There had been a time, I’d been happy—blissfully happy—then a single act of brutality tore Thaddeus Bench from my life. But not from my heart. I never thought I’d see him again. But I did. In a cantina in Mexico. And when he looked over at me with so much hatred in his stare, it pulverized what was left of my heart.Emerson Pierce was my own personal hell. The agony of her betrayal still as sharp … still as sharp as it was the day I’d come home and found her gone. I’d spent years doing whatever I could not to think about her. To stop myself from wondering where she was and why she’d left me.
Now my team needs answers from her to stop a criminal mastermind and I can’t trust a damn thing that comes out of her pretty mouth. Emerson’s no longer the sweet girl I fell for, she’s the girlfriend of a notorious drug runner and dog fighter. Or at least that’s what I thought until her lies unravel and the truth explodes.
Nothing about Emerson was what it seemed. Nothing about our latest mission was easy. But one thing is for sure…I will save Emerson Pierce, even from herself.
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Another 5 star read from Riley Edwards! This story revolves around some pretty deep issues such as kidnapping, trafficking, and rape. It’s never easy to read about and this author does an exceptional job of portraying each character’s feelings. My heart broke for Emerson, and maybe more for her sister. No human should endure what she went through. Thaddeus lived his dream of becoming a SEAL and working for Z Corps, but never really got over losing Emerson. For all the hard topics being dealt with there was much comic relief in the banter between Thad and his teammates. I definitely recommend and am anxiously waiting for the next!
I don’t know where to begin with this book, Riley Edwards knocked it out of the park with this story
Grab your tissues because you’re definitely going to need it.
The storyline is brilliant, there are some surprises that will have you on the edge of your seat.
Thaddeus and Emerson will blow you away. Emerson’s strength and passion was written so beautifully.
This is definitely one of my favorite books written by Riley Edwards
Thaddeus is one of those books that touched all my emotions and kept me engrossed in both the storyline and characters from start to finish. Ms. Riley’s writing style definitely shines through with this amazing, suspenseful, tormented yet romantic book. (And trust me when I say, those adjectives do not come even close to describing this storyline)
Thaddeus met Emerson when he was in BUD/s.
He thought he had found “the one”. Not only was she the love of his life, she had a way of keeping him focused and grounded while surviving the rigorous training. But while out on a mission he came home to find her gone. No explanation just gone. He’s never truly gotten over her but now it, mostly just anger he feels. Well that is until years later he sees her in Mexico with the very bad man he and his team have been sent to deal with. Little does he know, Emerson left him years ago due to her sister’s disappearance and she has been tracking down leads ever since. .
But now they need to work together to bring down one of the largest sex trafficking rings. Can they put their past aside in order to keep their eyes on the mission and not cost anyone their lives?
This is a very intense, gut wrenching, suspense that kept me glued to the pages. The book is written so that you can’t help but feel every heartbreaking and/or heartwarming moments.
I HIGHLY RECOMMEND grabbing this one up ASAP, you won’t regret it. It’s an outstanding 5 Star read. 2 Thumbs Up!!!
A second chance romance with pleanty of action, suspense and a couple of sub plots that have me looking forward to the next book. Thad and Emerson have a long, rocky road to reconnect after a decade apart, a task that is complicated by secrets and hurt feelings. A well written book that had me restraining myself to keep from peeking at the end. Enjoy!
Ups, downs, twists, turns, suspense, romance and a cast of characters to love
Thaddeus Bench and his Gold Team brothers from Z Corps are deep in the dark world of human trafficking and other vile crimes when his past opens a door into his present.
Ten years earlier, Emerson Pierce disappeared from their home with no explanation and now shows up in the company of some of the world’s worst criminals.
Past and present combine to add twists and turns to an already difficult mission. A mission that will keep readers turning pages from start to finish.
Let me begin by saying that this is not an easy book for me to read. Not because it was badly written, infact, this is just the opposite. Riley Edwards is one hell of a writer, however with Thaddeus, Ms Riley just raised up the bar even higher. This book is gets down to the horrific subject of sex slaves, kidnapping, rape and its after affects. It grips you so hard, sucker punch you and as the reader, you get sucked into its storyline. It left me in tears and it frustrates me at the same time.
