Meant to Be Yours

In Happily Inc, love means never having to say “I do”… Wedding coordinator Renee Grothen isn’t meant for marriage. Those who can, do. Those who can’t, plan. But she never could have planned on gorgeous, talented thriller writer Jasper Dembenski proposing—a fling, that is. Fun without a future. And the attraction between them is too strong for Renee to resist. Now she can have her no-wedding cake…and eat it, too. After years in the military, Jasper is convinced he’s too damaged for relationships. So a flirtation—and more—with fiery, determined Renee is way too good to pass up…until his flame becomes his muse. Renee is an expert at averting every crisis. But is she finally ready to leap into the one thing that can never be controlled: love?

The fifth book in the series follows Renee the wedding coordinator and novelist Jasper, both are convinced (and solidly so) that they aren’t interested in a relationship that involves any sort of commitment. Jasper comes with a pile of issues -> he’s got PTSD, and while he uses his personal experience to fuel his hard-hitting detective on his search for serial killers. Unfortunately, his writing hasn’t helped to allay his own recurring thoughts, and his editor and publisher decide that he needs to stretch his character to include a relationship – either girlfriend or wife – something Jasper has no interest or experience with. Here is where Renee can help – if only he’ll let her in. The oft-used premise of two people who claim to not want relationships but fall into one in a pseudo friends-with-benefits and no commitments to relying on one another is familiar, and their friendship and conversations build naturally despite the recurring use of the trope. Both Renee and Jasper have plenty of opportunity for growth, and there are some wonderful “chick flick” moments and pop-culture references that will ‘date’ this story for readers in several years, but they mix nicely to add a pop of ‘familiar’ to a situation that, while plausible, is fictional and not of this world. Having only read the first book in this series before this one, even with no current grounding in the Happily, Inc. world, this story stands on its own two feet, and brings a sense of place and people without needing the background. With behind the scenes wedding moments and the gradual incorporation of the couple, together and separately, into the community with often laughable moments, the story was easy to read and engaging. The addition of a short story that left a smile, the story leaves you with a sense of completeness and belief in ‘a lid for every pot’ as both Jasper and Renee find their new normal and it’s far different than they ever expected. I received an eArc copy of the title from the publisher via NetGalley for purpose of honest review. I was not compensated for this review: all conclusions are my own responsibility.

She had plenty of reasons to protect her heart and one of them was her mother. Now that she had found some where no one knew of her past and she had friends all she had to do was keep her mom away. He said he was broken and used that as an excuse to keep people at bay, he had all he needed with his writing. While these two thought they had it all worked out they were about to find out otherwise. This is my first read by this author and I absolutely loved the read and her characters too. It's a fun read with some serious tones but mostly it's about two people finding out there's room in their hearts for so much more. I love the camaraderie in the book, the friends for each of them are supportive but also unafraid of telling things like they are. It is a standalone read that has carry over characters which is always a plus. Love this author's style and I will be reading more.