Brief

A young woman looking for a fresh start, finds an instant connection with a blind date. After spending the night together, she learns that he is not the man she was supposed to meet after all. Angry at being lied to, but unable to put him out of her mind, she allows him to prove to her that is the right man for her after all.

What We Liked

- The story is full of romance and a little bit of intrigue. It will be popular with young women, but the little bit of intermittent mystery will help to broaden the appeal.
- This book is perfect for a feature film adaptation. It has a love story, a bit of mystery, and a happy ending which follows a the usually successful formula. - Speeding up the pace of the romance and focusing more on Braxton’s character and possibly upping the stakes for Dakota by enlightening her about her stalker a little earlier in the story might make for a more engaging film.
- The story of Dakota and Braxton could be adapted nicely into a limited-series. Dragging out the intrigue regarding Braxton’s motives and delving into the mystery of Dakota’s stalker more deeply would keep a television audience engaged.
- Key points: Strong female lead; Attractive cast; Romance; Broad appeal; Happy ending

Synopsis

Dakota is just coming off a break up with her long time fiancé, Troy. He cheated on her and she needs a fresh start. She relocates to Seattle and moves in with her brother Jamie, with whom she is very close. Jamie is the charming lead singer of an up and coming band and he has an endless stream of women in and out of the house. Dakota is excited when she learns that the dream job she just landed comes with a beautiful apartment in a building owned by her new company.

She eagerly starts her new job as an on-air salesperson for a home shopping network type company. She really likes what she does and hopes to make some new friends. Her boss, Kathy, doesn’t seem to like her ideas, but she trusts her own instincts when her sales numbers are really good.

Dakota goes to the club to watch Jamie’s band perform. She is friendly with his bandmates and Maggie, the manager of the club where they perform. Maggie is happy to see Dakota and tells her that she wants to set her up with one of her friends on a blind date. Dakota’s not interested at first, but Maggie persuades her. She opts for a coffee date instead of dinner so she can duck out early, if necessary.

As Dakota is arriving for the date, she sees a gorgeous man waiting outside the shop. They lock eyes and she assumes that he is the man she is supposed to meet. He introduces himself as Braxton and she is immediately smitten with him. They have a great time together and can’t deny the chemistry between them. They end up spending the night together and Dakota hopes it is the beginning of a wonderful relationship.

However, she awakes the next morning to text messages from Maggie asking why Dakota stood her friend up for the blind date. A sickening feeling comes over her as it slowly dawns on her that Braxton has been lying to her. Dakota is furious and asks him to leave. He tries to explain himself, but she will not listen. He agrees to leave but insists that they will see each other again.

She runs into Braxton in the elevator at work but doesn’t put two and two together until she arrives for a work meeting and is faced with the fact that he is the CEO of the company. Not only does she work for him, but he owns the apartment building in which she lives. She needs her job so she has to find a way to coexist with him. Braxton is overbearing and refuses to take no for an answer when it comes to Dakota. He makes it clear that he is attracted to her and that he is the kind of man who always gets what he wants.

Though annoyed at his forcefulness, she just can’t resist him and they embark on a passionate relationship. She can’t deny that she kind of likes the way he takes charge, but Dakota still feels a little boxed in at times. He takes it upon himself to gift her with a watch that stores all her data and then he syncs their data together so he always knows where she is and who she is with. He even calls Jamie behind her back to ask him to be with her when Troy comes into town to bring her some belongings she left behind.

Dakota wants to keep their relationship quiet about around the office, but Braxton makes a big show of pulling her out of a bar where she is having drinks with coworkers so she can have dinner with him. Everyone knows about the relationship now whether Dakota likes it or not. Kathy seems a bit off put by it since Hanna, her niece and Braxton’s assistant, once dated. But Dakota soon learns that Hanna is very sweet and that she isn’t interested in Braxton as a boyfriend and likewise, he isn’t interested in her either. Hanna becomes friendly with Dakota, but she makes an even closer friend in her co-worker, Samantha. Dakota and Samantha enjoy each other’s company and Dakota is starting to feel like she finally fits in at work.

Braxton continues to smother her. She gets breaks when she can, but he hardly lets her have any freedom. Braxton and Jamie strike up a friendship and Jamie seems happy to discover that Braxton is keeping tabs on Dakota and making sure that she is always safe.

Dakota and Samantha attend one of Jamie’s shows. Samantha gets along great with the guys. Braxton soon joins them and the guys get along with him too with the exception of Jamie’s bandmate, Freddie, who seems distracted and doesn’t really socialize with them. Dakota doesn’t let Freddie’s quiet demeanor put a damper on the fun. They end up having a great time and when Dakota has too much to drink, Braxton whisks her away to his isolated cabin in the woods.

Braxton and Dakota are enjoying an incredible romantic weekend at the cabin, when Braxton gets a call that disturbs him. They have to go back to the city so he can deal with an issue at the apartment building. When they arrive back, Braxton refuses to let Dakota go to her apartment and insists that she stay with him. She is frustrated and doesn’t want to be told what to do and where to stay. When she goes against his wishes and tries to go to her apartment, she is met by police and discovers that her apartment has been vandalized, flooded with water and most of her things have been destroyed. She is shocked and has no idea who might be responsible for such a thing.

Braxton makes her at home in his apartment and has Hanna and Samantha go shopping to purchase things that Dakota will need. Braxton reveals to Dakota that on the first day of her on-air presence, the studio received a strange call about her and then later a scary package was sent to her attention. It was flagged and contained things that made security take a threat against her seriously. It now makes sense to Dakota why Braxton has been so protective. Jamie also knew of the threats against her so he has been grateful to Braxton for keeping her safe.

Out of the blue, it is discovered that Freddie, Jamie’s bandmate is the one responsible for destroying Dakota’s things and sending threatening things to the studio. Apparently he has loved her from afar and when he realized that she was dating Braxton, he snapped. Jamie and the other bandmates are shocked at the revelation about Freddie.

While Braxton and Dakota are out having dinner with Braxton’s parents, Jamie confronts Freddie and a fight ensues. Freddie ends up in the hospital and Jamie is arrested. Braxton jumps into action and gets Jamie the best lawyers money can buy. Freddie isn’t severely hurt from the fight and decides not to press charges. He admits to committing the crimes, is fired from the band and brought to justice. Relieved to have Freddie out of their lives, Jamie and the band prepare to go on tour while Braxton and Dakota are now free to enjoy their new life together. They get engaged in the epilogue and all’s well that ends well.

About The Author

Aurora Rose Reynolds is a New York Times, USA Today and Wall Street Journal bestselling author whose wildly popular series include Until, Until Him, Until Her, Underground Kings, Shooting Stars series and The Wrong/Right Man.