Wyatt Davis had always been sure of two things. One of those things was that he would never love anyone other than Sophia Montgomery. The other was that the ranch, which had been in his family for generations, would be his.
One day, Wyatt’s father invites him out to breakfast after they finish the morning work on the ranch. Over coffee, Wyatt learns that someone had approached his parents about buying the ranch. His father intends to sell if Wyatt can’t prove that he’s going to give up his womanizing ways and show signs of settling down—prove he can be responsible.
Sophia Montgomery recently became aware of one thing: if things didn’t change, she’d lose her bookshop by the end of the year.
When Wyatt approaches her with an arrangement that could get them both what they want, she laughs in his face until she realizes he’s serious. If they were to marry, he would get the ranch, and she would gain access to the trust her family has for her upon her marriage, which would save her bookshop. The only problem is that they’ve both been in love with the other for over fifteen years.
Can Wyatt convince everyone that he’s changed enough that he’s actually going to settle down with the town’s quiet bookshop owner? Will Sophia be able to handle it when she gets something she’s always wanted, but it’s fake?
Tropes: small town romance, marriage of convenience, fake dating, womanizing cowboy x introverted bookshop owner, save the bookshop/inherit the ranch, best friends secretly in love already
Available: Kindle – Kindle Unlimited – Paperback
Shitty Parental Behavior – The MMC’s father wants to sell the family’s ranch, but rather than say that, he gives the MMC what he thinks is an impossible task to fail at so that it doesn’t look like he’s selfish, only that the MMC failed. The FMC comes from a wealthy family, and her parents are judgmental snobs. Immediately upon finding out that she’s dating the MMC, they try to convince her to end the relationship. They throw money at the problem, as is their way, multiple times, trying to get both the FMC and the MMC to walk away from the relationship. Secondary characters have parents who abused substances and were known for being neglectful, and they are mentioned in passing. The FMC’s parents and another character’s parents attempted to use their kids as pawns back when they were in high school, leading to resentment toward them.
Lying to Everyone, Including to Themselves – The FMC and the MMC establish a fake relationship. Eventually, they confess the feelings they’ve had for one another for a decade and a half.
Boundary Pushing – Having not established boundaries beforehand, the FMC and MMC keep pushing the relationship further, rather than just telling the other that they want to actually be together.
Pregnancy/Infertility Mentioned – As they discuss the potential holes in their fake relationship, they discuss using the excuse of infertility as to why they aren’t having kids. There is a pregnancy mentioned in the epilogue, as well as their journey of trying to conceive.
Kink/Sexual Preferences – The couple has a semi-in-depth discussion of their preferences and kinks. In the epilogue, there is a somnophilia scene, in which the MMC wakes the FMC with oral sex, a frequent thing in their life.
Something Dark – In the epilogue, it is touched upon that the FMC’s sister has returned home after falling from grace. There is a discussion of the depressed state she’s in and the FMC’s concern for her.
Slut-shaming Language – The MMC has a reputation for being a womanizer. Frequent mentions of his slutty ways, being a man-whore, and similar language are used.
Homophobia – The fallout of someone’s acting out, including spreading a rumor about two guys being together to hurt the girlfriend of one of them, is mentioned. One of the guys had their family disown him as a result of the untrue rumor.
Alcohol Consumption
Explicit Sex
Shonna Preston 