When Sarah posted about the Harlequin Kindle daily deals on the eve of the New Year, the part about Maureen Smith’s books drew me in immediately – well, okay, truthfully the tag line about them having some really hot sex caught my eye, and when I saw the synopses of Whatever You Like and Any Way You Want It, I was intrigued enough to pick up the books and put them at the top of my to-read list.  The stories center around twin brothers getting involved with two women who work for a professional escort agency, the kind that provides companionship but where sex between client and employee is strictly forbidden. I knew right away the dilemma Lena would have keeping things professional with Roderick in Whatever You Like would interest me. As well, the friends-to-lovers trope is one of my favorites and having Roderick’s twin Remington lusting after Zandra, the escort agency owner and long time family friend in Any Way You Like It looked like a winner to me.

Whatever You Like is the story of Lena, a grant writer by day who moonlights for extra money as a professional companion for a high end escort agency that caters to rich and powerful clients, and Roderick, the president and CEO of a multinational energy conglomerate.

Lena is hired to be Roderick’s escort for an important business affair on his yacht but the attraction she feels for him causes her to break her rule of never sleeping with a client – a rule she created after a humiliating experience with a former contractor of her services.  After their one night together Roderick pursues her with single minded intent and the lines between lover and employer blur to the point where they must decide what the future will hold for them when their contract is up. I particularly liked that Lena’s intelligence was highlighted as a key part of her character. She studies up on her clients in order to present their best side to potential business partners. She is fluent in Italian and Japanese.  She is up-to-date on current affairs. She is a smart, attractive and sensual woman – the whole package in every man’s eyes, including Roderick’s.

Roderick is a pretty stereotypical alpha male.  He’s rich, powerful, arrogant and used to getting his own way. He’s persuasive and isn’t above using the sexual attraction between him and Lena to get what he wants.  But at the same time he is caring and thoughtful and fair in his business dealings.  Roderick’s appreciation of Lena’s intelligence and his obvious infatuation with her go a long way to cementing him as a ‘good guy’ in their relationship – despite the fact that he resorts to sexual blackmail to get her to agree to be his companion (in and out of bed) for three weeks. This is in order for the company she works for at her day job to receive some grant money (and it also threatens her position with the escort agency for breaking their no-sex rule ).

However all of Roderick’s attractive qualities make it easier for Lena to agree to his blackmail.  Gee, three weeks to be swept off your feet, wined and dined and pleasured? How does a girl say no to that? Her contingency on accepting his sexual companion ultimatum in order to have the grant approved won’t sit well with some readers, but it didn’t bother me as it was pretty obvious that Roderick was going to be just as focused on Lena’s pleasure as his own.

From the start of this story, there is no doubt that the chemistry between Lena and Roderick is going to lead to some delightful sexual interludes. Their first meeting in the limo goes like this:

A slow, legs-spreading smile curved Roderick’s lips. As if he’d hijacked her thoughts.
“Hello.” His deep, dark voice was as sexy as the man it belonged to. “You must be Lena.”
She smiled. “Either that, or you’ve climbed into the wrong limo.”
He laughed, a husky sound that made her nipples harden. “A sense of humor. I like that.”
Her smile widened. “I aim to please.”
“Oh, you do,” Roderick murmured, giving her another one of those slow once-overs. “You please me very much.”

From their first moments of interaction in the limo, there is an underlying hum of attraction that guides their conversation, and their witty banter contains sexual overtones that eventually lead to their first tryst on Roderick’s yacht.  Throughout the whole story the sex scenes between them are well-written, intense and emotional.  But while Roderick is the epitome of an alpha male, Lena holds her own with him in the bedroom (or against the wall, or in the pool or – well, you get the idea).  This is an equal opportunity sexual relationship and there is no doubt that they both derive pleasure from it.

Naturally there are conflicts in the story to be dealt with.  Lena’s position as an escort and how this affects her personal relationships with men, the crossing of her own lines of client ‘privileges’, what she shares with her family, the decisions of what to reveal of a personal nature when you are in a negotiated arrangement all come into play.

Throughout it all, the sex between them is obviously leading to deeper emotions and expectations.  Roderick’s wealth makes for some delightful settings in the story – a luxury yacht, 5-star dining, international trips, all the details that add to the allure of the billionaire-in-pursuit theme. The story is told from Lena’s point of view in third person – I confess that I’ve gotten quite used to romances that feature the point of view from both main characters and I did miss having Roderick’s thoughts.  But I can only imagine how difficult it is to get into one character’s head never mind two! Overall I enjoyed this story immensely – sexy, romantic, with enough tension and conflict to make the happy ending worth the effort. It was an A for me.