A solid second installment of what is shaping to be a wonderful, entertaining series by Riley Hart. I feel like I have personally read so many of Hart's books that I know how she writers really well, and usually they're a win for me because she writes so well.
This, overall, was a win for me as well.
We met Lawson in the first book, as one of Chase and Griffin's two other friends who hangs out with them at the bar. He seemingly doesn't want to settle down and hasn't been serious about anyone, although he admits to Kellan that he has been in love. In this story we find out who that is and what happened.
When Lawson was 18, he met 18 year old Remington in a bar at college, where Remington was playing his music in front of people for the first time. When Remington, who has severe anxiety, is having a slight panic attack outside the bar, Lawson goes over to him and talks to him, helps calm him down, and they end up taking a walk and talking all night, and then they end up kissing. Thus starts a 5 year old relationship.
Only, Remington is a musician, he isn't out (and Lawson isn't out as Bi at the time either), and they have to hide their relationship, especially when Remington hits it big (with Law's help). Eventually, the waiting, the hiding, the constant of only be able to be together in hotel rooms, causes their relationship to fracture. Lawson understandably can't take the hiding anymore, and Remington's severe anxiety and wanting to hidden is too much at the time for him to overcome, and they split, with Law walking away and Remington letting him.
6 years later, Remington is in a rut, and he moves to Havenwood to try to get a break and restart his passion for his music, and whether Lawson is there or not, well...Remy won't complain.
There they meet again, and reconnect.
I personally felt like the transition between Lawson being bad and still hurt about their break up and Rem feeling bad about it and apologizing to them making up and getting back together could have been written better.
There wasn't much fear on Lawson's part that Rem would leave again or break his heart - it was there, but I felt it should have been more prominent - and I felt like Rem should have showed that he was changing and ready to move forward so they could move forward before they got so invented again. It didn't feel quite as organic as it could have, in my opinion.
Also, the sex could have been hotter and more passionate. Sometimes Hart's sex scenes are a winner for me, but more often than not they are nice and fine, but very quick and glossed over, with emotion, yes, but there could be more, and more of a description of the physical. The sex scenes in this were lacking most of the time.
So those two things combined made me give this a star off, but this was still good. I still enjoyed Law and Remy together, and I liked where they got to by the end of this, even if the getting to that point could have bene executed better.
I enjoyed these two both individually as well, and they were sweet together and very much in love, and that much came across the pages for me.
So, a definite thumbs up from me, but there were still areas for improvement, I feel. Definitely recommend, though! It's a great addition to this series.
Next up is Knox, who is seemingly straight but who we all know is not. At least for his LI we'll get in the next book, who we got a very brief glimpse of at the end of this book. I hope we get Griffin's love story at some point as well, who is demi, I think...(I mean I dunno if it was just me, but there was a slight spark or a hint of something between him and Josh, Kellan's bff. They might not be each other's LI, but I'm hoping they are. Fingers crossed!)