Birthday Suit by Lauren Blakely

Temptation never tasted so good…

What do you get when you mix a long-simmering attraction, a dangerous secret, and a swoony hero who will sweep you off your feet? BIRTHDAY SUIT—a delicious standalone forbidden romance from #1 NYT bestseller Lauren Blakely that you’re guaranteed to love! Get your copy of BIRTHDAY SUIT now!

Title: Birthday Suit

Author: Lauren Blakely

Genre: Contemporary Romance

Release Date: January 17, 2019

There is no rule in the Man Code as unbreakable as this: no matter how beautiful, smart, clever, and witty she is, do not—under any circumstances—fall in love with your best friend’s woman.
Yeah. So there’s that. Look, it’s not like I didn’t know I screwed up by falling for her.
Also, for the record, unrequited love sucks big time.
And, I might have cut myself some slack by now, given everything that went down in the last few years, but Lulu just walked back into my life in a big way.

***
There are three things I’ve never been able to resist—my friends, my family, and chocolate.
Leo Hennessy? He was nowhere on that list. He’s been a true friend—a friend who walked through hell and back with me.
Now, I’m stepping into my new future. I didn’t expect it to include a riddle-filled, race-against-the-clock scavenger hunt across New York City.
With Leo.
Suddenly, I’m looking at this man with new eyes…
But my life spun out because of a man once before, and I can’t risk my fresh start, no matter what the temptation. And Leo is most definitely a temptation of the sexiest, sweetest, and most dangerous variety.
More irresistibly delicious than chocolate…

🎧 Performed by Andi Arndt and Sebastion York, with a Full Cast including Joe Arden, RC Bray, Jason Clarke, Shane East, Dion Graham, January LaVoy, Erin, Mallon, Robin Miles, Savannah Peachwood, and Julia Whelan 🎧

“A cast of TWELVE narrators work together to deliver an unforgettable performance!”

—Yvette at Nose Stuck In a Book

“The best audiobook of 2019! Blakely has set the bar with this audio production.“

—Joc, The Audio Flow Bookin Around Town

“Once again I am left dazzled by Ms. Blakely’s words. Birthday Suit is a top notch romance loaded with sweetness, sexiness and heartwarming feels!! Nobody does romance quite like she does, her witty words and uniquely crafted characters are incomparable!”

~ Misty at Reds Romance Reviews

Birthday Suit
by Lauren Blakely © 2019

~LEO~

Let’s get one thing out of the way real fast. Regret is a waste of time. I don’t believe in it—never have, never will. I try to live my life without that useless emotion.

You know those articles where the journalist asks old people what they would have done differently, and they list all sorts of stuff—be a better friend, call your mom, tell the woman you love her? You don’t want to be that person.

There’s a simple way to avoid it.

Do the good shit now.

Say yes to that crazy job offer, ask out the girl who’s out of your league, climb the mountain and kiss the sky.

You’ll thank yourself later.

But the flip side of that kind of life is this: you need some rules. A few basic guidelines to follow to navigate the potholes.

Over the years I’ve assembled my top picks. Some from experience, some from listening to others.

Allow me to share my hard-won wisdom.

If you have to sniff the food in your fridge to decide if you can eat it, just toss it. You’ll be glad you did tomorrow.
You can tell everything you need to know about a person by how he or she treats the waiter.
Turn down that last tequila shot. Trust me on this one.
If your woman sends you to the store to pick up something, get that something, not another version you think is better. Her version is always the right one.
You can’t put your foot in your mouth if it’s closed.
No dude ever gets in trouble while cleaning the kitchen.
Don’t live to work; work to live.
If you tell the truth, you don’t have to remember anything.
Don’t get a tattoo that’s longer than your dick.
Men should never wear black jeans.

That’s my list and I’m sticking to it. Those mantras have served me well. They’ve made me the man I am today—successful, wise, and satisfied.

There’s one more though. An addendum, if you will. The postscript you need to achieve a life well-lived. This ought to be so damn easy that no one makes this mistake.

Gather close.

Write it down.

Follow this one to the motherfucking letter.

No matter what, don’t fall in love with your best friend’s girl.

Too bad that ship sailed long ago for me.

Birthday Suit by Lauren Blakely
Rosa’s rating: 5 of 5 iScream Cones

I gesture to his naked flesh. “But this one you’re wearing tonight? It’s definitely my favorite suit you own.”

Lauren Blakely is well known for her romantic comedy. And while it has many humorous moments, this story also has an underlying emotional tone that is never far from the surface. As I was reading this story I felt Leo’s pain, I think it’s kinda like expectant fathers who feel pregnancy symptoms. I knew he was eaten up with guilt and suffering from unrequited love and my heart just broke for him.

The author showed me glimpses into the past so that I could get a feel for the relationship between Leo, his best friend, and the woman of his dreams. They were like the three musketeers, doing everything together, the best of friends. They never suspected that he was dying of a broken heart.

Leo had no choice but to get over her. And he thought he had done a damn good job until she waltzed back into his life years later. The verdict is in, she still does it for him. Will he let her know how he feels, or will he continue to keep his feelings to himself for another decade?

Lulu is back in New York and she’s trying to fulfill her dreams that were put on hold. She’s trying to build her career and focus on her future. She’s not looking for a man, but she can’t deny that Leo is looking damn good. “Those tailored charcoal pants seem to hug his ass worshipfully, praying at the altar of perfect cheeks.” She finds that he’s just as easy to talk to and it seems like they have even more in common now.

This touching tale kept me invested from start to finish. It made me feel many things, sad, happy, hopeful and…hungry. I also enjoyed the colorful support characters and hope I’ll be getting to know some of them better in a future book. The line forms here…

A #1 New York Times Bestselling author, and #1 Wall Street Journal Bestselling author, Lauren Blakely is known for her contemporary romance style that’s hot, sweet and sexy. She lives in California with her family and has plotted entire novels while walking her dogs. With fourteen New York Times bestsellers, her titles have appeared on the New York Times, USA Today, and Wall Street Journal Bestseller Lists more than 90 times, and she’s sold more than 2.5 million books. In April she’ll release COME AS YOU ARE, a sexy new standalone romance. To receive an email when Lauren releases a new book, sign up for her newsletter!