'ruin'
About
Sometimes the very essence of desires live in the space between two people who are too afraid to close the distance.
Summer Kennedy has spent years in that space, standing right next to David Hall. He's her best friend. Her right hand in business. The man who sees her more clearly than anyone else ever has. He's also openly and unapologetically bisexual, and Summer has quietly let that become the wall she hides behind. Not because she doesn't want him but because wanting him terrifies her.
David sees through every excuse she's built. He always has. But he made a choice a long time ago: Summer in his life, even at arm's length, is better than losing her entirely. So he holds back. He stays close. He waits.
Then Michael walks back into David's world.
Smooth, deliberate, and carrying a rage that's been simmering for over a decade, Michael has unfinished business with David, the kind that doesn't end with a conversation. When he turns his eyes on Summer, he doesn't see a woman tangled in desire and doubt. He sees leverage. He sees a way in, a way through, and a way to ruin everything David holds dear to the ground.
Michael knows exactly what Summer craves. And he's more than willing to give it to her. Every heated, reckless, intoxicating piece of it. On his terms. For his reasons. The desire is real. The fire between them is real. But underneath all of it, something cold and calculated is simmering, and Summer is exactly where Michael needs her to be.
She just doesn't know it yet.
Too bad for Summer, she realizes too late that some games don't end until everything worth having is already ruined.
**ruin was originally published as Bi-Satisfied in 2015. This fully revised and expanded edition reframes the story for readers ready to meet Summer, David, and Michael at full depth.
Praise for this book
My girl truly hasn’t missed yet! When I first saw the cover for Ruin, something piqued my interest and I knew I would be taking a trip on the wildest ride.. and my instincts didn’t fail me! This story was a journey of so many emotions! It makes you check your biases and prejudices and that’s one thing Nikki-Michelle does well - make you check yourself first in the most unexpected topics. The entanglement, secrets, tension and angst, and the spice! Whew!😅 I really loved David, he was a misunderstood person but he was secure in himself. I adored the friendship David and Summer had but Summer wore me out! I think in a sense, David and Summer had a trauma bond that was deeper than having similar upbringings.. and Michael - I didn’t trust him at all and even at the end, I still gave him the side eye because why are you playing with peoples lives?! I couldn’t put my finger on how this would come together but color me surprised at the plot twist! I wanted to come through the book and knock everything over!!! I didn’t see that twist at all.. smh! I enjoyed this one for sure!
I don't think a book has ever affected me as much as this one, I wish I could give it 100 stars. It was the perfect mix of spice and drama, the twists and turns still have my brain reeling, the care that was given to each character and how they were represented should be studied. I'm still sitting with the questions it made me ask myself, and as the characters grew I felt a shift happen in me as well. Michael, Summer, and David took me through there and I can't even imagine anything better to read, but the speed with which I'm about to fall down the rabbit hole of all things Nikki-Michelle....baby!!!
This book was such a pleasant surprise. Going in, I expected a messy, spicy story, and it absolutely delivered on that... but what I didn’t expect was how much this book would make me think.
What stood out to me the most was the way the author handled complicated conversations around Black women, Black queer men, and especially bisexual Black men. The story does not shy away from the uncomfortable parts: the fears, the assumptions, the insecurities, and the ways people can hurt each other when they are carrying their own unresolved issues.
Summer is not an easy FMC. She is messy. She is frustrating. She makes choices that will have you questioning her. But I loved that the author allowed her to be a fully realized, imperfect Black woman instead of trying to make her immediately likable. We are always asking for complex characters, and this book actually gives us one. Summer is flawed, but she is still worthy of love. She is still worthy of being chosen.
David was everything; he provided the type of unconditional love that would unnerve you. He was patient, I'm talking years of waiting, attentive, kind, and I loved him. He loved Summer completely, even when she struggled to accept him (Summer was absolutely playing like girl move...)
Michael....
This book is messy, emotional, and thought-provoking. It’s not just an erotic story; it’s a story about identity, vulnerability, love. I finished it and immediately wanted to talk about it.