In the Eye of the storm
Holly and Stephen's story draws in the reader, I found myself routing for Holly when she was finally losing her temper with Stephen for all the extended hours of work, ruined evenings and lost weekends without any thought on his part. The 2am call being the catalyst kicking off a series of events, ropping in mother nature, male pride, out of line mates, jealousy, and misunderstandings, oh not forgetting the sizzling chemistry and sex! All in wrapped up with a great finale! Recommend as a standalone love story, but would love the stories for the other two guys!!!

Catering to the CEO
Adam and Cassies story is entertaining, enjoyable, frustrating and difficult to put down! Adam is the kind of guy you'll love to dislike, arrogant, rude, thoughtless, all until Cassie makes a stand around an event she's managing for him. That act, and refusal to bend to his unreasonable asks, leads to Cassie and her family finding ways into his life he could never foresee. A further successful joint business event leads to a massive misunderstanding tearing them apart. Adam has been hurt before, doesn't trust easily, will Cassie win him over, win his heart? Great read. Recommended

Catering to the CEO was such a fun read! Cassie and Adam were so great together! I love their banter and back and forth. Oh, it was fun!

Cassie has a catering business that she loves. Cooking is her thing, the thing she loves, the thing she does for those she cares about, it is her thing. Whenever they have a family get together she cooks. She has been working with Adam and his company for a while now, but her catering business is still new. She can't afford to let arrogant Adam make last minute changes that will cost her too much. Changes that are outside the terms of their contract. She can't back down no matter what. And Adam doesn't take kindly to that. He vows to get revenge on her because he is always right and what he says goes. Only they then find out that his mom and her dad are getting married. So they will have to see each other at family gatherings throughout the years. So maybe they can try and be civil...

Oh, these two were fun. They have that don't really like each other turns to liking the other when you get to know them thing going on. But how can they start something that might end and leave awkward family gatherings for years to come? Especially when Cassie's siblings will definitely have her back. And Adam doesn't want a relationship. He doesn't believe in love. So why does he want to be around Cassie so much? Why does he care how she is feeling and want to be there for her? I really enjoyed reading their story. And their banter was awesome!

loved both of these stories! Thank you Samantha Chase for creating such amazing characters. They are real, with family problems that are believable and are so sweet! I recommend both books to anyone that enjoys reading romance books.

In both books you have two very demanding, difficult men. Two women who have had enough of being underapprecuated by these men. I loved them both because who can't resist a good storm or book. I gave it a five stars because these are two books that captured my attention from the start. And to see a change in the characters that I don't see very often in actual life was a wonderful thing. Definitely something I would read again.

Samantha Chase combines two of her shorter reads from 2013 into one book with her latest offering, Eye of the Storm / Catering to the CEO. I enjoyed the books equally, and both lead female characters from each story were loaded with determination and gumption. Each couple is hot, both in and out of the bedroom. In addition, family plays a huge role in the second book.

In the Eye of the Storm

Holly Abrams has been Stephen Ballinger's executive assistant for more than three years. They work together like a well-oiled machine, however, Stephen takes all of Holly's dedication for granted. So when Stephen calls Holly at 2:00 am to pick him up from a bar during a tropical storm, Holly has finally had enough of Stephen's lack of consideration, and she tells him so. Due to the horrible weather, she ends up being stuck at his home for a few days, and their work relationship evolves into much more.

Catering to the CEO

Cassie Jacobs loves being a caterer and an event planner. She is very good at her job, and her biggest client, millionaire CEO Adam Lawrence, causes her a lot of grief. Adam is used to getting his way and tends to distrust most people. He makes menu or event changes at the very last minute, which makes Cassie's job practically impossible at times. When Cassie finally has had enough of Adam's meddling, she confronts him, even though she knows that doing so will cost her his account. Then life gets in the way, which throws them together on a more personal level, and they have to make nice. Overtime, Adam lets down his barriers to love, and finds his forever with Cassie.

I must mention that the author uses the term "personnel" in the first book, which even in 2013 was outdated when referring to the people in an organization. Human Resources is the correct term. Anyway, if you are in the mood for a sexy romance or two, pick up this book.

Complimentary copy provided by the publisher via NetGalley.

This contains two books with a CEO with a high Ego.
The first book revolves around the CEO and his assistant. He takes advantage of her everyday and know it goes to far. She decides to tell him about it and ties to leave, however a storm keeps them together for a weekend. After the weekend she has to decide where to go from here.

