Review (ARC): Not According To Plan by A. M. Madden

Title: Not According to Plan

Author: A. M. Madden

Release Date: March 23, 2020 (ARC Version)

Published By: Entangled Amara

Category: Contemporary – Romance – Comedy

Type: Digital – Paperback

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A. M. Madden Website

Rating: 

Heat: 

Blurb: 

For one night of my life, I dared to do something reckless.
My birthday. A bar. Karaoke. And a man so hot he could melt the sun.
Sparks flew. Lust took over. For one night of my life, I felt alive.

Then I was back to my "boring" life. Career-driven. Goal-oriented. Always planning ahead.
But nothing could have prepared me for the positive pregnancy test. We weren't that reckless.

There goes my "boring" life. And what happens when I tell the father?

 By reading any further, you are stating that you are at least 18 years of age.

If you are under the age of 18, please exit this site.

Favorite Lines:

“I’m telling you … a reality show called MAXimum Dad. The millennial demographic would eat that shit up."  ~  Brad

“Has Jade told you dimpled men make her stupid?”  ~  Ruby

“I didn’t let this happen,” she shot back. “It wasn’t planned. I didn’t wake up that morning and say, hey, you know what would be an awesome birthday gift this year, even though I work practically twenty-four-seven? How about a tiny human that’s 100 percent dependent on me for survival!”  ~  Jade

Health benefit brunch, my ass. I believed that lame excuse as much as I still believed in Santa. The man couldn’t lie for shit.  ~  Jade

Excerpt:

          Boring. I’m boring. 

          Mr. Warner and his partners founded Warner, Sicks, & Thompson almost thirty years ago. Known in the law industry as being tenacious dinosaurs who always won their case, it was something I’d found endearing when I interviewed with them. I was one of six female attorneys they’d added to their staff after the senior partners decided to bring in “new blood”and a “fresh point of view”…otherwise known as ambitious women. 

          Regarding me, they took notice of my eager to take on the world attitude. I worked my ass off for the firm, and my motive was to make junior partner. No other woman had been able to bust through the glass ceiling since. Doing so would pave a golden road for the law career I dreamed of. 

          My success so far obviously came with a boring price tag. I have one friend—one…actually two, if you counted my sister. I’d never been out of the country. I spent my whole life within a fifty-mile radius from where I grew up in New Jersey. And because of my insane hours at work, I hadn’t been able to keep a relationship going for more than a few months, which meant sex was as rare in my life as it would be to find gold in the Hudson River. 

          So, when my friend continued to stare at me long and hard before her eyes scanned down my favorite charcoal gray suit, all the things I prided myself on suddenly felt like a noose around my neck. 

          “Is that rhetorical?” she finally asked. 

          “No,” I grumbled. The fact she took more than one second to respond worsened my mood. 

          “It’s not your fault that you’re boring. All work and no play do make for a boring life…and being a control freak doesn’t help, either.”

          I released a frustrated sigh, exhausted with this conversation. “You know what? Forget it.”

          “No, this proves my point about tonight,” she said determinedly. “You’ve been on a long drought, and a woman needs sex to keep the cylinders fired up, to clear those pesky crotch cobwebs. Did you know your vagina can fuse shut? I’ve read about it online.”

          “That cannot happen.”

          She gave me a nonchalant shrug. “Well, I wouldn’t chance it.”My friend, the squirrel, swung her gaze around the dimly lit bar and landed it on the table of good-looking men beside us. 

          Amy Delton, the erotic romance author, found said inspiration wherever she went. Actually, it found her. Best friends since grade school, Amy never quite hit the awkward teenage stage the rest of us had been plagued with. And now as an adult, with her ebony hair, pale blue eyes, and never-ending curves, she turned heads wherever we went. 

          Our lives couldn’t have been more opposite. As she jet-setted around the country to book signings and conferences, creating passion on the pages and living a close version in real life, I spent most of my time in a conference room or my office. The only hot affairs in my life were the kind I read about in my free time. 

          Hell, who was I kidding? I had no free time. The only reason I agreed to come here tonight was because it’s my birthday and she’d made it a priority to be in town to see me, despite her busy schedule. 

          “I like this place. Not only are the guys in here hot…”She thumbed to one of the very handsome bartenders and added, “So is the help. Great inspiration.”

          My gaze swung to whom she referenced and caught on a gorgeous man behind the bar who was staring at me…

          “I said…I could use a one-night stand myself,” Amy continued. “Having to catch a flight tomorrow is the perfect excuse to bolt before the awkwardness hits. Maybe the bartender.”Amy knocked her knuckles on the table. “Hello?”

