I am absolutely loving the Southern Wedding series by Natasha Madison, and adore Clarabella and Luke’s story in Mine to Cherish. What a romantic tale of a second chance with the one that got away!
Clarabella and Luke have such a great chemistry, so it was easy for me to root for them as the endgame even though she’s engaged to someone else when they cross paths again. And it was only six months ago that they crossed the line of their friendship, so they are both still at the forefront of each other’s minds. Because of that connection, I hate to say that this story is a rebound romance. Because Luke and Clarabella should have been together all along. Edward was never right for her, and that was super obvious.
When Luke offers Clarabella an escape plan from her wedding, their time alone at his cabin provides them with a forced reason to reconnect. They approach their resumed romance with a lot of transparency in their communication, and though they each allow anger and hurt to overcome them a few times, they are quick to apologize and set things right, which I found refreshing.
I thought the last chapter was a bit rushed, to be honest, but NM made up for it with the two epilogues!
Bring on Presley and Bennett! I received an advanced copy and voluntarily left a review.
Meet Natasha Madison
When her nose isn’t buried in a book, or her fingers flying across a keyboard writing, she’s in the kitchen creating gourmet meals. You can find her, in four inch heels no less, in the car chauffeuring kids, or possibly with her husband scheduling his business trips. It’s a good thing her characters do what she says, because even her Labrador doesn’t listen to her…
Overhearing my cousin’s best friend confessing that she’s never been satisfied wasn’t my fault… but offering to help her change that definitely was. Her brother is a friend of mine, and while this has a bad idea written all over it, it doesn’t stop us from becoming friends… with benefits.
Palmer is gorgeous, off-limits, and stubborn as hell. For the first time, I’m the one left wanting more.
I’m tired of watching her walk away. I’m ready for her to stay.
Palmer
I never dreamed having my crush overhear my most embarrassing confession would land me in his bed… or that I would want to stay there.
But our secret relationship has rules. No strings. No expectations. No feelings. What’s that saying about rules? Oh yeah, they’re meant to be broken.
But when it comes to Brooks, I’m afraid if I’m not the one to walk away, it won’t be just the rules broken.
Stay Over is a great start to a new series by Kaylee Ryan! Technically, the series begins with Stay Always, a novella in the Ten First Dates anthology, but Stay Over is the first full-length novel in the Kincaid Brothers series.
I fell in love with the Kincaid Brothers when I read Never With Me, and I was fully prepared to commit to a series featuring nine rowdy brothers. And Brooks and Palmer’s story did not disappoint! Palmer is the sister of Deacon from Never With Me, and Brooks is Ramsey’s cousin. She’s always had a crush on Brooks, her older brother’s best friend, and takes the opportunity to hang out with him the night of Ramsey and Deacon’s engagement party, where this book begins.
Over the next few weeks, Brooks and Palmer forge a friendship all of their own, with a sizzling attraction simmering underneath. That turns into a friends with benefits hookup, and eventually a secret relationship. I loved how Brooks was kinda slapped in the face with his attraction to Palmer. It completely caught him off guard, and I loved that he didn’t know what to do with his feelings at first.
Of course, the drama between them could have been avoided if they were just honest with each other about how they were feeling, but then we wouldn’t have gotten those super sweet last few chapters where they reunite!
I adored this story and can’t wait to see what comes next for the Kinkaid brothers!! I received an advanced copy and voluntarily left a review.
Meet Kaylee Ryan
New York Times and USA Today Bestselling author Kaylee Ryan has been crowned the Queen of Swoon by her readers. With nearly fifty romance books under her belt, she’s known for penning happily ever afters with heart. When she’s not writing, you can find her with a book in her hand or hanging out with her family where she resides in her home state of Ohio.
