This is my first book by Jasmine Guillory and I was pleasantly surprised with how sweet and entertaining it was. While I am not yet convinced to read the entire six book series, I definitely want to check out book #2 and book #3 (especially since I was suspicious about two certain people and book #3 confirms my suspicion. I peeked ahead - sshh...it will be our little secret).
Some say opportunity is around every corner. Truer words have never been spoke for Drew who has found himself in a desperate situation. Having recently ended things with Emily, he was now dateless for his ex girlfriend’s wedding. Even worse, he was a groomsman! Still puzzled at how he got himself into this situation, he enters the elevator, daydreaming about this weekend finally being over. That is until a gorgeous woman joins him. He doesn’t think Alexa sees him as she is preoccupied with her phone and it is confirmed when the elevator suddenly stalls and she nearly jumps when he makes a comment. The natural flirt that he is, he passes the time making her laugh and explains his weekend situation. When the elevator starts working again, they go their separate ways until Drew decides to put all his eggs in one basket and asks Alexa to be his date (and later, thanks to his big mouth, pretend girlfriend) for the weekend. Alexa thinks the idea is crazy but when a drop dead gorgeous man with a lethal smile (who is also a doctor, mind you) asks you to be his date to a rehearsal dinner and a wedding, how can you possibly say no. Two evenings, two strangers from two separate cities, no matter what happens - she will never see him again so why not live a little.
This was a super cute story. I enjoyed how two people who are insanely successful and confident in their own day to day can be so confused and insecure with each other. The escalation of those insecurities was a great reminder of human behavior. The problem is not the other person, it is our own issues that we project and when we don’t communicate, it all falls apart.
I loved the best friends! Maggie and Carlos for the win. Carlos does deserve a reward for dealing with Drew though. I also enjoyed Alexa's "work spouse" Theo. The friendships of this book were the most fun.
As for the spice, while Jasmine’s scenes where heated, they remained more on the R rated side. A lot of what when down was heavily implied but she spared the descriptions and just stuck with the reactions and conclusions of events.
I thought the ending was very sweet and a wonderful conclusion to a heartwarming story. Overall, I did enjoy Jasmine including Alexa’s inner dialogue and outward explanations of racial perspectives. It is appreciated that Drew didn’t think of Alexa based on her race but understood when she explained how it didn’t make potential problems nonexistent.
While the book was 336 pages, it honestly felt like a short read. For most of it, we got to hang out with Alexa and Drew as they got to know each other. We went to work with them, we hung out with friends together, we were simply the third party to their adventure. In some cases, a reader can feel like they are on the outside when this happens but the dual POV made you feel wrapped in the action.
I can't wait to dive into the next two books and see what happens next. I am hoping the overlap allows us to check in Drew and Alexa as we get a chance to spend more time with Drew's best friend Carlos in Book #2.