          “Oh, sorry. You were saying what I needed?”I steered her back to me before she could act on her nonchalant statement, and even if the chances were slim on getting some of my own action, I didn’t want her sabotaging my fantasy. But then another glance at the bar proved my chances were indeed slim when I noticed the bartender was now chatting with an attractive redhead. 

          “Oh, right. We’re talking about you being boring. So, as I said, you need one night of raunchy sex.”She bobbed her head in an exaggerated way, widening her eyes in a move that meant something sinister would come next. “Ooh, I know what to do!”Without warning, she slipped out of the booth and pushed through the crowd with many of the male eyes following her move. 

          Worried as to what she was up to, I focused on the professional twenty-something-year-olds that surrounded us, all still adorning their work attire. Actually, I fit in perfectly wearing my power suit…much more than Amy did in her tight skinny jeans and flimsy camisole. It was the unguarded expressions on their faces that set me apart. I probably appeared as uptight as I felt. 

          Amy returned with a smug smile. “Okay, done.” 

          Oh no. “Done what?”

          “I entered you into that Kismet Karaoke contest they do here.”She snatched the flyer off the tabletop and thrust it at me. “It’s just what you need. Very not boring.”

          With each word I read, panic bubbled within me. Five men and five women would be randomly coupled off before singing a karaoke song chosen for them, and the crowd would select a winner. My eyes again scanned the packed room. I found it hard to believe all these people were here for a chance to win five hundred bucks. Maybe witnessing the humiliation of the poor suckers chosen was what got their rocks off? 

          Holy hell, what did she do? 

          “Singing? With a stranger?”I hissed, my eyes bulging. “In front of all these people?”

          “Chances are you won’t get picked. If you do, so what? You have a gorgeous voice. You’ll be just fine. Consider it my birthday gift to you.”She raised her brows and grinned. “And…the best part? You’ll have a one-night stand with your singing partner.”She waited a moment for it to sink in. “You’re welcome.”

          “No way. You have officially lost your mind.”My accusation did nothing to wipe the grin off her face. “Amy, I’m not doing that. He could be a psycho.”She’s talked me into some crazy shit over the years, but this? “With my luck, I’ll end up murdered. I’d rather drown my sorrows in ice cream.”I snatched my purse, but before I could slide my ass along the worn vinyl bench, her ironclad grip landed on my wrist. 

          “Or…he could have a nine-inch dick, his own helicopter, and a fuck-pad on the Upper East Side, overlooking the park.”

          “Yes, because the universe is just that kind.”

          “It could happen.”

          “Says the hopeless erotic romantic.”

          She huffed. “You’re doing it! If it helps you feel any better, take a picture of the guy and send it to me for the police…you know, in case you go missing.”Leaning closer, she then said, “And his dick, too, if it is indeed nine inches.”

          “You’re sick.”

          I sighed at seeing her exaggerated eye roll. “Stop being so dramatic,”she said. “People have one-night stands all the time. Welcome to the twenty-first century, Jade. Why do you think swiping right exists? Think of it as therapy. You just spent the last hour feeling sorry for yourself. This is exactly what you need.”

          When she was sure I wasn’t going anywhere, she finally released my wrist. “It’s your birthday, you deserve a fun time, and you’re going to get some in the way of a hot night of sexual debauchery. Plan A will be with a hottie who doesn’t mind singing in front of a crowd. Plan B will be someone of my choosing. You might be better off letting kismet control this night rather than me. Either way, this is going down, Jade. Got it? Or your pussy will most definitely shrivel up from underuse.”

          “Amy…”

          Before I could speak the argument already forming in my head, she said, “Just have some fun—otherwise we’re going to be here in ten years celebrating your thirty-seventh birthday and nothing will have changed in your life, except you’ll be even more boring by then.”

          Well, when she said it like that…“Okay, fine. I’ll do it. But only because it’s my birthday and I deserve an orgasm from a man and not a toy as my present.”

          “Or…one from a man as he uses the toy on you,” she amended with an exaggerated wink. 

          On a slow blink, I mumbled, “Yeah, I’m going to need another Cosmo to prepare for this.”

          “That’s my girl. Let your hair down.”

          I mindlessly removed the clip that held up my conservative bun. 

          “Good, now shake it out,” she said. 

          Like a robot, I followed her command as she flagged down a waiter and ordered our second round. He took our order with a dazzling smile and winked at her before heading to the bar. 

          Amy continued to prepare me for slaughter, unbuttoning my top button and dabbing lip gloss on my lips. “Perfect.”

