Really enjoyed this but it didn't fully stick the landing for me hence the 4 stars.
Hahahaaa, I said RTC, then I forgot about it, so mooonnnnths later I can't remember half of what I wanted to say.
With Cain, I realise I struggle a little with her "quieter" stories as they hit a patch where they swing into boring territory for me. Her stories that have more fractious pairings seem to be where we jive together, like this one (and 'Almost Sure' for reference).
In this, Leonie has been suspicious of Jonas since date dot. She thinks he's trying to silently take over her family's business so she treats him as an outsider and an interloper. Jonas, is kinda just trying to do his job, or so it seems. So the first little bit of this read was me trying to be patient with Leonie as a character, because by intention, she's argumentative, impulsive, and impatient. All beautiful growth arc factors.
What helped all this was at the start the pacing on point (which is the standard for Cain), so it doesn't take an age for the dynamics of Leonie and Jonas' relationship to start shifting. And through these shifts the chemistry was popping off the walls and I was super on board and seated for what was to come.
It was great to see that Leonie was actually valid in her suspicions of Jonas, as we come to find out her fears were actually true, or at least at the outset. We then enter the communication peace of Jonas figuring out does he choose love or business, and Leonie processing her hurt at the betrayal she feels.
This book had all the ingredients but as I said it didn't quite stick the landing. While I loved the pairing, and mostly enjoyed Leonie as a character, I felt that some of her "failings" weren't addressed enough by the final resolution to feel completely satisfied with the read. Super subjective, and that's why it's a 4 instead of a 5 stars.
I'll continue reading about Cain's body of work, but will probably pick and choose based on plot, rather than taking a completionism approach.