Reader's Edyn Guest Post: Maid for the Billionaire (Legacy Collection #1) by Ruth Cardello

Bona Fide Reflections welcomes Kendra with Reader's Edyn back to the blog. 

Today Kendra is reviewing:

Book Blurb

Dominic Corisi knew instantly that Abigail Dartley was just the distraction he was looking for, especially since having her took a bit more persuading than he was used to. So when business forces him to fly to China, he decides to take her with him, but on his terms. No promises. No complications. Just sex,

Abby has always been the responsible one. She doesn’t believe in taking risks; especially when it comes to men - until she meets Dominic. He’s both infuriating and intoxicating, a heady combination. Their trip to China revives a long forgotten side of Abby, but also reveals a threat to bring down Dominic’s company. With no time to explain her actions, Abby must either influence the outcome of his latest venture and save his company or accept her role as his mistress and leave his fate to chance. Does she love him enough to risk losing him for good?

Book Excerpt

Arms full of bed linens, Abby Dartley froze at the click of the front door opening. Darn it. She couldn’t get caught here, especially in an oversized shirt and jeans instead of her sister’s maid uniform. Lil needs this job. Cleaning the brownstone of a man who never actually occupied it had sounded like a relatively simple, albeit annoying, way to help her sister remain employed.

“Do not let anyone see you,” Lil had pleaded between the fits of sneezes that had accompanied her low, but persistent fever. “They’ll fire me in a second if they find out that you went in my place.”

“Can’t you just call in?” Abby remembered suggesting hopefully.

“I already used my two allowed sick days for Colby,” and then the tears had come.

*****

It wasn’t Lil’s fault that she’d caught the flu. Half the city seemed to be either recovering from it or succumbing to it. More importantly, it had been a long time since Lil had actually requested help, rather than merely grudgingly accepting it. Abby didn’t want to put too much significance on such a miniscule connection, but she couldn’t shake the hope that things could get better between them.

Her first impression of him as he stood in the entrance, unaware of her existence, was that he looked more tired than a man of his age should. Dark circles were evident even against his olive complexion. His expensive suit did nothing to conceal the slump of his wide shoulders. According to Lil, he’d paid to have the brownstone cleaned on a weekly basis, but hadn’t actually been there in over a decade. Something had brought him back and whatever it was, it had steamrolled right over him.

Dialogue Highlights

“Did Jake send you?” he asked as he assessed her. “You don’t look like a model.”

She blinked a few times in surprise as some of her sympathy for him faded. “And you don’t smell like a man who should be wearing Armani, but I wasn’t going to mention it,” she answered in a huff.

******

“Sit,” he ordered.

Her eyebrows flew up in surprise. “Do people always do what you tell them to?” she asked without sitting.

“Usually,” he answered with an unrepentant, wide grin.

Fire flashed in those amber eyes. “I’m not sure I like you.”

A jab of hot excitement shot through him. “I’m not sure you have to.”

******

“Did anyone ever tell you that you’re infuriatingly stubborn?” he asked in a voice she was sure had cowered many before her.

As usual, it did nothing to impress her. Just more hot air coming out of his big, fat head.

The material of the pillow muffled her rebuttal. “Anyone ever tell you that you are a jackass?”

Kendra's Review

Maid For The Millionaire had the basis of the same old story, but ended up containing quite an unexpected twist to it. Dominic is the ever-brooding, filthy rich man who has become lost trying to rise above the shadow of his father. Abby is the motherly type who has been taking care of her sister and her baby for a while now. Covering for her sister at work one day, Dominic shows up unexpectedly and quickly finds himself captivated by Abby. She is a breath of fresh air in his world. He quickly sweeps her off of her feet, but keeps their arrangement temporary. And despite the likelihood that their relationship will be fleeting at best, Abby falls hard. 

Then Ms. Cardello throws us a curve ball when Abby ends up in a position that could easily make or break Dominic. Ultimately she handles the situation quite well considering her lack of knowledge about the dealings within Dominic’s world. But Dominic, the ever-suspicious billionaire who made his fortune by trusting no one is immediately suspicious of Abby. Was she planted in his life for this goal, merely putting on a façade of innocence, or was she really caught in an unexpected situation and acting in Dominic’s best interest? Unfortunately Dominic’s past and inability to trust may very well cost him the most valuable treasure he has ever known.

I found myself enjoying this story from the standpoint that Abby is just a good person that works her tail off and is due for some good luck. And Dominic, thinking he is the rescuer is actually being rescued himself. I have a bit of a soft spot for the big, tough guys that are in need of saving; especially when their savior turns out to be a feisty woman who is strong enough to take him on. This story definitely fits that weakness.

What I struggled with was that the situation Abby finds herself in toward the end of the story is far-fetched. I just don’t see a situation like this playing out in real life. But hey, I have never entered the world of billionaire businessmen, so who knows. The situation ends up working out, as it must. I just think that I would have been able to buy into it a little better if the circumstances were more believable. 

Overall, I felt my time spent reading Maid For The Billionaire was not wasted. While I disliked parts of the storyline, I did enjoy getting to know the characters. And I found myself curious enough about Dominic’s sister and her relationship with his business rival to want to read book two out of sheer curiosity. While I am not rushing out to read book two, I have added it to the TBR pile and will eventually get around to satisfying my curiosity. 

(Digital book purchased for personal library)

Happy Reading from Bona Fide Reflections and Kendra!!