Checking It Twice

A BWWM Dark Mafia Christmas Romance

By: Eva Nice

Narrated by: Virtual Voice

He’s making a list. He’s checking it twice. And I just put myself at the very top of the Naughty column.

I am a forensic accountant. I live by rules, logic, and ledgers. But when a faceless corporation steals my dying sister’s pension, I decide to break every rule in the book. I hack their system, steal the money back, and cover my tracks with an elegant ghost script.

I thought I was Robin Hood. I was wrong.

I didn’t rob a bank. I robbed Nikolai "Saint" Santoro.

Saint isn’t a CEO. He’s the scarred, ruthless head of a global weapons syndicate operating out of a hidden fortress in the frozen Yukon. He doesn't call the police; he sends men in black vans. Now, I’m not just a thief; I’m a witness, a liability, and a prisoner in his high-tech castle at the top of the world.

He should have killed me. Instead, he offers me a deal: Fix his books and find the traitor bleeding his empire dry, and he’ll let me live.

I should be terrified. I’m trapped in the middle of a blizzard with a monster. But as the fire roars and the enemies close in, I realize Saint doesn’t just want my mind. He wants my submission. He protects me with his body, stitches my wounds with his own hands, and looks at me with a dark hunger that melts the ice in my veins.

I stole his money. He stole my freedom. But if we want to survive the holidays, I might have to let him steal my heart, too.

CHECKING IT TWICE is a standalone BWWM Dark Mafia Holiday Romance. Expect a scarred anti-hero, a brilliant heroine, high-stakes hacking, forced proximity in a snowy cabin, and a "Touch Her and Die" vibe that will melt your kindle. No cheating, no cliffhanger, and a Happily Ever After that’s darker than a lump of coal.

Tropes & Themes:

• Dark Mafia Romance
• Holiday / Christmas Setting
• BWWM (Black Woman / White Man)
• Captive / Kidnapping
• Competence Kink (He loves her brain)
• Forced Proximity (Snowed In)
• "Touch Her And Die"
• Scarred Hero

Action-packed!

I loved the story, beneath all the action and intrique, was a sweet love that endured.

Light on the darkness and passion but entertaining story

I like that the female lead doesn't just become a doormat. She does make some strange choices once she gains some trust that I didn't quite agree with. I liked the strength of the male lead and the way he wants to protect her throughout the war that is going on. There's multiple action scenes and surprise villians, which added to the intrigue.

Loved

Loved the storyline. The only thing I didn’t like was the voice over bc it made it hard to feel the emotion. Additionally it would’ve been nice to have a male voice.

Knowing your position in a bad situation

Love the Blk lead character fought back for her family and was smart enough to level her position to work in her favor and not be a victim.

DNF

The writing in this book was solid. However, I couldn't get past the fact that the main female character described in the book doesn't match the image on the book cover. It's an AI-generated book cover, and you can enter prompts that will create an image resembling your character.

At certain points, I thought the female was Caucasian because the author often used the word 'pale' to describe her. At one point in the book, she describes her stomach as 'pale white skin,' or maybe the virtual voice mispronounced it, and it should have been 'pale light skin.' I'm not sure. It made me stop and go back to look at the cover, which is probably why the cover bothered me.

The woman on the cover is a beautiful, curvy, brown-skinned woman, and she described the character as not weighing anything.

I got more than halfway through, chapter 24, before I gave up. I couldn't get a solid handle on how the female character looked, and I was spending more time trying to picture her in my head than listening to the actual storyline.

I gave this book a 3 instead of a 1-star rating because the book seemed to have a good storyline. I encourage everyone to give the book a try because you may enjoy it.