Personal Protection

Hauberk Protection #2

by Leah Braemel

She can cover him with one hand tied behind her back. Maybe two. Hauberk Protection, Book 2 Sam Watson excels at keeping other people safe. Now a stalker is targeting him, but so what? A few doctored photos and a couple threatening phone calls are no big deal. He can watch his own back. Then again, the view from behind the sexy spitfire assigned to protect him isn’t so bad… Rosalinda Ramos has managed to keep her attraction to Hauberk Security’s owner tightly under wraps. It’s just as well he doesn’t know. One slip—in the bedroom or on the job—will cost her her heart and her career, so she’s got only one thing on her mind. Protect Sam, whether he wants it or not. The stakes—and the heat—rise exponentially when she discovers Sam belongs to an exclusive sex club—one she must investigate for potential suspects. Suddenly she finds herself immersed in a world that pushes her boundaries. Sam delights in leading Rosie deep into his sexual shadows—until they go one game too far. Making him wonder if he can allow the woman he loves to take a bullet for him. May incite the reader’s protective instinct, forcing her to throw herself on the nearest man.

Genres: BDSM, Erotica, Romance, Erotic Romance, Contemporary, Romantic Suspense, Contemporary Romance

256 pages, Kindle Edition

First published May 10, 2009

About the author

Married to her college sweetheart and the mother of two sons, Leah is the only woman in a houseful of men—even their dog and cat are male. She loves escaping the ever-multiplying dust bunnies by opening up her laptop to write about sexy heroes and the women who challenge them.

Reviewers have awarded Leah’s books numerous Top Pick and Recommended Reads designations as well as nominated them as Best Contemporary Romance, Best Erotic Romance and Best Ménage and More. Leah has also been nominated as Favorite Author and Best Erotic Romance Author.

Reviews

[Lyndi W. · Rating 1 out of 5]

Not real fond of this story. I found the BDSM expressed in this story to be dangerously uninformed. Like the author read up on the BDSM entry on Wikipedia and just winged it.

I find it dangerous because the BDSM lifestyle isn't something you half-ass. You have to enter into it with full knowledge of expectations, limits, punishments, and consequences. This author explains numerous times that there will only be "safe, sane, and consensual" play between Rosie and Sam, but that's quickly thrown out the window.

The scene I'm referring to is the result of another scene that I don't really want to get into. But basically, Rosie has to receive a flogging from somebody other than Sam, even though she didn't agree to it. The agreement for play was between Rosie and Sam. Not Thalia, Spencer, and Rosie. For Thalia to demand Rosie be punished by Spencer when Rosie didn't agree to it is dangerous and not consensual. That negates the contractual agreement Rosie and Sam entered. Thalia played a very dangerous game by forcing Rosie's hand and taking away her rights without informing her - Thalia had Rosie do something that was basically an agreement, but never told her it was an agreement. Sam got angry, for damn good reason, but he didn't stop it. And I find that unforgiveable. Sure, Rosie got off on it, which is fine and dandy, but it wasn't consensual. And for this author to romanticise characters that have no qualms about taking away somebody's choice in a BDSM situation is dangerous and disturbing

If you convince somebody to take an action that will later have consequences, it is your duty to inform them of those consequences so they can decide whether or not they agree to everything. You don't say "Do this." and then later say "When you did that, you actually agreed to allow me to do this to you." To not inform them undermines the trust you've developed and cultivated - trust is absolutely required for any sort of BDSM play. Ask anyone that lives the BDSM lifestyle what would stop them from playing with somebody and the first thing they will say is "lack of trust." And I'm seriously pissed that the author was so irresponsible after making such an effort to portray the activities as consensual and safe.

As for the story... The concept was terrible. I have a hard time believing Thalia, Chad, Mark, etc are actually Sam's friends. You don't make your friend fear for his life just because he's still mourning his dead fiance. That is not what friends do. Friends don't purposely put you in a position to hurt the person you love. Friends don't take away your loved one's choices. Friends don't manipulate you and take over your life. And friends don't kidnap you or your loved one.

Sam was a decent character. I understood his feelings and I really felt for his plight. I thought he should have stood up to Thalia, but apparently his submissive side came out at that moment.

Rosie was... boring. We don't really know anything about her except that she likes to be spanked and has a very skewed concept of what submission truly is. She comes across as a fighter, but when it came time to fight for love, she ran away.

Thalia was truly horrible. I realize she cares for Sam and wants the best for him, but she went about it in the worst way possible. She is supposed to be a highly intelligent and experienced Domme, but she came across as manipulative, inconsiderate, and dishonest. She put Rosie in a no-win situation and had the gall to be smug about it, only succeeding in damaging the relationship Rosie had with Sam. I wanted to take her fucking wheelchair away and leave her at the bottom of some stairs. Yeah, I hated her that much.

