My Rating: ⭐⭐⭐⭐ Genres: Contemporary Romance, RomCom, Romantic Comedy, Steamy Clean, Closed Door Romance |
Blurb:
What happens when you have to play nice with your greatest enemy? Revenge.
Drew Marshall may have let me move into his spare bedroom while my house is being renovated, but don’t think for one second his kindness comes without strings. Big, ugly, fake relationship strings.
That’s okay, though, Dr. Andrew. I’ll agree to your terms, move into your house, and act like
your girlfriend when the big day comes; but I also plan to make your life miserable—make you pay for what you did to me.
I may not be good at forgiving or forgetting, but I’m excellent at getting even.
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He leans forward, his smooth jaw brushing against my face as he whispers, “You are absolutely beautiful.”
I was totally obsessed with the chemistry between Jessie and Drew! Hate-to-love mixed with forced proximity and a dash of fake dating? HOW COULD I NOT BE OBSESSED?! Oh, and their prank war? Loved. It.
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| it was goldennnn, lol |
So funny! So cute! So relatable! Jessie's collection of tacky/adorable belongings? Drew's need to be the "go-to" person? I really enjoyed the fun/playful side of their personalities/relationship, as well as the deeper/sensitive side. And I adored Cooper in The Off Limits Rule, BUT: Drew is the man, lol. Seriously. He is PERFECT book boyfriend material. I was swooning left and right, y'all.
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| 😍😍😍 |
What time is it? WHAT TIME IS IT? It's time for the highlightsss!!
“Nope. I actually already have a date to the gala.” I don’t. “My girlfriend.” Don’t have one of those either.
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The man is so boring he eats celery for dessert.
Note: That's just sadddd
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I spin. Candles. I twist. Succulents. I bend. A woven basket containing MORE fuzzy pastel blankets. How many does one woman need?! There isn’t an inch of my house that hasn’t been touched—vandalized.
I loved this part so much lollll.
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I watch suspiciously as his brows crunch together, and he lightly touches the pads of his fingers to his throat. He’s hiked up the sleeves of his hoodie, baring his forearms, and I don’t notice the way his veins wrap around the undersides, twisting like tempting little vines up his arms. I would have to be stupid to pay attention to those things.
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Drew is stiff for only a moment before his big hand rises and gently smooths down the back of my hair. He wraps his other arm around me and holds me tight, like he’s never letting go. “We’re okay?” he murmurs into my hair.
Excuse me while I go and CRY.
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Believe me, if there was literally anyone else in the world I could ask to pose as my fake fiancé, I would. I even asked a random guy in the grocery store last night, but oddly enough, he said no. Actually, it wasn’t so much no as it was him speed walking away from me clutching his bottle of mustard.
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The last time I saw her, she was eating an entire bowl full of pickles. Like thirty pickles! As a medical professional who happens to specialize in maternal care, I advised her to be careful of her sodium intake. She showed me her favorite finger as a response.
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Her eyes sparkle as her lips pull into a sweet smile, and I’m momentarily breathless.
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I grab my heavy suitcase, Drew rips it out of my hand and glares at me then picks up his own. We stomp stomp stomp out of the house, lock the door, and go to the Jeep. This is how we’ve been operating the last few days, ever since our fight after the fundraiser.
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“Jessie. I swear…” He trails off, and I’d really like him to finish that sentence, but he doesn’t. It’s left as a warning. “Let me check your blood pressure. It’s important.”
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“WHOA,” Cooper yells, pressing his whole arm against the door to brace himself. “That’s it! Pull over.”
I frown and look quickly at Cooper then shift my eyes back to the road. “What? No. There was a bunny in the road—I had to swerve to miss it.”
I feel his angry eyes on the side of my face. I almost hurt his baby. He’ll never forgive me. “Pull over.”
Their bromance was LIFEEEE.
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Lucy and I are so over.
And Jessie's friendship with Lucy was #goals as well!
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"ANDREW MARSHALL!" I yell down the stairs as I descend to battle.
"Jessica, get down here!" he bellows back.
Note: Have I mentioned that I love them??
I have WAY too many highlights to share here, but CLEARLY I enjoyed the book lollll.
As far as content goes: Mild language. There was no on-page sex, but it was definitely talked about and implied along with multiple make-out scenes (at least one of those scenes did involve Drew shirtless), and innuendos. Jessie was naked during one point of the book...and even though it was not in a sexual way (she was taking a shower), the scene was from Drew's POV. However, there wasn't really any detailed description. I'm not going to list every single thing that went on in the book (although, you can message me if you'd like to know), but just like with The Off Limits Rule, I would definitely describe the book as a "PG-13 romance movie."
*My rating is usually lower when a book isn't "clean" like it was promoted (3 stars, instead of 4 or 5 stars), but I'm not doing that with this book because the author made it very clear ahead of time that this was a "steamy clean/closed-door" romance book...and I appreciate her honesty, as well as her desire to provide a spicier option for readers who want a little more than "Hallmark" but not something completely explicit.*
This book was a laugh-out-loud, must-read if you're looking for a happy, super cute closed-door/steamy clean romance!
~I received an e-copy of this story from the author, and am voluntarily leaving an honest review.~
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About the Author:
Born and raised in Nashville TN, Sarah Adams loves her family, warm days, and making people smile. Sarah has dreamed of being a writer since she was a girl, but finally wrote her first novel when her daughters were napping and she no longer had any excuses to put it off.
Sarah is a coffee addict, a British history nerd, a mom of two daughters, married to her best friend, and an indecisive introvert. Her hope is to always write stories that make you laugh, maybe even cry; but always leave you happier than when you started reading.
