Only You (Bachelor Brotherhood, #1)

by Denise Grover Swank

Retired Marine Kevin Vandemeer is back in his hometown, working construction and avoiding his mother's matchmaking attempts. While he figures out what to do next, he moves into a fixer-upper, planning to renovate and flip it. But when he meets his new next-door neighbor, he starts rethinking his bachelor ways.

Time and distance have done little to reduce Holly Greenwood's crush on Kevin Vandemeer, and that's unlikely to change now that he lives next door. She has too much going on to let herself be distracted by a man who doesn't want a relationship. But the more time they spend together, the more Holly's teenage crush is turning into grown-up feelings. Feelings he doesn't reciprocate. But what if he does?

• ISBN10: 1455539767
• ISBN13: 9781455539765
• Publish Date: 24 November 2016 (first published 14 June 2016)
• Publish Status: Out of Print
• Out of Print: 6 August 2021
• Publish Country: US
• Imprint: Forever
• Format: Paperback (A-Format (178x111 mm))
• Pages: 368
• Language: English

Reviews

[stacey_is_sassy]

Surviving the freaks helps you recognise the spark.

I think anyone who knows me or knows anything about my life would see that I LOVE my hubby. He is the most important person in my life. Funny thing is, I went through a few toads to get to my Prince Charming. BUT, I actually think meeting those toads put me in a position to recognise what I wanted, what I needed and what would work best for me when I found him. We are not alike (he likes sports...weird) and have differing opinions (he thinks reading is boring...weird), but there's a spark that was ignited and lucky for us the spark turned into a flame that still glows brightly.

Kevin, Matt and Tyler are the Bachelor Brotherhood. These three blokes have had a wee bit of bad luck with the ladies lately. In their case, they’ve been meeting a few witches, freaks and psycho chickens. One night they sit down to beer and burgers and decide to stop dating/hooking up for a while. The BB decide that blue balls were better than what they’ve previously had and are starting to question their judgement in picking women. What they previously thought was a spark in their relationships, turned out to be a ticking time bomb.

In Only You we meet Bachelor #1 – Kevin Vandemeer, a former marine and survivor of the circus freak (you’ll have to read it, to find out that hilarious story). Kevin has come home to be closer to his family and friends after serving his last tour. He is craving normalcy and decides to get his sister, Megan, to find him a flick-and-trick home to live in while he does it up. Lucky for Kevin, his mate Matt, offers him a job running the accounting side of his construction company.

Kevin thinks he has all his ducks lined up in a row UNTIL he sees the great investment Megan has found for him. It’s a complete DUMP. Hardly even livable. What was she thinking? He’s OK as a handyman, but definitely not up to the standard needed for this mess. Megan seems a little cagey on why she chose this particular house. Kevin gives her the benefit of the doubt purely because Megan's pregnant and hormonal and doesn’t want to deal with that on top of his other worries. There is one positive to the rundown house, his very cute neighbour.

Holly Greenwood has a lot on her plate. She’s a wedding planner with a dragon of a boss. Holly is biding her time, getting experience and trying to learn as much as she can from her boss Nicole. One of the main reasons she is biding her time and biting her tongue is because the pay is good and allows Holly to pay for her Grandma's special care in a nursing home. Holly and her cousin Melanie have lived with their Grandma since they were little. Grandad had died of a heart attack and then one year later, both of their parents were killed in a car accident which left the three of them the only surviving family. With the loss Holly has suffered she finds it hard to have relationships. No guy has made her feel anything close to love…UNTIL…she meets her new and very cute neighbour.

Holly and Kevin are really attracted to each other. They fight the feelings they have because they are wary of starting something that they think will be doomed. One night of passion at first makes them think that this was the spark they’ve been looking for. Unfortunately, their spark flickers and fizzles. Will their fire ever get the chance to start?

I really enjoyed Only You. It was sweet, a little corny and funny. I was reading early this morning before hubby woke up and trying not to bust a gut laughing. I even had to put my kindle down for a minute so I could cover my mouth to try and muffle the sound. There’s this chick Bethany…absolute space cadet (another story you'll have to get the book to find out more). I didn’t particularly like Nicole (boss) or Melanie (cousin). I don’t think either of them was looking out for Holly’s best interests. There are a couple of sexy scenes but it's not kinky or OTT. We get enough though to see their attraction and feel their connection. This was a little insta-love and the ending was very unrealistic, but it’s a love story and anything can happen when you find true love’s spark.

I'd definitely consider reading more from this author.

Stacey is Sassy, received an advanced copy of this story. The copy provided is not the final copy and may be subject to edits and changes.

[Linda]

This review was originally posted on (un)Conventional Bookviews
Only You has a lot of humor, flirty dialogues and characters who think they should stay far away from anything that resembles love...



Romantic comedy at is finest - Only You fits the bill, for sure. Between the whirlwind romance, the reluctant couple, the dragon-lady mother-in-law from hell and the fact that Holly didn't really trust anyone, everything seemed to indicate that there were too many obstacles in the way of happiness for Kevin and Holly. While there is a lot of fun and lightness in Only You, there are some more serious themes explored as well. Like the fact that Holly's parents were killed in a car accident when she was only five. Or how her grandmother, who raised her and her cousin Melanie has dementia and lives in a home for senior people with health problems.

And Kevin has seen his share of difficult situations, home from several tours overseas in the army, he just wants to have a nice, quiet life in his hometown. Close to his sister and friends, and - unfortunately - also close to his meddling mother. Next-door romances with mature characters always work well for me, and Only You was a sweet, quick read that hit the right spot. I kind of do wish there had been a little more exploration of Melanie's bitchiness, though, even if I suspect she will show up in a future Bachelor Brotherhood story very soon.

Only you is the kind of story you can read either at home or at the beach. You'll have some great laughs, some nice romantic moments, and even a few toe-curling hotness times. Written in third person point of view, past tense, from both Kevin's and Holly's perspective, the story is evenly paced, and moves forward nicely. Covering one month, the romance was fast, but still managed to make me believe in its potential.



Her face burned at the thought of their mouths touching the same utensil. Her eyes shifted to his mouth and she suddenly wondered what it would be like to kiss him. Would he hold her tightly to his chest like he had moments ago? Oh, my God. she had just turned into every clichéd woman she'd made fun of since high school.

"It was a long drive from San Diego, Mom. I wanted to be fresh when I saw you."
"Fresh? I saw you covered in slime when you came from my body. How could anything be less fresh than that?"
"Mom. That definitely falls under TMI." He was going to be traumatized by that mental image for weeks to come.

"Love is a very precious gift, Holly. Some people are fickle, falling in and out of love. But that's not really love." She waved her free hand back and forth. "But once you find real love, something so deep it sinks to your toes, a love that fills you so completely it makes you a better person than you were without him - once you find that love, don't let it go."