Tropes: Neighbors to Lovers, Alpha, Slow Burn Romance
Release Date: September 10, 2022
“Mr Gray Sweatpants was a romantic comedy that also was packed with emotion and heartfelt moments. This author never disappoints with the heat and the steam with the chemistry between Leo and Casey being like an inferno. These two made me laugh, cry and everything in between. A story that ticks every box and leaves you completely satisfied.”– Wiley Kate (Bookbub Review)
“Another touching, engaging story with many characters from the Single series if you’ve read and become a fan of them, and even if this is your first you’ll be captivated from beginning to end.” – Cheri ~Words Turn Me On (Goodreads Review)
“I opened this book and started with a smile, which turned into a giggle and developed into a laugh! It’s a slow burn romance with so much more in store.”– Sue Hancock (Goodreads Review)
“The storyline was so sweet, emotional and really steamy. I loved they way the author was able to make me care about the characters both the main characters but also the minor characters. I would love to see more stories within this world.”– Sarah Nielson (Bookbub Review)
Secrets, assuming, and an a$$hole cat that gives zero f*cks
A hot boy summer romantic-comedy. The boy next door, the girl with a million secrets and an a$$hole cat that cares about nobody. This book takes passing love notes in class to a whole new level. Guitar music on the beach, plenty of hardcore wooing and way too much assuming. And we all know what assuming does …
Casey Savage is a workaholic. During the summer she works two jobs and nearly seventy hours a week in order to save money for school. She has zero time for dating, boys, or being wooed. However, she’s also no fool and will willingly choose mind-blowing orgasms over sleep any day. Which is where Mr. Gray Sweatpants down the road comes in.
Leo Brandt is spending the summer fixing up his late grandmother’s house with the goal of it selling to turn a profit. The hottie up the block doesn’t seem to know he’s alive, but that doesn’t stop his fantasies from getting wild.
An a$$hole cat brings them together, and Leo’s determination to learn more about Casey than just what makes her reach climax the fastest, has Casey taking a hard step back.
Her past isn’t anybody’s business, least of all an itch-scratcher like Leo.
But try as she might, the sexy contractor is not just getting under her sheets, but he’s also getting under her skin and she finds herself falling for him. Dammit!
When Leo finally learns the truth about Casey and all the dirty secrets that she’s keeping will he still see her as more than just a hookup? Or will he sell the house as-is and not only get out of dodge but the neighborhood and Casey’s life completely?
“Casey,” he panted, breaking their kiss. “I’m trying to be good.”
“You are. Oh boy, you are. You’re sooooo good. You feel so good.” She rocked against him and moaned again.
His mouth fell to her neck, and he scraped his teeth along the side, seeing stars behind his closed eyelids as she slid the V of her legs along his hard shaft. He wasn’t going to last long. He was going to make a mess in his shorts if she kept moving the way she was, kept making those sexy little noises and pressing her tits toward his face.
“I’m willing to wait if it’s what you need, Leo,” she said, all breathless and sounding like she was hanging on by a thread. “But know that it’s not easy. I want nothing more than to feel all of you inside me. I can feel how big you are.” She slid her hand between them, and the heat from her palm felt like a brand against his cock, even through all the layers.
He growled. “Careful.”
“But don’t you just wonder how it would feel?” She ran her fingers up and down along his cock, driving him ever-loving mad with how badly he wanted to punch a hole through the khaki and fill her up properly.
“Every damn minute of the day,” he gritted out.
“How much of me do you need to know before we finally get to … give in to our basest desires?”
“So much more, baby. I want to know it all.” It took every ounce of willpower he had left not to push his hands down the front of her panties—since that was all that was between them, as she was wearing that sexy summer dress—and feel just how wet she was. He knew she was wet. He knew that when she climbed off him, there’d be a wet spot on the front of his shorts from where she was riding him. But he wanted to feel that wet heat on his fingertips, on his tongue, and wrapped around his cock.
“This feels so good.”
“So good,” he echoed.
“I’m close, Leo.”
Oh fuck. Yes.
He hadn’t heard the sweet melody of Casey coming in what felt like forever. Granted, it’d only been a little over a month since that night on his couch, but given the level of self-inflicted torture and sexual deprivation he felt, it could have been thirty years. Every moan, every mewl, every whimper made his dick throb against his khakis and his balls cinch up tight.
“Leo …” she said on a gasp.
“Casey, I want to get to—”
But his words were cut off at the knees when she grabbed him by the hair, lifted his head up and crushed her mouth to his. A second after her tongue surged forward into his mouth, she began to whimper and breathe heavily, the puffs from her nose hitting his upper lip.
She was coming.
