Tanja reviews Guarded Desires (Uniform Encounters #4) by Mortica Knight. (Published by Totally Bound Publishing; March 6, 2014)
Why I read it: Silly question, seriously men in uniform and a mystery, who could withstand??
Blurb:
A sexy young National Guardsman, a snarky bear of a DEA Agent and a vicious Mexican drug cartel. Someone’s going to be sorry.
Special Agent Stephen Morris thought his home life had settled into a pleasantly dull routine. Hanging out in his yard and barbequing is a typical weekend for the brawny mid-thirties man—and his partner Rigo from the DEA office is usually there with his family to keep him company. Being assigned to a main border crossing in Nogales, Arizona, keeps him busy enough at work, so he doesn’t have time to worry about love. However, that doesn’t mean he’s not lonely.
Twenty-two year old PFC Guardsman, Joseph Pirelli, is on an active-duty-for-training mission to help support border patrol and the DEA. The Vasquez drug cartel has become even more vicious than ever—going so far as to target civilians on both sides of the border. Joseph and Stephen are thrown together in a direct conflict with the cartel and a part of Joseph’s dark past is revealed.
Joseph is incredibly attracted to Stephen, even though he doesn’t typically go for older men. He longs to find love, but is still recuperating from an abusive past. The idea of becoming close to a man who could physically harm him brings up fears that may ruin his chances at any kind of relationship with the big teddy bear agent.
Sometimes love shows up when you aren’t looking for it and gives you a chance you shouldn’t ignore. Both men will have the opportunity to wonder what it would be like to lose the other and to decide what they’re willing to risk to be together.
My thoughts:
The first time Stephen and Joseph met was in a bar, the second time when they had to work together against the Vasquez Cartell. They were both drawn to each other immediately but didn´t act upon it until later in the story. I didn´t like the back and forth between those two, this should I, should I not was frustrating and sometimes they just acted like chicks with dicks. What I liked was the consideration Stephan showed toward Joseph, especially regarding his awful past. That a top switches to bottom because of the issues Joseph had, impressed me.
Another thing I liked about this story was that the DEA agents had to actually work to solve the puzzle. Although I think there are plot holes. One moment the investigations were at this point and the next we were completely elsewhere. I had the feeling a lot of what went down between the DEA agents and the Vasquez Cartell was simple missing. Don´t get me wrong you get a good overview of the fight on the border but for me, it could have been more fleshed out. A big surprise for me was, how much involved the mole was. That was not something I expected and I liked this turn of events.
Overall it was a quick, interesting read with hot men in uniforms. I didn´t read the first three books in this series but had no trouble following the storyline. So it can be read as a standalone.
6.5 pots of gold
Totally Bound Publishing ❤ Amazon ❤ ARe
Erotic Romance author Morticia Knight enjoys a good saucy tale, with MM and MMF pairings. Since she loves several genres, you may find your heroes in a contemporary, historical, paranormal or sci-fi setting. One of her passions is bringing people’s fantasies to life on the page, because life is too short for even one boring moment. Her stories are volcanic in heat, deep in emotion, and sprinkled with doses of humor.
When not indulging in her passion for books, she loves the outdoors, film and music. The Pacific Northwest is the ideal spot to enjoy both hiking and beachcombing. Once upon a time she was the singer in an indie rock band that toured the West Coast and charted on U.S. college radio. She currently resides on the northern coast of Oregon, where the constant rain and fog remind her of visits to her family in England and Scotland when she was a child.
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