In Dangerously Bound (Dangerous #1) by Eden Bradley, Mick Reid still regrets the way he left things with his high school sweetheart, Allie LeClair, about ten years ago. They shared a spectacular night together where he gave in to his Dominant side but he couldn’t bear to imagine what it would do to Allie, being with a man like him for too long. Now she’s back in New Orleans, interested in rekindling the old flames. And with a shocking revelation of her own. It turns out Allie has a submissive side. A side which calls to Mick on a whole new level. Can they start over as a couple and learn how 
to relate to each other as they are now, or is there too much clouding their past?
“The graceful angles of the body. The level of submission it signals. Seeing the flesh bound in my ropes is pure art to me. Your flesh…well, I’ve been waiting a long time to do this…So damn beautiful.”
Allie LeClair has traveled the world going to culinary schools and learning her craft as a pastry chef. The time seemed right to come home to New Orleans. Time to possibly work in the family pastry shop, and to admit who she really is to her old boyfriend Mick Reid. She knows he is a Dom at the local Bastille kink club. Allie had an inkling even back when they were in high school that she was submissive. She just didn’t know what that really would mean for her in relationships. Now a member of the BDSM community, she finds a way to become involved with Mick at the club. But can she convince him to take it one step further and get involved emotionally as well?
“You’ve developed a bratty side, you know that?”
She nodded, grinning. “I think you like it.”
“And I think it’s nothing throwing you over my knee and spanking the hell out of you won’t cure.”
“Yes, please,” she said quietly.
He stared at her for several moments, his gray eyes going dark. “Touche.”
Dangerously Bound is an intensely erotic novel that centers around the BDSM community and lifestyle. With extremely detailed “play” scenes and two people who have never stopped loving each other, be ready for a crazy hot time!
‘The beast had been unleashed. And met the wildness inside her. And it was perfect.’
Author Eden Bradley did a great job of letting us readers into the headspace of both the Dom and sub, explaining their thoughts before, during and after the play scenes, and what the act of dominance and submission really means to Mick and Allie. In some books I’ve read, the BDSM comes across as harsh, at least to me, but not only was it done tastefully here, there was an element of beauty to the scenes. Mick explained how the ropes and the knots were symbolic and like a work of art to him. He may have thought of himself as a sadist, but underneath, he was a truly caring person, and the rope bondage was a way of controlling someone in a meaningful (and artistic) way.
I did like both protagonists in this story. Allie knew what she wanted–a chance to share her kink with Mick, and perhaps have a second chance at love with him–and she wasn’t afraid to go for it. My only gripe with Allie was that it seemed once she did convince Mick they should get to know each other again, she was very quick to say he wasn’t into it enough, that he was holding back. With Mick being a Dom, she knew he would hold his emotions back so it shouldn’t have been a surprise it would take time for him to give in to his feelings. But Allie did come to terms with it and all’s well the ends well.
Mick was kind of a tortured soul, I thought, as we learned more about his past and his current struggles. He couldn’t get rid of his guilt over his night with Allie about ten years earlier, or about the accident that changed his career path forever. I found it really intriguing that Mick couldn’t reconcile in his mind the difference between Allie as a teenager and how she is know. Even though they share the same interests and lifestyle, he still could only think of her as sweet and innocent. Boy, did that change! There are some very intimate and passionate love scenes, even while they indulge in his use of ropes to bind her. But Ms. Bradley helped show how it was natural for them and was also very loving as well.
If you’re a fan of second chance romances that walk on the wilder, more erotic side, I think you will like Dangerously Bound.
Book Info:
Published April 1st 2014 by Berkley Trade
She can whip up something sweet…
Allie LeClair has finally returned to the sultry city of New Orleans. After ten years of studying and working as a pastry chef in San Francisco and all over Europe—and feeding her submissive side at BDSM clubs—Allie is home, and she has something to prove to the man who once fueled her desires. She’s not a child anymore.
But with two in the kitchen…
When security specialist Mick Reid hears that Allie is back in town, he knows he won’t be able to stay away for long. Ever since he discovered his darker side, Mick has tried to protect Allie from the aggressive beast within him—but that power and wildness is exactly what she wants.
Can they take the heat?
Allie has made the first move, but now it’s up to Mick. The game has begun, and playing has never been so rough.