Emerson Pierce is one tough heroine, I don’t agree with the decisions but I don’t dislike her for it. Thaddeus can be one mean son-of-a-bitch when it comes to Emerson but who can blame it? This is a story of love lost and second chances. It is very rare that Ms Riley gets wrong with her main characters and I’m so relieved that she wrote Emerson and Thaddeus so brilliantly. You feel their push and pull as you flip through the pages.
A definite must read to all Riley Edward fans or if you’re looking for a book with great world building, strong main characters and engaging side characters. This book is a standalone, however I do recommend reading from Book 1 so that you get to have the full experience of the Gold Team.
Have you ever entered a room and felt an electrical charge from being near someone? An intensity so strong, you have to look around & identify it? That’s exactly what Thaddeus felt when he realized Emerson, the woman who unexpectedly left him during SEAL training, is sitting near him at a restaurant in Mexico. Their eyes lock and Thaddeus knows Emerson has not forgotten him over the last ten years, especially when he sees her bold tattoo across her back proclaiming his name in Greek as she walks away. Thaddeus can’t begin to understand how his sweet girl next door lover has transformed into a high society arm candy for a low life dog fighter & human trafficker no less. Later, Thaddeus is on an Op to take out the bad news boyfriend and Emerson is caught up in the middle of it. Thaddeus kidnaps Emerson to keep her safe and demands an explanation, but Emerson won’t budge. The gold team, slowly but surely, gets Emerson to open up about her reason for being in her current situation. When Thaddeus learns the truth, he’s consumed by his emotions. In their time apart, Emerson has been searching for someone and she’s been relentless in her pursuit to find them, even though it cost her her relationship with Thaddeus. Thaddeus struggles to keep his emotions locked up and focus on the mission. His mind often wanders to Emerson.
As his heart bleeds, Thaddeus cuts Emerson deeply, a reflection of the pain she caused when she left him. The couple spends numerous moments working through past hurts & irrational fears of the present. As Thaddeus spends more time with Emerson, he begins to see the woman he fell in love with – the real Emerson. Thaddeus begs Emerson to give them a chance at love again if she will only believe & he’ll do everything else. He makes her promise to never leave him again. She promises to do both. As their new relationship grows quickly & their passion is re-kindled, they decide to get married. But there are dark unknown forces at work and it will take all of Thaddeus’s training & instinct to get them down the aisle to wedded bliss.
Author Riley Edwards stuns readers in Thaddeus, the suspenseful new addition to the Gold Team. This book pulls several hard punches and reminds us of the often cruel, ugly world we live in. From dog fighting to human trafficking, Gold Team gets a front row seat to these harsh realities. It made me so heartbroken for the innocent people who are caught up in human trafficking and the animals that are tortured into learning to fight each other to the death in the ugly world of dog fighting. This book was an emotional read and required several tissues to be on hand. Riley Edwards created beautiful moments between Thaddeus and Emerson even in the mist of human tragedy. This book certainly had its low moments that had me crying sad tears and it had joyful, heartwarming moments that had my heart soaring & brought happy tears to my eyes. I have never read a bad book by Riley Edwards and I continue to be impressed with her work.
I know I sound like I’m repeating myself once again, but holy hell Riley Edwards has done it again with Thaddeus. This book absolutely blew me away and also made me cry for the dogs who were being treated horrible for the dog fighting rings. I haven’t read a book which with so much detail about the horror of it and for that I’m thankful because its not something you usually read or talk about so thank you Riley Edwards for giving me the information on it and I know it would have been painful to research. Now for Thaddeus . Thaddeus still loved Emerson even though ghosted him but can he forgive her when she is in deep with criminals or will it make his anger worse and turn it into hate ? Emerson has her own reasons for leaving Thaddeus and she doesn’t have regret for doing what she is doing now with the criminals shes been dating but her life is nothing but pure vengeance against these human traffickers and gets her revenge one criminal at a time but when her time is running out will Thaddeus and the Gold Team save her or will it be to late? This book took us to a world of human trafficking and dog fighting and brought me to my knees and ripped out my heart but that’s what makes this book so fantastic is you can feel the emotions of each character and what they were going through. Riley always takes you into the world of unknown and beings it to life. I absolutely loved this book I took my time to read it because I wanted to make it savor with these Gold team members. I love each one of them. Congratulations Riley Edwards on another Amazing book. Your writing never fails to bring us readers to our knees and I absolutely loved seeing Tex as well. He And Garrett make one hell of a team.