Lee-Anne is a fairly minor character that was probably only written to create drama in Rosie and Sam's relationship. But she made a big impact on me because she broke some serious rules of the BDSM club, then threatened and lied to Rosie. Sam said he would blacklist her, but she was never mentioned again. The story, though I hated it, would have benefitted from a scene where Sam (or Rosie) dealt with her and put her in her place. She also could have been used as a real threat against Rosie. Drive it home to Sam that he can't lose her and that there will always be a threat to one or both of them in the future. They ARE bodyguards, after all.

So yeah, I really hated this story. I wanted to finish because I wanted to see what the threat was, since it was presented in such an odd manner. I found out my assumptions were correct and then there were just a few more pages after the big reveal, so I went ahead and finished. I'm not happy with myself for that. Though I am pretty glad I didn't pay for this book. I dunno if you can demand refunds on books, but I would have tried.

I would never recommend this book to anyone for any reason.

[Judi · Rating 4 out of 5]

I had noooooo idea what to expect when I started Personal Protection...and I got waaaaay more than I expected.

Sam Watson may be the head honcho at his own upscale personal protection and security company Hauberk Security, but sometimes even the boss needs protection. When Sam starts receiving obscene pictures of himself doctored with his head blown off and then his highly secure apartment is broken into and trashed, his close friends and associates know it's time to bring in the hired guns for his own protection. Question is: who's he gonna call...Ghostbusters ( I couldn`t resist)? No silly! He's got the best operatives right on his own payroll and there is no one better than Rosalinda "Rosie" Ramos.

Rosie is one of the best operatives at Hauberk and she takes her job and responsibilities very seriously even if she is constantly being tested to prove her worth despite her small statue. So Rosie's got mixed feelings when she's tasked with being the lead operative on Sam's protection detail because its such a huge honor and she doesn`t want to risk her job or career. It's going to be a tough gig though considering she's been jonsing for her hot, hunky employer for months and keeping those feelings under wraps and being around Sam 24/7 is going to push her to the limit.

What Rosie doesn't realize is that her feelings are not all one-sided. Sam's got a constant raging hard-on for the spicy, hot Latina whenever he even thinks about her. Let me just state that there was a lot of fantasizing going on about what these two wanted to do to each other *fans self*. Somehow they both manage to maintain (not for long) the Boss/Employee relationship(and not without a lot of cold showers) as they work to discover who's out to eliminate Sam from the human race.

As these two grow closer Sam's got serious issues with Rosie risking her life to protect him. He wants to be the boss; the protector; the dominant in their relationship. Which brings us to the other part of Sam's life that he's been keeping from Rosie and is hesitant to reveal. He's actively involved in the Dom/s lifestyle and one of the founding members of a very exclusive club. Crackling Rosie's education into this lifestyle was again *fans self* so smoking' hawt!

Let us not forget during all this hawtness that someone wants Sam dead.

I must give kudos to Ms. Braemel for the ending of Personal Protection. The suspect everyone was on high alert for? I NEVER saw it coming. If you can figure out who the bad guy is....well you are much better at solving puzzles than me. I thought it was an excellent twist even though I am sure I was asking myself WTF just happened as I was reading. GOOD on you Ms. Braemel.

Even though this is book #2 in the series (and Sam probably made an appearance in book #1), I had no trouble starting with Personal Protection.

Disclaimer: Sam and Rosie weren't the only ones in need of a cold shower during the reading of this eBook.

[Edit · Rating 3 out of 5]

3 stars

I liked Rosie very much, and was very happy they got together with Sam. Although I'm not really a fan of this kind of a lifestyle. But good for them.

[Laura · Rating 5 out of 5]

It did not take me this long to read this book. I just spent more time on my phone then reading.

I loved the book. Stubborn man stubborn women and a stalker. What could be better.

[Simply Love Book Reviews]

Slick's Review posted on Guilty Pleasures

Personal Protection is the second book in the Hauberk Protection series. I’ll admit I was ready for Sam Watson’s story as soon as he made an appearance in the first book, Private Property. There was just something about him that had me screaming, “More, more, more!” I’m happy to say that this book did not disappoint, not at all. In fact, this one more than lived up to my expectations.

Sam Watson is a former FBI agent and owner of Hauberk Protection Agency. He is one hundred percent in charge and runs his company and life in a cool and efficient manner. Trouble is one of his employees, Rosalinda Ramos (aka Rosie or Rosebud), has caught his attention and he’s finding in increasingly difficult to stay away from her. He suspects she feels the same way, but he hesitates to make a move fearing a sexual harassment lawsuit or loosing an invaluable employee.

