Hot Ice by Lynne Raye Harris

Hot is definitely the right word for the title of this book. Although I have read some of the books in this series, I haven't read them all. Thankfully, they work well as standalones. This one was by far the sexiest one I've read yet. The "Iceman" meets the woman he believes is the spoiled and haughty ice queen. He has been assigned to protect her, but he can't help comparing her to his manipulative ex wife. Grace is an ultra introvert scientist who had a secret everyone wants. She has difficulty interacting with others and completely lacks self esteem. Garrett, Iceman, has enough self confidence for them both, however, he reads Grace's discomfort as disdain. The two end up on the run together, and Garrett begins to see more in Grace than he though was there. Unfortunately for their relationship, he allows sex to become primary and tramples Grace's feelings. Fighting off those who want to steal Grace's research and use it as a weapon, the couple runs further away from anyone who could help them. In the end, they are left to determine whether their relationship is just sex or something more permanent. I enjoyed the combo of sexy foul mouthed Garrett and timid Grace. She toned him down, and he heated her up. The language was about what you would expect for military style suspense. The sex was frequent but didn't take over the plot. Overall, I thought it was a wonderful addition to the series. Net Galley provided a copy for review.