Fuck him.
She was coming.
Sunny Shelly’s Review: 4 Stars
Mr. Gray Sweatpants is a sweet neighbors romcom that starts off with the funniest meet-cute. I loved how Casey and Leo got to know each other without even realizing it through her a$$hole cat. When they finally meet IRL, there’s an instant spark. Even though Leo is looking for a relationship and wants one with Casey, he lets her set the pace. They start a sizzling friends with benefits relationship, mostly because Casey is hiding some major baggage from her past when it comes to her family and keeps Leo at an arm’s length.
But just as feelings get involved, Casey’s past comes back to haunt her. Will Leo stand by her side, or ditch her the way she expected him too?
Whitley Cox did a great job of balancing out some serious family drama with a whole lot of comedy in this fantastic, slow-burn neighbors romance! I received an advanced copy and voluntarily left a review.
A Canadian West Coast baby born and raised, Whitley is married to her high school sweetheart, and together they have two beautiful daughters and a fluffy dog. She spends her days making food that gets thrown on the floor, vacuuming Cheerios out from under the couch and making sure that the dog food doesn’t end up in the air conditioner. But when nap time comes, and it’s not quite wine o’clock, Whitley sits down, avoids the pile of laundry on the couch, and writes.
A lover of all things decadent; wine, cheese, chocolate and spicy erotic romance, Whitley brings the humorous side of sex, the ridiculous side of relationships and the suspense of everyday life into her stories. With single dads, firefighters, Navy SEALs, mommy wars, body issues, threesomes, bondage and role-playing, Whitley’s books have all the funny and fabulously filthy words you could hope for.
Wow. Macon and Lennon’s story is a doozy. I read this book in a day because it was one of those stories that I just had to keep reading “one more chapter” — and the next thing I knew, it was 1 am.
This story is definitely not sunshine and rainbows. It’s dark and gritty, and Macon does some despicable things. Not that it’s an excuse for his behavior, but the dude has some serious demons.
The push and pull between these two drove me crazy, which I’m sure was Benson’s intention. Two steps forward, five steps back. Mostly because Macon is such a broken hero… and don’t we all secretly love that? I felt every emotion that these two went through. How conflicted Lennon was about her feelings for Macon, how he struggles with falling for his sister’s best friend when he shouldn’t. I felt so much for these two with the life twist that affects them just when things are going well and the betrayal that follows. So much angst and family drama wrapped up in a slow-burn romance!
There are trigger warnings that Benson lays out for the readers, so beware that this story deals with some sensitive subjects. And that ending was a fabulous cliffhanger to set up the rest of this duet!
I received an advanced copy and voluntarily left a review.
Meet Brit Benson
Brit Benson writes romance novels that are sassy, sexy, and sweet.
When she’s not dreaming up her next swoony book boyfriend and fierce book bestie, she’s reading.
When she’s not reading, she’s probably marathoning a Netflix series or wandering aimlessly up and down the aisles in Homegoods.
Brit currently resides somewhere near the Blue Ridge Parkway with her husband, daughters, and dogs.
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To learn more about Brit and her books, visit here!
50 Ways to Win Back Your Lover
by Kelly Siskind is now live!
From Kelly Siskind comes a slow-burn romantic comedy about one man’s creative attempt to win back his high school sweetheart after a change in fortune gives them a second chance at love.
Growing up, I had it all—my art, close friends, a gorgeous girlfriend who owned my heart—but then my life exploded.
Turns out my father was laundering money, and my whole family got shoved into witness protection. No notice. No chance to explain. I was ripped away from beautiful, blue-eyed Delilah Moon, shattering both our worlds.
A decade later, fate has given us a second chance.
The cartel my father worked for has been wiped out. I’ve returned to my hometown, determined to win back the love of my life. But Delilah is engaged.
Or . . . is she?
I’m almost positive she’s lying about her fiancé to protect her heart. Which means I need to up my game.
I’ve made a list of fifty ways to prove we’re meant to be. Except Delilah’s barely looking at me, never mind swooning. I have a feeling my disappearance scarred her more than she’s admitting, and no one in town will tell me what happened . . .
