Absolute Trust by Piper J. Drake: Review

Absolute Trust by Piper J. Drake
Pages: 320


Series: True Heroes #3
Genres: Romantic Suspense
Source: ARC, NetGalley
Also in this series: Extreme Honor, Ultimate Courage, Dark Corners
Also by this author: Extreme Honor, Ultimate Courage, Contracted Defense

Goodreads

LOVE IS THE GREATEST RISK OF ALLAfter multiple tours of duty, Brandon Forte returns to his hometown on a personal mission: to open a facility for military service dogs like Haydn, a German shepherd who's seen his share of combat and loss. It also brings him back to Sophie Kim, a beacon of light in his life . . . and the one woman he can't have. But Forte's success means he's made enemies in high places. Enemies who are now after Sophie . . .
When Forte enlisted and left without saying goodbye, Sophie did her best to move on. But with her first love back in town, looking sexier than ever, she's constantly reminded of what they could have had. Then after he risks himself for her, Sophie realizes she'll have to put her life in the hands of the man who broke her heart, knowing the danger -and the sparks between them- could consume them both.

Absolute Trust is book 3 in the True Heroes series. You can read it as a stand alone, but this book has kind of built up to this point, and some of the events from the previous books are mentioned and play a role in this story. It might be better enjoyed read in order. Frankly, I loved all the books, so its not a hardship!

Piper J Drake has given us 3 former military men who now train/retrain dogs for police or private firms. Brandon Forte started the kennel in his hometown after his discharge and 2 of his military friends joined him. His hometown is a small place outside of Philadelphia. Sophie has been his friend since they were in school, and she has always had a thing for him. Then, he up and left her for the military with no explanation. Sophie has spent her adult life trying not to let Brandon know how much she loves him. However, Sophie’s life is in danger and Brandon is starting to realize she is everything that matters.

Sophie has been an intriguing character since book 1. She is close with Brandon and helps out at the kennel all the time. She and Brandon have had an obvious attraction, yet neither has acted on it. Sophie is of Korean descent and her family holds a lot of Korean traditions they wish she would stick to. They want to fix her up with a nice Korean boy from the community center. Sophie, however, was born and raised in the US, and while she loves Korean food, she doesn’t want it for every meal and she has no interest in the ‘nice’ Korean boys her parents set her up with. Sophie is the perfect archetype for so many children of immigrants. You see stories like her for so many ethnicities. Its such a true portrayal that it is easy to love Sophie.

I enjoyed the danger aspect of Absolute Trust. You have a bit of a whodunit feel to the plot as well, which really added some intrigue. There are so many possible people who could be the bad guy. Its difficult to see what might be a red herring and what might be significant. And all the while you have the dogs! I adore these dogs. They are trained to do specific military tasks, yet you get to see pieces of their personalities as well. The dogs, like the men who run the kennel, have war wounds they are trying to overcome.

My biggest issue with the story was the romance between Sophie and Brandon. I wanted Brandon to make the grand gesture. You know, the “I’m standing outside your window, in the rain, with a boombox, playing a romantic tune” kind of gesture. But, he never really did. The plot was filled with danger and suspense, but their relationship…not so much.

Absolute Trust is a little bit small town love story, a little bit friends to lovers, and a little bit romantic suspense and a little bit second chance love. The end result is a story that I was eager to dive into and one that left me feeling content!

 

• POV: 3rd
• Tears: no
• Trope: friends to lovers, ex-military
• Triggers: none
• Series/Standalone: standalone within an interconnected series
• Cliffhanger: View Spoiler »spoiler « Hide Spoiler
• HEA: View Spoiler »spoiler « Hide Spoiler

Taken by Cynthia Eden, Unforgettable by Cindy Skaggs, Jace by Lola Silverman…then you will probably like Absolute Trust!

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From Absolute Trust:

Sophie Kim must’ve come directly from work because, under her very sleek, black trench coat, she wore a matching pencil skirt. Three-inch red heels popped in contrast to the severe black of the rest of her outfit. Which did all sorts of things to him. Naughty things. The kind of things that were so good that they were really bad. Especially when a woman was off limits.

“Hey! Is that the new guy?” Sophie slowed her approach, keeping her gaze locked on Forte’s face.

She’d been around tiny dogs all her life, but she’d spent enough time at Hope’s Crossing Kennels over the last couple of years to have learned how to meet the much bigger dogs in Forte’s care. Training working dogs was his thing. Or in Haydn’s case, retraining.

