As Long As You Love Me

by Ann Aguirre

[Cocktails and Books]

3.5 Cocktails

Ann Aguirre gave me my favorite kind of trope...our heroine falling in love with her best friend's brother. AS LONG AS YOU LOVE ME is a beautifully crafted story about two people who found, through each other, the ability move past the things that were holding them back or keeping them down.

Rob and Lauren have known each other forever and for almost as long as Lauren's known Rob she's had a huge crush for him. But when she comes back home to small town Sharon, Nebraska after flunking out of college, the last person she thought would make her feel better about what she was doing was her old crush. Through hours spent with each other as they worked to remodel Rob's house, they discover how much they have in common and a friendship and slow building romance begins. Rob and Lauren have their quirks, and other have pointed out those quirks as deficiencies, but these two accept each other as they are. They help each other understand how they are so much more than what others may see. It's with that affirmation that each of them being to grow and they embrace their quirkiness.

I really enjoyed the romance between the two, especially when Rob insisted they needed to have a waiting period before sleeping with each other. Even though Lauren was adamant she didn't need romance, Rob was insistent that by waiting it would make the moment they do have sex that much more special. It was one of those "awww" moments and made me fall for Rob.

This book has definitely peaked my interest in Ann Aguirre books. She has a unique style and creates characters that are real and flawed, but who grab hold of you, demanding you follow their story.