Hang on to your hearts ladies because you are going to fall hard and fast for Thaddeus! Thad puts the “alpha” into “alpha male”. His story is a great second chance military ops romance. 10 years ago Thad was in BUD/s training to become a Seal. He met and fell in love with young teaching student Emerson Pierce. He had planned to propose but one day he came back to their apartment and she was gone. She wouldn’t return his calls and he was so angry and full of pride that he has spent the last decade trying to forget her. What he didn’t know was Emerson’s younger sister had been taken by a human trafficking ring and when her family got her back things weren’t good. Emerson left Thad because she wanted him to move forward and do great things. She had hoped that one day they would reconnect but she didn’t realize that her life would take a drastic turn. It’s 10 years later and Emerson has come into Thad’s life because of the mission he’s working on. He’s bitter, angry and still in love with her. She is no longer the naive young woman that he knew but they will learn that they need to work together to achieve both of their goals. I loved their second chance story. It was loaded with action, angst, lust and love. It is told from dual POV and it stands alone but I do recommend reading Brooks so that you get to know the Gold Team members better.
This book is non stop action. Thaddeus and Emerson had been apart for ten years. They met again over a dogfighting, human trafficking mission
And realized they still loved each other. This is a great series I can’t wait for
Declan, Kyle and Max to meet their special women.
Arlene
I just finished reading this book and it was amazing from the very beginning until the end! The characters are interesting and the dynamic between them is captivating. I would recommend this book to anyone who loves a great romance with intrigue, action, suspense, and wonderful characters!
Non-stop action from the beginning. Emerson left Thaddeus with no explanation 10 years ago when he was going through BUD/s. He never got over her, she never did either and she shows it by what she’s done to herself.
She should have been taken out, but he couldn’t do it, next thing you know, she’s in a van between the Gold team being taken back with them. Never get in front of a lady when she doesn’t have her purse. Chapter 7 just after Emerson walks out of the room, is also awesome. I love the wordsmithing in this chapter, as well as later on when “Charles Townsend” makes an appearance. The interactions of all the characters is awesome and I absolutely love Ms. Edwards stories. There’s a $50 bet, dicks, snakes, FART, Z Corps, daycare centers and reproducing idiots.
I highly recommend this book and any others by Ms. Edwards
I received this advanced reader’s copy in exchange for an honest review.
This series is turning into a great one. This book starts off with action and just keeps going. There’s kidnapping, human trafficking (and the trauma they endure) Thaddeus and Emmy had a life before when he was in Bud’s training but, her sister gets kidnapped and she leaves him to find her sister. We see Gumby, Sidney and Faith again as there is dog fighting . This book you won’t want to stop reading till the end! Can’t wait for Kyle’s story. I received this book for an honest review.
No words are adequate in describing the terror, rage, sadness, heart break this book brings forth but Riley Edwards takes u all the way thru and out the other side to finding joy, happiness and most of all….love
This is another Riley Edwards blend of intense suspense, heartwrenching backstory, and hot sex, and, as always, it’s masterfully done. The moment that Thad sees his name across Emerson’s back is written with a lack of extraneous detail that focuses the reader on what is happening – by far my favorite scene in the book. This is the second in the Gold Team series, and it links seamlessly with the other teams as well. The blurb has all you need to know about the basic story, but here’s what it doesn’t have: The characters are well drawn; the characters of those we’ve met before continue to be built – Declan especially. The storyline never gets stale or overworked. There is no point in the story where you feel, yeah well that’s it then – even at the end you are desperate for Gold Team 3 – or whatever Riley Edwards opts for (no spoilers, sorry!). I recommend this book; it’s a standalone, so if you aren’t familiar with her earlier books, you won’t be lost; however, if you are familiar with them, you’ll be coming home to family.
This book brings the true horrors of the world. Kidnapping, trafficking in humane flesh of all ages and the trauma they endure. You have plenty of action, retribution and righting wrongs. This is Thaddeus and Emerson’s story. They had a life once, but she left it all behind to find her sister who was kidnapped. It’s been a long and disturbing road but there is a HEA. I read this book for an honest review.