          When two fresh drinks replaced our empty glasses, I quickly raised my cocktail. “Boring this,”I said and drained it in an attempt to gain some courage through the icy pink liquid.

Highlight:

          I searched for the number to Max’s gym on my phone and then tapped it to call. With each ring, my heart pounded harder. After asking for him, and then a torturous wait on hold, his sexy voice filtered through my cell. 

          “Hey, there,” he said, like he was happy to hear from me, and my gut clenched. “How are you?”

          “Good,” I lied. 

          “Does it normally take you six weeks to respond to an email?”

          “Email? What email?”

          “I didn’t have your phone number, and showing up at your place seemed creepy. So, even though in your note you insinuated not to contact you, I ignored it and sent you an email.”

          “You did?”I asked, genuinely shocked. 

          “Yes. Jadeeast69@ gmail.com, right?”

          His claim made me wonder where we’d be now if I had seen his email. “I never saw it. In my defense, I only use that email to get discounts and stuff.”

          “And here I thought you were ghosting me.”The humor in his voice forced my nausea to rise. At hearing silence, he then asked, “Is something wrong?”

          I wasn’t sure how to answer that. “Um…can we meet?”

          “Sure. I’m just catching up on paperwork.”

          “Actually, if it’s not too much trouble, can you come by here?”

          “I can be there in an hour. Are you sure you’re okay?”

          “Yeah,” I lied again. “It’s just been a long day. See you soon.”

          “Okay, give me your cell number in case I get held up.”After exchanging our phone numbers, I spent the next hour attempting to make myself presentable. Even a shower, applying some makeup, and wearing clothes other than pajamas did little to make me feel human. 

          My hand automatically cradled my flat belly as I stared at myself in the mirror. I couldn’t find any joy deep within. And in that realization, I felt even worse over the situation. Babies brought joy. I knew many strong, successful women juggled a family and a career while making it look so easy. Regardless, I couldn’t manage to transform my worries into happiness. 

          The foregone conclusion that my life would never be the same thrummed through my veins along with my blood. I screwed up. 

          Could this even be considered a screw up? Shouldn’t screwing up be reserved for failing a test in school, neglecting to pay a bill, a fender-bender? 

          Bearing a child from a stranger had to be defined much more profoundly than just screwing up. 

          The intercom buzzing brought with it a new case of the shakes. Without delay, I stalked right toward it, even if it was false bravado, because if I hesitated in any way, I wouldn’t have answered at all. I pressed the entry button after checking to make sure it was him. 

          A minute or so later, he emerged from the elevator, looking all kinds of gorgeous in a tight black T-shirt and well-worn jeans. 

          “Hi, Max.”It took me longer than it should have to add, “Come in.”One look at those stunning green eyes and I was finished before I even started. 

          He saw right through my false bravado—of course he did, because my stiff body language was screaming, “I’m not okay!”

          Max engulfed me in his arms. “What is it, Jade? Are you sick?” he asked, placing warm lips against my forehead. 

          Shaking my head, I savored the feel of him holding me for what would probably be the last time. 

          He held tighter, spoke softer, and ripped me wide open. “Hey, I’m here. Whatever you need, I’m here,” he whispered before kissing the top of my head, caressing my back with long, comforting strokes. 

          Oh, how I wanted his words to be true, silently implored the universe that he’d feel the same conviction in the next few minutes. Greedily, I couldn’t bring myself to break the hold he had on me. 

          What seemed like hours later, I somehow mustered the courage to pull out of his embrace and look up at him. His smile could melt the thickest layer of ice on a winter day. Then it faltered. 

          “Jade, you’re scaring me.”He cupped my cheek, and I closed my eyes to revel in the roughness of his calloused fingers, the warmth of his skin. But I couldn’t depend on that electric connection we had the first night we met. That wouldn’t get us through reality and have us emerge at the end unscathed. Only love could do that, and that missing ingredient couldn’t be picked up off a grocery store shelf like a bottle of vanilla extract to make things taste better. 

          I dragged in a breath and said, “We need to talk, Max.”

          He searched my face, concern evident in his drawn brows. “Okay.”

          We walked toward the couch and sat side-by-side. He crossed an ankle over a knee, angled his body toward mine, and laid his muscular arm along the back of my couch. The confidence in his posture gutted me. In mere seconds, I could cause it to evaporate into thin air. I could kill that confidence with a few words. 

          “Jade. What is it?”His eyes tracked my trembling hand as I raised it to tuck a strand of hair behind my ear. 

          Time to get this over with. “I’m pregnant.”

          …

          My heart rate spiked at her admission. All the blood drained from my face as those two little words stunned me silent. I’d be lying if I said my initial reaction was anything other than complete shock. 

