5⭐️/ 4🌶️ (about 10 times from what I counted)

When I saw the cover of this book, something about it just caught my eye. I mean, the cover is lovely and it just seemed like a good story to read with the holidays upon us. This story had friends to lovers, fake dating, sports romance, he’s an NFL coach, she’s a doctor (pediatrician), found family, and humor. 

Lacey Daniels and Shawn Holmes were best friends. After meeting through their other friends, they became close and were close as could be with their inside jokes, little traditions of having milkshakes together, and being there for one another. An amazing friendship that was filled with laughter and joy, both Lacey and Shawn would do anything for one another, including Shawn kissing Lacey in the middle of a football game in front of thousands of people in the stadium! What started out as a way to help Lacey out in the midst of quite an uncomfortable situation quickly turned into Lacey and Shawn in a fake dating situation. 

I think it’s safe to say, when it comes to fake dating we all know the recipe that goes into it. From the agreement, to the rules, the slow realization or often times quick ones that there’s actual real feelings at play, and ultimately all the fun times in pretending but not really in front of others. With Lacey and Shawn agreeing to fake date in order to help each other out, I really enjoyed it. There’s only so many times you can read a fake dating trope, but regardless how many times I’ve seen it in books, it doesn’t get old. Lacey and Shawn were easy to like, they were funny, great as friends which created the perfect foundation which would later become romantic. Even as Lacey and Shawn worked on their fake dating each other, they still maintained the friendly, teasing relationship they originally had. I feel like if you love the fake dating trope, you’ll love this story especially with it being a sports romance (Shawn is an NFL coach), Lacey being a doctor (pediatrician), the found family, and lighthearted vibe all together made it a fun, entertaining, and great story to read. 

As if the fake dating couldn’t be better, the things that Shawn and Lacey did for one another was really sweet! My favorite thing about Shawn and Lacey fake dating wasn’t just them helping each other out, but truly showing their affection for one another through their actions as well. For instance, whenever Shawn wanted to destress and calm down from the hectic times of work or anything, he really liked listening to classical music. Lacey having learned that Shawn likes listening to classical music then puts it on in her apartment when he comes over so he could wind down after a bad loss from the game. That small action spoke louder than Lacey realized, it showed Shawn that not only was Lacey attentive, but truly there for him in every capacity. Even Shawn pretending to not know how to ice skate just for the sake of getting to hold Lacey’s hand was cute to me! Like I always say, actions speak louder than words, and Lacey and Shawn had plenty of those moments sprinkled throughout the story that warmed my heart. 

Ok so this little gem of a story genuinely caught me off guard! I try not to judge a story/ book before I read it, but all I expected going into this book was it being somewhat short and cute, but it was so much more than that. Not only was this story sweet, it had a fun take on the fake dating trope while mixing in a bit of the holidays, sports romance, and lovable characters! Going into this book I thought it was going to be a good book, but it became so much more for me! I felt happy while reading, genuinely loved getting to know Lacey and Shawn, and seeing their friendship blossom into love. This wasn’t the type of story that had intense depth of world building and an over the top plot line, but the simplicity and love between Shawn and Lacey just hit me right in my heart. Plus, I loved that Lacey and Shawn were older than the usual characters I’ve read about. Shawn was forty-six, and Lacey was thirty-four. I liked the characters being older because, they were already fully established in their respective careers, and independent lives. Shawn and Lacey were just a joy to read about!

Overall, I throughly loved reading this story! Lacey and Shawn’s friendship was heartwarming, and later when they started their fake dating, it became steamy and romantic! The chemistry between Lacey and Shawn was fantastic and definitely became even stronger as they got more intimate! I expected some cute and wholesome vibes, and was surprised by the level of spice and dirty talking from both Lacey and Shawn! Needless to say, the spice was HOT AND SEXY! WOO! I also loved seeing the small things that Lacey and Shawn did for one another which really highlighted how well they knew cared deeply for each other. The sports romance part of the story was great too since I love a sports romance! Go sports! Haha. With the bit of holiday stuff going on in the story was also an endearing part of the story, but I would read this anytime of the year. I really loved the way the story was written, no third act breakup! Yes! Also, the epilogue just gave an even more satisfying ending to Shawn and Lacey’s story! I genuinely think when you read this book, you’ll see the love between Shawn and Lacey as something that’s both passionate and sweet. From the fake dating, and friends to lovers, Shawn and Lacey got their happy ending.