Shaw (A Rare Groove
) sets this contemporary romance in upper-middle-class San Diego, where software sales director Monique Evans, fresh out of a three-year relationship with a married man, fills time by playing basketball on a team captained by Tao Samuels, ex-navy SEAL turned security consultant. Tao's usual equilibrium is disturbed by Monique's beauty and grit. When they hook up, Monique specifies three rules: keep it casual, no romantic notions, sexual exclusivity. Tao adds a fourth rule—honesty—that they both find hard to hold to. Shaw's ability to sketch a community is a real strength, and though her richly interwoven characters are too prone to impersonal talk-show truisms like “Women have a false image of relationships and love,” her fans will enjoy watching Monique and Tao navigate the tricky waters of rumor and trust. (July)
