"There's no guarantees...not in real estate, investments, or love."

For those who like a slow-burn, friends-to-lovers, clean romance, this is a good book for them. But I tell ya, I've never wanted to smack someone upside the head as much as I do Wes. My god, is he thick (and no, not the good kinda thick). It was marketed as a standalone, but I came to find too late that it is the final book in a trilogy of brothers finding their love, so I'm interested to know if Wes factored in either of the previous two books and what his character was like then.

Told in dual POVs, our MCs (Wes & Hailey) meet each other at a seminal moment in both their lives. As their relationship develops, we see them grappling with their need to stay away from romance and keep themselves as 'friends'. Both dealt with a lack of parental love growing up and approach romance differently - Wes would prefer to focus on 'liking' rather than 'loving' a partner, while Hailey is looking for someone who will treat her as more than 'an extra...a nobody.' Can you see where there may be some friction & miscommunication as their relationship develops?! Because Wes sure can't! He doesn't trust his own emotions enough to be vulnerable, even though he is totally smitten.

Hailey smiled. "He's my friend. There's no room for pining." Keep saying it. Maybe it'll feel true.

While they did have some cute banter, the push-me-pull-you of their feelings was repeated over and over, and it became tiring to read. Had more time been spent fleshing out their actual romantic relationship rather than the filler of how to run a business, or some awkward forced OW/OM situations to spark jealousy between Wes & Hailey, perhaps I would have enjoyed it a bit more.

Thank you Netgalley and the publishers for the advanced copy in exchange for an honest review.