Reviewed by: E
He can’t trust himself…
Josh Sanders just wanted to help. After all, Mickie Phillips is a struggling single mom who needs a job…and a friend. Fortunately, her administrative skills are perfect for the new branch he’s running of the Cleaning Crew–a company of guys who clean houses. The downside? Mickie’s a petite, blue-eyed temptation he definitely needs to resist.
Their arrangement was not supposed to include simmering attraction–or deeper, decidedly unprofessional feelings. But Josh’s traumatic past has convinced him he can never be the man Mickie needs. Trust will only expose them to the most dangerous thing of all…love.
This blurb came from Goodreads
Nye’s debut, Spying on the Boss Book 1 in The Cleaning Crew series, was a finalist in Harlequin’s So You Think You Can Write (SYTYCW) contest in 2014. I had the opportunity to read it during the voting process but somehow due to life and its challenges missed out on reading the final version until Novemberish of last year after Nye asked if I would be willing to give Boss on Notice a try. I really enjoyed reading Book 1, the characters, and how the heroine had set goals and formed her own family of sorts. So I was happy to read Boss on Notice.
This story had a very different vibe from the first one while still focusing in on the ties of family. Josh has always been a protector unfortunately some actions taken by Child Protective Services left him with the sense of failing to protect the one person who depended on him. As a result, when he was given the opportunity to establish a second branch of the Cleaning Crew for Sadie, his best friend and sister by choice, he was determined to make it work. Then he crossed paths with Mickie whose situation and determined independence stirred his protective nature along with a few other things.
I really enjoyed the multiple threads Nye juggled within the overarching umbrella of a relationship between Josh and Mickie. Josh was struggling with his memories of the past and unanswered questions along with the fear of being displaced in Sadie’s life by Wyatt, hero of Spying on the Boss while trying to make a go of Cleaning Crew’s new branch. Mickie on the other hand was trying to make ends meet, find extra hours to study, parent, and work while worrying about what her ex might do. I loved watching both Josh and Mickie learn it was ok to reach out, make friends, and to lean on them when needed because they didn’t have to go through life alone. By the end of Boss on Notice Josh and Mickie displayed substantial character growth as individuals and as a couple making their HEA very believable.
As much as I enjoyed the supporting cast in Spying on the Boss I think I enjoyed Mickie’s fellow nursing students and a police officer from Josh’s past even more. Their persistence and caring really made an impact in different ways at crucial moments allowing Mickie and Josh to continue growing. Their inclusion helped me think Mickie and Josh were actually becoming part of the community instead of barely touching the surface, another factor which played into the completeness of Nye’s world-building.
With Boss on Notice Nye placed her name on the list of those authors I will look for upcoming releases. She has written two totally different feeling romances each left me feeling satisfied and happy for the characters while looking forward to what comes next. And to be perfectly honest, I wouldn’t mind hiring the Cleaning Crew and abiding by their rules **grin**.
I give Boss on Notice a B.