4.5 stars

I should have known I would love Max’s brother since he is such a great guy. Although overall Lucas seems like much more of a player than his brother, he still has that huge heart. Plus, being a guy that plays the field doesn’t mean he never wants to settle down. Lucas dreams of having a wife and kids someday…just not yet.

Stephanie is a firecracker with a wall around her heart that’s 6 feet deep. She can push a person away without even trying! It’s no wonder with the upbringing she had. I have to admit, her upbringing is a bit new to me in the fictional character world. I’ve read about plenty of neglectful and abusive parents. Hers are a whole other category. I’ll call it a@@holes.

Lucas and Stephanie have a connection from the beginning, even the brief time they are initially using each other for one thing. If it weren’t for their little snafu coming to light weeks later they would have been fine never seeing each other again…although they both enjoyed themselves. Once they realize they are going to be thrown together they make the best of it and start to get to know each other. That just strengthens that initial connection they had.

Things play out as expected. Ups and downs, things said that shouldn’t have been said. Heartache and joy. But it’s a super fun trip to take with these characters.

I love this story and cannot tell you how much I am chomping at the bit to read the next book, Van. We are introduced to Van in this book and he is super mysterious. Good thing it’s already waiting for me on my Kindle!

Update after reading audiobook version 6/27/24:
First, I have to address the Van issue. One of the reasons I started on this re-reading journey of this series is the author wrote Van 2 recently, this time in the Pittsburgh Titans series. I wanted to re-read Van as a refresher. Then I thought, why not re-read them all via audio since I've been meaning to do that anyway. I'm so glad I made that decision.

As for this story, it still holds up for me. Once again I have issues with knowing things that will happen in later books spoiling my image of a character. But in this story, Lucas is (mostly) wonderful. The chemistry is great and I love the grit and confidence Stephanie has. I'm sticking with my 4.5 rating.