3.5 🌟hesitantly rounded up
While this is a well written story, it just didn't really make my heart flutter. But, due to the fact that the characters are well developed throughout the story, and the writing style is smooth, I rounded up to 4 🌟.
Marty has been in Anticipation for a while now, working at Noah's bakery. He ran from an abusive relationship, and picked Anticipation because he liked the name, but now he has friends here and dreams of his own.
Rob is a very successful businessman who has recently purchased a ranch in Anticipation because he liked the idea of having a new project that would allow him to visit more with his best friend, David. However, once he starts living on the ranch, he realizes he needs a housekeeper and a cook.
* Slight spoilers ahead *
Rob and Marty had met briefly by happenstance, but when Rob is
at the bakery, he inquires about recommendations for a live in cook. Lisa offers up Marty immediately, and the rest is history.
Once on the ranch, the relationship takes off like a rocket. Almost from the moment Marty arrives, they begin a Daddy/boy relationship and all that entails. This is one of the things that bothered me; there was no build up, they just instinctively knew that this was the lifestyle they both wanted. However, Marty has the typical reservations about being in a relationship with his employer, who is not only in the closet, but if word got around, it could potentially hurt Marty's business in the future.
After quite a bit of angst, Rob is his usual overbearing self, and makes a poor decision, thus leading to more angst. However, with the help and advice from their friends, they both make up their minds about what is truly important.
Unfortunately, Marty has been keeping a secret of his own leading to a dangerous situation. It was not a real surprise, but there usually has to be some kind of action thrown in somewhere.
Overall, the book is not bad, it just wasn't for me. I really enjoyed the first book of this series, and I haven't read the second, but compared to the first, this was not what I was hoping for.
* I received an ARC of this book and I am leaving my honest review. *