Reviewed by Sadonna
TITLE: Trust Me, I Hate You 
SERIES: Men of Fort Dale
AUTHORS: Romeo Alexander and John Harris
NARRATOR: Michael Ferraiuolo
PUBLISHER: Books Unite People
LENGTH: 4 hours and 49 minutes
RELEASE DATE: July 13, 2020
BLURB:
Love and hate are not opposites, but sometimes they’re born from the same fire….
Sean: Soldiers die, that’s just how it goes. It’s different when it’s one of your brothers. Team Maelstrom, my team, was broken when we lost one of our own. And now we have to sit around Stateside while the men in charge figure out what to do with us. When they find a replacement, I immediately know it’s not going to work. I can’t deal with this pain in the ass. I want him gone. It looks like I’m stuck with him, but I don’t have to make it easy….
Aidan: I didn’t ask for this. I don’t want this. I’ve been thrown into this dysfunctional team with a team leader who’s out to get me. The guy’s an ass, and he’s driving me crazy. I can hardly think straight when I’m dealing with him. Then everything changes when he pins me to a wall and kisses me….
Before Sean and Aidan can figure out what to do about that kiss, Team Maelstrom is thrown from the frying pan into the freezer. Fear and peril changes people, but will it change these two hot military men enough to keep the team alive? Can they work things out between them and get everyone back home in one piece? And what about the future?
REVIEW:
Sean’s in charge of his military team. They’ve recently lost Clint, one of their team members, while deployed. Team Maelstrom is not doing well. The other team members, Nick and Matt and Ricardo, all deal with things in their own ways. Ricardo who has always been quiet, has now gone almost silent. Matt and Nick bicker, even though they are best friends. They are down a team member though and Sean is less than thrilled when a new guy arrives.
Aidan has been shuttled from place to place. He’s had a rough time in his last deployment – not of his own making. Unfortunately his issue has left him without a lot of options, so he’s been quickly turned around from his return to the States and sent to Fort Dale really without even a good night’s rest. General Winter – the commander – seems to have some idea that Aidan is perfectly competent, but something had to have gone down overseas. He assigns him as the fifth member of Team Maelstrom. To say that Sean is not welcoming is an understatement.
As soon as Aidan joins the group, Sean is determined to make sure he makes him miserable enough to leave. After what Aiden’s last CO has pulled, he’s not really in a position to complain, but he’s not very happy with how Sean treats him. The rest of the guys in the unit seem to be open to Aidan – once he proves himself – but Sean does everything he can to try to break him. But Aidan isn’t shy, and he gives it right back to Sean. They are constantly at each other’s throats – both physically and verbally.
After a particularly difficult exercise, Aidan and Sean happen to run into each other at a bar. Aidan tries to get Sean to loosen up, but that doesn’t go great. But after Aidan leaves, Sean chases after him to try to clear the air. Instead they end up in an alley and talking isn’t really on the agenda 😉
General Winter seems to have some idea that things aren’t really going great, and so he designs a surprise training mission for the team. This mission happens to take place in a much less hospitable place than Fort Dale. At first things seem to go OK – with the team operating as a unit. And Aidan and Sean manage some alone time, but they are still circling each other for the most part. But then an accident requires everyone to work together. If they don’t, the entire team might not make it back. With lives on the line, the team hangs together to make it back so maybe Sean and Aidan can figure out what’s really going on.
This is a fairly short audiobook, but it’s pretty packed with action and information. Sean and Aidan are both starting out in vulnerable places. Of course neither of them likes that and they take it out on each other. They won’t outright admit their attraction, but when tempers flair, they move from fighting to well, you know 😉 Sean is having a hard time with survivor’s guilt and having someone new on the team is really throwing him off his game. Aidan has been screwed over and he’s wary of anybody else trying to control him or torpedo his career since the military is really the only important thing in his life. When the chips are down though, these guys have to figure out a way to be honest about what is driving them and their reluctance to let the other one in. Adversity has a way of bringing people together toward a common goal and it sure did for these guys. Intense emotions surface and they finally deal with them in a productive way.
As usual Michael Ferraiuolo does a brilliant job narrating this story. There are a lot of voices – the whole team plus the other personnel at Fort Dale. I really likes his choices for everyone. The emotions – particularly for Sean – were well modulated. I am really enjoying this series and getting to know the guys at Fort Dale. I can’t wait for the next book. Recommended, especially for those how enjoy military stories and enemies to lovers 😀
RATING: 
BUY LINKS:
Audible