Hailey Sharp has a one-track mind. Get By the Cup salad shop off the ground. Do literally everything possible to make it a success. Repeat. With a head full of entrepreneurial ideas and a bad ex in her rearview, her one and only focus is living life the way she wants to. No distractions.
Wes Jansen never did understand the fuss about relationships. With a string of lackluster first dates and the pain from his parents’ angry divorce following him around, he’d much rather find someone who he likes, but won’t love. Companionship, not passion, is the name of the game.
When Hailey and Wes find each other in a disastrous meet cute that wasn’t even intended for them, they embarrassingly go their separate ways. But when Wes finds Hailey to apologize for his behavior, they strike up a friendship. Because that’s all this can be. Hailey doesn’t want any distractions. Wes doesn’t want to fall in love.
What could possibly go wrong?
Release Date: Jan 17, 2023
Heat Level: Warm
Publisher: Macmillan
Imprint: St. Martin’s Press
Price: $11.99
Hailey is driven when it comes to her business. Opening her shop is ultimately the end game, and nothing will stand in her way. She ends up embarrassing herself in front of a complete stranger, and let’s just say that it leads to a newfound friendship that she was not expecting. Can she balance her new relationship and her dreams?
Wes has been there and done that when it comes to relationships. He is perfectly fine with the single life. When he tried to rectify a situation with Hailey, he finds himself enjoying his friendship with her. He may even admit that he is enjoying even more than a friendship. Can he let go of past trauma to enjoy what can be something good?
I enjoyed this meet cute romance. It starts off strong with Hailey and Wes both on the same page. Neither of them wants to be in a relationship. They slowly embark on this friendship that is cute and funny at times. The banter with Hailey and her staff was fun. Wes and his brothers are great. I think I liked the side characters a bit more than the main characters.
Over the past few years, I have tolerated the slow-burn romances more if executed perfectly. This just falls slightly short because the steam factor is not there. The level of intimacy that is to be expected in the background and the sexual tension between Wes and Hailey is off. Wes is so scared because of his pain from previous relationships. Every time I would think that we were getting closer, he retreated. Hailey is so driven that at times, I wanted her to take a look around her. She didn’t connect with Wes until the very end. At some point, the slow burn became painful.
If you have read the previous books in this series, you are in for a treat because the couples from the series are in this one. This is still a stand-alone novel but it was nice to see what the others have been up to.
Overall, if this is perfect for fans of the series to close it out.
~ Samantha
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