And her handsome, brooding new bodyguard isn’t helping the situation.
Ivan is the perfect, deadly warrior, a man trained from childhood to be the ultimate protector to the Rios family. His focus on keeping her safe is intense--and a little intoxicating. When the threat of danger cracks his icy control, Maricela realizes she’s not the only one fighting against temptation.
Ivan knows that the blood on his hands makes him unworthy of the pure-hearted princess. But from the first kiss, their forbidden affair feels inevitable. He can give her a glimpse of life outside her gilded cage and a lover who wants the woman instead of the crown. The only thing he can never do is promise her forever.
Because spurning her noble suitors to marry her bodyguard wouldn’t just be a scandal. It could set off a political firestorm that would tear Sector One apart.
Beyond Series:
Beyond Shame
Beyond Control
Beyond Denial (A Beyond Happily Ever After free short story)
Beyond Pain
Flash (Free short story)
Beyond Temptation (Novella in the Marked Anthology or as a separate ebook)
Beyond Jealousy
Beyond Solitude (Novella in the Alpha's After Dark Anthology or as a separate ebook)
Beyond Addiction
Beyond Possession (Novella)
Beyond Innocence
Closed Doors (A Beyond Happily Ever After short story)
Blank Canvas (A Beyond Happily Ever After free short story)
Beyond Ruin
Beyond Ecstasy
Beyond Surrender
Creative Incentives (Free short story)
Beyond Doubt (An O'Kane for Life novella)
Cravings (Free short story)
Beyond Forever (An O'Kane for Life novella)
Dessert (Free short story)
Ravished (Free short story)
Efficient (Free short story)
Memorial (Free short story)
Fierce Protector (Free short story)
A Little Bit Bad (Free short story)
Diplomacy (Free short story)
Gideon's Riders Series:
(Spin off series)
Ashwin
Makhai (Free short story)
Deacon
6th Sense (Free short story)
Ivan
High Priestess (Free short story)
Girls' Night Out (Free short story)
Visit Kit Rocha's website for more information.
Review:
As a princess of Sector One, Maricela has been sheltered and protected her entire life. Now it's her job to find a suitable husband from the nobility, one who will be able to help her ensure continued stability for the sector. Her sister is determined to help her make the right match but Maricela knows the men she is being introduced to are only interested in the prestige of her close family relationship with the Prophet and she dreams of marrying for love instead.
Ivan is one of Gideon's Riders, he is a fierce protecter of the Rios family and currently Maricela's bodyguard. Ivan's father was sainted for giving up his life to save a member of the family but his uncles ruined their family name by committing treason and Ivan has lived with the guilt of that for his entire life. All Ivan has ever wanted was to make his mother proud and he would never dream of going against Gideon's wishes but watching Maricela give up her own happiness for the sake of the sector is slowly killing him and he wants to give her a taste of the freedom she's always been denied.
Romance doesn't get much more forbidden than a princess and her bodyguard so this story had a perfect amount of longing glances and heartache as Maricela and Ivan both fell head over heels but knew their relationship was doomed before it even had a chance to begin. As a princess who has always been given everything she wanted it would have been easy for Maricela to have become spoilt but she knows just how privileged she has been and works hard to help people who are less fortunate than she is. I love her ideas for helping the refugees that are still arriving in Sector One after the war in Eden and it was nice to see that she was putting her skills to good use.
Maricela is under a lot of pressure amongst the nobility to find a suitable husband though, everyone wants a piece of her and Ivan is the only one who really sees and understands how much of a toll it takes on her. I loved how protective he was but also that he wanted to show her what it was like to be normal. It was so sweet when he would sneak her away just to do simple things like walk around a market where nobody would recognise her and I enjoyed seeing them spending time together away from all the pressures of home. Ivan's backstory was hard to read about, as much as there are a lot of things to like about life in Sector One I'm not a fan of some of the rules there. The way the Riders are expected to give up their chance at a family of their own seems so wrong to me and I'm glad that Gideon and the rest of his family are working so hard to change certain attitudes in that quarter.
This story has a lot of sexual tension between the main couple and it's a long time before they give into it but that just made it all the sweeter. Lots of lingering glances and sneaked touches helped to really ramp up that chemistry until an explosion was inevitable. They're actually a pretty adorable couple and fit together perfectly and I loved the slow build to their romance. We've also had some strong hints over future couples here and I'm definitely looking forward to continuing the series. Kit Rocha never let me down and I'm always excited to spend more time in this world.
Source: Received from the author in exchange for an honest review
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