Told from the hero’s POV, 50 Ways To Win Back Your Lover is a delightful second-chance romance — with a twist. It’s been 10 years since Edgar (or E) had to leave in the middle of the night to enter witness protection with his family, crushing Delilah’s heart as she was ghosted and left behind. A chance encounter — in an airport of all places! — reunites this couple. But is Delilah still available? E doesn’t much care, because he is determined to win back the one that got away. Well, the one that he was forced to leave behind.
This story is sweet and sexy and E is so dang charming. I was really rooting for him to win her over all over again! I love books that are totally from the male POV, and feel like I don’t come across them often enough. So I was really excited to get this story fully from E’s perspective.
Kelly Siskind sets up a great series with this book, and I am excited to see what comes next for the Bower brothers. There are some issues that the brothers have to deal with due to their father’s involvement in a cartel that led to them being in WITSEC to begin with, so I’m interested to see how that plays out through the rest of this series as well.
I received an advanced copy from Montlake via NetGalley and voluntarily left a review.
Meet Kelly Siskind
Author of romantic comedies and contemporary romance, Kelly Siskind moved from the city to enjoy the charm of northern Ontario. When she’s not out hiking or home devouring books, you can find her, notepad in hand, scribbling down one of the many plot bunnies bouncing around in her head.
Sign up for her newsletter and never miss a giveaway, a free bonus scene, or the latest news on her books: http://www.kellysiskind.com. And connect with her on Twitter/Instagram (@kellysiskind), and Facebook (@authorkellysiskind).
Once upon a time he broke me, and for that, I refuse to fall for him again.
Resisting the Grump, an all-new small-town romantic comedy full of heat and humor from bestselling author Ashley Munoz is available now!
Stalking the town recluse wasn’t exactly wise.
Davis was five years older than me…antisocial and temperamental. And there was the little fact that he didn’t know I existed. Still, I gave him my heart, and he crushed it.
So I picked up the pieces and ran away to New York City. I had a plan that kept my heart intact for four years. But one phone call changed everything.
Returning home meant facing the past…and the man who ruined me. I had hoped that the mountain had swallowed him whole. Alas, as I set out to help my parents, I discover he’s not only alive and well, but that they apparently love the jerk.
He has no idea that we have a past, which is both a relief and salt in the wound. I promise myself I’ll ignore how his eyes linger on me, or the way his touch feels like a live wire, and I’ll remember that once upon a time he broke me and for that I refuse to fall for him again. But I can’t control that he seems to be falling for me this time.
“Can I kiss you, Rae?” he whispered, moving along my skin. Shaking my head, my throat bobbed. “No.” “You don’t seem like the kind of girl who likes to be asked, so I’m just going to do it.” “Try it and see what happens,” I smiled wickedly. He stared at me, a tiny smile lifting in the corner of his mouth. “You can’t resist me forever.” “Watch me.” I glared defiantly, hating that he’d called out something that simmered so close to my core. His body pressed against mine for a second longer then it vanished. “I think I’ll kiss you when you’re least expecting it. Maybe in church or something.” “Why bother with this ruse? I overheard you talking that night in the garage. I know my dad asked you to place the order, and I know you think I’m too much work to befriend.” My palms went flat against the brick, so I could somehow find balance. His stormy glare cut through me, as if I were a cold stick of butter and he was the searing knife, just pulled from the fire. “You misheard…or at least misunderstood.” Tilting my head, I asked, “Did he tell you to place the order and lie to me?” Without a single hitch in his voice, or flicker in his gaze, he answered. “Yes.” “Then I don’t know what’s left to—” His grip returned to my waist as his body pressed into mine, pushing me tighter against the brick at my back. “You misunderstood…I don’t want to be your friend, Rae, and you are a lot of work, but if you haven’t noticed, work doesn’t scare me off. I like work. I like trouble. You’re a fucking delicious mixture of both, and please understand me when I say this”—he lowered his head, his lips just barely a breath away from mine—“I like kissing you.”
Sunny Shelly’s Review: 5 Stars
Rae and Davis’ story is full of all the feels. I struggled with the fact that Rae fled from town and went to college across the country because she was so humiliated after walking in on Davis with another girl all those years ago. But aside from suspending belief for that, I adored this couple and their romance.
