Janice Maynard, Play with Me

Play with Me

Janice Maynard

Signet, January 2007, $14.00

ISBN: 0451220234

"Prologue". In Charleston, best friends Catherine Maderis, Kallie Bradshaw, and Gina McCutheon are all twenty-nine and single, so they vow to make love with their fantasy lover before their next birthday.

"Still Waters". Museum archivist Catherine has never tasted love. Extremely shy she goes after her secret fantasy, business mogul Phillip Trent, who makes her dreams intimate thoughts. Catherine invites him to be her escort to the museum's Midsummer Night's Masked Ball.

"Skin Deep". Artist Kallie feels good that Catherine is engaged, but five months have passed since the pact, and she still has not told Beau Donovan how she feels about him. She knows he thinks of her as his best buddy. Beau must let Kallie know he finds her very attractive. He pays their friends to not join them as they usually do when they go to watch the Savannah Sand Gnats play baseball.

"Party Girl". It has been nine months since the pact has been made, and Gina has no one so she agrees to go on a cruise and find someone to have intimate relations with. Also on board is family friend banker Thomas "Trey" Lipman III, who six years ago rejected her advances when he ripped her for being a party girl. He tells her he is proud of her charity work that he has followed; she in turn thanks him for showing his contempt six years ago, making her wanting to change. He apologizes as he says he wanted her then and wants her now.

"Epilogue". The three friends thank one another for pushing them to go after their fantasy man.

The three tales are fun, as each of the couples is likable, and the interactivity of the three novellas through the female friends adds to the understanding of their personalities. Though there is limited conflict, readers will enjoy these women pursuing their fantasy.