Kaiya Marlow
has always been cautious, precise in every decision she makes. When her dark
past threatens to resurface, she decides to take precautions to protect herself
by enrolling in self-defense classes at her gym.
Her instructor, Ryker Campbell, is the tattooed womanizer everyone warns about. Kaiya attempts to resist Ryker's advances, but the more time they spend training together, the harder it is for Kaiya to resist him.
Ryker's view on relationships is simple: strictly sex, nothing more. Haunted by demons from his past, he never allows himself to become attached to any woman. No attachment means no weakness, no vulnerability, no pain. He doesn't realize that his whole world is about to be turned upside down when Kaiya enters his self-defense class. Determined to have her, at least for one night, Ryker sets a plan into motion that will change both of their lives forever.
Will love be able to heal their scars, or are they too deep to overcome?
Her instructor, Ryker Campbell, is the tattooed womanizer everyone warns about. Kaiya attempts to resist Ryker's advances, but the more time they spend training together, the harder it is for Kaiya to resist him.
Ryker's view on relationships is simple: strictly sex, nothing more. Haunted by demons from his past, he never allows himself to become attached to any woman. No attachment means no weakness, no vulnerability, no pain. He doesn't realize that his whole world is about to be turned upside down when Kaiya enters his self-defense class. Determined to have her, at least for one night, Ryker sets a plan into motion that will change both of their lives forever.
Will love be able to heal their scars, or are they too deep to overcome?
Kaiya has a
pretty damaged past. Wait, that’s an understatement. She has a horrifically,
damaged past. For years she was tormented and abused by someone you’d never
suspect. Someone that should be your protector, not your abuser. Eight years after
the monster has been locked up, she’s still picking up the pieces, holding
herself together as best as she can. Honestly though, you can’t put a piece of
scotch tape on a hole in a dam. And that’s basically what she has been doing.
It’s not until Ryker enters her life that she starts to awaken, starts to
realize that living in fear is not living. She wants more, out of life in
general and for herself, but she doesn’t know how to be that girl.
Ryker is a
womanizing man-whore. He never sleeps with the same girl twice, most of the
time he doesn’t even care if he catches their name. He has his own past demons
that have turned him into the man he is today. But once Kaiya enters his gym,
things drastically change. He can’t explain the attraction he feels toward her
or the possessive need to protect her. She gets under his skin, not something
that he welcomes at first. He thinks maybe just one taste of her will be enough
to rid her from his system. Unfortunately for him, Kaiya isn’t an easy conquest
and Ryker will actually have to put in some work to win her. A lot of work.
My heart
breaks at the things Kaiya went through. The nightmares and fear she still
lives with. She believes she’s damaged beyond repair, keeping everyone,
including those closest to her, at arm’s length. She doesn’t fully trust
anyone. I really can’t blame her. With what she’s endured, trust would be a
huge issue for anyone in her situation. Ms. Narvaez must have had to go to a
very dark corner of her mind to conjure the scenes she did. It chills me. When
Kaiya is left with the possibility of her tormentor being freed, she finds the
courage to learn to defend herself. To her surprise and his, Ryker, of all
people, is her self-defense instructor. Over time, Ryker not only builds up her
courage to fight, he strips away the walls she’s erected over the years meant
to protect herself. Layer by layer, he uncovers and falls hard for the
vulnerable girl beneath it all. Piece by piece, she learns to trust someone
other than herself.
Kaiya and
Ryker bring out the best in each other. They both start to relax the guard
around their hearts. Of course things aren’t that easy. And by the time both
their heads and hearts are on the same track, it’s almost too late.
.jpg)