Davis is the mountain recluse everyone in town gossips about — and the poor sap carries so much baggage. He’s a squishy marshmallow of a hero once you get past those walls, and my heart broke for him when he told Rae about what had happened with his brother and family.
Do I think Rae should have come clean with him about her teenage crush when things first got serious between them? Absolutely. But Davis was kind of out of line with his reaction as well. The split led to the heartbreak necessary for them to come back together in a wonderful way and I was all over their reconciliation!
I can’t wait for the next book in this series!
I received an advanced copy and voluntarily left a review.
About Ashley Ashley resides in the Pacific Northwest, where she lives with her four children and her husband. She loves coffee, reading fantasy, and writing about people who kiss and cuss.
A stand alone second chance grumpy sunshine romance about Josie & Maddox by USA Today bestselling author K.A. Linde…
Maddox Nelson is the only boy I’ve ever loved.
And the only one to break my heart.
I thought I was over that long ago. After drowning the heartbreak in two failed marriages, I should want safe and easy, and Maddox is nothing but complicated.
Now that I’m back home in Savannah, I can’t deny the pull toward him. He’s the grumpy to my sunshine, the introvert to my extrovert, the uncompromising to my go with the flow. But years of friendship, love, and tangled lust binds us together in the city where it all began.
When heat flies between us, he makes it clear that we already had our chance. Both of us should move on.
Well, I read this book in a single sitting three days ago and I am still trying to wrap my head around what I want to write about Maddox and Josie’s story.
Like the others in the Coastal Chronicles Series, KA Linde manages to write a beautiful, heartbreaking masterpiece of angst. The back and forth between Maddox and Josie is a maddening rollercoaster of emotions. The story goes back and forth between the present and the past, and the years jump around as their story slowly unfolds. It’s hard to keep it straight in mind, chronologically, but it all comes together in a whopper of a reunion for this couple, a brilliant grumpy graphic artist and the television star he’s loved since they were teenagers.
The secondary story with Josie’s mother left me speechless. How that dovetailed with healing the relationship between Josie and her mom, as well as her mom and her dad, and sparking Josie’s next career move was brilliant.
Second to None takes place at the same time as Hold The Forevers and At First Hate — I loved seeing scenes play out from Josie and Maddox’s POV. And the nuggets that were dropped between Amelia and Ash left me wanting their book pronto!
I received an advanced copy and voluntarily left a review.
Meet K.A. Linde
K.A. Linde is the USA Today bestselling author of the Avoiding Series, Wrights, and more than thirty other novels.
She has a Masters degree in political science from the University of Georgia, was the head campaign worker for the 2012 presidential campaign at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, and served as the head coach of the Duke University dance team.
She loves reading fantasy novels, binge-watching Supernatural, traveling, and dancing in her spare time.
She currently lives in Lubbock, Texas, with her husband and two super-adorable puppies.
A swoon-worthy, small town romance from USA Today Bestselling Author J.H. Croix!
✔️We’re roommates.
✔️We work together.
✔️She’s my friend’s little sister.
✔️She’s soooo off limits.
✔️I want her anyway.
I made a deal with Harley Jackson. We’d burn that fire between us to ashes with a few nights between the sheets. Friends with benefits, but with a time limit. It turned out to be colossally stupid.
A few nights together only made the fire burn hotter. I was never supposed to fall for her.
Grant & Harley’s story is perfect for readers who love small town romance, daring pilots, sassy heroines, roommates who can’t get enough of each other, slow burn, emotional romance with a dash of angst, oozing with swoon, and one smokin’ hot protective hero.
Grant and Harley have known each other for years, and there has always been a simmering attraction between them. But they work together, live together in the employee house of Walker Adventures, and she’s his best friend’s little sister. It could be a recipe for disaster, so they agree to a limited fling as friends with benefits, hoping to get the other out of their system. Well, it doesn’t work!
But Harley is hiding a health issue from everyone she knows, and her secret has the potential to put an end to her relationship with Grant before it really gets started. Grant has incredible guilt over not being around when his mom died (he was away at college), which just gives Harley more of a reason to keep her issues to herself. But when Grant finds her after she faints, it more or less forces her hand. Can he forgive her for keeping the truth from him? Will his guilt about his mom’s death cause him to run away from Harley?
