REVIEW & GIVEAWAY: I KNEW YOU WERE TROUBLE by LAUREN LAYNE

 

A feisty beauty must choose between winning
back Mr. Right or giving in to Mr. Wrong.

 

 

I KNEW YOU WERE TROUBLE

Oxford Series #4

Lauren Layne

Releasing June 13, 2017

Loveswept

In I Knew You Were Trouble (Oxford #4) by Lauren Layne, Taylor Carr had it all -- a wonderful advertising position, a beautiful Manhattan apartment that she was moving into with her boyfriend and her perfect man until Bradley Calloway realized he wasn't ready for that kind of commitment with her and ended up going back to his ex. Scrambling to find a roommate so she can afford the rent on her new place, her frenemy Nick Ballantine agrees to move in to get away from a clingy ex. Will they give into the sizzling chemistry that bounces between them, or will their dislike for each other stop them from achieving the happy ever they both deserve?

What do you get when enemies become roommates? An impressive and captivating story penned by the fabulous Ms. Layne who always manages to keep me completely wrapped up in her stories that I read them from start to finish in one sitting and this book was no different. The way this story started by introducing the main characters and their frenemy relationship over the months before where the first chapter picks up had me completely hooked. Because this couple have so much chemistry; chemistry that makes it hard to understand why the heroine would end up in a relationship with someone else. What will make her choose one man over the other?

As for the dialogue, it was extremely entertaining due to the dislike these two have for each other and how they become frenemies over the story. Nick loves to tease Taylor and isn't afraid to be too honest with her, even though the truth may hurt. Moreover, the dialogue was a wonderful combination of intense and playful banter due to the main characters back stories and the challenges these two face on their journey to happy ever after. The heroine has had it tough with not knowing what love is. Her parents cared more about themselves than her and then her aunt did her best to step into the role of her guardian but didn't show her the love she deserved. Will Nick be able to show her what love is by his actions and words?

Both the main characters were well-developed, charismatic and I loved the both of them from the very beginning. The hero finds it hard to trust after what his ex did to him, so I could understand why he's hesitant to give another relationship a chance. I also liked his interactions with the secondary characters, as the Oxford team are as close as family and they tend to say whatever is on their minds. While the heroine, she's a strong, independent woman and it's understandable why she's so standoffish and doesn't allow people to get too close after growing up with an aunt that didn't do feelings. I also liked that the heroine began to let people in and ended up surrounded by really good friends in the Oxford team, especially Britt and Daisy who loved to offer advice to get the heroine to choose the right man.

Overall, Ms. Layne has penned another sensational read for this series where the chemistry was explosive and spilled over onto the pages in scorching sex scenes that illustrate how enemies can make the best lovers. The way this story ended had me loving Nick more than I already did, because of the way he wins back the heroine with his words and his actions. However, it was the epilogue that wrapped this story up perfectly, as we discover how far Nick and Taylor have come in their relationship and the secondary characters provide amusement as they wait for a big announcement. I would recommend I Knew You Were Trouble by Lauren Layne, if you enjoy the enemy to lovers trope or books by authors Jennifer Probst, Marina Adair, Julie James or Jill Shalvis.

 

BLURB

New York City’s hottest bachelors are stirring up trouble in this fun, flirty Oxford Novel, as a love triangle forces a feisty beauty to choose between winning back Mr. Right or giving in to Mr. Wrong.

Taylor Carr has it all—a sleek job in advertising, a stunning Manhattan apartment, and the perfect man to share it with: Bradley Calloway. Even after Bradley dumps her for a co-worker on move-in day, Taylor isn’t worried. She’ll get her man eventually. In the meantime, she needs a new roommate. Enter Nick Ballantine, career bartender, freelance writer—and longtime pain in Taylor’s ass. Sexy in a permanent five-o’clock-shadow kind of way, Nick knows how to push Taylor’s buttons, as if he could see right through to the real her.

Nick’s always trying to fix people, and nobody could use a good fixing more than Taylor. Sure, she’s gorgeous, with mesmerizing silver eyes, but it’s her vulnerability that kills him. Now that they’re shacking up together, the chemistry is out of control. Soon they’re putting every part of their two-bedroom apartment to good use. Then Taylor’s ex comes crawling back to her, and Nick figures she’ll jump at the chance to go back to her old life—unless he fights for the best thing that ever happened to him.

