ARC provided by author
Author: Kate Canterbary
Thanks #partner Kate for the e-book!
Emme Ahlborg has just found out that her firefighter boyfriend has been cheating on her. She obviously breaks up with him but it now presents a problem: he’s a groomsman in her best friend’s wedding where she is a bridesmaid. She will die before she shows up for that without a date!
Enter Ryan Ralston, Emme’s best friend since high school and star quarterback in the NFL. He’s just invited her to dinner to celebrate his 30th birthday and to remind her of their marriage pact. They’d marry at 30. He needs a wife for reasons and she needs a revenge date for the wedding. He’ll raise it to revenge husband!
Pretending to be a happy couple is not a hardship, but as soon as their lips meet in a “kiss for show”, the world spins out off its axis for both of them. For Emme, everything changes. For Ryan, nothings changes, as he’s loved her truly, madly, deeply since he was seventeen. Now they’ll just have to find a way to navigate the fact that it’s not fake. AT ALL.
It’s no secret I am diehard fan of Kate and with each book she releases I’m more sure she is one of my forever favorites.
Ryan and Emme’s story is an absolute delight. A marriage pact story is hard to write in this day and age but she does it in a brilliant and believable way. Emme is a second grade teacher, a loyal friend, a fun person to be around. Ryan is the stuff fantasies are made of. Book husband material of the highest order. If you love a He Falls First/ Boy Obsessed MC, Ryan checks all the boxes. The pining in this is chef’s kiss.
As always, the secondary characters are so well written that you want books for all of them. Grace, Emme’s best friend, is a hoot and someone you’d love on your side. We also go back to Friendship, Rhode Island and we catch up with Shay, Noah and (my favorite child ever written in a romance novel) Gennie. We even get a quick cameo from Lauren Walsh. A must read! All the stars!
