REVIEW: Played by the Billionaire by Alexia Adams

Played by the Billionaire by Alexia Adams: Lorelei Torres grew up in a loving atmosphere, despite the fact that her father is serving a 25 year sentence for robbing a bank and killing a guard. Her mom is her everything, working two or more jobs at a time to keep Lorelei healthy and happy in Buffalo, New York. After being an innocent bystander in a workplace scandal, Lorelei requests a lateral transfer to the San Francisco area for a new position. She is the Director of Events for a charity that grants wishes to sick children. Starting all over in a new city is always a little daunting, yet Lorelei is able to make it work.

CEO Liam Manning earned his billions through his expertise in internet security. In addition, he is a true humanitarian in every sense of the word. With the exception of his older brother Marcus, Liam grew up unloved, for his mother has no use for him. Right before Marcus passed away from a rare heart condition, he made Liam promise to finish the book he was writing. Unfortunately for Liam, he has no experience being in a loving relationship and in order to fulfill his late brother’s request, he needs to learn about love in order to write about it.

Through Liam’s computer cracking skills, he finds the perfect woman to teach him about relationships. He has no intention of falling in love, he just wants to be a regular guy for a short while, date, experience a little passion and then return to his job. Lorelei makes it simple for him and they fall into a nice, easygoing relationship. She believes Liam is the real deal and they are super compatible. Of course they end up falling in love, however, when Lorelei finds out who Liam really is, their relationship ends. Luckily, Liam is able to get her to forgive his lies and deceit by explaining his life story.

I really liked this book. The story is well written and the characters are well defined. I formed an immediate connection with both Lorelei and Liam as individuals and as a couple. Their feelings for each other developed at a wonderful pace and their time together is filled with warmth, sexual tension and love. Although Lorelei’s mom is quite annoying, her meddling methods are quite authentic. I will definitely read more from author Alexia Adams.

Book Info:

Publication: May 19th 2014 by Entangled Publishing, LLC – Indulgence

Internet security billionaire, Liam Manning, made a death bed promise to his beloved brother, Marcus, to complete his mystery-romance manuscript. Problem is that Liam’s experience with women is limited to the cold-hearted supermodels he usually dates—nothing like the warm, caring woman depicted in the novel his brother began. So falling back on his hacking skills, he infiltrates an online dating site to find a suitable woman to teach him about romance-regular guy style.

Lorelei Torres was raised by her hard-working mother because her loser father is behind bars. All she wants is an honest man to love and with whom she can raise a large, happy family. After the last contender for her heart turns out to be a lying snake, she decides it’s time she started over. San Francisco is as far from Buffalo as she can get, unfortunately it’s not beyond the reach of her mother’s constant reminders about Lorelei’s ticking biological clock. When her dear parent signs her up with an online dating agency, Lorelei reluctantly agrees to meet her cyber-match. Maybe it’s time an impartial computer chose a man for her.

Can Liam finish the novel before Lorelei discovers his deceptions and, more critically, before she breaches the firewall around his heart?