Becoming Rain

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Released March 3, 2015

Luke Boone doesn't know exactly what his uncle Rust is involved in but he wants in on it-the cars, the money, the women. And it looks like he's finally getting his wish. When Rust hands him the managerial keys to the garage, they come with a second set-one that opens up the door to tons of cash and opportunity. Though it's not exactly legal, Luke's never been one to worry about that sort of thing. Especially when it puts him behind the wheel of a Porsche 911 and onto the radar of gorgeous socialite named Rain. 

Screwing the customers . . .” Miller grumbles, pushing the filing cabinet shut with a loud metal bang.

Only the pretty ones.” And she is that. It wasn’t until she lifted her sunglasses that she had my undivided attention. Those big, blue eyes up against an olive complexion are striking. I wouldn’t have guessed Italian. Mediterranean, definitely.

Exotic, dark-haired, killer body—my type exactly.

“You’re going to lose business for the garage.”

“Relax. I wasn’t the one fishing.” And there was definite fishing on her part. For a long while there, I wasn’t sure I wanted to take the bait. Everything about her—her upscale style, her expensive car, her cool demeanor—says she’s my kind of girl, and therein lies the problem. My kind of girl is good for one thing, and it’s not having lunch over at the food carts of Portland. Or conversation, in general.

Give those kinds of girls more and suddenly they become work, and money. Endless streams on both accounts. Rust warned me about them years ago. Thank God I haven’t tumbled into any of their traps. Even Priscilla, my fallback lay, who I consider a friend, knows exactly where we stand in terms of our “relationship” and that I don’t have the kind of money she wants—even she will occasionally try her hand at sucking more out of me. A new bracelet, cash for rent, a tank of gas for the BMW that her last sugar daddy handed her . . .

But Rain was cute today, in a feisty way, humoring me by taking a bite of that sandwich that she was so obviously not going to enjoy. Her nose crinkling up at the sight of it. Her witty little insult. The way she hung back, waiting, hoping for a chance to see me again but not willing to come right out and ask after already being so forward earlier. Girls like Priscilla would have kept pushing. But Rain obviously has some self-respect.

And when she started walking out of the office, I couldn’t help myself.

I punch her number into my phone so I can call her after work. If I’m lucky, I’ll also have her naked and tangled in my sheets later tonight.

Clara Bertelli,  a Washington cop, has the opportunity to work with the FBI undercover and she does not hesitate to take it. She is going undercover as Rain Martines to bring down a car theft ring believed to be run by Rust Markov. Her target is his twenty-four year old nephew Luke Boone.

Luke is just being let into his family's illegal dealings and does not really have time or the inclination for dating. But after several meetings, Rain finally starts to get into his head. And she begins developing a little attachment to her "target" as well. 

I really liked Luke. He was a bit clueless at first, but then was charming, funny, and sweet. He had a hidden vulnerability to him. I loved his close bond with his friend Jesse and his fiance' Alex (Burying Water). I really wanted him to make better choices and I worried about his getting caught up in bad situations and what might happen to him not only because of the investigation but also once he finds out about Rain's deception.

Clara was tough, smart and trying to do a job. But Luke's charisma was hard to deny. And the more they were around each other and opened up, the more I liked them together. They had chemistry and even though there were secrets and false pretenses between them, there were also times of real connection too. I loved the little ways Rain tried to help and protect him. She was really torn between duty and caring for someone therefore was plagued by guilt and fear and discovery.

In a world where trusting the wrong person can get you killed or incarcerated, they are buried under secrets, omissions, and lies. There were many players involved and it was hard to tell who to trust. The first half built slowly, but the second half was more suspenseful. And it kept building until it all had to eventually explode.

Once Luke figures out Clara's secret identity, will her betrayal destroy him? And will Clara have done enough to protect Luke or will he end up in jail or dead anyway?

This was a story with many layers with a romantic suspense feel. The characters snuck up on me and I got attached and more engaged as I went along.  I ended up really liking he characters and enjoyed getting both points of view. I even fell for their crazy dogs Licks and Stanley. Although it was slow to build, it was not boring. It had some surprises and twists and kept me guessing on who was really behind all of the subterfuge. I enjoyed revisiting a bit with the characters from Burying Water Alex, Jesse, Sheriff Gabe, and even came to like Luke's Uncle Rust more. I felt it kind of ended a bit abruptly, but I was still satisfied with it. There were a couple of intriguing side characters in this one that could make good leads for the next book, Chasing River.

And don't miss the first book in this thrilling series BURYING WATER...

Born in small-town Ontario, Kathleen published her first book at the age of six with the help of her elementary school librarian and a box of crayons. She is a voracious reader and the farthest thing from a genre-snob, loving everything from High Fantasy to Chick Lit. Kathleen currently resides in a quaint small town outside of Toronto with her husband, two beautiful girls, and an exhausting brood of four-legged creatures.