Question A

[Jonetta]

We learn that Sam and Nick never connected after their night together. Did that come as a surprise? What do you make of Peter having not only interfered but later convinced Sam to marry him?

[Anita]

I didn't surprise me that they didn't connect after that night. What surprised me was that they both decided to just let it go. Eight years. How stupid are these characters to have had such a connection and to just walk away from it?

Peter was a douchebag, but a lot of our group nailed him after the other book. He fooled me. I thought he was just a concerned friend.

[Charlene]

I despised Peter for all of what he did with respect to Sam. How could he live with himself? And how could she not see that something was off with him?

[Jonetta]

Since this is my second time around, this felt more surprising after having read the prequel this go round. Peter was sending out disturbing vibes so it didn’t surprise me how he intervened. But, that said, it was one night and after a few attempts with someone you don’t know well, you move on.

Angela was right about Peter.

[Anita]

That is just it - Nick and Sam never connected after that night. Nick let Peter interfere and never tracked down Sam herself. If Nick, or Sam, tracks the other down and hears "Get lost" then it's over and done. It's not like they were separated by thousands of miles.

[Jonetta]

I didn’t make my point clear. Nick didn’t have any reason to believe his messages weren’t reaching Sam so since it was only one night, he thought she was sending a message. She didn’t reach out to him because when she didn’t hear from him, she got the message, too.

I think if it had been more than one night together, both of them would have tried harder.

[Anita]

My point - Nick never really knew where his messages ended up. He only knew what Peter told him. He wussed out by not tracking Sam down in person.

[Lauren]

Like Jonetta, this was my 2nd read-through of the book. It was good to read the prequel with the background information I felt was missing in this book.

Nick and Sam's reactions are a classic miscommunication technique. While I understand that they only had one night together and Peter's despicable interference was a factor, it was also a bit immature of them not to confront one another, especially since they did not live on opposite sides of the country and knew how to reach out and find one another.

[Jonetta]

Honestly? I’d just think I was getting the brush off.

[Anita]

A lot of readers think this series imitates the "In Death" series, this is one major place it doesn't. Roarke would have never taken Peter's word that he passed on the messages. Roarke would have tracked Sam down and confirmed she didn't want to see him again.

[Jonetta]

Roarke would have hunted her down!

[Anita]

For sure and if she was reluctant to see him again, he would have set about changing her mind!

[Lauren]

Jonetta wrote: "Roarke would have hunted her down!"

Totally!

[Sharon]

Peter is a sick person. He is willing to kill to keep them apart.

This is my second read of this book, but the first time after the prequel. For me, knowing the connection that Sam and Nick had after their first night makes the whole situation worse in my mind. I question Sam and Nick's actions.

I'm one of the people who feel Marie Force used the In Death series as inspiration for this one. Sam comes across as being a go-get-em guy, but he doesn't track down Sam when she doesn't call him back. That doesn't play for me.

You all are right, Roarke wouldn't put up with no response. He broke into Eve's house and tracked her down at the Blue Squirrel.

Both Sam and Nick are in careers that they could "accidentally" run into the other person. In the prequel and this book, it is obvious they had a strong connection. Their first meet was more than a one-night stand and neither looks for the other. I would need to know what happened when Nick was out of town.

Another thing that bothers me is Sam is close to her sisters, and yet she totally ignored Angela's warnings.

After Sam's comment about Spencer, "We only put up with him because he worships the ground Angela walks on. There's nothing he wouldn't do for her." It made me think that the sisters had to have many conversations about Peter before Sam married him. I would tell my cop sister to see if she can find Nick to make sure something didn't keep him from getting in touch before the I Do.

[Jonetta]

There’s a lot missing about how she went from that one-night stand to marrying Peter. That was a head snapper. I had the same instincts as you about Angela putting up a fuss about Peter. She really didn’t like the guy and that wasn’t going to change because she nailed him.

While it seemed Force designed Sam similarly to Eve (for shame), Nick doesn’t remind me of Roarke very much. He’s very low key and aside from being charming and handsome, there aren’t any other significant similarities. He certainly lacks that rogue quality. At least for me.