Smitten by Books

DANGEROUS DESIRE
Author: Diane Escalara
Publisher: Lyrical Press
Pub. Date: July 18, 2011
ISBN-13: 9781616502959
Retail: $5.50
Pages: Unknown

Sometimes you have to lose one thing to find another.

Sienna Diaz is desperate to find her missing beagle, no matter what it costs. She hires Cruz Santino, the best—and hottest—in the business. He’s an ex cop, dangerous on many levels, which comes in handy when all evidence indicates her beloved pet was snatched to use in a dogfighting ring.

Cruz will do whatever it takes to find Sienna’s lost pet, but he also wants results from the smokin’ hot attraction between them—and he isn’t above breaking his own hands-off-clients rule to get there. However, until he brings her beloved beagle home safely, he won’t have Sienna’s undivided attention…and affection.

~*~*~

For those with a love for dogs and a penchant for romance that happens when you least expect it, Dangerous Desire is sure to please. I recommend a fan, and some iced tea because it’s muy caliente!

Sienna Diaz believed that nothing could be worse than locking her keys in her car and finding out she was going to be laid off in the same day, until she comes home to a break in and discovers her beloved beagle is missing. Unfortunately Sienna needs help, which as an independent, divorced woman, she’s not happy to accept. Thanks to a best friend with a boyfriend cop, Sienna is quickly introduced to the hottest pet detective she has ever come across, but the real question is can she ignore the call of desire long enough to leave this search and rescue operation unscathed.

Cruz Santino is an ex-cop, and proud owner of up and coming lost pet locating company Top Dawg. He prides himself on being completely devoted to his business and his work. When smokin’ hot Sienna waltzes into his life searching for her missing dog, it’s like a breath of fresh air knocking him six ways to Sunday. Cruz takes the case, and with it an urge to become closer to a woman than he has ever been before. Finding her beagle and solving the mystery of the animal’s disappearance is not a problem for Cruz; possibly losing his heart to Sienna is.

Escalera’s latest novel is an interesting take on the unexpected arrival of love, and how life’s previous experiences cannot prepare you for a true awakening.  Cruz and Sienna’s passion and desire in the novel are delicious, and you can’t help but wish everything will work out between them. One of my favorite scenes is when Sienna’s having a little difficulty with the seat belt in Cruz’s truck:

“It doesn’t work at all?” Sienna preferred to wear a seatbelt, and not just because of the law. South Florida had some loony drivers.

“It just takes a little maneuvering,” Cruz replied. “Let me give it a try.” He turned all that magnificence toward her and reached across her chest.

Holy crap, he was totally in her face, his delicious body stretched across her lap. She held her breath and pressed her back into the seat, felt his weight, smelled his soap and baby shampoo. His scent hypnotized. Her every cell fell under his spell. She tried to find her voice. “Any luck?” she squeaked out.

He lifted his head. They were eye-to-eye, his mouth so close that if she puckered her lips, that would be it. His gaze traveled downward. He tilted his head like he wanted to kiss her. Uh-oh. She hadn’t made out in years. She probably sucked at it by now. A magnetic intensity pulled her to him, and she had a feeling she’d relearn pretty quickly. Her body buzzed with sexual urgency. Not once in her life had she felt this consumed, this desperate to feel a man’s lips on hers.

Now my issue with the book was that it jumps to the villain and henchmen’s point of view. Those scenes felt like fillers to me, drawing out the storyline more than was needed. I was surprised as well by some of Sienna’s reactions and felt maybe her character jumped the gun on things that did not play true to her understanding and wise nature. At the same time, the author makes you forget about these issues with the romance and an ending that makes you wonder if Cruz’s exceptionally well dressed brother, Cole, is going to get a book of his own soon.

For a read that will have you cuddling with your beloved family pet, and praying for a sexy ex-cop to save said beloved animal, from danger if there’s ever a need, Dangerous Desire is a must.

Rating: 6.5 (More than just Satisfactory)

Heat Level: 4 (Hot)
Reviewed by Landra