When Aspen Phillips’ best friend invites her on a month-long road trip, she has serious mixed feelings. Sharing their tight quarters will be Bramwell Gage, overprotective brother and all-around jerk. Bram may be ridiculously sexy, but he’s made no effort to hide how he feels about Aspen—that she’s trash who’s no good for his sister. But Aspen is determined to get along with the uptight millionaire—and to keep her promise, concealing a secret about his sister that Bram can never know.

But after a scorching kiss reveals that Bram’s feelings toward her run much hotter than she believed, Aspen’s emotions swerve into a complete 180. Suddenly the girl who has nothing has everything—but only as long as the truth about his sister remains hidden. Because when all the secrets and promises unravel, she risks losing it all…

Super quick set-up on top of what the blurb says: Aspen and her BFF plan a camping road trip to celebrate graduating college but at the very last second, the BFF cancels – so Aspen and Bram (BFF’s brother) are stuck together. They HATE each other. (Bram totally loves her secretly omg). He is suspicious of why his sister cancelled and disappeared, and he knows Aspen knows the truth (she refuses to tell him). So he tells Aspen he will pay her oodles of money (her mom is super poor trying to pay off medical bills, Bram is super wealthy) if Aspen goes on this trip with Bram (ALONE TOGETHER) and they can send fake fun pictures to the BFF to lure her out of hiding. (It all makes more sense when you read it, trust me)

I absolutely adored this book. The sexual tension is SO well done. The romantic payoff comes through (aka super dirty sex). Just a very well done romance book – I highly recommend it and hope you all have a blast reading it. Thanks to Brie for recommending it – this is the first time I’ve read this author.

10. Do you like angst? Do you like sexual tension? Do you like really dirty love scenes? Do you like really intense heroes? Do you like well-written heroines? Do you like a hero and heroine who hate each other and then fall madly in love???? If you answered yes to these questions, please continue.

9. Bram is twenty-seven, broody, intense, quiet, overprotective of his sister. Aspen calls him a robot, because he never shows her any emotion. He wears business suits with vests. He has sexy forearms.

The rough timbre of his voice isn’t anything like his appearance. If they matched, his voice would be stiff and toneless. Instead a low rumble underscores every word, as if despite his polished appearance, he’s filled with gravel.

8. Bram is a bit….bossy. See – he secretly loves Aspen, but she thinks he hates her. Probably because he often tells Aspen that she is a bad influence on his sister and that he doesn’t’ trust her etc… This really hurts Aspen’s feelings as she is NOT a bad influence, and Bram just doesn’t take the time to get to know her. (Bram’s parents died and he had to take over raising his sister and he has massive unresolved issues over this).

Aspen may think Bram is only protective of his sister, but when someone almost harms Aspen, he is there for her as well:

His fist slams against the breakfast bar. Jarred by the impact, dirty dishes topple over onto the kitchen tile with a sharp clatter. My nerves already rattled, I almost jump out of my skin and fall silent, staring. He stands with blazing eyes locked on mine, his body rigid.

“Aspen,” he grates out my name between clenched teeth. “I almost drove away. I almost fucking drove away. Because you asked me to. Then I came in to find some cranked-up fucker about to lay his hands on you So I’m not leaving you alone until I’m sure they aren’t coming back, because Christ knows what they forgot in this mess. And you’re going to let me help you.”

7. There is a strong Pride & Prejudice theme running through this book. At first glance you might just dismiss this as another super wealthy hero who comes in to rescue the financially struggling heroine – but it’s soooo much more than that. Aspen has so much pride, and Bram tries to solve her problems by throwing money at her. Something that humiliates Aspen and the author writes her so well.

For example, when she wants to initially return the sleeping bag when she thinks the trip is cancelled (dont’ worry – the trip continues and verra naughty things happen in this sleeping bag later in the book)…Bram throws $3,000 at her (instead of the $20 it’s worth) and Aspen is embarrassed.

Hoarsely I tell him, “I’m saying that I’ll return the damn sleeping bag when I get home, where no one’s waiting to toss his money into my face and tell me how worthless I am in comparison.”

His big body goes abruptly still. His shadowed gaze searches my face. “Aspen, I wasn’t–”

I close my eyes and turn my volume up, way up, drowning out whatever he’s saying. He’s got robot brooding mode. But I’ve got “screw you” mode and I’m dialing it up to eleven.

Fuck him.

6. Once they are on the trip together, just the two of them, the sexual tension heats up. It’s done so, so well. We only get Aspen’s point of view in this book, and sometimes that bothers me but I think it works perfect in this book. We get to see Bram, so freaking pent-up about everything, and as the reader you know he is so in love with Aspen but so awkward and stiff about showing her an ounce of kind emotion. Aspen though soon realizes she may have an effect on him…

I just have to eat, or take a sip of hot chocolate and absently lick away the whipped cream, and his focus drops to my mouth and his jaw clenches and his voice goes deeper, rougher.

I just have to talk. Or take a breath. Or just be.

And he becomes a surly asshole.

Which is all great. Because I like torturing him. And not putting any effort into it makes it even better.

I just didn’t expect the blowback. Because knowing he’s hard? Knowing his cock is think and aroused and he wants me?

5. Things progress. He starts to teach her how to swim and you know how it goes when you are both half-naked in a pool, kisses and other things unfold. Then….Bram buys condoms. And Aspen is like – but we hate each other. And Bram is like – “Maybe that will just make it hotter.”

Aspen says – “Maybe it will be hotter. Because we’re always pushing at each other. Maybe it’s a way for me to finally get the upper hand. Because you don’t want to want me but I’ll make you come so hard. I’ll fuck you so damn good – and then I’ll own you.”

My breath is coming in sharp pants. Because I can imagine that. Oh god, I can imagine it.

I think he can too.

“Or, I’ll own you,” he says roughly.

“You just keep telling yourself that.” My heart pounding, I close my eyes. “Are you hard right now?”

“Hard as fucking steel.”

4. If you read this blog,  you know I love a good road trip romance – because tent sex.

“Get into the tent,” he says, and his voice is a low growl. “I don’t care which one. You have until I get the site locked down for the night. Then I’m coming after you. And we’ll see who owns who.”

3. It’s not all tent sex and roughing it in the wild. Bram still loves his suit:

“I’ve missed this so much,” I tell him, my fingers drifting down his neck and over his collar, his vest. “This uptight suit.”

Though he doesn’t look so uptight now. His collar is unbuttoned all the way down to the V of the vest. The tails of his shirt are untucked. And we hadn’t even unfastened his pants. We just unzipped and dragged his cock through, and he’s still buried inside of me.

2. And then there is a fight. An epic, heartbreaking fight

Sudden tears clog my throat and make everything waver in front of me again. “He broke everything, I think.”

1.And then there is an amazing end, with an amazing epilogue and I loved every single second of this book.

Seriously read this one! It’s so sexy and fun!!!

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