Sign on the dotted line… Bateman.
Lawyer acting on behalf of Mr. Whiskey
I stare at the letter I received attached to the contract in disbelief.
A one night stand who’s now blackmailing me—the daughter of a senator!
If he thinks he can extort anything from me with his perversions, he can think again.
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4 stars!
AUDIOBOOK
I loved this forced marriage/enemies to lovers romance between Carla Star, the senator’s daughter and Corton Whiskey a sexy bad boy billionaire. Carla is feisty and fiery. She is unapologetic in her strong mindedness and I loved that about her. The two met a year ago in a bar and they have one night of too many drinks and a hookup neither one of them has forgotten about. Now one year later Whiskey is back with a little blackmail and a ton of sexual tension and a proposition Carla cannot turn down. Carla wants to push him away and hate him but her body doesn’t get the memo and is soon giving in to her attraction to him. Whiskey is the ultimate bad boy. I had a hate to love relationship with that man! For the entire book I was frustrated with him one minute and the next I couldn’t get enough of him. The chemistry and tension and was next level. So steamy and hot and the hate vibe going on between them makes for some seriously explosive bedroom scenes! Aubrey and Chance (from Cocky Bastard) are back in this story which I loved.
Teddy Hamilton and Desiree Ketchum were the perfect narrators for this story. Their voices are rich and sexy and complimented each well.
A back and forth, angst filled, and full of drama story. Whiskey is just plain hateful and of course cruel. Carla is just caught in the middle of something she doesn’t understand. I was not sure if Whiskey could redeem himself. After saying that, I liked this story.
Contracts, blackmail and one night stands. Not your typical start to a HEA but damn does it makes for a good story.
This is my top favorite CHC read to date. Revenge and collateral damage. A one night fling turned into blackmail. Whiskey and Carla have off the charts chemistry even if she doesn’t want to admit it. This book has fire, heat, love, hate, sexiness, and then some. Unique storyline and witty characters round this book out just perfectly.
I love reading T.L. Smith and seeing how she can amaze me next. This was a different read than what I am used to from her but I enjoyed it none the less. Whiskey and Carla are forced into marriage but the fireworks are lite and ready to go off! I enjoyed Carla more than I did Whiskey just because I found him a little too arrogant. It flows nicely together and is hot hot!
I was really excited for this one – I LOVE forced/blackmail marriages, enemies to lovers romances. I just wasn’t satisfied with this one though. I found myself not connecting to the characters at all, the flow wasn’t smooth for me either. It definitely had potential, just fell short for me.
Whiskey and Carla created for a fun story to read based on the premise. What can go wrong when you have a forced marriage from blackmail?? This book was a fun ride with twists and chemistry that was off the charts.
Sex tape, bribery, forced marriage, and revenge plot. Mix in some sass, hate sex, amended contracts and you have match made in heaven. The line between love and hate is very thin. Whiskey and Carla’s road to HEA will be rocky, but one hella a show.
It may be the alcohol that makes me see things, but the way he’s looking at me, it scares me. Whiskey’s staring at me the way you do at someone you love. As if he only has eyes for me. He hasn’t always looked at me like that. When did that change? How did this change? “You’re looking at me weird,” I say to him. “It’s because I’m seeing you differently, and I’m sorry it’s taken me this long.”
“You’re an awful liar. What if I inched up farther, would you be wet right now?” His hand moves and I make no move to stop him. “Yes,” I breathe, not even bothering to lie. Then I reach up on my tippy toes and whisper in his ear, “But it’s not for you.”
Cruel Beloved lived up to the title and was everything we’ve come to expect from this author. I began reading and was unable to put it down until the last page was turned. Whiskey the male character was nothing but an asshole and I couldn’t click with him. However I connected with Carla from the beginning and found myself with a heavy chest and tears in my eyes for almost the entire book. I can honestly say a book has never held this power over me before and as a result I’m left feeling emotionally drained.
Corton “Whiskey” has a well thought out agenda with nothing left to chance. A year ago he had a one night stand with the beautiful red head. It was another preconceived part of his plan, he did something deceptively cruel and holds it over her head. The terms were to marry him for a period of twelve months and then they’d divorce. It seemed simple enough to him, he’d have enough time to enact his revenge in that time and he was brutally honest with Carla that live was not a factor. During that year of absence he forgot how sassy she was, but he could remember that night and revisited it on many occasions. His friends warned him but he wouldn’t listen, this was something he had to do as revenge is a dish best served cold.
Carla was a senator’s daughter, on the surface she lived in a big house with a perfect life. It’s all about appearances though, everything within its walls are cold and calculating. No love or warm welcoming arms to be found from this family. Although she didn’t conform to the perfect daughter who was primped to flawless perfection, she tried her best to not rock the boat. Daddy wasn’t happy when she broke off with the man he thought was perfect for her. Carla wanted a love like her grandparents, that all consuming, overflowing and do anything for her kind of love. Her husband would be someone who she chose to spend the rest of her life with, because she didn’t want to be a divorcee. Unfortunately though that wasn’t in her cards, once again she was just a pawn in a cruel game…well game on buddy.
This is a fab book
Loved, loved,loved this book! Carla, a bartender, has an affair, and a year later she is blackmailed with a sex tape to marry Whiskey for a year. To protect her father’s reputation, she does it. It has appearances by Chance and Aubrey. Can these two start with hate and end in love? 5 stars
Hilarious revenge mixed with a forced marriage. When the one-night stand of a proper and almost perfect senators’ daughter with the wickedly sexy and successful businessman turns into blackmail, you know it will be funny.
