Content warning for threat of suicide, use of the term "crazy" in regards to an ex

Cypress has gone from a six-figure salary at a fancy investment firm to slingin' drinks in a Chicago dive bar after refusing to put up with the sexism and harassment necessary to further her career. She's used to being hit on by skeevy men, but has no trouble shutting it down. That is until the sexiest and most intense man she's ever seen sits in her section. And offers her a night of passion, no questions, no strings.

Too bad her "avenging angel" turns out to be her step-brother.

Jude Knox, still trying to push away the ex-girlfriend who threatened to kill herself when he broke up with her and trying to make his own way out of the shadow of his brother's success, is aghast when the woman he's still dreaming about turns out to be his step-sister, a little girl when he last saw her. He's even more aghast when he learns where Cypress has been living, what she's been putting up with as she struggles to make ends meet and take care of the health bills for her mother, the mother who was crushed when Jude's step-dad left her.

These two can't stay away from one another, but the ties to family and expectation may prove to be too much to handle.

Unfortunately I didn't connect with this story as much as I loved the first book in this series. The step-siblings thing was handled fine (but isn't a fav trope of mine), and I found it a little odd they wouldn't recognize each other at all, even if they were kids when they last saw each other. But I can let that go. I did really like Cypress's character, and her motivations were sound. Jude just wasn't my favorite hero, and I never really enjoy a "crazy ex" plot, but I did find that Simone handled it in a far better way than most.

That said, this book was smokin' hot and still a fun way to pass the time if you love high-angsty romances.