Only You by Denise Grover Swank Pages: 368
Published by Forever on October 25, 2016
Series: Bachelor Brotherhood #1
Genres: adult, contemporary, Romance
Source: Paperback ARC from Publisher
Never say never . . .
Romance isn't an option for Holly Greenwood. With her wedding planner career on the line she needs to stay focused, and that means pleasing her demanding boss, not getting distracted by her mind-alteringly hot neighbor . . .Ex-Marine Kevin Vandemeer craves normalcy. Instead, he has a broken-down old house in need of a match and some gasoline, a meddling family, and the uncanny ability to attract the world's craziest women. At least that last one he can fix: he and his buddies have made a pact to swear off women, and this includes his sweetly sexy new neighbor.
After one hot night that looks a whole lot like a disaster in the light of day, Kevin and Holly are about to learn that true love doesn't play by the rules . . .
Only You is the first book in a spin-off from Denise Grover Swank‘s New York Times bestselling Wedding Pact series (The Wedding Pact, The Player, The Gambler, The Valentine). Only You is also the first book in the Bachelor Brotherhood series. I have never read her Wedding Pact series but I have read lots of her paranormal romances (The Curse Keepers Series and the On the Other Side series and they were both five star reads for me. So I knew I had to give her contemporary romance a spin. And boy, am I glad I did. Only You is everything I look for in a romance. It was cute, sexy and a totally fun and sweet read.
Staying single romances are always a fun read for me. There is just something about finding that special someone when you least expect it, or even when you are warding it off that is always a winner in my book. It just seems so sweet and romantic, and I think we all know that I am a hopeless romantic. I also really have a thing for neighbor romances and roommate romances. Something about being in close quarters with another person. Not to mention Denise Grover Swank is an incredible writer, so the story telling is also very strong. I really enjoyed Only You. If you are looking for a quick, cute and fun read that has more than a little spice, check out Only You.
Looking for a cute romance? @Bookbriefs #recommends Only You by @DeniseMSwank @ForeverRomance #Giveaway #Review Click To Tweet
He’d been on his way out of the room, needing a breather from the noise and the chaos of the reception when he’d seen her at the table. He hadn’t planned on asking her to dance—hell, he hated to dance—but he’d been desperate for a reason to talk to her.
When he sat back down at the table, Tyler wore a smirk. “Crashed and burned, huh? I thought you were going to the bathroom to take a piss.”
“I was. I just happened to run into a friend.”
“Run into a friend, my ass. I thought we’d sworn off women. I’ve held up my end of the bachelor brotherhood. And let me add that I had no idea my balls could turn this blue.”
“She’s a friend,” Kevin said, trying not to sound irritated and feed any more fuel to the fire.
“She’s his neighbor,” Matt said, taking a sip of his beer, and giving Kevin a pointed look. “They’re friends.”
Tyler burst out laughing. “You got friend-zoned?”
“No,” Kevin said slowly, picking up his drink, surprised Matt hadn’t told Tyler about the situation he’d stumbled upon. “I was the one who said I wanted to be friends.”
“Why?” Tyler asked, watching Holly with a little more interest than Kevin liked. “She’s hot. Do you know if she’s seeing anyone?”
“No.” Kevin’s irritation grew.
Tyler stood and adjusted his tie, a smirk lighting up his eyes. “Screw the brotherhood. I think I’ll go over and introduce myself.”
Kevin was up in a flash. “I don’t think so.”
“Why not?” he looked surprised. “She looks like she’d be worth a short break from my hiatus from women.”
Kevin stepped in front of his path, his jaw set. “Because you’re a prick who will use her and toss her aside and she deserves a helluva lot better than that.”
Matt was up in an instant, grabbing Kevin’s arm. “Why don’t we get some air?”
“You like her,” Tyler said, slack jawed.
“Of course he likes her,” Matt said. “For someone so smart, sometimes you’re an idiot.”
“In my defense,” Tyler said. “He said they were friends.”
“Okay,” Matt said slowly. “When was the last time you convinced a woman to be just a friend?”
“Never.”
“I rest my case, counselor.”
Tyler sat back down, and Matt tugged on Kevin’s sleeve to get him to join them.
“I can’t believe you didn’t last even a single week,” Tyler said.
“He didn’t last a single day,” Matt told him. “He slept with her the night after our agreement to remain single.”
Tyler burst out laughing. “For a tough-ass former Marine, I expected you to be the last holdout, man. At least a week or two.”
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Morgan
I read this one, and I had similar feelings towards it that you did. I enjoyed it but didn’t absolutely love it 🙂
Ann
Thank you for the bit of background on Swank’s earlier books– I hadn’t known about that at all. I won this book in a giveaway (I think it was the one featured on this page!), but haven’t yet gotten to it– it arrived during that end-of-year holiday-frenzy time.
Also, I was glad to read that you found “Only You” to have “more than a little spice.” I had been wondering whether it might be a little on the sweet and syrupy side, and was perhaps hesitating because of it. It ~does~ look like a very cute and fun read.
As a side/final note: I’d recommend the ’90s (?) movie of the same name, starring Marisa Tomei and Robert Downey, Jr. I was just obsessed with it when I was a teen. For lovers of romance, absolutely!
–Ann