Carla Star has the looks and tattoos of a gorgeous pin-up girl, yet she is very proper when it comes to family functions and what his father expects. She likes to be independent, yet she doesn’t dare to disobey the family etiquette. Embarrassed them? Never!
Corton Whiskey goes after what and who he wants. So he has no shame when he threatens to release the video of his and Carla’s steamy one-night stand if she doesn’t marry him for a year. But their attraction is evident and the chemistry is insane. And while it takes them a while to give in into their desires, their banter is hilarious. She always speaks her mind, at least when it comes to Whiskey. They both will have to make peace with the past in order to move forward.
The only thing that got a bit lost in the plot were the motives of the vendetta. They could have been stronger. But, overall, Cruel Beloved makes a fun and sexy read.
Such a great book absolutely loved it
This 5 star story is part of the Cocky Series and in correlation with Cocky Bastard. It was an highly intriguing and addicting story.
Carla is being blackmailed into marrying Corton. Little does he know the tables will turn on him
I was addicted to this amazing story from the blurb to the last page read. It was intriguing and highly entertaining. I was hooked and basically read this page turner in one sitting. A beautifully executed storyline with amazing characters. Bottomline this is a must read.
Standalone told in a dual POV with an HEA. I strongly recommend this story.
T.L. Smith is another new to me author that I am reading as part of the Cocky Hero Club books.
This is Whiskey and Carla’s story and it was quite the ride. They had a one night stand a year ago and now Whiskey has blackmailed Carla into marrying him, but why? That is what kept me reading and I thought I knew why, but I had no idea and didn’t see that twist coming. It was a well written and I thought entertaining book.
4.5 stars
Cruel beloved by T.L. Smith is one of the books featured in the Cocky Hero Club by Penelope Ward and VI Keeland.
From the moment that I started this book I was engrossed by the cocky hero and his sassy heroine. This is Whiskey and Carla’s Story.
It all started a year ago when these two met and hit it off. That night resulted in a one night stand. Fast forwarded a year later and Carla is being bribed by her one night stand. Bribed is putting it nicely more like blackmailed.
From something that starts off as a contract binding marriage simply in the ends turns out to be something neither of these two expected. They didn’t expect to find love out of this situation.
This is where the games begin, along the way, lines are blurred and feelings become involved. Hate is starting to turn a bit more into love and these two don’t know what to do about that.
Being raised as a senators daughter, isn’t easy for Carla. She’s not just the rich girl who has everything handed to her. She’s a girl with parents who couldn’t give a shit, as long as she lives up to their standards.
She’s different from the people who raised her. Whiskey can definitely see it when his around her. She really is the most beautiful woman he has ever seen and be can’t wait to pull back every layer there is of her.
The one thing I loved the most out of this book was the banter that these characters had. It was a push and pull relationship that was building each time they were near. The chemistry and connection was so intense that I felt like I was going to combust out of my seams. When they really get together, it’s an explosion of electricity that was just waiting to be sizzled together.
“Whiskey is nothing I wanted, but everything I need.
“Carla’s like ice, she’s too beautiful too touch for fear of the cold and too hard to crack.
But lucky for me, I have an ice pick. And I plan to use it on every inch of her.”
The mystery was there of why Whiskey was blackmailing her and along the way we learn small pieces of the puzzle of why. I could sort of piece it together before the secret came out but the author added her twist to it that I didn’t see coming.
I don’t want to give too much of the story as from the blurb you can sort of see where this book is going to go. Although as you read, it’s not as straight forward as you think. Prepare yourself for the unexpected. The unexpected parts are always the best parts.
This was a book I could not put down, for me it was a fast paced yet addicting and consuming book. You simply just can’t help yourself but love all aspects of this book, the thing I loved the most was the characters and of course the storyline but the characters are what I lived for.
If your into enemies to lovers with a cocky hero hiding a secret and his sassy and fiery heroine who takes no crap then this book is for you.
Cruel Beloved was another enjoyable read. I liked the the characters Carla and Corton they were both entertaining to read and enjoyed how they met. They both signed a contract that they had to agree on. Carla is the daughter of a senator and Corton is a billionaire. I enjoyed reading this book.
Senators daughter Carla decides to cut loose one night, ends up meeting a guy, lets him rock her world and then goes back to her life thinking she’ll never see her one night stand again. A year later she’s delivered a contract, she’s to be married and to make things even worse she’s marrying her one night stand. I felt for Carla, she’s a likeable character and she’s not afraid to fight back. She’s feisty and I like that.
Colton Whiskey has an agenda. He won’t tell Carla what it is but he is going to get his way. These two have some great banter and some intense chemistry between them, they really do have a love hate thing going on and I loved it.
This is another great book from Ms Smith that’s got secrets galore and plenty of twists to keep you on your toes.
Fast paced and jumps right in. A lot of back and forth between Whiskey and Carla. Major chemistry. While the H comes off as a total a$$h@le through most of the book he really does have a soft center especially for his Rich Girl.
I was intrigued to see Smith write in the Cocky world because her books can be so much darker and twisted while the Cocky books are emotional but more on the light hearted side. But what was achieved is a brilliant combination of the two. I was blown away by the story and the concept and how it all plays out in the long run. You have Whiskey who is bent on revenge. You have Carla who really doesn’t want a thing to do with her family and is an unwitting pawn in Whiskey’s plan. What you get is this stunning roller coaster of raw emotions, painful moments and brilliantly swoon worthy moments. This one may not be for everyone because it is more on the twisted side, but the combination to me was a stunning one. I devoured it, wanting to know more and get the answers. But the way love crept up on these two was spell binding! Great addition to the Cocky Hero world!