I really can’t say enough about Sam. He’s larger than life, protective, calm, cool, and collected (except around Rosie). I love his southern accent and I especially love how it’s more pronounced when he’s trying to charm someone. He’s a Dom and he knows his way around floggers, whips, and other tools of the trade. But, he’s also broken. During his FBI days, an undercover mission went terribly wrong and he still blames himself for the damage that was done. He can’t let go of this part of his past and it affects his personal and professional life even 8 years later. There are so many, many layers to this complex man.

Rosie….man I’d like to be as kick-ass as she is! She’s independent, capable, strong, fierce, and doesn’t take crap from any of the men she works with. Her co-workers admire her but they also feel the need to protect her which drives her insane! She also happens to be obsessed with her boss and the owner of Hauberk, Sam. Since she’s seen him with many women over the two years she’s worked for him she doesn’t feel she measures up to his standards. Since she loves her job she knows her attraction for him can go nowhere but it doesn’t keep her from dreaming.

Sam is being stalked and Chad Miller the operations manager of the Washington, DC office decides it’s time for Sam to have some protection. Sam being Sam tries to refuse but Chad eventually convinces him. Trouble is Chad puts Rosie in charge of Sam’s detail much to Sam’s dismay and things get really interesting. Sam and Rosie finally admit their attraction and start to act on it. Throughout the book Sam does things that make Rosie think he doesn’t trust her as the agent in charge of his protection which infuriates her. When she tries to protect him from a threat, he over reacts and breaks things off because in his mind he’s putting her in danger. Sam then thinks that Rosie has been taken in retaliation for the incident 8 years ago and all hell breaks loose.

There were so many twists and turns to this story I felt like I was on a mountain road and wasn’t sure if I wanted to get off. The action, dialog, characters, and plot were all so well written that I found myself completely immersed. From this one story, I can tell there will be many more stories to come and I can’t wait to read them all.

***This is just a small example of why I love this book:
Shaking his head, Sam left his two operatives to bicker in his foyer and stalked down the hallway. Just what he needed, some whack job was stalking him, his lead op wanted to transfer or else she’d file a sexual harassment suit—justifiably so after the way he’d behaved the night before, and his two secondary CPO’s who were suppose to be guarding him were threatening to a) feed his dick to the lions, and b) let him choke on his gonads. Goddamn, why didn’t he just stand out front with a target on his chest and hope whoever was gunning for him put him out of his misery?

[Heather in FL · Rating 3 out of 5]

This one was much longer than the first. We met Sam in the first, and he was a bit overbearing then. More caveman than alpha. He could easily have messed up what Jodi and Mark had by making his decision, but luckily he didn't. Mark is still a little annoyed (in a friendly way) with how that went down, so he conspires with people within Hauberk to exert a little payback. But Sam keeps thwarting their efforts, so they get serious and fabricate a stalking to throw Sam and Rosie together. Sam keeps resisting because Rosie is an employee. He can't resist when they're constantly together and things heat up quickly, but Sam keeps sabotaging himself at every turn. And Rosie keeps taking it the wrong way -- she's either thinking he's implying she's not good enough at her job or she's comparing herself to past women and thinking she can't possibly measure up.

And in the middle of this, Rosie finds out he's a founding member of a BDSM club. She thinks she's done kinky stuff in the past, but realizes quickly that what she's done is nothing compared to Sam. She's intrigued, and learns a bit about the lifestyle to surprise Sam and make him happy.

I dunno... there were a lot of miscommunication things in this one, and the whole BDSM lifestyle part of it was awkward, and it just seemed to drag on and on. For a while, I thought Sam was moving back to sexy alpha material and away for non-sexy caveman, and then it seemed he was neither. And the sex, while a bit steamy, just didn't really do it for me. I think it just didn't feel sensual. Like Sam was always just 100% aggressive in everything, and it was just too much.

Ultimately, there was an HEA, so that's good.

[Lisa · Rating 4 out of 5]

If you read book one then you met Sam. He literally jumps right off the page and says look at me! No joke. I immediately wanted more of him. Well i got my chance with Personal Protection. Sam is a badass through and through. Former FBI he runs a huge security company of his own now. Rosalinda is one of his best employee at only 5 ft one she might be small but she can kick ass. With someone threatening Sam he finds it hard to accept he's the one who needs protection. It put him in close contact with Rosalinda whom he finds himself extremely attracted to. Dangerous since he's her boss and he doesn't want to get sued if she doesn't feel the same way. I really enjoyed Sam and Rosie's book. Sam had a pet name for Rosie, Rosebud and it was so sweet when he called her that. Sam can't see himself loving someone again but he wants Rosie She had her own reasons for being wary of him. These two were fun to watch dance around each other. As badass as Sam is he is still vulnerable and it was a bit shocking to see just how much. Gut wrenching when he thought Rosie was in serious danger. Once he finally finds out what is going on, and you do have to ask yourself how he could be so clueless, he finds he can open his heart and let go of the past. Gut wrenching but funny too. Sam and Rosie are an exciting couple. The cast of secondary characters are all so different and interesting. Even though it's easy to figure out what's going on (especially if you know what happened in book one) this was a complex story and Ms. Braemel tells it effortlessly.