The second book revolves around a CEO that is a huge baby when he doesn't get his way. This time he pulls his tantrum with the wrong women and almost messes up a huge deal. When he goes to meet his moms boyfriend is he shocked to see this same girl at the dinner. This become very interesting and they have to decide how to mix family, business, and pleasure.
This was a great book.

** I received a copy of this book from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review**

Wow this is one fantastic book with two absolute spectacular stories to enjoy. I could not stop reading this book at all. Samantha chase has outdone herself with both stories in this book. The characters are what stand out in both stories for me. I really enjoyed how they interacted with each other and with other characters throughout the stories. They all had great storylines which where amazing in themselves. There is plenty of romance throughout and the characters have great chemistry between them too. I liked both main and secondary characters in both stories and I can’t wait to see what she writes next. I would totally recommend this book and both stories inside.

Reviews by the Wicked Reads Review Team

Mary Jo – ☆☆☆☆
In the Eye of the Storm

Holly is tired of putting up with her boss's crap. She's a great personal assistant, working up to 12 hours a day, weekends, holidays, whatever he needs. Except on this particular night, being woken up at 2 a.m. just to pick him and drive him home has brought her feelings to the forefront. Stephen's not sure what is wrong with Holly, doesn't understand where all this animosity is coming from.

When the storm forces them to spend time together not working, they begin to realize just how attracted they are to each other. As their feelings for each other begin to grow, they resolve to keep this part of their lives separate from work.

I enjoyed this book and the way the characters were written.

Catering to the CEO

A small, close-knit family fights for each other against all odds, at least that's how it’s been with Cassie and her family. That truly comes into play when her current nemesis, Adam Lawrence, threatens to fire her for not waiting to change the parameters of their contract. It’s made even more complicated when Cassie's father announces he's dating Adam's mom.

Adam is irritated that Cassie refuses to do what he wants, when he wants. She's so stubborn and he can't help but think that she's working an angle. He also wants her, in his life and in his bed. He just doesn't know what he's going to do about that.

Adam's character is suspicious of everyone, including this own mother. He has a reason to be, after all, his father came out of the woodwork when he made his first million. Now he expects everyone to do the same.

Cassie is unlike anyone is Adam has ever met and that perplexes him as much as it intrigues him.


Veronica – ☆☆☆☆
Samantha Chase gives us two stories about romance in the work place. The stories are what you’d expect for a contemporary romance and for me, made easy relaxing reading for my long weekend.

Eye of the Storm

At the start of the story, Stephen calls his personal assistant Holly at two in the morning to pick him up from a bar and take him home. My very favourite part of this story is Holly going off at him for his over the top demands on her time. As a PA, I’ve dreamed of doing this. But sometimes it is a case of be careful what you wish for.

The pair spend an amazing weekend together at Stephen’s place while a storm rages outside. But when they return to the workplace things don’t go so well.

Like many couples before them, Stephen and Holly could solve their problems with honest communication but taking a risk with your heart isn’t always easy. But all’s well that ends well as they say, and Eye of the Storm has a happy ending. 3 stars

Catering to the CEO

I don’t want to give the storyline away for this one because I found it had a few embarrassing and uncomfortable moments that were fun and surprising.

Adam was a hard character to get to love but by the end of the story he’d won my heart even if he did some not so smart things. Cassie is a strong and loving woman with a successful business. Reading the parts of the story where Cassie was cooking up a storm made me want to cook and I hate cooking.

Catering to the CEO is a really good, entertaining story and I read it in less than a day. 4 stars.


Ruthie – ☆☆☆
In the Eye of the Storm

This is a sweet and fun story – with boss Stephen pushing his PA Holly just too far and finding that he rather liked her standing up to him. And yet he hates it too, and certainly the feelings that he suddenly experiences cause him to behave badly. We get to understand both their concerns and desires, and I could not help but wish that they were a little more open with each other! I did not care for some of the overly descriptive passages, but I enjoyed the story overall.

Catering to the CEO

This story also revolves around another man who is damaged by his past and is not intending to ever get close to a woman. Adam is also rude to his employees and his caterer, Cassie. By an uncanny twist of fate, after they almost part ways professionally, they find that they will have to behave personally.

I found Adam to really be rather unbearable and found him to be beyond forgiveness for a significant amount of the book, which made it more difficult to understand what Cassie could see in him! But there were hints of how he could be, and one can only hope that the ending is the start of better things.

