The wrong man never felt so right…Ex-fighter Reed Miller has been secretly lusting over his best friend’s girl for months, but he refuses to jeopardize a friendship over a woman—especially one who doesn’t like him all that much. Now that Darcy’s on the market again, it’s even more imperative to stick to his strict hands-off policy. But the sizzling attraction between them is too powerful to ignore, and once he’s had a taste of her…all bets are off.

Darcy Grant is tired of walking the straight and narrow path. She’s on the hunt for passion, and there’s no denying Reed is just the man to give it to her. Although she has no interest in dating a bad boy, and certainly not her ex’s best friend, it’s impossible not to melt beneath Reed’s skillful touch. Now it’s just a matter of setting a few ground rules—and hoping her rule-breaking, sweet-talking bad boy agrees to follow them. But if she lets Reed into her bed, does she stand a chance of keeping him out of her heart

“Stall as long as you want. I ain’t going anywhere, Darce.”

His deep, razor-sharp voice snapped her from her inappropriate ogling. Fortunately, he didn’t seem to notice she’d been checking him out. His expression displayed a cloud of displeasure mingled with steely determination, leaving no doubt as to how serious he was about cockblocking her tonight.

Or was it vagina-blocking for girls? She wasn’t sure.

“You’re being totally unreasonable,” she said, raising her voice over the music. “I’m not seeing AJ anymore, which means it’s not considered cheating if I happen to meet someone I like.”

“Don’t care. Won’t be happening on my watch.”

God. He wasn’t going to back down.

Cut your losses, girl. You’re not the one-night-stand type, anyway.

The defeated voice in her head was spot on. Hopping into bed with strangers wasn’t something she indulged in very often. Or ever.

Darcy stifled a sigh. Maybe this had been a mistake from the start. A stupid, spur-of-the-moment decision brought on by her break-up with AJ, which, in all honesty, had seriously bummed her out. Not because she’d lost the love of her life or anything, but because their relationship had been so lacking it only highlighted everything she’d been missing. Everything she craved.

Fun. Laughter. Excitement.

Passion.

Yep, full circle, right back to passion.

“C’mon, quit being a brat.”

She felt herself being tugged, blinking to find Reed’s fingers curled over her forearm. His hand was big and warm, and utterly impersonal as he guided her to the dance floor.

Darcy swallowed her anger as they maneuvered through the crowd. Fine, if he wanted to act like a macho jerk and be her shadow, then she’d let him. Clearly passion wasn’t on the table anymore, but fun and dancing were still up for grabs, and she might as well get something out of this botched evening. Though maybe just the dancing part. After all, fun and Reed Miller didn’t exactly go together.

The sultry beat pounding out of the DJ’s turntables immediately snaked its way into Darcy’s blood, and her body responded of its own volition. AJ had hated to dance. Poor guy had no moves, either, but his best friend didn’t seem to share that affliction.

To her surprise, Reed wasted no time yanking her toward him. He rested one hand on her hip and began to dance to the pulsing, decadent rhythm as if he’d done it a hundred times before.

His head dipped to her ear, his warm breath fanning over her neck. “Why is your dress so short?” he rasped.

She stiffened at his disapproving tone, glancing down at the silky green dress that nearly reached her knees. “It’s not that short. Look around us—half these girls are practically naked.”

“Half these girls aren’t you.”

“What the hell is that supposed to mean?” she demanded.

Rather than answer, he brought his other hand into play, running it up and down her back as his hips rotated in a slow, addictive rhythm.

Oh boy. He smelled fantastic. Sandalwood, citrus, and something uniquely male flooded her nostrils, giving her a bit of a head rush. And his chest was rock-hard beneath her palms she wanted so badly to stroke it that she had to redirect her hands to his shoulders in an attempt to quell the temptation. Except his shoulders were equally enticing, big and broad and rippling with power.

AJ was built the same lean, muscular way—she knew it had everything to do with the fact that both men had once been professional fighters—but even though she’d slept with AJ many, many times, her hands had never itched to explore every hard, sinewy inch of his body the way they itched now.

