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Tap That #4
Strip Away
A hot hockey player.
His boss’s daughter.
And a one-night stand ten years in the making…
Astrid Anderson Bouchard, a creative free spirit, has one last item on her birthday bucket list before she starts graduate school. She’s determined to hookup with Jesse Lambert and get over her long-standing crush once and for all. No more fantasizing about the guy who saved her very clumsy teen self from public humiliation at hockey camp. No more comparing him to every man she dates. One and done, and she can move on with her life.
Jesse Lambert has a plan. Sign a big contract with a new team for his remaining few seasons as a pro player, then retire back home to Beaver Bend, Minnesota. Find a nice woman, settle down, and start a family. No more one-night stands, no more casual sex with random women. The Tap That charity strip event weekend is his last chance to sew some wild oats, and the sexy stranger with the pink hair and the sweet laugh fits the bill.
Only after a very hot night together, Jesse learns Astrid is his new boss’s one and only daughter. Which is bad.
Plus she’s furious with him for not realizing who she was before he stripped her clothes off. Not good either.
And she’s accidentally revealed the naked truth about them to her father. That’s even worse.
There’s only one way out of this sticky situation and it involves convincing Astrid to pretend they’re in a serious relationship so he doesn’t lose his lucrative deal with her dad.
But will she give him an assist or send him straight to the penalty box?
His boss’s daughter.
And a one-night stand ten years in the making…
Astrid Anderson Bouchard, a creative free spirit, has one last item on her birthday bucket list before she starts graduate school. She’s determined to hookup with Jesse Lambert and get over her long-standing crush once and for all. No more fantasizing about the guy who saved her very clumsy teen self from public humiliation at hockey camp. No more comparing him to every man she dates. One and done, and she can move on with her life.
Jesse Lambert has a plan. Sign a big contract with a new team for his remaining few seasons as a pro player, then retire back home to Beaver Bend, Minnesota. Find a nice woman, settle down, and start a family. No more one-night stands, no more casual sex with random women. The Tap That charity strip event weekend is his last chance to sew some wild oats, and the sexy stranger with the pink hair and the sweet laugh fits the bill.
Only after a very hot night together, Jesse learns Astrid is his new boss’s one and only daughter. Which is bad.
Plus she’s furious with him for not realizing who she was before he stripped her clothes off. Not good either.
And she’s accidentally revealed the naked truth about them to her father. That’s even worse.
There’s only one way out of this sticky situation and it involves convincing Astrid to pretend they’re in a serious relationship so he doesn’t lose his lucrative deal with her dad.
But will she give him an assist or send him straight to the penalty box?
210 pages, Kindle Edition
First published June 14, 2021
About the author
Erin McCarthy
186 books4,776 followersUSA Today and New York Times Bestselling author Erin McCarthy sold her first book in 2002 and has since written over seventy novels and novellas in teen fiction, new adult, and adult romance. Erin has a special weakness for high-heeled boots, beaches and martinis. She lives in Ohio with her family, two grumpy cats and a socially awkward dog.
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Displaying 1 - 8 of 8 reviews
June 28, 2021
I mean, it was cute at times, and I loved how confident Astrid was in her body, but - This story lasted like...15 minutes? I mean, it FELT like 15 minutes tops, in which they met, had sex, and subsequently got fake-engaged, fell in love, then got real-engaged?
I swear, their one-night-stand and the prelude to it took up half the book, then the feelings part happened in 0.6 nanosecond. And you know what, maybe I would end up being totally fine with that, but the writing was also just so messy? Tons of typos and misplaced words, like why?
Also, I was already...annoyed, to put it lightly, on approx. page 5:
"As the bartender and the owner of Tap That bar, Sullivan had plenty of opportunities to close drunk women and he'd taken full advantage of it."
So...just to clarify, by "CLOSE DRUNK women" you actually mean rape, and by "taken full advantage of IT", you actually mean taken full advantage of THEM?
Because...that Sullivan guy might not have been the hero of this book, but he's still a friend of the MC and a hero in the next book, and MC talking so flippantly about his buddy taking advantage of drunk women is not gonna make me warm up to him, let alone ship him with anyone but maybe a trash bag in which he belongs.
I swear, their one-night-stand and the prelude to it took up half the book, then the feelings part happened in 0.6 nanosecond. And you know what, maybe I would end up being totally fine with that, but the writing was also just so messy? Tons of typos and misplaced words, like why?
Also, I was already...annoyed, to put it lightly, on approx. page 5:
"As the bartender and the owner of Tap That bar, Sullivan had plenty of opportunities to close drunk women and he'd taken full advantage of it."