I am not sure that I would have chosen to read this immediately after the previous book if I hadn't been reviewing it, as it has a similar theme. It has some quite serious issues in it, but there were some light moments too.


Lee’Anne – ☆☆☆
In the Eye of the Storm

This book starts off with a bang, but unfortunately it quickly fell flat for me and I found myself skimming through the middle so that I could see the ending.

Holly’s boss knows no boundaries and is always working her to the bone. When he calls her, drunk, at 2am to pick him up, she’s had enough. Only before she can make her get-away a storm makes it so that she’s unable to leave his home. Holly has always found Stephen attractive but has never been willing to cross that line, until they’re locked up together.

I just didn’t find this story very fast-paced. It had such an intriguing start but Holly getting stuck at Stephen’s house just didn’t seem plausible. I wasn’t a huge fan of Stephen’s character, in my eyes, he’s not the lovable kind of a-hole I love to read. Holly’s character was great and the reason I’m giving three stars – I just didn’t want her to wind up with Stephen.

Catering to the CEO

I really enjoyed this book; in my opinion, it's so much better than In the Eye of the Storm. Catering to the CEO is an interesting story that had me sucked in from the first chapter.

Adam is workaholic who doesn't take no for an answer – he always gets his way. Until Cassie, the stubborn caterer, comes along. Cassie needs Adam's business as he's her biggest client but when he makes unreasonable demands she walks – less than 2 weeks before the big event. Adam winds up having to go crawling to Cassie and beg forgiveness and in the process, an unlikely romance forms.

The humor in this book is off the charts – I found myself laughing out loud throughout. Cassie is a strong lead character and the perfect match for Adam – I loved this short but humorous read!

4 Double Feature Stars!

I really enjoyed reading both these stories by Ms. Chase. Both books had different characters from each other so it really was like getting a true double feature.

In the Eye of the Storm revolves around Stephen and his assistant Holly who's literally been at his beck and call for three years and this latest request sends her over the proverbial edge....and it's about time!!! I loved how she finally stood up for herself and told her boss right where he could go....after they're stranded for the weekend thanks to a raging thunderstorm! Ms. Chase has written a story that has some secrets I didn't see coming which just adds to the charm and wit of this romance.
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Getting to see Stephen fall from his high and mighty CEO platform gave me all the feels!

Catering to the CEO was equally enjoyable because it was a sweet romance. Cassie is a woman that has her life and business together and just when she's ready to take her business to the next level Adam decides that he wants her instead of her catering skills because he doesn't mix business and pleasure. Well, Ms. Cassie is out to prove to him he can have both and in the end they both get what they want, a true happily ever after in work and play!

Pick this book up and settle in for two fabulous reads!!!

On the whole, these stories are fun, real and steamy enough to entice, I definitely recommend In the Eye of the Storm and Catering to the CEO for those looking for fun, semi-steamy reads with characters who are multi dimensional and fun to root for!

Originally released in July 2013 IN THE EYE OF THE STORM follows overworked PA Holly Abrams as she once again finds herself answering to the demands of her exhausting but sexy boss Stephen Ballinger. A bar fight, a tropical storm, and an angry tirade against the man in charge finds our heroine locked down for the weekend with Stephen at his monstrous home. What ensues is a weekend of $ex and passion that is all too quickly to cool upon their return to reality and work.

IN THE EYE OF THE STORM is a quick and sassy read about two people whose attraction to one another is tempered by the potential work-place gossip, and Stephen’s friends who think they know what is best for our hero. Three years as employee and boss adds to the weekend insta lust/love, and emotional break down between head and heart. The premise is warm hearted, charming and cheeky; the characters are charismatic and engaging; the romance is passionate and seductive without the use of over the top, sexually graphic language and text.

*********

Originally released March 2013 CATERING TO THE CEO follows the building relationship between security specialist and businessman Adam Lawrence, and caterer Cassie Jacobs. For two years Cassie has been Adam’s go-to caterer for all of his corporate events but their latest plans are in a state of constant flux and Cassie struggles with the many changes Adams insists are necessary and real. Frustrated and tired, Cassie threatens legal action, and walks away from their latest contract. What ensues are Adams attempts to persuade Cassie to cater and host an important event; Adams seduction of our story line heroine; and the fall-out as Adam struggles with his attraction to Cassie, and a number of misunderstandings that threaten their relationship throughout the story.

