Does It Hurt?

By: H. D. Carlton

Narrated by: Troy Duran, Michelle Sparks

An Amazon top five best seller!

Who am I?

I've forgotten the answer to that question long ago. Ever since I ran from that house, so desperate to escape, I left with only the clothes on my back and socks on my feet. After that day, I've only ever walked in stolen shoes.

Could I be a girl who is searching for the meaning of life in faceless men? They were all so forgettable. Until he came along. He took me under a waterfall and made me forget my name, and in return, I took his instead.

Enzo Vitale.

An enigmatic man who will only ever love the deep sea. Or rather the predators that inhabit it. Turns out, he's not so different than the monsters he feeds. He lured me onto his boat like a fish in the ocean, seeking vengeance for my crime. Had I realized his intentions, and that a massive storm would leave us shipwrecked, I would've run.

Now, I'm a girl who's seeking refuge in a decrepit lighthouse with a man who loathes me almost as much as he craves me. He wants to hurt me, but the old caretaker of the abandoned island may have intentions far more sinister.

It's no longer a question of who I am, but rather, will I survive?

©2022 H. D. Carlton (P)2023 H. D. Carlton

I'm SO glad I waited for the audio to read this!!!

1st person/dual pov
Spice: 10/5 - Hot AF!

WHOA... just whoa. If I had to sum this book up in just one word it would be that one. I am so glad I held off on reading this until the audio was out because experiencing it for the first time on audio was beyond amazing. I am once again blown away by the performance of Troy and Michelle. I have listened to them narrate together before but this one is my favorite of theirs. It. Was. Perfect. Troy's accents are phenomenal, but the old man in the lighthouse felt like a whole new person joined the cast! And don't even get me started on Enzo and his drool-worthy Italian self. My Italian obsessed self was all but clawing at my headphones wanting to pull that man into real life haha! However, my favorite thing about the narration was Michelle's performance. Her sassy and sarcastic attitude towards Enzo made their banter truly come to life and the way she delivered all of the little quirky things that Sawyer would say when anxious had me hollering! It felt so genuine and real that it just made me love the character even more. It's audiobooks like this that keep you coming back for more.

Now for the story itself. I had no idea what to expect when the book started. We know Sawyer is running from someone and something in her past but we aren't really sure what. She alludes to the fact that she is a fugitive so we assume it's the law she is running from but still, I wasn't completely sure that was the whole situation. I also had no idea what she could have done to warrant being hunted down. It's all very mysterious and will definitely keep your attention hooked. In a last-minute change of plans to avoid being caught, she lands herself on a plane and winds up in a little coastal town in Australia. Here we find out that she has been stealing the identities of different men in order to fly under the radar and avoid being found. She is determined to keep a low profile and only spends money on things she feels she needs to in order to survive and not draw attention to herself. This has worked for her for years and no one has ever caught on to her. Then she meets Enzo.

Enzo is this dark and broody gorgeous Italian man with a chip on his shoulder and Sawyer knows spending even one night with him is a terrible idea yet she can't stop herself. After a night together that neither of them expected Sawyer does what she always does and steals the information she needs before leaving his house without a backward glance. She never expected him to see him again. So when he runs into her several days later and invites her out on his boat she gives in and goes knowing this is yet another terrible idea. What she didn't know was that Enzo had a secret of his own and no longer feels anything for her but hatred. A secret that led to rushed decisions and not checking the weather before hitting the water. Actions that land them in the middle of the ocean where a storm creeps up on them putting their lives in danger. Now they must work together to survive until they can find a way to make it back to civilization while facing the secrets between them that are all slowly coming to the surface. Oh and not giving into the intense attraction they have for one another of course lol.

This story has way more suspense to it than I was expecting and I loved it. If you like a good bit of mystery with your romance then this is a good one to pick up. It's got some great humor as well because the banter between these two is full of sass and enemies to lovers/hate to like or love you vibes. I thought it was paced very well and didn't feel like it was dragging on even though several weeks go by with them stranded together. And if you want something spicy that will blow your mind and have your libido doing jumping jacks well this one will do that and then some!