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Bradley froze when he saw her, and she was pretty sure she saw the urge to turn and run flicker across his face.

Again she felt a stab of disappointment. In him. And in herself for apparently having misread him. She’d thought he was better than this.

Bradley’s eyes moved between her and Nick, and though he didn’t look all that surprised at seeing them bickering, his gaze grew hard as he saw Nick’s hand on Taylor’s face.

Nick, naturally, took his sweet time removing it, and she resisted the urge to kick his shin.

“Morning, Bradley,” Taylor said, pleased that her voice sounded calm and friendly. As well it should. She’d had plenty of practice over the better part of a year pretending that she and Bradley were nothing more than colleagues.

Other than a few close friends who knew they were dating, they’d done a mostly decent job of hiding their romantic relationship from coworkers. Better than she and Nick had done hiding their antagonistic one.

“Hey, Taylor. Nick,” Bradley said.

He entered the room and reached for a coffee mug, turning his attention toward the other man. “Didn’t realize you’d taken on another assignment. What for?”

“Not sure,” Nick said, checking his watch. “Have a meeting with Cassidy in a few to find out.”

“Here’s hoping it’s an offsite gig that takes you far, far away. Maybe he needs someone to cover Siberian winters,” Taylor said to Nick, even as she watched Bradley out of the corner of her eye.

“Don’t need to travel to find severe winter. It doesn’t get any chillier than right here,” Nick retorted, waving his hand over her head in a storm cloud gesture.

She shoved his hand aside, her attention still on Bradley, who was determinedly avoiding her gaze.

Coward.

It was going to be darn hard to get him to see reason when he wouldn’t even make eye contact.

Nick, ever too perceptive for his own good, noticed the tension and gave a quick look between her and Bradley, his gaze turning speculative.

She shot him a warning look that clearly said, Don’t.

He shot an answering smile that clearly said, Watch me.

“Bradley, don’t suppose you’re in the market for a roommate?” Nick asked, his voice deceptively casual.

Bradley’s head snapped up, and finally, finally his blue gaze collided with Taylor’s. Dammit. Why did he have to be so beautiful? He was like a mischievous angel, all twinkling blue eyes, dimples, a sexy cleft in his chin, dark blond wavy hair . . .

“What?” he asked Nick distractedly, still looking at Taylor.

“Taylor here wants to share her original crown molding with someone.”

Bradley winced, and Taylor felt a little surge of gratitude toward Nick. He couldn’t have known it, but it was the perfect jab. She and Bradley were both into prewar architecture—had eaten up the broker’s description of all the building’s original elements.

Taylor should be sharing that crown molding with Bradley. And he damn well knew it.

His eyes met hers in silent misery—an apology that she wasn’t quite ready to accept. Heck, she wasn’t even ready to acknowledge it, because she had no intention of being dumped. Not by him, not by any man.

Taylor ignored the guilt written all over Bradley’s face as she held his gaze. “Yes, it seems I unexpectedly have a free bedroom and more rent than I can afford. If either of you knows anyone looking for a roommate . . .”

Bradley’s handsome face twisted regretfully, and he set his coffee aside, taking a step toward her, apparently forgetting—or not caring—that Nick was still in the room.

“Taylor. Damn it. I told you—”

“Actually, I do,” Nick said, interrupting.

Taylor forced her gaze away from Bradley’s pleading face toward Nick’s smug one. “You know someone who needs a roommate?”

“Yup.” He crossed his arms and watched her.

She made an impatient gesture with her hand. “Who? It can’t be one of your ex-girlfriends—I don’t want to inadvertently hear any gross details about you. And not one of your frat-boy guy friends—my living room isn’t cut out for Call of Duty.”

“Yeah, because that’s all I do all day.”

She rolled her eyes. “Okay, for real, who is it?”

His grin was slow, sly, and the very definition of trouble. “Me.”

Lauren Layne is the New York Times bestselling author of over a dozen romantic comedies.

A former e-commerce and web marketing manager from Seattle, Lauren relocated to New York City in 2011 to pursue a full-time writing career.

She lives in midtown Manhattan with her high-school sweetheart, where she writes smart romantic comedies with just enough sexy-times to make your mother blush. In LL's ideal world, every stiletto-wearing, Kate Spade wielding woman would carry a Kindle stocked with Lauren Layne books. 

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