This story hit the right notes in mixing sweet, swoony, and sexy. After We Fall is one book in the Dare With Me series, but it can be read as a standalone. I’ve read a few of these — not the whole series — and the characters crossover since the Walker Adventures crew is a close-knit bunch. So it’s nice to see appearances from the other couples.
I received an advanced copy and voluntarily left a review.
Meet J.H. Croix
USA Today Bestselling Author J. H. Croix lives in a small town in the historical farmlands of Maine with her husband and two spoiled dogs.
Croix writes steamy contemporary romance with sassy women and rugged alpha men who aren’t afraid to show some emotion. Her love for quirky small-towns and the characters that inhabit them shines through in her writing.
Take a walk on the wild side of romance with her bestselling novels!
Wow. After reading the other two Redemption Hills books, I never would have guessed that fun-loving playboy Uncle Logan was hiding such a traumatic past, covering up years of agony and pain for having lost his first love.
Aster and Logan’s story is heartbreaking and beautiful. There is so much hurt between them, but a bright love that never died between Logan and his Little Star. It’s ugly when they first see each other seven years after they were ripped apart. And the 30-day bet that Logan won with Aster as his prize was born out of revenge. But as their walls crumbled, it was crystal clear just how much they both still loved one another.
Zachary Webber and Erin Mallon beautifully brought Logan and Aster’s story to life as the timeline goes back and forth from the past to the present. They hit every nuance of the pain and hurt, as well as every ounce of the love and passion and reconnection that these characters shared.
I received an advanced copy and voluntarily left a review.
A.L. Jackson is the New York Times & USA Today Bestselling author of contemporary romance. She writes emotional, sexy, heart-filled stories about boys who usually like to be a little bit bad.
Her bestselling series include THE REGRET SERIES, CLOSER TO YOU, BLEEDING STARS, FIGHT FOR ME, CONFESSIONS OF THE HEART, FALLING STARS, and REDEMPTION HILLS novels. Get her latest enemies-to-lovers, second-chance romance, NEVER LOOK BACK, available now!
If she’s not writing, you can find her hanging out by the pool with her family, sipping cocktails with her friends, or of course with her nose buried in a book.
Be sure not to miss new releases and sales from A.L. Jackson – Sign up to receive her newsletter https://geni.us/ALJacksonBookClubB or text “aljackson” to 33222 to receive short but sweet updates on all the important news.
Pretend With Me, an all-new fake-engagement small-town standalone romance in the Kanfield Brothers Series from bestselling author Allie Everhart is available now!
Jason Kanfield. Tall, athletic, really hot baseball coach. My first and only one-night stand. And surprise! The father of my child.
I met Jason at a friend’s wedding and our chemistry was off the charts.
After a night of dancing and a few too many drinks, we ended up in his hotel room.
The next morning we decided not to see each other again since I’d be moving away soon.
Months later, I’m still thinking about him, wanting to see him, but not sure if I should.
A positive pregnancy test made the decision for me.
Jason’s shocked at the news and wants to know how we’ll co-parent with me moving away. But I have a more immediate problem… my parents coming to town.
My very traditional parents would be crushed if they knew I was having a baby with a guy I barely know. I can’t disappoint them like that. So I hatch a plan.
A fake engagement, just for the week my parents are here.
Problem solved.
Or so I thought, until that little white lie gets leaked to the whole town.
I have to make a decision: Tell the truth or keep pretending.
I decide to fess up… until Jason gets down on one knee. With an engagement ring.
