Two colleagues. One conference. No strings attached?
Four Night Stand
Romance
Escape Publishing
March 1, 2024
Ebook
330
Two colleagues. One conference. No strings attached?
Two people who've been burned by past lovers settle for a conference fling while secretly wanting more.
Jules lives in her comfort zone. Years ago, taking a risk left her dumped and heartbroken, and now the status quo is her safe space. It's not so bad. She lives with two awesome friends, has a manageable crush on Cameron, a colleague she's never met in person, and her job ... well, she used to love her IT job at a publishing company. Now it feels like ticking a box. So when she's asked at the last minute to attend a conference, she figures it could be the thing she needs to reinspire her. And then she finds out Cameron is coming too.
Cameron left his last workplace abruptly after a break-up gone wrong. In a new city and a new team, he's content to keep everyone at arm's length so there's no chance of the past repeating. Except for one person in the IT department who always answers his calls for help, and shares his humour and taste in music. But they've never met face-to-face, so it doesn't count. Until they get sent to a conference together and suddenly, Cameron realises it does count. A lot.
Thrown together away from the office and their colleagues, Jules and Cameron decide to have a conference fling. It's risk-free and has a guaranteed amicable ending. But emotions are never predictable ...
Mixing Business and Pleasure
Have you ever had a work crush? Someone you looked forward to seeing at the office. Someone to chit chat with in the kitchen while grabbing a cup of coffee. Someone whose presence takes that chip off of your shoulder and makes the work week more bearable.
I definitely have, and I feel like I’d challenge anyone who said they didn’t.
“Four Night Stand” pushes the envelope of what a work crush is, though. Cam and Jules have a phone-only relationship through Cam’s need for tech support. There has been no physical contact, they don’t know what the other looks like, and they have never interacted in person… until fate steps in and sends them both to the same work conference in Sydney.
Not to mention, once Jules’ friends Cat and Tori catch wind of the fact that their friend will be spending a significant amount of time with her crush, they not only egg her on, but they help devise a plan that will surely succeed in getting Cam to fall for Jules.
“Here’s your plan. Step one is flirt, while sober, and see how he responds. Step two is –“
“Sex,” Tori says.
“Tori! You can’t jump straight into sex from flirting!” Jules argues.
“Why not?” Tori shrugs. “I do it all the time. Works out brilliantly.”
The writing is on the wall, folks. We all know what’s going to happen with smitten colleagues.
The Conference
Most of the setting of this novel is at the conference in Sydney. I thought that with this being a workplace romance, that we’d have more of the inner workings of their mutual employer and there would be casual flirting while overcoming company issues and presentation pot holes.
Not the case.
Jules lets her anxiety rule while in the car with Cameron on the drive down, and just blurts out that her friends think she should have a conference fling. Cam quickly agrees and they get to work… down to business… you know what I mean.
The traveler in me was excited for all of the time that Jules and Cam spent outside of their work responsibilities. I especially loved their trip to the Sydney Operate House and I wish that I was able to visit it, too.
Looking A Little Deeper
While the premise of the novel isn’t hard to miss, there is also depth to our two main characters that round out the story from the fun found on the surface. Anxiety, fear, and baggage are ever-present throughout the novel. Our characters need to deal with their past before they have a shot at a successful future.
‘I don’t want to be the guy that keeps running away from shit,’ he says. ‘I want to be able to talk about my emotions and my fears. Of spiders and more serious stuff. I want to talk to you. I want to talk with you.’
The side characters in this novel really open up the backstory of our hero and heroine, especially Cam’s sisters. The two girls really brought the sibling relationship to life. Additionally, Jules’ relationship with her besties felt very authentic to how I interact with my best friends.
The regional dialogue used in “Four Night Stand” also really brought the story to life. Our characters use phrases like “far out” and tossing items “in the bin”, which might seem like a silly thing to notice, but to me it helped place me inside the story, and not just reading it.
Final Thoughts
“Four Night Stand” has very quick pacing. The characters are pretty much always on the move, which lead to faster page turning to see where they’d be heading off to next. I do wish that there would have been a little more groundwork laid about Jules and Cam’s phone relationship prior to them meeting at the announcement of their trip. Laying the foundation with some on the page flirting might have helped me buy in more to their happy ever after.
I would recommend this novel to anyone looking for a workplace romance, some fun girl talk, or anyone looking to get a quick hit of that Australian charm.
I’m Val, and I’m excited to share my love of books with you! I’m a sassy Sour Patch kid from New Jersey, dog mom to Chance the beagle, and much like the rest of the Hive, I’m a coffee lover (I think it’s a requirement to be here). The first book I remember reading voluntarily involved a boy wizard who lived in the cupboard under the stairs, and I’ve been chasing magic ever since. I love Happily Ever Afters, and I love love. My favorite genres are romance and rom-coms, fantasy, and young adult/new adult. If I’m not reading, I’m probably kayaking, watching the Great British Baking Show, or discovering a new craft beer.
