"What're we gonna do about these flames? The heat isn't dying down."
"Let it burn."
Harloe Rae has been on my radar for a while (I have 3 more of her books on my Kindle) but, for whatever reason, I felt drawn to this one. I'm willing to bet it was a mix of the title, the fact that it's a small-town romance, and the promise of a broody hero. It was a lot more than a promise, Harloe surely delivered. I loved the way she writes.
"Penny is steam on the surface just before sunset. The heat from the day that refuses to quit, even when darkness swoops in."
Thank you for writing a heroine who, despite being wealthy, wants more out of life. She wants out. That was refreshing. Penny's fate might have once been written, as the princess of a wealthy family, but that's not what she wants. She may have been spoiled, but she always fought against it. And now it's time to get out from underneath her family's shadow and take a well-deserved break from them. Somewhere in Minnesota, in a remote cabin, away from everything.
"But it’s his eyes that steal my ability to concentrate beyond him. Like a cloudless sky and just as endless."
Nash is the reclusive, grumpy, broody guy of my dreams. He lives alone in a cabin, is a carpenter, and has a dog. He avoids people as much as he can because life hasn't been good to him. He comes off as rude because he wants people gone. He even avoids going into town because people are not worth it. He may have a point there, though.
"I’ll give him a reason to nibble at my bait. It’s just a matter of casting the line in the right spot. He won’t be able to resist a taste."
Penny rents the cabin for a couple of months. It's secluded, it's not that comfortable when compared to the places she's used to, and the small town really has nothing to offer. Except for a new life. Deep down, she's eager to be her own person. Nash? He's the cabin owner, but because they'd only spoken by email, she has no idea of how hot he is. Or how rude, detached, and annoying he can be. Him? He gets a glimpse of her through the window, and he's a goner.
"How long will it take for us to ruin each other, Darlin’?"
This really is grumpy/sunshine in all its glory. He tries to stay away, to remain hidden. He doesn't even talk to her and does his best to ignore her. But his dog takes a liking to her, and she's not letting him get away with blowing her off. I loved their text convos and how she gets to him little by little. It does seem a bit adolescent-y at times, but they're both inexperienced in different ways and I kept that in mind. I loved the clumsy flirting and all the innuendos, his protectiveness when it comes to her and those small, tense moments when you just want to tell them to go on with it!
"Me: Jesus, Darlin’. Think about what you’re saying to me."
"Penny: That’s all I’ve been doing in my head. You."
It's slow burn, and it surely takes them a while, but once they're there, they can't get enough of each other. I finally get a heroine who loses her virginity and it's not the perfect, romantic moment. It's hard and rough, and she wants it to be – she wants him, in any way she can get him. It happens because they both can't help themselves anymore, and that felt right. And hot.
"His lips on mine make me lose everything before him and this kiss."
Once they're together, it all becomes about them. Will she stay once her holiday is over? Will he open up to her and let her in enough for her to want to stay? What actually happened in Nash's past, and what does that have to do with Penny?
This is where it fell short for me: I needed a better reason for the person he is now, for the last 7 years he's spent living on his own. I feel like other things could have been cut to make room to explore that and help readers understand him better.
"Now you’re the only future I see."
"And you’re the only one who makes me believe it."
The ending is as it should be. The book may be called Lost In Him, but I like that they lost themselves in each other and came out as two very different people. Better, more confident, more aware, and in love. Happier than they've ever been.
It won't be my last Harloe Rae book for sure!