N HIS KEEPING - Maya Banks
Slow Burn, Book 2
Avon Books
ISBN: 978-0-06-231248-8
February 2015
Romantic Suspense

Houston, Texas - Present Day

Arial Rochester has spent all of her young life hiding her special abilities, because it's been drilled into her by her overprotective family that exposing them would be dangerous.  But when an unexpected attack leaves her staring at death, she uses the only defense available to her, and Ari unleashes her telekinetic powers to save her life. While her father helps to clean things up, somehow a video of the attack went viral, and Ari and her family will have to uproot their lives in order to hide.  Before that can happen though, Ari's parents go missing and one of the men on her father's security force tries to abduct her.  Unsure of whom to trust, Ari contacts Beau Deveraux.

After their sister's abduction, the Deveraux brothers started Deveraux Security Systems, and they've built an impressive business.  Since his brother Caleb married well-known psychic Ramie St. Clair, DSS has fielded many requests for her help, but the cost to Ramie is too great for her to take on every case, so some of Beau's time is spent turning away those would-be clients.  Something about the disguised woman tells Beau that she isn't looking for that kind of help, and when he sees that their visitor is the woman from the video, Beau knows that he'll help her.  What started out as a professional relationship quickly turns personal though, and Beau realizes he'll do whatever it takes to protect the woman who is winning his hardened heart.

Arial has lived a very sheltered life thanks to her wealthy parents' overprotective instincts and her secrets, but in IN HIS KEEPING, she's forced out of the bubble in which she's lived her life.  In spite of her father's vigilance in preparing her for any possibility, when they disappear, with her secret exposed to the public, Ari feels a little lost, and unsure.  She doesn't know what connection Caleb or Beau Deveraux have to her father, but she was instructed to seek them out if she ever needed help.  Something about Beau resonates with Ari, making her instinctually trust him.  The attraction is a bit of a surprise, but before she can think too much on it, everything in her world takes a turn for the worse.  Beau is no stranger to psychic abilities, but the scope of Ari's are shocking.  He's always been the cool, in control brother, but from the moment he meets Ari, Beau's emotions are all over the board, and the most important thing in his world is her safety, no matter the cost.

The second book in the Slow Burn series, IN HIS KEEPING includes Caleb and Ramie (from KEEP ME SAFE) as well as some of the other team members at DSS.  As the oldest of the Deveraux siblings, Caleb and Beau have always been close, yet there's some tension between them in this book.  While Dane is the team leader at DSS, Beau connects more with Zach, who has the same temperament as Beau.  There are a few hints as to trouble in Zach's past that is similar to the trouble Beau and Ari are going through now, and his book will be next.  The Deveraux family and their business is what connects the Slow Burn series, but each book focuses on a different family member, so while I'd recommend reading them in order, it's not necessary to do so in order to understand what's going on.  Ari and Beau are both strong, likeable characters, and their intense romance will captivate readers in the compelling IN HIS KEEPING.

Jennifer Bishop