          “Are you sure?”I asked pathetically, my throat constricting with each breath I took. 

          “Yes. I’ve been to the doctor. I’m due in March.”

          Only four months after my first child would come. I could literally feel a panic attack coming on. But I quickly forgot my own angst at seeing such raw anguish written on her face. I watched as she struggled and failed to keep her expression void of emotion despite a sheen in her eyes and a slight tremble of her hands, all of which meant she was as thrown by this as I was. By dragging in a deep breath, I attempted to pull it together for her sake. 

          “I’m so sorry, Max,” she added, but only above a whisper, as I raked a hand through my hair. 

          “This isn’t your fault, Jade.”

          It felt like an eternity passed as we sat dead silent until she finally spoke again. “I know you don’t know me, and saying it’s yours means little, but I will have a paternity test.”

          “What? No. I believe you.”

          “Well, I’m more than willing to. You have no reason to trust me, and I’m sure this must be a complete shock. I understand if you need time to think this through. Max, please know I don’t expect you to…”

          “Jade, stop.”I held her gaze and said firmly, “There’s nothing to think through.”Seeing relief in those gorgeous brown eyes caused my racing heart to calm a bit. I placed a soft, reassuring kiss on her lips. “You won’t have to deal with this alone. I’m here, for the baby…and for you. You’re pregnant with my child, Jade. We’re in this together.”

          With those words, I hoped I was able to calm her reservations even as my own violently spun out of control. It was difficult enough to have one unexpected baby on the way—now I had two. 

          How was I going to tell Jade? How was I going to tell Tracey? And my brothers. Fuck. They would never let me live this down.

Review: 

Jade is a career-driven, workaholic. One of a few women brought into the law office and vying for the junior partner position, she doesn’t have time for any fun. All she does is eat (when she remembers), sleep (once she collapses from exhaustion), and right back to work – a glaringly opposing lifestyle to that of her best friend, Amy, an erotic romance author. If their careers are a complete contrast, their personal lives are even more so. Jade may not need an angel on her shoulder because she keeps herself on track just fine, but she does need the devil in the form of Amy, coaxing her outside of her confining box once in a while. Knowing her responsibility in their friendship, keeping Jade from becoming too straight-laced, Amy dares her to do something crazy for her birthday. After much deliberation, she finally capitulates and has the best sex in her life with Max. But it’s right back to the buttoned-up workaholic … until she realizes she’s pregnant. Max is more than supportive, but he’s got a lot going on as well. He promises to be there for her, but with everything she is trying to accomplish and all of Max’s irons in the fire, Jade is less than confident that there isn’t a distaster waiting up ahead. And even with the odds stacked against them, she begins to hope they could have a future together. With her job losing a lot of it’s luster recently and Max filling her head with possibility, could this workaholic have another option? Because enjoying her baby, Max, and taking a break while she figures out if this is the direction she still wants to head in seems more like an unattainable dream.

Max is completely thrown when Jade tells him about the baby. He’s not precisely upset. Excited, in fact. He’s wanted Jade since the first time he saw her at his gym, but was unable to uncover her identity. Thinking he’d never see her again, then acting on his brother’s ridiculous scheme to pair him up with her at Kismet Karaoke, now he’s having a baby with her. But he’s also got a baby coming with his best friend. In another state. At the other end of the country. Stupid recalled condoms. He had absolutely no idea. Plus, he’s opening a new gym and the grand opening is right around Jade’s due date. He knows they have a special connection; that once in a lifetime thing everyone searches for. The circumstances are definitely less than desirable for their fledgling relationship, but Max is determined to make things work with Jade. He’s been given a chance with her and he will not waste it. He’s also got to work around the fact that her family isn’t exactly being supportive and that’s without the knowledge of all the alarming details of his life. How will they react when they find out about his other baby? But Max can’t overly stress about that. He’s got to focus on Jade, his babies, and his new gym – and pray for a miracle that everything comes together while he desperately tries to juggle it all.