So...just to clarify, by "CLOSE DRUNK women" you actually mean rape, and by "taken full advantage of IT", you actually mean taken full advantage of THEM?
Because...that Sullivan guy might not have been the hero of this book, but he's still a friend of the MC and a hero in the next book, and MC talking so flippantly about his buddy taking advantage of drunk women is not gonna make me warm up to him, let alone ship him with anyone but maybe a trash bag in which he belongs.
February 18, 2022
A Fun Romp
I am probably biased, but I love Erin McCarthy’s characters and dialogue in general. Astrid and Jesse did not disappoint. Jesse being a hockey player was a big plus for me as well. I gobbled this book up and when it ended, all I thought was - “That’s it? I want more.” So I will await the next book and devour that as well.
I am probably biased, but I love Erin McCarthy’s characters and dialogue in general. Astrid and Jesse did not disappoint. Jesse being a hockey player was a big plus for me as well. I gobbled this book up and when it ended, all I thought was - “That’s it? I want more.” So I will await the next book and devour that as well.
July 2, 2021
I loved reading about Astrid and Jesse. They have a very unique love story.
Jesse is a pro hockey player and returns home to Beaver's Bend to do the yearly fundraiser that his friend puts on. Little did he know that that weekend will land him a fake engagement and maybe finding the love of his life.
Astrid has always had a crush on Jesse. He was really nice to her at a hockey camp when she was a teenager and she has never forgotten him. She even put him on her bucket list of things she wanted to accomplish before she was 25. Little did she know that what she originally put down at the age of 16 would come true.
These two have instant attraction and a deep connection. Jesse didn't think he was ready yet to find his true love but fate had a little something else to think about that. Astrid just thought she was scratching an itch and getting him out of her system. But of course she got attached, attached quickly.
I can't wait for Sullivan's story. I have very much loved this series and hope there is more after Sullivan too!
Jesse is a pro hockey player and returns home to Beaver's Bend to do the yearly fundraiser that his friend puts on. Little did he know that that weekend will land him a fake engagement and maybe finding the love of his life.
Astrid has always had a crush on Jesse. He was really nice to her at a hockey camp when she was a teenager and she has never forgotten him. She even put him on her bucket list of things she wanted to accomplish before she was 25. Little did she know that what she originally put down at the age of 16 would come true.
These two have instant attraction and a deep connection. Jesse didn't think he was ready yet to find his true love but fate had a little something else to think about that. Astrid just thought she was scratching an itch and getting him out of her system. But of course she got attached, attached quickly.
I can't wait for Sullivan's story. I have very much loved this series and hope there is more after Sullivan too!
June 28, 2021
Need more
I enjoyed the beginning of the series, but this book seems misplaced and haphazard in comparison since I didn’t get sucked in. I wanted to love the characters but never really connected with them. Hoping the next book will bring it back together. If I read this as a stand-alone, it would have more stars because it’s good…just not as good as the previous books. Grab the early books!!
I enjoyed the beginning of the series, but this book seems misplaced and haphazard in comparison since I didn’t get sucked in. I wanted to love the characters but never really connected with them. Hoping the next book will bring it back together. If I read this as a stand-alone, it would have more stars because it’s good…just not as good as the previous books. Grab the early books!!
June 28, 2021
Jesse and Astrid
Astrid has had a crush on Jesse for many years and finally gets the chance to check off an item on her bucket list. He doesn't recognize her but doesn't want to admit it since he's attracted to her. Things progress rapidly and get out of hand just as quickly but they still get their HEA. I enjoyed the story overall but found the multiple typos, spelling errors, etc a distraction to what should have been an easy read.
Astrid has had a crush on Jesse for many years and finally gets the chance to check off an item on her bucket list. He doesn't recognize her but doesn't want to admit it since he's attracted to her. Things progress rapidly and get out of hand just as quickly but they still get their HEA. I enjoyed the story overall but found the multiple typos, spelling errors, etc a distraction to what should have been an easy read.
June 24, 2021
Oh serendipity
Every time I read a romance book I hope to feel that zing of falling in love that I felt 33 years ago when I fell for my hubby. This story has the zing! Love love loved this fun story about serendipity and falling in love.
Every time I read a romance book I hope to feel that zing of falling in love that I felt 33 years ago when I fell for my hubby. This story has the zing! Love love loved this fun story about serendipity and falling in love.
July 7, 2021
Kind of long to get to a sweet ending -lots of review of former characters .this Jesse the hockey player and Astrid who is club owners daughter with long time crush on Jesse . To kiss and sleep with him on her bucket list which while accomplished led to drama
June 15, 2023
4.5/5 ⭐️ I really really liked this book!!
Displaying 1 - 8 of 8 reviews