A Beautiful Distraction (Hard Feelings Novels, #3) (Hard Feelings Novel, #3)

by Kelsie Leverich

[EBookObsessed]

Rafe Murano had turned into a man he never expected to be. That’s because he fell in love with the wrong woman. Bridget was married. Although Rafe can tell himself that he didn’t know that at the beginning, he continued to see her once he learned the truth. For a man who doesn’t share his woman, he found himself desperate for any time she gave him after sneaking away from her husband. Now it’s over and Rafe is left with a broken heart over a woman who was never really his, and using alcohol and one night stands to distract himself from his heartache.

When he arrives at Velour, he doesn’t expect anything more than the same to get him through is night, but from the first moment he sees Fallon dancing on that stage in the burlesque show, he wants more from her than a night of sex. Fallon is happy to give the attractive and intriguing soldier a night of distraction since she too is looking for a distraction from her own. But Fallon has been let down before by those who she loved and she is not looking to get too close to anyone again. She doesn’t like the warm feeling she gets when she is with Rafe or how he makes her feel cherished. She knows that is only a lie. Meeting Rafe’s family only reinforces how screwed up her own upbringing was.

The harder Rafe tries to hold onto Fallon, the harder she fights to retain her independence from the feelings Rafe brings out in her. When Rafe declare he doesn’t was Fallon dancing anymore, she fears she has once again set herself up when she doesn’t measure up to someone else’s standards for her.

Can Rafe and Fallon find a middle ground that will make them both happy, or will they both walk away with a heart so shattered that no distraction will ever help?

THOUGHTS:
I love Fallon’s strength. She is tossed out by her parents as a young teen because her choices do not measure up to their country club lifestyle. She forges on with only $100 in her pocket to make her own way in the world and eventually because the owner of Velour. Fallon was also abandoned by her hand-picked, picture perfect boyfriend because her choices interfered with his life plan. We can see how Fallon looses trust in people and why she resists Rafe, so that he too can’t be disappointed by her once she puts her trust in him. But instead of being cold and heartless, we see how much love and trust she gives to the people that work for her. She takes care of her girls and helps some of them back on their feet after life kicked them around. So it is a little strange how she views these relationships. The girls can be wrong and do disappoint her, but they can’t be disappointed by her. In getting close to Rafe, and especially his declaring that he doesn’t want her dancing in front of other men anymore, he makes her feel that she is once again a failure and a disappointment, and that’s a vulnerability she doesn’t want to feel again.

I am uncertain is Rafe is just the type of man who is attracted to women who are unavailable or is it just bad luck. He falls hard for the married woman, who is a bit of a bitch and a user so I have to ask “what’s the attraction?” and in the end, it is she who breaks it off. Rafe would have continued to see her even though he hated himself for ruining her marriage and for being such a loser to take the few hours a week she would give him. Rafe then turns to drinking and casual sex instead of trying to meet someone else and give them a chance. It is only after seeing Fallon dance with such passion and then spending time with her before the sex that he takes more of an interest in her and the more she fights the commitment, the more he wants from her. So is he one of those guys who always wants the woman he can’t have or is it just bad luck?

Rafe’s family enjoyed the spotlight in this book as well and I found them to be very interesting and enjoyable characters, but sadly I don’t see a reason to be meeting them again. Rafe’s younger brother follows in Rafe’s footsteps by having his heartbroken by a woman and becoming self-destructive. Since this series, so far, is focused on soldiers, I don’t know if we will ever get more from him or how his situation turns out. I hate when we get invested in great secondary characters who won’t be back.

Overall it was another great story by Kelsie Leverich.

Received an ARC from the publisher in exchange for an honest review.

See more at http://ebookobsessed.com