Title: If It’s Only Love
Series: The Boys of Jackson Harbor Book #6
Stand alone: yes
Author: Lexi Ryan
Genre: Romance
Blurb: From New York Times bestseller Lexi Ryan comes a sexy new standalone romance in the bestselling Boys of Jackson Harbor series. Meet single dad Easton Connor as he leaves the NFL and returns to Jackson Harbor to fight for another chance with the love of his life.
***
I don’t regret much.
Not my decision to enter the NFL draft before finishing college.
Not fighting custody of my daughter—even if, biologically speaking, it turns out she’s not mine.
And certainly not seducing my buddy’s little sister ten years ago.
But when it comes to Shayleigh Jackson, my no-regrets attitude stops there. I screwed up royally where she’s concerned. Then I made another mistake when I let her shut me out of her life.
Now after more than a decade living in different time zones, I’m coming home to Jackson Harbor. My first priority is getting my daughter away from the media circus in LA, but the moment I see Shay, I know I’ll stop at nothing to win her back.
So what if she won’t speak to me? So what if she’s changed? So what if she’s fallen for some douchebag professor? I’ve never gotten over her and I know she feels the same about me. I’ve let her go twice. I won’t make that mistake again.
If It’s Only Love and all other books in this series can be read as standalones, but you’ll enjoy reading them together.
Favorite Quote(s)/Excerpt(s): “If you truly want to be my friend and nothing more, I’ll take it and consider myself lucky. But I’m done pretending I’m not in love with you.”
“Do you truly not feel this? Did it end for you?” I close my eyes. I need to back away, but I don’t want to. She’s letting me touch her. Letting me close. “Because it didn’t end for me. I don’t think it ever will.”
Thoughts: I love intense emotions and this book certainly delivers on that! It can be heartwrenching at times, but that just makes me love a book all the more! A second-chance romance with a bit of falling in love with your bother’s best friend thrown in, it makes for one of my favorite types of books! However, I love that Shayleigh just didn’t sit around and wait for Easton to get his act together. She tries to move on. And Easton comes back not expecting her to just fall back into his life like he never left. Their history is always there between them, both good and bad. The thing is getting past it together and becoming stronger for it.
I hadn’t read any other books in the series, so I’m not sure if a lot of the family aspect is already brought up in other books – but we see Shayleigh going through some stuff with her family too that is just so poignant it brings a tear to your eye. Needless, to say, I’ll be going back through othr books in this series!
Rating: A-