Reed’s palm grazed her hipbone at the same time he thrust a thigh between her legs, turning the dance from vaguely sensual to downright erotic. Heat unfurled in Darcy’s belly and tingled in her sex, triggering a jolt of shock.

Holy crap. She was dirty dancing with AJ’s best friend.

And it was turning her on.

Reed Miller was a bad boy to the core. Apparently the guy possessed an anything-goes attitude when it came to sex. He also smoked cigarettes cursed like a sailor, and drove way too fast in that black Camaro of his.

I’d like to say that in my next life, I’d like to come back as a heroine in one of Elle Kennedy’s stories because sweet mother of sin do these bitches luck out. What? Don’t you judge me dammit! You go and meet Reed and tell me you wouldn’t want to jump his fictional bones. I’m serious when I tell you, move over, Darcy, because

I’m calling dibs all over this one. Lawd. Sorry, this is what happens when my ovaries decide to jump start my reviews. Now let’s get serious (ha! I’ll attempt it anyway) and move on to the review.

We first meet Reed as the broody and sexy part owner of the club Sin that he owns with his two buddies, AJ and Gage. Reed is a past MMA fighter and current manwhore. But don’t judge him too hard for his manwhoring ways, since that was his attempt at trying to work past his lust for his best friend’s girlfriend. I have to say that I was definitely skeptical before starting this book at how exactly Elle Kennedy would pull something like this off. In book 1 of the series, Darcy was dating (quite happily it seemed) Reed’s best friend and business partner, A.J.

So when Reed goes to a competitor’s club while on the search of the inside man that is pushing ecstasy at his club, he’s more than a little shocked to also see Darcy there…flirting with a man that’s NOT A.J.

I felt the chemistry between Darcy and Reed from the very beginning, so I couldn’t wait to see the sparks fly between them when they finally give into the lust that only seems to boil over when they’re around each other. Darcy is no longer dating AJ. Even though they made great friends, there was always something integral lacking between them. They were boring together and she wants an all consuming passion. A passion, it seems, that she only feels in the presence of a man that shows every evidence of disliking her. So when she finds out that Reed’s avoidance of her is only because he wants her just as much as she wants him, all bets are off.

But as much as she may want Reed, she knows that he’s not the relationship type, so she proposes they get whatever this is out of their system so they’re both able to move on. Too bad Reed isn’t just interested in a few nights between the sheets. That’s not to say he’s not going to make those nights count…

…and what if I don’t want to listen?”
“Then that would make you a bad girl, wouldn’t it? And do you want to know what I do to bad girls?” Reed dragged his own zipper down, the tick-tick-tick of metallic teeth being released echoing in the car. “I fuck them. I fuck them hard.”

But Reed wasn’t just a sweet talker. Nope. He certainly had the assets to…uhem…measure up with his mouth.

I think I’m in love with your dick,” she announced.
He croaked out a laugh. “That’s incredibly forward of you. At least buy him dinner first. I’m curious, though. What did it for you? The length? The girth?”

I think what she’s liking the entire package there, Reed

I gobbled this book right up. The chemistry between Reed and Darcy was absolutely scorching, the sex was even more so, and there was a great story to boot. Did I also mention Reed’s dirty mouth?

Ride me hard,” he ground out. “Take me straight to heaven, baby.”
“I love having sex with you, Reedford.”
“I’d be worried if you didn’t, considering my cock is buried inside of you right now.”

Oh I did? Sorry, I get easily distracted.

There was the side plot with the search for the drug dealer that added a small (and really, it was pretty small) element of suspense. I can’t say that it really peaked my interest and it did seem to wrap up fairly quick, but I was more focused on the romance so that barely even bothered me.

Elle Kennedy is definitely on my auto buy list since the first book in the series, and she only gets better with a full length novel. Lawd but this woman can write a steamy romance. I’ve been looking for another Brazen series along the lines of Tessa Bailey’s dirty talkin hot cops, and I have finally found that with dirty talking club owners and past MMA fighters. Does it get any better? I think not. I’m totally hooked on this series, and if you enjoy a steamy romance with great banter and some super HAWT sex, looks like you’ve found your next read.