After a bitter divorce, reporter Kelsey Nichols has erected a border around her heart too strong for any man to cross. She's not ready for a relationship of any kind with any man. But when Kelsey meets Kade she can think of nothing but being in his powerful arms and in his bed.

Intelligence Agent Kade Owen is hot on the trail of a notorious smuggler when the sensual blonde reporter comes into his life. Once he gets a hold of Kelsey, nothing will stop Kade from winning her heart.

Title: KADE
Author: Cheyenne McCray
Series: Armed and Dangerous, book 3
Genre: Erotic Romance, Romantic Suspense
Publisher: St. Martin’s Griffin
Year of release: 2010, October 26
Format: Trade Size Paperback
Source: Bought via The Book Depository

First line:
Kade Owen dragged his hand over his stubbled face as he settled into the plastic airport seat while waiting to board the plane he'd be taking to Tucson.

Memorable Scenes:
Weren’t there any or did I just not write them down…who knows?

Kade Owen is an Intelligence Agent with the U.S. Border Patrol. He's investigating people-smugglers and on the trail of a notorious lead figure in the operation, the key smuggler: El Torero. Kelsey Nichols is a journalist writing a series of articles on illegal immigration along the Mexican border. It turns out she'll be staying with Kade at the family ranch and soon they discover that their individual investigations have common threads and they also discover that there’s instant heat and attraction between them that will turn into a blazing inferno if they don’t keep it contained.

Kade is a widower with a 9 year-old son. He’s charming and a sweet-talker but he’s also ruthless and hard in when it comes to his job. Kade's a talker in bed, not necessarily a dirty talker but he's pretty vocal, which I love in my heroes.

Kelsey didn’t make as big an impression on me as Kade did. She was an overall nice character and I loved how she was with Kade and his son but other than that there aren’t any spectacular memorable moments that come to mind when writing something about her.

There were very many secondary characters and I had to make notes to keep them straight. Some of them were important to the story by way of the suspense of the romance. Others were just walk-ons or mentions that I don’t think we’ll see in future installments of this series. One thing I noticed in LUKE but didn’t mention in that review is that most of the males in these books have 4-letter names. In this book I noticed it again and it made me want to mention it now because I like it and I think that it’s done purposely by Cheyenne McCray and not a coincidental thing. The ones I noted in KADE were: Kade (of course), Juan, John, Jess, Stan, Jake, Paul. From the previous books we have Zack and Luke and the next book’s hero is Clay. Don’t tell me this is a coincidence.

I don't know what it is about the books in the Armed & Dangerous Series but even though the first two books didn't blow me away, I was anxiously waiting for book 3 and pre-ordered it the minute I was able to. I even read it within a week of receiving it and that says a lot, especially if you look at some of the books of series I read that are still on my TBR, some of which have been gathering dust for more than 2 years.

And now after reading KADE I know the next book will be pre-ordered and read as soon as it arrives too because somehow, sneakily, Cheyenne McCray has hooked me with these combinations of erotic romance, sexy cowboys who are in law-enforcement and some excellent suspense plots. (Clay was pre-ordered and read immediately upon receiving it. This series is scarily addictive and I can’t figure out why…)

In ZACK I loved the erotic/romance part and the suspense lacked a bit for me. In LUKE the suspense part was good but I had trouble with the eroticism/romance in the story. At the start of KADE I was hoping the book would deliver in both because I really loved the start. My wish was partially granted as it started strong, fizzled out a little bit in the middle and ended strong again. Even if the suspense was a little predictable it was wrapped up well with a small surprise. The romance was sweet but not overly intense or very erotic. KADE was definitely less erotic than book 2 but in a way that I did enjoy it more than the explicit eroticism of the second book.

Besides suspense and romance KADE had another big plus: a kid (Kade's son) and as known I'm a sucker for children in romance novels, especially the sweet, cute, chatterbox, whirlwind kind of kids. I really loved Trent, he was such an adorable boy and he most certainly contributed to my enjoyment of this installment of the Armed and Dangerous Series.

All in all KADE is a very nice read that didn't blow me away but still it was good enough to keep me hooked to the series. Because yes, CLAY has already been pre-ordered too…What the F is it with these books…? Darned Cheyenne McCray, you and this series are an addiction I just can’t seem to quit!

Favorite Quote:
He brushed his lips over hers. Just a whisper kiss. The light touch of his lips and her feel of his fingers on her skin made her nipples ache. A wave of longing crested, then crashed within her soul. She pressed herself closer to him and heard a soft moan. Coming from her.
The tip of his tongue outlined her bottom lip, a feather caress that sent desire spiraling within. She parted her lips and his tongue met hers, a velvet softness that she savored like golden honey. “You taste so good,” he murmured.
She moved her palm to his face, and for an endless moment she stroked his cheek and gazed into his eyes. “I lose my head with you. I can’t afford that –I can’t afford to lose myself again.”
Kade kissed the corner of her mouth and moved to her earlobe. “If you get lost, I’ll help you find your way back.” He nipped at her lobe. “I need you, Kelsey. I’m not whole without you.”