Without Regret (Without, #2)

by Aubrey Bondurant

[stacey_is_sassy]

***IT'S ALIVE!!!***

I’ll never look at “Honey,” the same way again…

This review is a wee bit spoilerish if you haven’t read Without Apology, so please, proceed with caution.

This is going to sound strange but while I was reading Without Regret I was a little jealous of Emma’s loneliness. See, I wouldn’t mind a bit of lonely time, to be honest. I seem to be surrounded by people ALL THE TIME and it’s slowly driving me crazy. Before I went back to work, I could easily scrape together a few hours by myself daily. Now, when I’m home, the kids are home, Hubby is home and they want to interact…THE HORROR!! So, when Emma gloats about walking into her empty apartment, enjoying a quiet bath with a glass of wine and eating what she wants, well I was a wee bit jealous. Of course, I know I’m being melodramatic (and thoughtless to people who are lonely) but for five seconds I wouldn’t have minded a wee bit of loneliness.

When I met Emma in Without Apology, I definitely wanted to know her better. I needed to see inside her mind, find out what motivates her and see what’s given her a tough shell. I also wanted full confirmation that she never had designs on Simon from Without Apology. I am so glad she 100% convinced me that their relationship was more sibling than a love interest.

I got what I wanted and I loved every minute of it. Emma is such a tough bugger but she really is protecting a mushy, gushy centre. What that poor girl had been through, it’s no wonder she’s scared to put her heart on the line. Lucky, Trev came along and he made it oh so not scary.

Holy shamoly, Aubrey Bondurant really does read minds. It’s like she magically plucked a list of top traits to look for in a romance hero right out of my head. Trev, you really, REALLY are good…and oh so not scary.

I absolutely loved that Trevor ended up being exactly what Emma needed and wanted. He just appeared to be the opposite on first impressions. His look, his action and his WORDS. I so want to spill the beans and share about the sexy times because there’s this thing he does, it was actually really original. Sorry, not a thing, in a *put your man bit in, take your man bit out, put your man bit in, and shake it all about…* kind of way. It was how he approached Emma’s wants. He wasn’t willing to give Emma what she’s had before, he wanted to put his own *shake it all about…* signature moves and WORDS to it. Honestly, the term “Honey,” will never be read without thinking of Trev, in a very good way.

Now, I’ll give you a wee bit of a warning, Emma does the dimwit move in this one instead of Trevor.
Sorry, I know, huge generalisation, but a lot of the time it's the hero losing track of his brain for a time and it was refreshing that Trevor doesn't have that malfunction. I pulled the old *squinty eyes* at her but before I could shake my head and think up a lecture, Emma woke up to herself and put her brain back in her head.

The storyline was interesting, the characters came to life for me and seeing Emma and Trevor’s connection, made this one of my favourite reads of the year. My emotions were invested and I needed to see Emma and Trevor get to their happy ever after. I loved catching up with Simon and Peyton, hated having to deal with Tom again and loved meeting Rufus, Trev’s dog.

If you’re looking for a great contemporary romance with plenty of steam, an interesting story and lovable characters, I highly recommend Without Regret. I really hope there’s more to come in this series, maybe Mason or Avery OR Mason and Avery…no, Mason or Avery, I can’t see them together (I think, no, I know, no, I think…).

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