To save one good man, she’ll have to let her inner bad girl out to play…

ER nurse Jessica Bradford is a good girl. Okay, a reformed bad girl, but she’s done her late father proud. Now she’s one step away from landing Dr. Perfect, aka handsome, sexy, heroic Ben Torres—the hot fudge and cherry on top of her hard work scooping out a respectable life.

Ben learned the art of sacrifice from his missionary parents, but when a drunk driver he saved kills three people, he quits. To be precise, the fist he plants in the man’s face gets him suspended. And the first dish he wants on his newly empty plate is Jessica—preferably naked.

Jessica can’t believe the Ben she’s found drowning his sorrows in a bar is her knight in shining scrubs. And he won’t be pried loose until she bets 48 hours of her time in a game of pool. She loses. And the next morning she stands to lose much more.

The Chief of Staff’s recommendation for the promotion she’s been after rides on her ability to keep Ben out of trouble until things blow over. Except “trouble” is all Ben wants. And despite herself, Jessica finds that she’s more than willing to go down with him…

Warning:
Contains hot love in a store dressing room and in the front seat of a car—at the expense of a very nice strawberry patch, unfortunately—oh, and hooker boots. Can’t forget the hooker boots.

Title: JUST RIGHT
Author: Erin Nicholas
Series: The Bradfords, book 1
Genre: Contemporary Romance
Publisher: Samhain Publishing
Year of release: 2010, March 30
Format: eBook
Source: Bought via Samhain ebook store

First line:
It was not a good day to go low-carb.

Memorable Scenes:
- Scene at the bar > I spewed my drink at penile implant!
- Pool game > You devious Ben ;)
- Video game arcade > more devious Ben
There seems to be a pattern forming here :)
- Dressing room in specialty shop > *fans self* Ben and Jess took naughty to another level
- Scene with Jess and her brother's friends at the coffeeshop > poor poor guys

Jessica 'Jess' Bradford is a dedicated ER nurse. She’s dependable, serious, quick-witted, compassionate and capable. But she’s also bossy and a little uptight. She did the wild child tween years but had to grow up fast when her father died in her forming years and left her to raise her two younger siblings. Jess reminded me a little of people who quit smoking and then go around judging everyone who still dares to smoke. She needed to let loose a little and fortunately Ben's there to help her do just that.

Benjamin 'Ben' Torres is a trauma surgeon. He’s a fixer and a bit of a bad boy. He’s sharp, calm, confident and restless. Ben has two sides: the focused, competent, hardworking doctor side and the fun-loving, to-hell-with-responsibility big child side. It seems like he's tired of his intense and demanding job where the risk of not being able to always save the lives he's responsible for, is eating away at him. There's a deeper, underlying reason for this than I first thought and when this reason was disclosed I understood his decision so much better.

JUST RIGHT to me had a very high Grey's Anatomy vibe, especially in the beginning with Ben punching an ER-patient in the nose, kissing Jess and the abundance of nurses, paramedics and doctors. But also throughout the book the hospital theme kept coming back regularly. This was something I enjoyed in the book as I am a big fan of Grey’s Anatomy and I love reading romance novels that have the same vibe as the TV shows I’m addicted to.

I just love the humorous tone that's subtly present in Erin Nicholas's books (okay this is only the second book I've read by her but I'm sure it's a recurring thing). It gives the books a vibrant counterpart to the, sometimes, heavier subjects that lie beneath the romance. Also loved the sibling dynamics between Jess, Sam and Sara. Their mutual loss brought them together and their different personalities make for a loving bond and awesome banter.

This book, despite being explicitly hot, is not a light-hearted, breezy romp. It touches issues like responsibility and accountability. The underlying message I got from JUST RIGHT was that it's not always either/or. The world isn't black and white or right and wrong. There are shades of grey and what's important is the balance between things. I really liked Jess' "epiphany"-moment and though for me it could've come earlier in the story, I also understand that Erin Nicholas had to build up to that moment to make it stick and make it believable.

There were parts with a lot of detailed telling and back-story that enables you to really get to know Ben and Jess and their personalities and motivations but these parts also interrupted the story flow and kept it from moving forward. Connected to this was the introduction of a lot of secondary characters, several of which were just walk-on characters.

I felt myself reading towards the scenes with sexual tension and sex scenes as these were the ones that sparkled the most and kept the story fresh and moving. And it was in these scenes that the humor came through the best for me. And because there were few if them in the middle part of the book, that part couldn't keep my attention and I had a bit of a hard time staying focused on the story. However, the start and end of the book really made up for that.

JUST RIGHT is definitely a good book. The fact that I had minor issues with some elements absolutely didn’t mean I didn’t enjoy reading it. The fact that I have more than 2 or 3 memorable scenes and a load of favorite quotes alone proves that the book made an impression and Erin Nicholas’ writing style did that as well. I have the other Bradford siblings’ books on my TBR and they are definitely going to be read soon. And I also want some books on those other friends of Sam *wink*

Favorite Quotes:
The kiss was hot and hard and so sweet. Jessica seemed to melt instantly. She pressed closer, her hands sliding up to his shoulders and then behind his head. Ben increased the pressure, slanting his head slightly, encouraging her to open her lips and let him truly taste her. She was his new favorite flavor. He lessened the pressure, wanting to savor her, but she pressed closer, moaning in protest, digging her fingers into his hair. Well, okay. If she insisted.

She watched as Ben approached Sophie and introduced himself.
He smiled at the girl and Jessica’s heart tripped. That damn smile. It was going to be the death of her. Or at least of her heart.