I walk up to Jason in the kitchen. “Remember how you said you owed me a favor for going to the wedding?” “Yeah. What about it?” “You said you’d do anything, right?” “Within reason. Why?” “You didn’t say within reason. You can’t add that part now.” He laughs. “Mia, what is this about?” “My parents don’t know that I’m pregnant. I was going to tell them after my graduation, but I don’t think I can wait. They’ll want to know who the father is and since you’re here, and they’re here, and I’m here, I thought I’d introduce you to them.” “Okay. But that’s not doing you a favor. I’m happy to meet your parents. I want to.” “Yeah, um, that’s not really the favor part.” “Then what is it? What do you want me to do?” “I need you to pretend to be my fiancé.” “Fiancé? We’re not even dating.” “But my parents don’t know that.” “Why would you lie to them?” “Because they’re old-fashioned. I don’t want them knowing I hooked up with you at a wedding and haven’t seen you in months. I was going to tell them we’ve been dating this whole time.” I pause. “And maybe part of last year.” Jason laughs. “You’re kidding, right? This is some kind of joke?” “It’s not a joke. I need you to do this.” I clutch his arm. “I’m begging you to. If you knew my parents, you’d understand.” “I’m sure they know things have changed since they were our age. People have kids outside of marriage all the time.” “Yes, I know, but it’s not what they wanted for their only daughter. Jason, you said you’d do anything if I went to your brother’s wedding. I did my part of the deal. I’m asking you to do yours.” “So what happens when you leave at the end of the summer?” “I’ll tell them we broke up. I’ll say we tried to make it work but it didn’t.” He shakes his head. “I don’t know, Mia. I don’t like this. I think you should just tell them the truth.” “And break their hearts? Jason, I’ve seen how much you love your parents. If you knew something would hurt them and disappoint them, but there was a way to avoid all that, wouldn’t you do it?” “Maybe. But I’d be more likely to tell them the truth.” My phone dings with a text. “My mom says they’ll meet me for breakfast in a half hour. I’m going to go pack up.” “You’re leaving?” I nod. “My parents want me to stay and spend the week with them but it’s too risky. I’d end up running into your family and then I’d have to tell my parents everything. I’m just going to go with my original plan of telling them I’m pregnant right before they leave.” “What are you going to tell them about the father?” “I haven’t decided, but I’ll figure it out.” I go to the bedroom and pack up my things. I take my suitcase out to the living room and see Jason sitting on the couch. “Bye, Jason.” I walk to the door. “Wait.” He jumps up. “I’ll walk you out.” “You don’t have to.” I don’t want him to because I’m pretty sure I’ll burst into tears when I get past the door. I really thought he’d do this for me, but he won’t. Jason goes with me to my car. He puts my suitcase in the trunk, but doesn’t close it. “Jason, I need to hurry. I’m going to be late.” He closes the trunk and walks up to me. “What would I tell my family? If we did this?” “You don’t have to tell them anything. My parents don’t live here, and as long as we keep them away from your parents, they never have to know.” “What if your parents want to meet mine?” “We could tell them we haven’t told your parents yet. We could say we just got engaged and that you wanted to wait to tell them about the baby.” “This is never going to work.” “My parents aren’t going to be here that long. There’s very little chance they’ll run into your parents.” He checks his watch. “I need to clean up. I’ll meet you there.” “Really? You’ll really do this?” He shrugs. “I owe you. I have to pay you back.”
Sunny Shelly’s Review: 4 Stars
Pretend With Me is the second book in the Kanfield brothers series that I’ve read, and I enjoyed it just as much as Brody and Kate’s story. Jason and Mia clicked right from the start, and I felt every ounce of their connection the night they meet at a wedding. And the yearning after! Mia was planning to move back home to Boston in a few months, so they both decided pursuing a relationship was pointless. Until Mia realized she was pregnant.
But man, I felt like I was getting hit over the head with all the back and forth about how she needs to love back home to take care of her aging parents, and he won’t leave his family to go with her. I got it the first time, but between the multiple conversations and all of the inner dialogue, I felt it was all these two spoke and thought about. And as soon as Mia’s old-school parents came to visit and she and Jason pretended to be engaged since she was pregnant, the solution was so obvious. I can’t believe it took so long to get there!
Still, Pretend With Me was a pretty low-angst, instalove story that I easily read in a day. It hits all the right notes, and ends with a HEA for all! I received an advanced copy and voluntarily left a review.
About Allie Allie Everhart is the author of more than 50 books and several bestselling series, including The Jade Series, The Kensington Series, and The Wheeler Brothers. Allie writes angsty love stories, often with a twist of mystery and suspense. She loves reading for hours in a comfy spot, drinking strong coffee, walking in the woods, and writing emotional stories that make the characters work for their happy ending.
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