4.5 Clay Pascal Stars ⭐️
Spicy Level:🌶️🌶️.5/5

After just finishing Play the Game, I had a better idea of what to expect going into this... But wow, this took grumpy sunshine to another level. I mean, the main character’s name is literally Sunny, and he nicknames her Sunshine, so the book fully leans into the cliché! AND I LOVED IT!

𝙎𝙮𝙣𝙤𝙥𝙨𝙞𝙨:
The book follows Rhodes, a man who is desperate for a nanny. Somehow, he is cursed because every single nanny he hires just wants to sleep with him rather than actually caring about his daughter, Ellie. So when Sunny starts, he is very clear about setting boundaries. He lays out strict rules... no emotional attachment, no seducing him, and nothing that could jeopardize the arrangement. This is perfectly fine for Sunny because she has just escaped a nightmare of a situation where her last nanny gig’s dad turned stalkerish and obsessive. After that trauma, the last thing she wants is to cross any lines again. She agrees to Rhodes’s rules, fully prepared to keep things professional and just focus on his little girl.

𝙏𝙝𝙤𝙪𝙜𝙝𝙩𝙨 𝙖𝙣𝙙 𝙁𝙚𝙚𝙡𝙞𝙣𝙜𝙨:
Rhodes is not an easy man to crack. He only cares about two things, his daughter and hockey. Ellie always comes first, no matter what, and he refuses to compromise that. He is grateful that his team, the Chicago Blue Devils, understands that he will give his all on the ice, but the second his daughter needs him, he is gone. Ellie is his whole world, and it is obvious that he never expected to be a dad. She was born from a one-night stand, and her mother passed away shortly after, so suddenly, Rhodes had to learn how to be a father on his own, all while balancing his career. He has been fiercely protective of keeping his daughter out of the limelight and separated from the chaos of his hockey career.

Then there is Sunny, a girl trying to run from her past. She is desperate, and when the adorable little Ellie wriggles her way into her heart, she has to guard herself against catching feelings, especially catching feelings for Ellie's grumpy, brooding, emotionally closed-off father.

But honestly? My favourite part of this book wasn’t the romance between Sunny and Rhodes...it was the relationship between Sunny and Ellie. Ellie showed all the early signs of abandonment issues. She has never really had a consistent mother figure in her life, and every female she has formed an attachment to has left her. She is closed off, shy, and hesitant to trust people. Watching her slowly open up to Sunny was the absolute highlight of the book. Seeing her build trust for the first time, finally talking about her feelings, learning that love isn’t always temporary, and realizing she has someone in her corner was so heartwarming. It felt like we were watching her overcome something that could have left a lasting trauma, and it was just so beautifully done.

And then there was Sunny and Rhodes’s slow-burn romance, which was everything!!! They were so against forming an attachment to each other, but the more Rhodes saw how good Sunny was for his daughter, the more he started to fall for her too. He could see the difference she was making, and even though he tried so hard to resist, he couldn’t help but let her in.

I also loved the banter between them. The way she played off his grumpiness with her relentless optimism was golden. Watching her slowly chip away at his walls, getting him to realize he could care for someone beyond his daughter and hockey, was just so satisfying.

I felt like their romance spoke directly to every microtrope I love. They were constantly skating the line between professional and not, each testing the waters but always pulling back. It was slow and achingly tense, but so satisfying.

And can we talk about some of the best moments?
- He does her hair so he can practice braiding his daughter’s hair.
- The phone sex scene.
- The way he tends to her injuries
- Giving her food...

LIKE I AM A MELTED PUDDLE AT THIS MAN!

It was just everything. Every single scene ticked another box on my "things that make me squeal" list, and I was so happy while reading this. It was the ultimate feel-good story, and it gave me exactly what I needed.

The one issue and why this isn't a full 5 stars? I had the exact same problem with this that I did with Play the Game...but the climax and ending felt rushed. The build-up was fantastic, but when the conflict-hit, it was resolved too quickly and too cleanly. I wanted it to be explored more. It felt like we were building toward this big moment, but then it was over in one page.

𝙏𝙧𝙤𝙥𝙚𝙨:
▶ NannyXSingle Dad
▶ Forced Proximity
▶ Dual POV
▶ He Falls First
▶ Hockey Romance
▶ GrumpyXSunshine
▶ Slow Burn
▶ Touch Her You Die

𝙈𝙞𝙘𝙧𝙤 𝙏𝙧𝙤𝙥𝙚𝙨:
▷ "Mine"
▷ Nicknames
▷ Cute Kids
▷ "Out of our systems"
▷ Hockey Jersey Heat
▷ Backwards Cap
▷ "Good Girl"
▷ He does her hair
▷ Tending to Injuries
▷ "Look at me"
▷ "Use Me"
▷ "Chin Lift"

Overall I enjoyed this book! It made me happy. It made me smile. It made me squeal. The dynamic between these three characters was just so wholesome, and they made each other better in every way.

Thank you to ValentinePR and S.J. Sylvis for the gifted copy.
All thoughts and opinions are my own.