Always a work in progress.

Sophie had been here when Forte had come back from active duty, too battle weary to continue deploying. She’d helped him with the accounting when he’d established Hope’s Crossing Kennels and had generally integrated herself into the private world he’d created for himself, Rojas, and Cruz while they all rebuilt lives for themselves.

Sophie’s bright smile faded as she waited for him to answer. She always sensed when he got too caught up inside his own head.

“Yeah.” Forte came to a halt and murmured the command for Haydn to sit.

Instant obedience. Despite his injury, surgery, and current need for recovery, the dog was as sharp as he’d been on active duty. The mind was eager, ready to work. The body, not so much.

Sophie’s smile renewed, the brilliant expression stopping his heart, the way it had every time he’d seen her since they’d first met way back in high school. She came to a stop in front of them, barely within arm’s reach. “He must be doing well if you’ve got him out here for some field work.”

While they spoke, Haydn watched them both. Then he sniffed the back of Sophie’s hand, which she’d been holding conveniently within reach.

Usually, he preferred if a person asked to be introduced, but this was Sophie. If she’d approached anyone else, she’d have requested permission to say “Hi” to the dog. But between the two of them, everything was an exception.

It showed how well she’d come to know the way he worked in the last few years. He’d changed with every deployment. It happened. And she’d adjusted and accepted those changes in him without a word when he came back. She was the steadfast, forever friend.

He’d never told her why he’d left in the first place or why he’d come back. She was so good at just accepting him that she might never know. And he was a coward for not telling her.

“What’s your plan for him?” Sophie glanced down at the dog, now that he’d sniffed her hand. “Haydn, right?”

“Yeah.” Forte cleared his throat. “He’s got a couple of weeks of physical therapy first. Then we need to coordinate with the Air Force on his adoption.”

“Ah.” Understanding in one syllable. She had the kind of caring heart to fill in the gaps when something went unsaid. “His handler didn’t make it.”

Part of why Sophie was one of the only people Forte felt easy around was because she got it. Only needed to explain once. And she listened the first time. Sometimes no explanation was required at all.

“Where’s your car? We’ll walk you.”

“Right across the street.” Sophie jerked her head in the direction of the small parking lot.

They headed over, Sophie falling into step next to Forte. She didn’t try to take his hand or tuck her own around his arm. They weren’t like that. Besides, she knew he didn’t like to be all wound up with a person when walking out in the open.

As they approached her car, Sophie juggled her shopping bag to pull her keys out of her purse and triggered the trunk.

“Need help?” Forte came up alongside the car, scanning the area around the parking lot out of habit.

“No worries.” Sophie lifted the trunk door and carefully placed her shopping bag inside the deep space, leaning in to move things around to where she wanted. “I need to make sure this is arranged so stuff doesn’t shift. It’s delicate!”

He was not going to admit to anyone, ever, how much he was willing to stretch his neck to catch sight of her backside while she was leaning over.

Haydn sniffed the side of the car. The big dog was very engaged, his relaxed attitude changing to a sharper set of movements. Forte tore his attention from Sophie.

Haydn had detected something out of place. Something wrong. Forte’s stomach tightened into a hard knot. Nothing wrong should be anywhere near his Sophie. It didn’t matter that they were in a sleepy town on the edge of a river in the middle of a peaceful country. It didn’t matter that there shouldn’t be any real danger here.

Haydn deliberately sat and looked up at Forte. It was a clear signal. One Haydn had been specifically trained to give as a military explosives detection dog.

Shit.

“Sophie. Step away from your car.” He’d explain later. Be afraid later. Rage. Worry.

Later.

She popped up from the trunk. “Huh?”

“Do it.”

They had to move now.

She complied, thank god. He gave Haydn a terse command, circled around to grab Sophie and get more distance. He steered her across the parking lot toward a big dumpster. It’d serve as good cover. Then he reached for his smart phone.

They got a couple of yards away, and Sophie craned her neck to look back at her car, even as she kept moving with him. She always did as he asked immediately, but she had a brain, and she insisted on explanations after she complied. “What—?”

Behind them, the trunk hatch came down with a solid thunk.

Forte let out a curse and grabbed her, pulling them down to the ground and rolling for the cover of other cars as an explosion lifted the entire driver’s side of her car.

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