The. Spice. Is. Next. Level.
Just when I thought I couldn't be shocked by some of these smutty scenes anymore here comes Enzo and his wild AF ways of bringing someone to ecstasy until they almost die. And no I'm not kidding - near death is sometimes an understatement lol. I honestly never thought I would find myself using spicy and sharks together to describe a book but I should really learn to never say never in the romance world, especially when it comes to dark romance. (and yea sharks are involved but no - no lines like "that" were crossed so before anyone jumps to crazy conclusions just chill - we like it dark but not that dark over here so kindly step away from the report buttons and read the book first so you know what I'm talking about lol) Beyond that you've got a dirty talking man, in English and Italian thank you very much, who's mission is to bring his partner to ecstasy in ways that are nothing short of a religious experience. Telling someone you're going to see God may induce an eye roll until you realize he meant it literally and not figuratively haha! I can promise you that whether you're religious or not this man would make you see the gates of some sort of afterlife before bringing you back from the brink via 0rg@sm. That my friends is enough to have me sold on any book and the fact that the rest of it is so enjoyable is just a bonus.

So run, don't walk, and listen to daddy Enzo learn you a thing or two about experiencing life-altering spice hahaha. But please if you need TWs do not, I repeat do not, skip the ones for this book. Trust me. It's worth it because Enzo just knocked Zade out of his top spot when it comes to HD Carlton's book men and that alone is saying something.

Does It Hurt?: An Enemies to Lovers Romance

I read somewhere the author saying she hoped readers went into this story with zero expectations etc etc and my immediate thought was “I’m gonna like this chic” lol because I would die on the hill of going in blind into a book, especially one where things might just get explosive and #twitchy! #FunFact: I knew less than nothing about nothing in regard to not just this book, but this author, but as soon as I saw the #cover, I was in! #winning Okay, Troy Duran narrating might have also made my decision easy to go all in! lol I’m really glad I went in blind into this because I think it made all the circumstances that much more intense for me!

Both Michelle Sparks and Troy Duran did an exceptionally explosive narration of this story. They brought it to life for me in vivid color and I want to give a huge thanks to Literally Yours PR for allowing me the opportunity to listen to this audiobook!

#Confession: I’m not all together sure I’d have liked or even finished this story had I been reading it rather than listening to it. I haven’t actually read it to say that with 100% certainty, but the story is just so big with a lot of moving parts to keep track of, not people, just things, and I dunno, but my instincts tell me it wouldn’t have been something I stuck with if I was reading or at the very least I would have taken a heck of a lot longer to devour it. Listening to a story puts a story in a whole other dimension for me most times and narration is a huge part of that and these narrators together with this storyline is what really make this story bang. This is purely an opinion on my part and it really stems from how I prefer certain types of fiction with certain types of mediums vs others.

This story was wild! Wild in the sense that, for me, there were very few things that were expected or that I could see coming, a whole bunch of circumstances were ”whaaaaaaaaaaat???”, there was push/pull from not just Enzo & Sawyer themselves but also the entire story! Just wild! I wouldn’t go as far as saying this story is as dark as it is advertised to be, but it’s definitely not light and it does deal with some sensitive issues that some readers should certainly take note of but mostly it’s incredibly captivating and edgy, raw and unapologetically complex and dramatic! This is a story I won’t easily forget. The storyline builds from the moment it begins and it makes the sweet spot (you know the one … where you finally get the scene of “you’re worth everything”) that much more explosive. My heart was beating fast for a lot of this story and when that sweet spot hit, I melted! #swoon

If you’re looking for an outside the box romance journey and are not too sensitive, I’d say you’ve found what you’re looking for!!

Dark Romance Perfection!

HD Carlton never disappoints and Does It Hurt? was perfection. The spice, the suspense, the character development was all top notch. The narrators were amazing as well and just added so much to the story.

Very very sexy!

Sex. Thriller. Playfulness. More sex. What else can I say? The narrative was spot on. Whew. I think I need a cigarette now. Lol

Amazing!

Absolutely loved the book, and narration was amazing! The male voice is just so perfect.