MINE TO HOLD - Shayla Black
Wicked Lovers , Book 6
Berkley Heat
ISBN: 978-0-425-26819-3
September 2013
Romantic Suspense

Lafayette, Louisiana to Los Angeles, California - Present Day

Tyler Murphy and Delaney Catalano became friends when Tyler was partnered with her husband, Eric, on the LAPD.  When Eric was injured, Tyler helped in any way he could, including being a shoulder for Del to lean on.  Then, one night while they were drinking, Eric made a suggestion that led to an amazing night of sex—for Tyler and Del.  Afterwards, the friendship fell apart; Tyler left for Louisiana, and he and Del were left to deal with the guilt—and the attraction.

Now, two years later, Delaney shows up out of the blue at his house in Louisiana with some shocking news.  Their passionate night resulted in a baby; Del and Eric are now divorced, and somebody wants Delaney dead.  After the latest attempt on her life, Del drove cross country to find Tyler and leave their son with him in order to face down the man trying to kill her.  Tyler isn't about to let Del head back into danger on her own, even if he is a little mad that she didn't tell him about his son.  But he's also coming to understand that the feelings he has for Del are a lot more than friendship or lust.  He just has to convince her to give him a chance.

Delaney is a reporter who found the story of a lifetime— if only she lives long enough to tell it— in MINE TO HOLD.  She's spent the past two years dealing with the divorce, the pregnancy, and finally being a single mom, all while working at the newspaper.  When she overhears a conversation between an Assistant District Attorney and the leader of a local gang, Del knows she has a hot story on her hands, but she makes one mistake, and now she's running for her life.  She and Tyler had been friends for years before the night that changed everything, and she knows him well enough to be sure that he'll watch his son—she just hadn't counted on his insistence that he be her personal bodyguard and investigative partner.  She has just as many unresolved feelings as Tyler does, but she knows him too well. Tyler isn't the type to settle for one woman.

While this is the sixth book in the Wicked Lovers series, each of the stories stands on its own, with common characters, but not plots.  Tyler is a bouncer at the strip club owned by Alyssa (DELICIOUS) and is friends with the couples from the other books.  You don't have to read them in order to understand the friendships, but all of the stories are sexy and compelling reads.  The red-hot chemistry between Tyler and Del, as well as the edge of suspense, make MINE TO HOLD a book you won't want to miss.

Jennifer Bishop