REVIEW: One Night Wife by Ainslie Paton

One Night Wife by Ainslie Paton is a modern Robin Hood style romance and the first in a sexy and exciting series.

Cal Sherwood and his extended family are con artists. Following in the footsteps of several generations, and with the help of a few other choice family dynasties, they have taken it upon themselves to take from the rich and give to the poor and disadvantaged. But not just any rich people. Those doing their own charity work and philanthropists are left alone. But arms dealers? Slum lords? People getting rich off of third world sweatshops? Those are the targets for the Sherwoods, who successfully get them to sink some of their wealth into risky investments that somehow never get off the ground. But Cal has a problem.He needs a new partner for a long con, a ‘one night wife’. Lucky for him, Finley Cartwright shows up at the perfect time.

Finley is desperate to figure out how to get her and her friend Lenny’s microloan charity Dollars for Daughters off the ground. Her best friend Lenny, herself in a bad situation after her father had been found out to be involved in a fraud scheme hasn’t the money to help fund their joint venture either. Desperate, she takes to standing on a barroom table and trying to convince the crowd to open their phones and click on the donate tab. When a handsome businessman sitting at the bar offers to give her some tips to get people to take her and her charity seriously, she’s tempted. She’s also tempted by him, and their first meeting almost leads to something more – until Cal insists that if he’s going to help her professionally, they have to keep a lid on anything personal. She’s intrigued, and wants to know more.

Cal offers Finley a deal. If she’ll come to society events with him as his fake girlfriend, he’ll show her how to get them to open their pocketbooks and dish out for her charity. What he doesn’t tell her is that her presence is instrumental in his own con. In no time, Finley is swimming in money for her good cause, and finding herself in a somewhat sticky situation as the attraction to Cal soon leads them to a steamy affair. But the bubble of good fortune bursts when Finley finds out what Cal is really up to. Will the truth ruin any chance of them getting their happy ending?

For a lot of reasons this is a really interesting, and thought provoking story. There are some laughs, but a fair number of serious moments too especially as one digests the ethics and morality of what the Sherwoods are up to. Can two wrongs make a right? There’s no easy answer to this question.

For Cal, knowing the background of the men and women he is determined to fleece, the money they will lose to him is a drop in their buckets and does so much good in comparison to where it’s come from that he is firm in his conviction that he’s doing the right thing. The law wouldn’t agree of course, and the Sherwood family is very careful to not get caught. They don’t steal money. It’s given over willingly by those who understand the risks, but don’t know that the investments they think they are funding don’t actually exist.

In bringing Finley along for the ride without telling her the whole truth, the foundation of their relationship is built on a lie. He had planned to cut her loose when the con was done, leaving her with a well funded charity and him on to the next job. When he realizes the depths of his feelings for her he wants to tell her the whole truth, even knowing what kind of fallout he could face. It makes for some intense drama as the story plays out.

Fin can’t believe the good fortune she’s had in meeting Cal. He shows her exactly how to flatter and cajole the ultra rich into dropping what are pennies to them – five grand here, ten grand there- but a huge deal to her charity. It’s addictive and she wants more. She willingly agrees to be Cal’s plus one at social events and falls for his charm and smooth style.

This is a slow burn romance, Cal convinced that it would be a bad idea for them to get personally involved but unable to resist the lure of Fin for too long. The result is some steamy love scenes and emotionally rich moments as they grow more attached to each other. When the truth comes out Fin has a lot to digest, including her own feelings about what she’s been involved in, what Cal’s family does and who Cal really is. Ultimately both Cal and Fin wrestle with the truth and find a way to get their happy ending. It’s a really unique romance, and with more to come in the series, I can’t wait to see what the author has up her sleeve!
 

Book Info:

Publication: May 28, 2018 | Entangled Publishing | The Confidence Game #1

Finley Cartwright is the queen of lost causes. That’s why she’s standing on a barstool trying to convince Friday night drinkers to donate money to her failing charity. Hitting on the guy on the next stool wasn’t part of her plan. Still, hot but grumpy venture capitalist Caleb Sherwood might just be her ticket to success.

Professional grifter and modern-day Robin Hood, Cal Sherwood is looking for a partner for a long con. Sexy Fin, doing her best Marilyn Monroe act for her cause, has the necessary qualifications. By the time he cuts her free, her charity would be thriving, and she’d have helped him charm billions out of arrogant, gullible marks to fund his social justice causes.

But just when he thinks he’s about to pull off the best con ever, his feisty new partner gets the upper hand.