CATERING TO THE CEO is a fast paced, sexy story line with plenty of angst, altercations, and a lack of communication leading to several heart breaking moments for our story line heroine. Adam battles between head and heart, refusing to accept that he may be falling in love. His combative attitude hurts the people at home and at work. The premise is energetic and startling ; the romance is spicy and passionate; the characters are lively and spirited.

Copy supplied by the publisher

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This duo of books from Samantha Chase is a re-issue of some of her earlier titles.

The Eye of the Storm 3 stars

This was a pretty straightforward and predictable romance between a CEO and his assistant. For years Holly Abrams has been Stephen Ballinger’s assistant and basically right hand often keeping him on track and jumping in to help smooth over presentations and deal with clients. When he gets into a knockdown, drag out fight with his two best friends it is Holly he calls to pick him up at the bar and when she gets there her temper flies and she lays everything on the line about how he takes advantage of her and expects her to give up her nights and weekends to be at his beckon call. Finding out he fought his two best friends because of comments they made about her leaves them both reeling. I found myself at times loving these two together and then scratching my head at the fact that despite all the time they spent together they really didn’t know each other at all. I hated that they were both so defensive and had a hard time communicating what they wanted but were obviously so compatible in their working relationship and in their intimate moments. This was an easy romance in that there really was nothing hugely dramatic and they figured out how to make their relationship work for them both.

Catering to the CEO 3 stars

This was a book I think I could have really loved if the hero hadn’t been such an alphahole and the point of view didn’t change around so much that it made me dizzy. Cassie Jacobs is an event planner and has built her business from the ground up largely due to lucrative, repeat business from CEO Adam Lawrence, but when Adam makes some unreasonable demands for an event less than 2 weeks out Cassie decided enough is enough and so he threatens to replace her and while she’s angry about it, she realizes it is for the best until at a family dinner she realizes that her father’s new lady friend is Adam’s mother and they are about to be family by marriage. There were a lot of ups and downs in this book and I’ll be honest in saying that Adam’s overbearing ways and the way he jumped to conclusions constantly made me question how he ran a company successfully. While I enjoyed watching their relationship blossom and seeing Adam’s softer side, it didn’t hang around long enough to make me love him or this story. I did love that Cassie wasn’t afraid to stand up to him. Overall, this book had enough good to keep me reading, but it isn’t one I’ll read again.

As always, Samantha Chase delivers. In this, there are two fantastic books in one! I loved each book, and they were different so I did not feel like I read the same book twice, which is a hard feat in a duo package.

In the Eye of the Storm

A cute and sexy fun boss/assistant love. Stephen and Holly have not only an amazing work relationship but off the charts chemistry. It takes one weekend and boy do those sparks fly. What fun it is to watch them navigate the work and personal relationship. Stephen and Holly are a breath of fresh air.

So you don't get one book but two in this one...

Catering to the CEO

Small world surround a caterer and a business man. Cassie and Adam have a rocky at best relationship in the beginning. The way Adam takes care of Cassie is total swoon worthy. Family thrown together and an attraction just under the surface makes a fantastic read.

These are two amazing separate love stories put together in one book.

Favorite Quotes:

In the Eye of the Storm:

He looked nervously at her as if he were handing her a hand grenade rather than pajamas.

Catering to the CEO:

She had to stop herself from looking over her shoulder as she walked away from his office to make sure that Adam hadn’t called security to chase after her like an angry mob, banishing her for all eternity.

Adam was the stuff most fantasies were made of— until he opened his mouth. That was a deal breaker, for sure.

…the bedhead look was never her strong point. No, it would be better to pick a time when she didn’t have morning breath or looked as if she’d had a cat do her hair.

You come to my home, bring me pizza, watch TV with me, and then you kiss me and run. What the hell was that about? I know I’m not pinup material, but seriously, you are the first guy to sprint from the building!


My Review:


Stephen lived and breathed his business, which he had build up from nothing, and had no plans to ever pursue a serious relationship as his father had been a largely absent workaholic. He had never noticed his beautiful assistant for anything other than a valuable employee until his supposed best friend made crude and suggestive remarks about her. In The Eye Of The Storm was a quick read with a storyline that was entertaining, a little steamy, sweet, and easy to follow.


Catering to the CEO was an entertaining mix of humor, steam, conflict, and angsty second-guessing. Adam was an arrogant, insensitive, thoughtless, selfish, callous, egotist tried to micromanage everything and everyone, including his caterer - I despised him. Cassie was a smart, sweet, and hardworking event planner/caterer trying to build her business while struggling with her biggest and most difficult client who was a total jackass, she gave up and quit after giving him an earful - I adored her. Oops, family dinner was hard to swallow that night when they learned their parents were dating.

