The Virgin and the Playboy (1Night Stand #2)

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Synopsis

Julia has remained a virgin far longer than she'd planned to, and now worried that she'll scare off a guy if she tells him she's never made love before, she just wants to rid herself of the problem. She asks Madame Eve to pair her with someone experienced for a no-strings night of sensuality without having to tell her date the truth. Although a little nervous about meeting a stranger for sex, Mark is hotter than she expected and an attentive lover who makes her crave more.

The last single guy among his friends, who's happy still being a bachelor, Mark only applied to 1Night Stand on a dare. When Julia shows up, she's nothing like the women he usually dates. The club girls he typically takes home for the night always seem fake, while Julia is the real deal, something that he finds extremely appealing. By the time the night is over, Mark is ready for something more. But did they make a strong enough connection during their time together to create a lasting relationship?

Review

The Virgin and the Playboy is the second story in Decadent Publishing's popular 1Night Stand series, which follows couples who are matched by the mysterious Madame Eve, the owner of 1Night Stand Dating Service, who can always seem to find someone's perfect soulmate no matter the circumstances. They then meet up at the Castillo Hotel in Las Vegas, ostensibly for a one-night stand, but it's bound to turn into something more. In this one, Julia managed to make it through college without giving up her virginity, but now she views it as an encumbrance. She's tired of waiting for Mr. Right, and nervous that telling any man that she's still a virgin might scare him away. So she asked Madame Eve to pair her with a handsome playboy to take care of her pesky problem without having to reveal the truth. Mark is the last of his friends to couple up, but enjoying his carefree bachelor lifestyle, he thinks he has no real interest in anything deeper. He only signed up for 1Night Stand on a dare from his friends. Almost from the moment they meet, Mark and Julia share an instant chemistry. Julia is very pleased with Madame Eve's choice for her, and Mark loves that Julia is nothing like the women he usually dates. But can a one-night stand turn into something deeper for them?

The Virgin and the Playboy is a short story, so the plot and character development are minimal. However, despite that, I did feel a palpable chemistry between Mark and Julia. Given the brevity of the story, it's mostly about the sex, but I liked that they were both generous lovers. I also liked that Mark figured out that Julia was a virgin and they had a little bit of discussion about why she'd want this type of setting to be her first time. Their interactions were both sweet and steamy, which is perfect for me. There are no unrealistic declarations of love, and the story concludes on an open-ended note, which doesn't always work for me. Here, though, I could see Mark and Julia getting together in the real world and making it work. In fact, I just discovered after finishing the story that they will appear in The Virgin and the Best Man, another 1Night Stand story, in which they'll get their HEA, while also helping some friends find theirs. So overall, this was an enjoyable read for such a short one. It was my first by Kate Richards, but it has definitely left me open to checking out the follow-up story for Mark and Julia, as well as the author's backlist.

Note: I've categorized this short story as an erotic romance, because the ratio of sex to page count is high, but the content of the love scenes is more on par with steamy mainstream romances with nothing kinky or unusual.

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Kate Richards