Love Hard (Hard Play, #3)

by Nalini Singh

[EBookObsessed]

Nalini Singh destroys us with another amazing love story.

This is one of those love stories that punches you square in the heart and you have to sit back and breathe a bit before you can move on.

Jake Esera is celebrating this brother Gabriel's (T-Rex) marriage to his love Charlotte (the Mouse) and is quite surprises when Charlotte's friend and bridesmaid, Jules, turns out to be Juliet Nelisi. The same Juliet who was always in trouble at school but who was also one of the best friends of his Callie. Callie was Jake's teenage sweetheart who he got pregnant but she died shortly after giving birth.  Jake was always a serious person, acting much older than his teenage counterparts, but he needed to be a good father to his baby daughter and with the love and support of his family, he learned to be a good dad.   For Esme, he fights his overprotective nature so she can have all the fun and freedom that a little girl should have growing up.

Jake never understood what his good-girl Callie saw in bad-girl Juliet that made them such tight friends, but Callie never betrayed Juliet's trust even with Jake. We learn that like Esme, Juliet was born out-of-wedlock to her young parents; but unlike Esme, Juliet was not welcomed by her parents' families.  After her parents were killed, Juliet was sent to live with her Aunt, a woman who had no interest in raising a child, so she acted out until she was finally sent away to live with her grandparents. The only person who ever showed her love and affection was her friend, Callie.

I wouldn't say Jake and Juliet were high school enemies, but they never understood what Callie saw in the other but would never do anything to interfere with Callie's love for the other. While opposites themselves, they tolerated each other for Callie's benefit.  And while each were perplexed why Callie loved the other, they both seemed to respect the other for their loyalty and kindness.   So this really isn't a true enemies-to-lovers story, more an annoying- acquaintance-to-lovers story.

Jake is surprised to find himself attracted to the sexy woman standing before him that bares little resemblance to the scrawny troublemaker of his youth. When fate throw her in his path again, he begins to believe that getting closer to Juliet is worth the risk to his sanity.  Juliet is no more surprised than Jake for her own attraction to the Gearhead Jock that her best friend dated.

Jake is very aware of who he introduces to his daughter, but she knows Juliet as a friend of the family and she likes her.   Juliet's biggest concern is that while Jake and his brothers are big rugby stars and are very much in the public eye, they keep their private lives as private as possible, including keeping the children out of the spotlight.   Juliet's ex-husband is a cricket player, whose own stardom is waning as his playing falters.   Reid has decided that dragging his ex-wife into the gossip column is a great way to keep the public's attention on himself.   Juliet doesn't want her troubles reflecting on Jake and his family so she doesn't want to go public with their budding relationship.  Both are trying to protect Esme, but while Juliet is used to protecting herself, it is not in Jake's nature to not protect someone he cares about.

I was surprised that the first 25 percent of this story takes place at Gabe and Charlotte's wedding but since Jake and Juliet already knew each other and had a bit of a history, we didn't lose out on building romance development since they sent that time fighting how bizarrely attracted they were to someone they remembered as annoying, and of course, they kept being forced to spend the day together as they were paired in the wedding party.

Juliet's concern, just like ours, is that Jake is pining for his lost love, Callie, but quite understandably Jake explains that after stepping up to become a good father for Esme, he has become so different from the boy that Callie knew.  That he loved Callie with his whole teenaged heart and there would always be a place for her there, but she is part of his past.  Juliet no longer courts trouble and has long outgrown that need for teenage rebellion but she is more open and free-spirited than the very serious Jake and he wants her to be his wings and teach him to enjoy life. *sob* 

This was such a sweet and moving romance and while I enjoy everything that Nalini writes, I would highly recommend Love Hard.

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

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