In the Eye of the Storm, Stephen Ballinger has it all - his own successful company, women, gorgeous home, money & an assistant that can almost read his mind. He's never seen her in a bad mood until the night he called her for a ride home - at 2 am, in a storm, a major storm! Suddenly Stephen was seeing her in a different light. But did he want to risk losing the best assistant he's had?

Holly has had enough! Her boss is spoiled, egotistical & arrogant. He can't see what's right in front of him. He could have called a friend or a driver that night but of course he called Holly. So she's in sweats, without makeup, driving in a terrible thunderstorm at 2 am to pick him up & drive him home. Then she's stuck there!!

This was an interesting book to read. At first I was afraid that Holly was going to be a doormat but I loved it when she gave Stephen everything she had. She was done being a pushover. Stephen assumes Holly has no life other than to be at his beck & call. Good characters & a decent HEA.


In Catering to the CEO, Cassie Jacobs owns a catering & even planning business. Her main client is LSD International owned by Adam Lawrence. Right from the beginning Adam & Cassie are butting heads. Rarely have I disliked the hero & kept reading the book. Samantha Chase managed to keep me reading by giving me a heroine & her family that I loved. The interactions between Cassie & Adam were either adversarial & confrontational or chemistry driven & sweet. The interactions between Cassie & her family members shows how sweet, tender & loving she is. By contrast, Adam's interactions with his mother & with Cassie's family just prove how cold, judgmental & condescending he can be. The twists of this relationship were something else to read. Very entertaining!

This was a great combination of two Samantha Chase stories. They are from earlier in her career & show the spunk & promise she was developing as an author. Very enjoyable to read!

I received a copy from Netgalley for review purposes.
Samantha Chase delivers again with two amazing romances full of characters that bring out all of your emotions. Along with stories that suck you in. How can you go wrong with this duo of sexy CEOs?

Two wonderful romances by Samantha Chase in one book allows for one happy and lucky reader. Both stories are employee-boss relationships and contain some heat, but are mainly sweet.

In the Eye of the Storm, an unexpected romance takes place during a storm on a weekend but afterwards, Stephen and Holly need to go back to work as if nothing had happened. Stephen is a workaholic while his assistant Holly has always been at his beck and call. With a little help from his friends they just might be able to weather out the storm. This story has a great premise and relatable characters.

In Catering to the CEO, Adam is all business and Cassie, a caterer, has finally had enough of his behavior and confronts him on it. Shortly after they discover they are going to be a family because their parents are going to get married. While Adam is not interested in finding love he struggles with the chemistry between him and Cassie. I loved seeing the changes in Adam as he grows throughout this story. A wonderful enemies who fall in love trope.

Ms. Chase is a wonderful story teller, making me feel as if I was right there watching the action unfold as she drew me in, making me forget the world around me. I highly recommend these stories to other readers.

I voluntarily reviewed a complimentary copy of this book.

I liked the general plot lines of both In the Eye of the Storm and Catering to the CEO, but the style was ultimately just not for me. Both stories are written with a third person omniscient narrator, and I sometimes struggled to remember for whom the narrator was speaking, especially because we got inside glimpses into the minds of more than just the two main characters in each novel. In theory, it's cool to get that inside glimpse--in practice, it just didn't work for me. I also prefer my drama to come from outside forces, and both of these stories focus more on everyday occurrences that cause disproportionately dramatic reactions.

In the Eye of the Storm: 2 stars
Catering to the CEO: 3 stars

Of the two stories, I preferred Catering to the CEO. The story was a little bit fresher (with a boss-caterer romance and a health-centered plot line) and Adam and Cassie were just a little more... human. In contrast, In the Eye of Storm's main characters Stephen and Holly seemed to both have hair-trigger tempers, and Stephen's friends were just straight up dicks--why you would stay friends with a guy you routinely want to punch in the face, I don't quite understand.

Bottom line: the stories are sweet, and if you're a fan of third person narration and prefer your drama to come from everyday events causing big reactions, you might like these stories. They are quick and light, but just not my cup of tea.

I voluntarily read and reviewed an advanced copy of this book. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

Two for the price of one is a real treat and fabulous stories. I loved both and Samantha Chase!!! She's one of my all-time favorite authors. She never disappoints with character development and story lines. She always makes me feel as if I'm right there with the characters. I read her books over and over. You will not only love this book(s) but all of Samantha's books.