[Jenny Harris · Rating 4 out of 5]

Sam is a very private man who is afraid of making a mistake that will hurt someone close to him again. While on a mission the woman he loved was killed he always blamed himself for not doing more or begin able to react fast enough to save her. So when he meets Rosalinda he knows he feels something for her but refuses to let anyone close enough to him to be hurt. Rosalinda is a woman who has had to prove herself over and over again and refuses to bow to any man. However every time she is near Sam that is all she wants to do. Sam knows that she is a born submissive but she has a stubborn streak as wide as his. These two characters not only have a smokin hot connection but they also can but heads like there is no tomorrow. I would recommend this book because not only is it a great story it is one that will have in you involved from beginning to end.

[Lexee Toste · Rating 4 out of 5]

I really enjoyed this story! I liked Rosie and Sam and the rest of the characters. Rosie and Sam have been drawn to each other for months but neither one plans to act because Sam is the boss of Hauberk Protection and Rosie is an employee. They get thrown together though when Sam is being threatened by a stalker and Rosie is put in charge of his protection. They can't deny the attraction for long, though Rosie tries. Sam starts pulling out the stops to romance her and her friends around her keep telling her to give it a try. There's some action and a lot of explicit, kinky sex. Rosie is newer to the kinky/BDSM side but Sam is very careful with her. I thought it was really well done and enjoyed it. There is plenty to keep your attention while reading this story.
I received an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

[~ Lei ~ Reading Is An Adventure ~ · Rating 3 out of 5]

This started out slow for me. Sam is being stalked and Rosie is assigned as his personal bodyguard. Only problem is that they've both been lusting after each other for a long time and this assignment throws them together 24/7. Finally resistance is breached. They enjoy some exciting sex and then Rosie finds out that Sam has been holding out - he's a founding member of a BDSM club and is wanted for his skills as a third in menages.

Lots of miscommunication and Rosie takes it upon herself to find out just what yanks Sam's chain.

Longer than the first book, enjoyable read.

[Stephie · Rating 4 out of 5]

I loved this book from the first page. Both Sam and Rosie are really likable and I loved how their relationship progressed. It was super hot and every conflict they had was really interesting, nothing seemed forced or too melodramatic. And really, the whole plan concocted by Sam's friends made them seem a little like psychos, but at the same time was super cool - and if a book can do that, what more is there to say, it was a real delight reading it.

[Andrea · Rating 3 out of 5]

Better than first book but 2.5 stars . It was good at the beginning but the end petered out. The end of the book just read differently, felt rushed and underdeveloped at the end. Noted hints so I figured out a quarter of the way through who was the antagonists, easy when I read the first book. But hero character development is still weak which was same issue in first book of series. Plot is weird and did not work for me.

[BookAddict ✒ La Crimson Femme · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is a good read which was enjoyable. The tone was pretty light and sexy, despite a stalker. It's kind of nice to see a twist where it is the man who is being stalked instead of the woman. I recommend this for those who like a bit of mystery and suspense with their contemporary romance. I also recommend it to those who like their sex scenes just a little bit kinky.

[Erica · Rating 4 out of 5]

Good story! Not quite the way that I would have chosen to handle that particular situation, but it was a very good story, lots of emotion and passion, very intriguing and HOT HOT HOT! Another winner from Leah Braemel.

[Lisa · Rating 5 out of 5]

I liked Sam a total alpha male but found it hard to like Rosie at first. It shows a true man as no trouble being dominated by the right woman. The whole employer/employee angle can be great if executed correctly which I think it does in Personal Protection.

[LadyTurtel · Rating 3 out of 5]

If it weren't for the twist to this story, it would be receiving 2 stars. I appreciated the depth of concern by his friends, and that fact added a star. Otherwise, due to the stunted writing style, as well as the BDSM misconceptions, there would be one less in the win column.

[Tracy · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was a good, interesting, and a HOT read!! You've got to read it...

[Nicole · Rating 4 out of 5]

Loved it! Great smutty suspense story!

[Sassafrass · Rating 4 out of 5]

this was a nice sequel. I was so glad to have the follow up since i enjoyed book one so much.

[Kim · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is 2nd in the Hauberk Protection series. Very hot! Found myself racing through the book.