No Kissing Allowed (Entangled Embrace) by Melissa West (Website, Twitter, Facebook, Goodreads)Also by this author: Collide (Entangled Teen), Racing Hearts, Your B&B or Mine?, Wild Hearts, No Falling Allowed, Fighting Love
Published by Macmillan on July 28th 2015
Genres: New Adult, Romance
Pages: 261
A new adult romance from Entangled's Embrace imprint...No kissing. No touching. And definitely no falling in love...Armed with her besties, an embarrassing number of shots, and her list of 10 Wild Things To Do Before Adulthood, recent grad Cameron Lawson is partying it up before she starts her dream job at New York's biggest ad agency. Her last task? Hook up with a random guy. And while it's so not her style, the super-sexy guy sitting next to her is definitely game. No names. No details. At least, that was the plan.On her first day of work, Cameron discovers her hook-up is none other than Aidan Truitt-her new boss's boss. Talk about failing the "no fraternizing with coworkers" policy on an epic level. Especially when Aidan makes it clear their one night was only the beginning. Falling for him could cost her everything, but sometimes the only way to get what you want is by breaking a few rules...
If you know me, you know that Melissa West is on my auto buy list and it’s because she just gets me and knows what I like in my books. Ok, ok…that’s probably not really what is happening here but I can honestly say that I love her stories and her characters and I want everyone else to love them too!
No Kissing Allowed is a new adult romance by Melissa and I am very selective about what I like in that genre. With that said, this book was exactly what I was looking for when I picked it up. It has characters that have wonderful chemistry, a great story, and the romance was spot on.
I’ll start with Cameron…she is smart and driven. I love that about her and while there were things about her that drove me crazy (I will chat about that in a minute), she had clear ideas about who she wanted to be and what she wanted to do with her life. I loved how West showed us not only who Cameron is when she is in New York, but also the snippets of her life when she was back in the South with her family.
So…the story. Cameron and her friends are playing a game one night and tackling a list of dares that they put together and challenged each other to do before they jump into their new jobs and adult lives on Monday. On that list is the challenge to hook up with someone random and a guy just happens to catch her eye – UT Guy is what she calls him (because of his hat). He seems a bit cocky but he is definitely good looking and Cameron hates to lose at anything so she jumps right in and I have to say, the interaction between Cameron and him the next morning was fantastic! As Cameron says goodbye to UT Guy, for what she thinks is forever, she wonders if she did the right thing in not getting his number.
As Monday comes around, Cameron heads to her new job at a Sanderson-Lowe as an account manager. When she gets there she realizes she should have done a bit more digging on those she would be working with – namely the chief creative director, Aiden Truitt. Since he is really her boss’ boss, she didn’t think it would be a big deal but as she realizes she is headed into a meeting with him, she has a slight moment of panic because she really knows nothing about him. But really, that isn’t true because surprise, UT Guy…he’s Aiden Truitt.
Aiden…boy, I don’t know what I can say about him that would really do him justice. First thing I will say is just read this and you will know what I’m talking about. Initially he has this reputation around the office of being somewhat of a playboy but as I learned more about him, it wasn’t so much that as he didn’t want to be anything like his father. It was clear he was looking at his father and doing everything in his power to be nothing like him but in the end, he was really letting his father control this aspect of who he was.
The chemistry between Cameron and Aiden was fantastic! The added twist to this story is that there is a no fraternizing rule at their work (rumor has it that it is because of Aiden) and it is clear that these two are drawn to each other. As they continue to build a work relationship, it becomes harder and harder to stay away from each other in other ways and they ultimately become more than just a one night stand. Despite this, the underlying conflict between these two is a difference in relationship ideals. Cameron knows she wants more than what Aiden says he can give her…namely a marriage and family. Because of his past, he refuses to even consider it. As they confirm they both want different things, they both realize that they need to break it off but that turns out to be harder than they thought.
Admittedly the thing that annoyed me the most about Cameron is that she continued to say she was ok with what Aiden was willing to give her around their relationship and then she would come back and say she wanted more. On the other hand, I loved that she pushed him about it and made him realize that he isn’t his father and no matter what they had, he wouldn’t ever be that kind of man.
So definitely check this book out when you can. There are some swoony bits, some funny bits, and definitely some sexy bits in this story so if you are looking for wonderful characters and a fantastic story – this is the book for you! Also, if you haven’t read anything by Melissa West yet, what the heck are you waiting for? Seriously, go now. There’s something out there for everyone and I want to hear about how much you enjoyed them once you’re done!
Thank you to NetGalley and Entangled Embrace for the review copy!
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