I have to admit that initially when I realized that Max was expecting two babies with two different women within a few months of one another, I wasn’t sure I’d hang in there with the book. It all seemed a bit too much. Max really does have a ton going on in his life and I myself began to envision a train wreck of the worst sort headed directly for this couple. But then I began to get to know Max and Jade a bit more and while I was a bit annoyed by the fact that he created this situation in which he had to split his time up so carefully, I found myself cheering this couple on. Jade has been in a power struggle at work since probably the first day she arrived. The chauvinistic partners of the firm do not value her – only the time she frees up for them by pulling such a heavy load. She’s only a woman, after all. And they are the names of the business. Ugh. I disliked them from the beginning. Basically, she needs a change but isn’t going to allow herself that thought, let alone realize how necessary such a step is, so she forges on in seeking junior partner. Amy, as carefree and worry-free as she seems, is intelligent enough to see what Jade won’t and forces her to let loose once in a while. This baby presses on Jade, causing her to refocus her attention on some of those niggling thoughts in the back of her brain that she has so far been able to lock away. Max is in very much a similar situation. Not as far as being a workaholic in a sexist job, but in splitting his time in so many directions, desperately trying to be everything to everyone. He’s always been that way. So having two babies with two women is something he thinks he can simply force to bend to his will. Maybe not so simply though because babies never act according to plan. 😊 Working in his favor is the fact that Tracey (baby mama 1) has found who seems to be the love of her life. They were only ever going to be friends and their baby was an accidental consequence of one single drunken night. Tracey and Max always knew how things would play out with them and the baby, so there is no love triangle here creating a hot mess. Tracey and her boyfriend, Tristan, actually seem like damned decent human beings. Basically, there are a lot of factors that come into play in this sudden reality for our main characters and a lot of self-reflection must take place. Regardless of whether they are able to come together and make their relationship work, they have a responsibility to their baby to figure out their own lives so that they can provide the best life possible for this tiny life they created.

If you follow my reviews, you know that I have a new-found appreciation for the toggling POV approach within books. Such is the case for this book. But rather than an added bonus for this book, I would call it a necessary addition. With two individuals that lead such different lives and are now bringing a baby into the world, the switch between Max and Jade’s personal thoughts, turmoil, and actions had to happen. I can’t even begin to picture how difficult the story would have been to follow if everything was presented in third person POV. One super fun aspect was the fact that Max is one of a set. A set of three. Three identical triplets. Lordy! They may all look alike, but they couldn’t be more different in personality. Despite their dissimilarities, their sibling rivalry and brotherly love was a joy to experience.  I’m sure I wasn’t the first to wonder how the triplet factor might influence each of the pregnancies, nor will I divulge the outcome. The family dynamic for Jade is completely different from Max’s and even though things are quite a bit more serious in her life, there was still a bit of levity provided in small things such as their names: Jade, her sister is Sapphire, and her mother is Ruby. I, myself can completely relate to Jade’s predicament as far as her family’s reaction to her pregnancy news. Let’s just say there were several similarities between Jade and myself in that respect. And my own personal shout out is to Max’s obsession with curling! Yes! I feel the exact way that Max does. It is my favorite winter Olympic sport, second only to ice skating. Ms. Madden either harbors like feelings or knows someone who does. Either way, my face lit up when I came across that fun addition to the story. Sure, there is quite a bit of heavy within these pages, but Ms. Madden does a fantastic job of balancing the serious with the lighthearted. Max is just about as perfect as a guy can get – imperfectly perfect would be a better description. I admire his determination to take care of his responsibilities while trying not to fail at any of it – even knowing that at some point something would have to give.

Overall, this is an engaging and entertaining read. Some will not be able to get past the fact that the male lead has two babies coming with two women in two different states within a matter of months. Even I was unsure if I’d be able to get past that crazy plot twist. And if you think you will get hung up on that detail, do this book a favor and just skip it. That said, I am glad that I stuck things out and even ended up relating to several aspects within both Jade and Max’s lives. I believe that many readers will be able to relate to at least some portion of either Max or Jade’s lives, which creates a bond with characters that cannot be faked. Ms. Madden also does a great job of bringing in both of Max’s brothers in just the right amount. Just enough to want to see more, and not nearly enough which left me hoping they’d get their own stories. Selfishly, their books would also likely allow me to revisit Jade and Max and I’d love to see how things were going for them down the road a bit. And let’s not forget Amy. She’s fun and quirky and reminds me of several of my friends all wrapped up in one. A story for an erotic romance author – especially given her outspoken, fun-loving personality – oh, the possibilities! When it’s all said and done, this is a story of two people who ultimately find themselves in one another, discovering everything they never knew they wanted is right in front of them. They are so caught up in the direction their lives were headed that they lost sight of who they truly were and it took this unexpected turn of events to shove them off course and allow them to recalibrate where they actually wanted to be in life. If that is not relatable, no matter the details of the circumstances, then I do not know what is. This romantic comedy took me on a memorable ride encompassing every emotion at one time or another. But beyond that, as my first experience with Ms. Madden, it made me a believer.

Kindle version provided by NetGalley/Entangled in exchange for an honest review.