Valentina is a tightly wound personal assistant and Nanny to a teen in a rich family while Desmond is a young business man trying to go to the next level. One interaction and the losing of the teen brings them together then enter the ruse. The story was okay overall. Didn’t really keep my attention.

I really liked this book. I love a good suspense story and this did not disappoint. The story was interesting and kept me on my toes!

I've been eagerly awaiting Jadesola James' next release, and Billion-Dollar Ring Ruse did not disappoint! Though it felt a bit rushed in some spots, James' vivid, emotional prose and lovable characters made this a very satisfying read. I would happily have spent another fifty pages with Valentina and Desmond -- but that's category romance! I will enthusiastically recommend this novel to patrons and will look forward to more tales from Jadesola James.

Many thanks to the author, publisher, and NetGalley for the opportunity to read and review!

I enjoyed this story very much! I was happy to see that the main characters were able to come to a happy ending of sorts, but not have everything wrapped up into a perfect bow. They still have work to do, but they're willing to do it together. This is the perfect story for a second part.

Jadesola James is an underrated master of the category romance, and Billion-Dollar Ring Ruse not only has the kind of bonkers and extremely niche situation I want in a Harlequin Presents but the chemistry is INSANE and kudos to the author for writing a romance with an older woman and a proper age gap, and a lavish Middle Eastern setting that does not feel fetishistic.

British billionaire Desmond is trying to break into the Middle Eastern aviation market by sucking up to an influential sheikh, but finds himself minding said sheikh's teenage daughter along with her assistant Valentina. The build-up between him and Val over the course of one night is wildly erotic and quite soft, but in the best way. Desmond is charming and charismatic and Valentina is quite prim and proper, something of a defense mechanism. When Reasons compel them to pretend to be married after one night together, it's quite bittersweet because while the chemistry is THERE, both of them have their respective hang-ups and traumas to contend with. This is also something Jadesola handles really deftly— neither Desmond nor Val ever feel... cartoonish, if that makes sense, in their refusal to love or commit to one another. There's no dramatic confrontations, but the hurt within them runs deep and coming to terms with that takes some time, though not unreasonably so.

The sex scenes veer towards sensual, but that doesn't necessarily mean non-explicit. There are a handful of solid sex scenes sprinkled throughout including my favorite, their first time, ft. multiple? orgasms from nipple stimulation alone. Good for them.

Thank you to Harlequin and NetGalley for the advanced copy in exchange for my honest review.

Rating: 4/5
Heat Level: 3.5/5
Pub Date: April 1st