of heat, sex, angst and eroticism then this book is for you.
I received a copy of this book from the publisher/author to review for Stephanie’s Book Reports.
Years ago, I was burned by a woman. I forgave, but I haven’t forgotten, and it’s a road I’ll never go down again. My career has become my life instead. I’m Max Graham, the biggest music agent in the business. Women love me, but I don’t do love anymore. I’ve found another way to meet my needs. Eve Kennedy-stylist to the stars and total bombshell. By far, she’s the most daring woman I’ve ever had in my bed with a sexual appetite as ferocious as mine. We might just have the hottest sex life in Miami and LA. We don’t date anyone else-although, sometimes, we invite someone for a night. We travel the world, and I lavish her with gifts. But she knows my career comes first. And the best part? For the past two years, she’s been happy with our arrangement. Or so I thought. I’ve survived heartbreak once before, but this one could be the end of me.
I knew from the moment I met Max in Signed that he would have quiet the story to tell. Max is a partner with The Agency and works in the music industry. He is the top agent in his field actually and is getting ready to have his client sign the highest paid country music star contract that has ever been. Max is hard working and dedicated to his job and has not time nor does he ever intend to fall in love again. He was burned once by the woman he was engaged to when she cheated on him and they broke off their engagement. He swore then he would never fall in love or do a relationship again. When he meets Eve Kennedy, stylist to James’s Ryne the top actress in Hollywood and the fiancé of his best friend, they have such amazing chemistry that you will feel it melting off your kindle. For the last two years they have worked around their schedules and made time for each other. They don’t date but she does attend events with Max in Miami and he comes to LA where Eve is busy as a stylist for the stars. They both are career oriented and their arrangement works just fine for them. However after a conversation with James the word “More” will not get out of Eve’s head. She wants more. She wants the wedding and the babies and Max is not someone who is willing to give that to anyone. Don’t the past two years mean anything to him? You have to read to find out. I don’t want to ruin this for anyone. If you have not read this any books in this series, I would suggest that you go to the beginning and start there, though each book can be read as a standalone. However all the characters that make up the books in this series have all the characters in them and Contracted would be the third such book. I loved these characters so much. I was actually sad to finish this book. Max and Eve are one of the hottest couples that I have read about in a good long while. There is no way that you won’t fall in love with them too. Do not miss this book or your missing one of the best books that I have read this year.
Let me preface this by saying I gave this book 5 out of 5 wine glasses because in the end and overall, it is FANTASTIC! That being said I struggled with the book for multiple reasons, but for me, the best books are the ones that give me a hard time in certain ways. I enjoyed Contracted almost as much as I did Signed and way more than I did Endorsed, so there’s that too. I was honestly super curious as to how Marni Mann was going to expound on Max and Eve’s relationship since we already saw them established as a couple in the previous books, but she did a spectacular job of making the story engaging and one that I simply could not put down. I even had to seek out a friend to talk me through about halfway into the story! I loved Eve and how bold, strong, and adventurous she was and I especially loved how she gained the courage to go after what she wanted and accept nothing less than that, even when it was difficult. And Max… Sexy, dominant, alpha, EMOTIONALLY STUNTED Max! He drove me NUTS!!!!! It was as if he was out of touch with reality and oblivious to the clear emotional cues that Eve was sending. And, yes, he suffered heartbreak in his past, but come on man! On the flipside, it was his dysfunction and his friend’s efforts to talk him out of his idiocy that really touched my soul and sparked an epiphany for me and a situation/person in my own life – so based on that bit alone, I have to give this a high rating. I place a high value on books and authors that serve as a mirror for me and Contracted definitely was that. Plus the sex was FIRE and Max did a helluva job redeeming himself in the end. I can’t wait for Scarlett’s story! 5 out of 5 wine glasses.
Ms mann has written a great story
eve and max make the perfect characters for this story!
I devoured this book.
Received in exchange for a honest review
Max killed me. I loved him in endorsed I did but here he killed me When you read why he is so blind and adamant when it comes to his feelings and more with Eve it slays you. Poor guy but what you don’t expect and what Marni is good at doing is having you feel for him while wanting to slap him upside the head for his stupidity.
Eve is awesome. She sticks by her decision even though she knows it hurts her heart. She stands by what she wants and doesn’t waver. It hurts her but she does it. NOt because she doesn’t love Max but because she knows she deserves more and Max needs the time to figure things out. Now granted it is at that moment you want to hug and whack Max for you can see he is thinking of Eve’s career and what she may regret and you see he loves her but you also see that he is running like a scared rabbit. So he endears you and frustrates you at the same time. Eve though sticks to her guns and is better for it in the end. She grows and blossoms. She finds her strength and her worth. She misses Max but also in the end gets a better Max. Don’t get me wrong there were times she will frustrate- like when she makes assumptions but overall she rocks. Marni has created a rockin female that you just admire for her strength, tenacity and wanting to put her own worth first.
The story is entertaining and sexy. Strong and that scene with Lucy and the little suit adorable. That was to me Max’s breaking point. You see that he has that epiphany and works on himself. You see growth and understanding. Love and pain but friends that are loyal and have both their backs.
This is a great addition to this series and Marni balances having both Eve’s and Max’s views nicely while giving us the whole picture through their eyes and watching the tale unfold. A tale of fear and locking up your heart in fear of losing yourself again. A tale of wanting more and not accepting anything less and a story of learning who you are and where you are meant to be and working on getting it. The romance is sexy and strong but the characters drive the story with their feelings and journey. So glad Max figures it out in the end. Another wonderful ending and sexy fun story from Marni
So it took me a bit to finish this one. I had to put it down for a bit because I was so mad at Max I wanted to throw my kindle. I wish it hadn’t taken him so long to get his head out of his rear. I loved Eve she was a strong and feisty woman who knew what she wanted and when Max refused she sent him packing. I loved them together I wish they hadn’t had to go through all the heartache to get their HEA.
Also love that we get to see all the other characters that we have already read in the previous books. This was a good read and look forward to Scarletts story.
Eve Kennedy wanted to hear 3 little words from Max Graham, but he wouldn’t say them. She left him went to another country and he let her go. It took time, distance, but mostly a little girl to realize he could say the words mean them and get his HEA.
A pretty good read.
The book started out good, main characters were strong and confident. Not too far into the book did my perspective change. The Hero took on a ‘take it or leave it’ attitude which left me feeling like he didn’t have much depth. Through out the story he denies his feelings, then at an odd point the Hero does a 180. From that point the story feels rushed and without much more story line ends in a HEA.
I loved the Agency Series. Couldn’t put them down. You’ll love the books
You know it’s a great book when it makes you just feel! Whether it’s anger at the character, or sadness, or makes you want to fist pump when something works out! This author most definitely did that with this book! Loved!