Rowena’s review of Throwing Heat (Diamonds and Dugouts #3) by Jennifer Seasons.

The sexy baseball players of Jennifer Seasons’ Diamonds and Dugouts series slide into home with a final fiery romance worthy of a World Series win.

Nightclub manager Leslie Cutter has never been one to back down from a bet. So when Peter Kowalskin, pitcher for the Denver Rush baseball team, bets her that she can’t keep her hands off of him, she’s not about to let the arrogant, gorgeous playboy win. Especially when the prize could put her business on the map. She’s got this in the bag, just so long as she can stay out of his arms … and his bed.

Peter struck out once before with Leslie, but this bet is sure to be the second chance he’s been waiting for. Determined to stoke the passion he knows is there, he’ll do anything to win—even if it means playing a little dirty.

But as things heat up, this combustible pair will have to decide just how much they’re willing to wager on one another … and on a future that just might last forever.

This was a short read, one that didn’t take long at all to dig right into. This story follows the star pitcher for the Denver Rush as he falls head over heels in love with his best friend’s little sister, Leslie. After a disastrous night together that he’s likely to never forget (her either). When she moves into a building that he owns and problems start arising that makes her homeless for a little bit, she ends up moving in with Peter until construction is done at her condo.

Peter and Leslie have chemistry coming out of their asses and the heart knows what it wants but Leslie can’t let herself go there because of the humiliation of their last sexual encounter. But when he bets that she can’t keep her hands off him while she’s living with him, she has every confidence that she can do just that…especially since he’s given her the best incentive. A chance at making her nightclub business take off. She’d be an idiot to let this chance slip by so she agrees and Peter pulls out all of the stops.

This book was short and it was cute but there were a lot of things that happened that made me roll my eyes. Leslie’s attitude towards Peter and Peter’s arrogance with Leslie. Their relationship bordered on childish and immature a lot of the times but at the end, it was all good.

Peter was sexy and he was strong and exactly what a hero should be but even with all of that said, there was still time when I wanted to smack him upside his head. The same can be said for Leslie. I really liked that Leslie picked up the pieces of her life and moved on from the scandal and betrayal she suffered through. She didn’t let that get her down, she picked herself back up and built something new with the help of her brother. I thought she was strong and I was glad to see things turn around for her.

Throughout the book, Peter and Leslie bicker and while I can tell that it was supposed to be cute and funny but for me, it got to be tiresome. I wanted them both to get over themselves and just like each other and be okay with it. All of the bickering came to an end once the feelings started developing and when the book came to an end, I was glad that they finally got their shit together and started making a real run for it…together. While this book wasn’t perfect, it was still a solid story. An entertaining read. I’m not at all mad that I read it.

Grade: 3 out of 5

This book is available from Avon Impulse. You can purchase it here or here in e-format. This book was provided by the publisher in exchange for an honest review.