Reagan Lawrence is the firecracker, the wild child, and the rowdiest of the Lawrence girls but she is also smart, quick-witted, and a force to reckoned as an entrepreneur. Branching into franchising, paving her way as a young success story – Reagan is doing everything she can to follow in her late father’s footsteps and make him proud. The only thorn in her side is Daulton Enterprises. She can’t seem to figure out why they are so focused in taking down her business. If they aren’t trying to buy the building she is in, they are messing with her suppliers. Not easily discourage, Reagan doubles down and refuses to sell – making adjustments as needed to keep going as long as she can. Salvation arrives in one stunning package when Carter Daulton strolls in with a solution to all of her problems. Learning of the stipulations his father has placed on him in order to take over the business and desperate to get that despicable man out of a position of power – Carter proposes that he and Reagan fake date and fake getting engaged – helping him meet the “settling down/clean image” required by his father and also paving the way for Daulton to “takeover” Reagan’s business. Pulling from the vault of knowledge left by her father, Reagan isn’t interested in the idea and won’t sell herself out for peace of mind (no matter how gorgeous that “peace” is!) After negotiating terms (her rules or the deals off) and a bumbled trial run, Carter and Reagan decide to join forces to get rid of Thomas Daulton. They just have to make sure they don’t blur the lines between what’s real and what’s make-believe.

While I adore the entire Lawrence, Knight clan – Trevor and Reagan are my favorites! Seeing Trevor as super Dad was absolute adorable and watching Reagan own the world was inspiring. We always saw her contribute to others, joke around, ease the tension but to see her in her element, you could almost hear Beyonce’s “Run The World (Girls)” playing in the background.

Not at all surprised, this book (as well as AK’s other books) are one day reads for me. I can never put them down. I start them in the morning, find myself picking them up every chance I get during my workday, and finishing them before I even realize it. They are that good. What’s makes her books so engrossing is that she never lets up on the story as a whole. If we are not focusing on the present day timelines, we are taken back to where we get even more of Scott and how he was such a light in their lives. We are attending family get togethers, hanging out with friends, constantly moving the story along and keeping up the momentum until you finish and find yourself wanting even more. There are very few others that can capture your attention and hold it like that, AK is definitely one of them.

Speaking of talented writing, I will fully admit I am continuously in awe over half the things AK comes up when it comes to her spicy scenes. The motorcycle setup – I had to laugh when my first reaction wasn’t “Wow that’s hot!” but “Oh my god that’s seems so dangerous!!” Don’t get me wrong, it was scorching to read but part of me was just hoping nothing bad happened to ruin the moment. I will confess once it was over and I knew everyone was ok, I read it again! Brody’s 3D story though takes the cake! My mind just took that one and ran with it. I laughed so hard, I had to stop reading for a second to collect myself.

While the spice is always fun, it’s the knowledge that AK drops that I love the most. The life lessons shared in this book should be placed on a poster and hung in every teens’ room! The lesson about respecting other people’s time, phone etiquette, business relationships, all of it! I love the nuggets of truth and wisdom you find in these books. I especially loved the pressed upon lesson about a woman’s body and that no one has the right to touch it without her expressed consent. The two times Reagan said that with such force, I wanted to stand up and scream “Yeah! That’s right!”

I will admit here and now I was paranoid during the second half of this book! AK has a habit of sneaking in the drama and I kept waiting for that other shoe to drop. I wasn’t worried about Reagan as I knew Scott had one requirement for all the girls (if anything, I was hoping for that resolve). While I was heartbroken for Carter and pleading for Reagan to give him another chance, I am glad that everyone remained healthy, happy (eventually), and safe this time around.

Speaking of Carter, I felt so bad for him but agreed wholeheartedly with Reagan’s logic. He was stuck between two worlds, trying to do the right thing for the sake of his mother that wronged so many but knowing if he did the right thing by many, he would wrong his mother. Barely there, she was still the only family he had. He had stayed one course for so long, you almost can’t blame him for not seeing any other options. While I respect Reagan’s courage and integrity – I agreed with her family that she shouldn’t have been so quick to pass judgment and dismiss him. I am happy justice prevailed and sacrifice lead to reward but I applaud Carter eventually doing what was right with only Reagan’s arms being his safety net.

The story did leave two curiosities with me: 1) Thomas Daulton was really the scum of the earth; however, learning about his father and seeing Carter – you almost want to know how he ended up that way! It wasn’t his upbringing so what caused this man to be the way he was? I almost wished they had told us what happened to him after everything went down. 2) What happened with LeRond? When Carter decided to step down, did he lose his job? I know Carter learned about his inheritance very soon after. Did he just give LeRond two months vacation and then brought him back when he resumed his role as President of the company? You can’t make me fall in love with LeRond as a character and not worry about his wellbeing!

I am so sad that this series is coming to an end with the primary group but I have learned so much from it. I can’t wait to see what’s going on with Melissa and to go back and time to meet Scott. He has proven he was an absolutely remarkable man. It will be nice to get to know him even better and from his own point of view.