Truly the complete package of spice, love and growth.
I cannot emphasise enough how having the female character be so strong yet hiding a part of herself so vulnerable from everybody made me shatter a little bit from the inside when reading Scarlett's POV. All her vulnerability is free with Ryker, her demands, her demons, her difficulties. She tries to hide them but like twin flames, he's the only one that manages to see through her.
Ryker on the other hand, he's a looker that's for sure, but the pretty ones have more history to them. Despite him being a "bad boy", he's quite the gentleman which left me wondering where can I get a guy to braid my hair? His tattoos, his whiskey, his muscles and his dark style, all try to cover the softness that doesn't take long to reveal itself in the book.
Both the characters having separate POVs let's us understand them more which is why I love Ryker as much as Scarlett if not more. It's rare to see books with such fleshed-out characters, people that you might meet in real life, a normal love story that could happen to everyone, one that lets you dream of finding a Ryker or being a girl boss like Scarlett, and the art background was just the cherry on top.
A perfect mix of slow-burn, healing and romance, like all good reads should be.