Edge of Danger (Deadly Ops #4) by Katie Reus 
Series: Deadly Ops #4
Published by Signet on November 3rd 2015
Genres: Action, Military
Pages: 322
Format: eBook
I received this book for free from in exchange for an honest review. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review.
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[box style=”rounded” border=”full”] Action packed as well as sexy and romantic, you can’t ask for more. I like this series and I like Katie Reus. I really liked how the characters clicked and how the action kept up the entire story.[/box]
The head of the DEA was killed in a car jacking gone wrong, or was he. The news started declaring it a terrorist attack long before DEA, NSA or FBI received any information on that. Tucker and his friends are still reeling from the news of their boss and friend Max’s death, when hired killers try and take them out simultaneously. No question there is more going on than a terrorist attack and these guys aren’t going to sit back while someone is trying to kill them, but who can they trust?
They try to contact the head of the NSA, Wesley Burkhart. He and Max were friends and Max trusted them. When the news declares that the four of them were responsible for recent bombings and Max’s death, they know they need to take a chance on Burkhart. They aren’t sure if they will get treated fairly but at least they won’t be shot on sight, they hope. After trying to contact Burkhart for several days with no response, Tucker and the guys are getting pretty desperate. They concoct a plan to kidnap one of Burkhart’s top people in the hope that they can finally get his attention.
It catches his attention alright. Karen Stafford is one of Burkhart’s top people and she’s never, ever late for work. When Karen doesn’t show up and doesn’t answer her phone, Burkhart immediately begins a manhunt.
Karen is an analyst, not a field agent, and couldn’t outrun the four trained men who ambushed her. She recognized one of them from his file, he worked for the terrorist Tasev, who the NSA recently took down. Karen isn’t sure who is stupider, these desperate and dangerous men who are trying to get her believe that they are undercover agents in danger who need her help, or herself because she is actually starting to believe them. Everything they tell her could be true, especially when you are talking about undercover agents, and all the facts sound too much like a set up for it not to be. But most importantly, if these were dangerous terrorists looking to get information from her, men who weren’t concerned about killing innocent people, then why were they being so courteous and concerned about her well-being rather than torturing her for information.
Karen gets Burkhart to agree to a meeting and while Tucker knows they are probably walking straight into a trap, they are willing to walk into it for a chance to be heard by someone they trust. Except they might not get a chance because whoever is setting them up, wants to make sure they never get that opportunity. They have inside people and they are planning on killing Tucker and his friends before they arrive at the meeting, and have no problem killing another innocent to make sure their plans continue. Tucker will do everything in his power to keep Karen safe. He and his friends have dragged her into the middle of this mess and a woman this brave and smart doesn’t deserve to die for their actions.
Tucker and Karen have a head start on the bad guys but is it enough to get them to safety before all hell breaks loose.
THOUGHTS:
Absolutely wonderful writing. The energy and excitement is pretty steady throughout this whole story. You have the attack on Tucker and his friends, the kidnapping of Karen, Tucker and Karen trying to get to the meeting with Burkhart and finally the mission to take down the true terrorists. *Whew. Take a deep breath.*
Even the quick romance between Tucker and Karen comes off as knocking them both back in amazement and they each feel that they are the only one feeling the insanity. They each become overly protective of the other, even when it doesn’t make sense to them. Both Tucker and Karen are adorably nervous around each other whenever the danger passes. Tucker is hopefully more suave when he is undercover than when he talks to Karen. Of course it complicates things when the NSA figures out that Karen and Tucker slept together, because Karen isn’t the sort to just sleep with just anyone. So they question if she was forced or is she part of the terrorist group too and trying to pass them off as innocent men? Ooooo.
This is definitely one of the best stories in the series. It’s been sitting on my shelf for awhile and I am glad I finally got a chance to read it.
Received an ARC from the publisher in exchange for an honest review.
Favorite Scene:
The bedroom door was half-open, but he knocked on it anyway as he stopped in the entryway. She was wearing plaid pink-and-black pajamas she must have borrowed from her friend. They were a little long on her, so she’d rolled the sleeves up at the wrists. Still, they didn’t do anything to hide the outline of her full breasts. What he wouldn’t give to cup them, to tease them with his tongue–nope. Not going there again. He’d already had to take a cold shower to cool down, not that it had helped. Jacking off had, though. Or he’d thought it had until he saw her standing there looking refreshed and so fucking gorgeous he experienced another one of those jolts to his system he’d only ever had around her.
Her green eyes widened when she saw him, her gaze trailing over his bare chest. Shit, maybe he should have put on a shirt, but he’d known they’d be sleeping soon. At first he though it was just shock, but then he got a hint of something else. As though maybe she liked what she saw.
Still, he didn’t want to make her uncomfortable. “I’ll put on a shirt,” he murmured, moving for the duffel bag he’d left at the foot of the queen-size bed. “And I’ll be bunking on the floor. Is that okay?” Mostly for security reasons, but he wasn’t letting her out of his sight for reasons he didn’t want to examine too closely.
“No,” she said quickly.
He paused with his hand on the bag. He hadn’t thought she’d care about him sleeping on the floor. It bothered him that she did. “Uh, I think it would be better if we stay in the same room. We need to stay close. We can sleep on the couches downstairs instead, though.” If he had to he’d just sleep in the hallway if she was that nervous. Because he wasn’t leaving her unprotected.
“Oh no, I mean, you don’t have to put on a shirt. And we can share the bed.” Her cheeks flushed pink and, fuck him, his dick went hard–okay, harder than he already was.
He stood and picked up his bag, holding it low and hoping he looked casual and not as if he was trying to cover up his annoying erection. He’d always been in control of his dick. Always. Until, apparently, Karen. “I’ve had worse sleeping conditions than this. With a blanket and pillow I’ll be good to go.”
She shook her head and stuck her chin out. It was slight, but he’d noticed that she did it when she was being stubborn about something. Like when she’d told him she wasn’t leaving him to get shot by the cops. She’d been so fierce and determined he’d known that arguing with her would have been pointless. and okay, he hadn’t wanted to leave her anyway. “That’s stupid. Our first meeting was you kidnapping me.” He winced at her words, but she half smiled as if it didn’t bother her before continuing. “I’m just saying I think we’re way past any sense of formality or whatever. I’m freaking exhausted and I know you have to be. I bet you and your team were up super early planning to grab me. And while you might be used to crazy days like today, you need to sleep too. If you try to sleep on the floor I’ll just get down there with you. Which will make you feel guilty and then you’ll end up in the bed anyway. so just give in now and save yourself–and me–a headache.”
He blinked in surprise, an unexpected grin curving his mouth. The woman was an absolute force of nature. “Fine, the bed it it.” God help him, he really hoped it lead to more than just sleep. Which was a stupid thought considering the circumstances, but the thought of being able to hold her, kiss her…He shut that thought down.
She gave him a real smile and for a moment he forgot to fucking breathe. Actually forgot to draw in a breath. It was like a punch to his solar plexus. The woman was stunning.
“I knew you’d see it my way,” she murmured, still smiling as she turned form him and pulled the covers down.
