
Rating: ★★★★
Audience: Contemporary Romance
Length: 326 pages
Author: Claire Cain
Publisher: Self Published
Release Date: September 18th, 2024
Image & Other Reviews on: Goodreads
BOOK SUMMARY:
I’d always thought having a mortal enemy was for dramatic novels and movies, right up until my so-called friend Jude “Beast” Rawlins did the unthinkable and became just that—my enemy.
Five years later, we’ve both retired from the Army, and fate has landed us in a town too small to avoid each other. We steer clear when we can and butt heads when we can’t… until the day our jobs at Saint Security rope us into an assignment together posing as husband and wife.
Staying apart is impossible, and staying silent even more so. Everything inside me erupts, and I’m ready to finally put this beast of a man in his place for what he did.
Except, it turns out now I do the unthinkable and see Beast in a new way. In fact, I also get to know Jude, the man he is behind it all, the man I’d forbidden myself to ever notice. And I discover maybe this man never had to be my enemy.
What’s a woman to do when the one she’s always considered her enemy turns out to be just a man, one with a soft heart and an even softer touch? I’ve made so many mistakes in my past, I’m not sure I can trust myself, or Jude.
Can former enemies really have a chance at love?

MY FIRST CLAIRE CAIN BOOK!
And not my last. I enjoyed this quite a bit and I loved that this had veterans and a little bit of suspense and a good enemies to lovers romance to boot. I thought it all came together well and I loved the vibes of the whole book.
I adored Beast. I loved how soft and tender he was at his core. And I love an outpouring of the soul moments and the strength it took to do so. It was great getting lots of forced proximity and small town goodness is always my jam.
I haven’t read the previous books in this series and I don’t know if that hindered me a little bit. I was missing some context for the business Jude and Jess were involved in, but as things went a long I felt caught up enough to enjoy the story.
Overall audience notes:
- Contemporary Romance
- Language: none
- Romance: closed door
- Violence: moderate
- Content Warnings: attempted sexual assault, loss of a grandparent, cheating

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