Ben leaned in slowly until his lips were right against her neck and she felt him inhale deeply. “I can’t get over how great you smell.”
"She met his gaze. “It’s vanilla.” “Vanilla,” Ben repeated slowly. “My favorite flavor.”
Flavors brought to mind tasting and tongues and Jess felt a delicious shiver dance over her. Hell, she’d wear Tabasco sauce if it got that look from him.

Her skin tingled before she caught sight of Ben, like her body was aware of him before her conscious mind recognized him. Seemingly as in sync with her, Ben found her over the heads of the four twenty-something girls he was helping at the counter as she stopped to one side, watching him. The smile and wink he gave her made her want to climb over the wooden counter, wrap herself around him and pull him down onto the floor amidst the coffee grounds, splashes of milk and sprinkles of nutmeg.

“Because I want nothing more than to strip you down, push you up against the wall and make you scream my name with your legs wrapped around my waist.”

And the point was, she had to show Ben that he was the right man for her. Not the super-organized, go-getter ER nurse who had been intent on finding—or creating—the perfect man. But the woman, who now knew that the man for her was not perfect, but was just right.

Love and lust, heat and happiness all raced to be the first thing to register in his mind. What finally won first place was what the hell is she doing wearing that dress out where other men can see her?

Adam Steele is good. Good at using his money to get his way. Money always works-until he realizes he can't buy his daughter's way out of her new wheelchair. Three private physical therapists later, he's almost given up on Emily walking again. Then he meets Dr. Jaden Monroe. And his match.

Jaden doesn't know the meaning of the word "quit". But she knows a lot about "fired" after a public blowout with her ex jeopardizes the donation her hospital was counting on. Now the most tempting man she's ever met has made her just the offer she needs to save the new children's rehab wing-one million dollars to rehabilitate his daughter. In return she finds herself making Adam rash promises: that his daughter will walk in time to take the lead in the school play. And that he won't entice her into his bed. No matter what.

But Jaden didn't anticipate a teen whose injuries are more than physical. Or a man so passionate and devoted-and as tenacious as she is. As Adam wears down her defenses with kiss after kiss, the only thing harder than keeping her promise will be keeping a hold on her heart.

Warning:
Contains heated arguments that erupt only slightly more often than hot kissing, a new perspective on kitchen appliances, and sizzling sex occurring everywhere BUT the bedroom (though they eventually make it there).

Title: NO MATTER WHAT
Author: Erin Nicholas
Series: Standalone
Genre: Contemporary Romance
Publisher: Samhain Publishing
Year of release: 2009, November 3
Format: eBook
Source: Bought via Samhain’s eBook store

First line:
One-night stands were a lot like apple pie as far as Jaden Monroe was concerned.

Memorable Scenes:
Swimming pool scene > Adam made me sigh
Kitchen scene > bone melting hot
Mall scene with Emily and Jaden > made me tear up


Quick & Dirty-review:

Ingredients/Summary:
A wealthy father seeking the best of the best in physical therapy for his daughter, a pediatric physical therapist who's lost her job and is working as a bartender until she gets an offer that'll put her back on track.
The attraction between them is there from the start but different things hold them back from giving into it.

Hero:
Adam Steele is commanding, used to getting what he wants the way he wants it, demanding, intimidating, stubborn passionate and protective.

Heroine:
Dr. Jaden Monroe is very capable and able to stand her ground with Adam's commanding ways and stand up to him. She’s defiant, involved and fierce.

Writing:
Erin Nicholas' writing is wonderful. Her characters are engaging and well rounded. She tackles emotional stuff in a way that seems effortless yet utterly heartfelt and she writes sex scenes that set the pages on fire without being too explicit or graphic. I really liked this first encounter with her work and it left me wanting to read more.

Likes:
- Emily (Adam's daughter), she a tough, mouthy 14 year-old kid who doesn't want to be helped. She forms a real challenge for Jaden but she handles Emily patiently and splendidly and doesn't tolerate her whimsical temper tantrums.
- the character depth and development
- the emotions

Dislikes:
- the parts where Adam and Jaden weren't together on the page seemed to drag on a little bit...just a little bit and they seemed less intense.
- Adam's attitude towards Jaden where Emily's treatment is concerned: strong-arming her, questioning her methods

Verdict:
NO MATTER WHAT is a delightful novella that tugs at your heartstrings because the relationship between Jaden and Emily is just as important and impressive as the one between Jaden and Adam. The story and characters surrounding the main characters made a lasting impression on me and I'd love to read a story on Tony, Adam's brother, someday.

Favorite Quotes:
Tony took advantage of her stunned silence to say, “I have to talk to you. I’d like to be nice about it. I’d like to charm you into having a civilized conversation. I’d like to buy you a drink.
"I’d like to be a thirty-six C, but we don’t always get what we want,” Jaden said as sweetly as she could through gritted teeth.

“Taking you to bed occurred to me the first moment I saw you.”
He had to stop doing that. If she lost her ability to breathe and think every time he said something like that, she was afraid she would quickly lose her professional credibility with him. If she hadn’t already.

"Do you like soft kisses?” He pressed his lips to hers gently. Her hands went to his shoulders and she kissed him back, making his heart thump in his chest. He lifted his head, breathing hard already. “Or do you like hot, wet kisses?” He tilted her head and demonstrated that as well, stroking his tongue over her bottom lip and then taking advantage of the sigh that parted her lips and granted him access to the sweet, hot mouth he’d been dreaming about.