Cover girl Cat St. James’s picture-perfect life is anything but flawless. Luckily, she’s a master of hiding the truth from the camera. Relying on that skill, she conceals her latest secret from her family while attending her brother’s wedding. Her only trouble now is Hank Mitchell—the soft-spoken carpenter she’d once brushed aside. Seeing him at the reception underscores her private heartache and … and ignites unwelcome longing, which she promptly drowns in champagne.
Hank is no stranger to sacrifice, having set aside his own ambitions to take care of his family. One thing he won’t forsake is his pride, which Cat already wounded once. But when the maddening beauty’s reckless behavior forces him to rush to her rescue, he sets in motion a series of events that leads Cat to make a business proposal granting him his dream job.
When Cat and Hank mix business with pleasure, promises and secrets unravel, and each must decide if and what they’ll surrender for love.
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I adored Hank in the first book of this series, Worth the Wait. Trust me, you will fall head over heels in love with the guy in this one. Yes, he’s stubborn. Yes, he takes too much on himself. But also…yes, he’s a hotty. Yes, he’s a sweetheart. Yes, he has a huge heart.
As much as I wanted to get to know Hank more, in the first book I wasn’t too big of a fan of Cat. I know she was going through a lot, but I didn’t like the way she reacted to the news about her brother and best friend falling in love. She wasn’t being a very good sister or friend. It was great to read that she’s come around and she ended up quite a sympathetic character.
I’m happy to say that I was sucked into this story and felt all the feels just as much as I did with the first book. Sometimes I’m a bit timid reading another book by a new-to-me author that blew me away. I wonder if it was a fluke or if I could have really found another solid writer to add to my list. In this case, so far, I’d say Jamie Beck is being added to my list. She writes amazing chemistry. On top of that, I truly get that empty pit feeling in my stomach when her characters are going through hard times. She really knows how to weave her words together.
One of the things I enjoyed in this story was the relationship between Cat and her siblings. Now that they are all mending fences and David is back in the fold with his brother and sister, it was incredible to see them have each other’s backs. Especially touching was Jackson’s attention to Cat when she revealed her secret although he was obviously going through something of his own. Poor Jackson, I cannot wait to read his story.
Hank’s family, on the other hand, really ticked me off. It’s acknowledged by Hank and others that his family has somewhat taken him for granted. I am thankful that this was pointed out and that Hank was able to see that he’s done more than his share for his family. Of course, that doesn’t stop him from feeling obligated or having guilty feelings when he isn’t there for them. But at least it’s not glossed over. That his sisters could not see the sacrifices he made and was still making with no expectation from any of them really irked me. Some of the confrontations he had with his sisters and others regarding these issues were heart wrenching, but I loved them because they were so true and real.
As I said earlier, I’m looking forward to the next book in this series. I also need to figure out which of this author’s other stories I’d like to dive into because I know I want to read more from her.
This review can also be found at https://allingoodtimeblog.wordpress.com/2019/01/18/worth-the-trouble/
This is the second in the series and could be read as a standalone without much of a problem. Cat is coming to the end of her cover girl career and she needs something to focus on, especially since now she is dealing with some health issues. Hank Mitchell has a thing for Cat and works for Jackson, Cat’s brother, and when he agrees to build a storage system for Cat she comes up with a business plan for the two of them. Will adding love and business be too much or will all the issues of family and life come between them?
I’ll give this one four stars because the quality and smooth flow of the story kept me up all night. Jamie Beck’s story about the one that got away is well written. No way is covergirl Cat going to fall for a carpenter like Hank. That chance meeting one year ago has haunted them both. And when they cross paths at her brother’s wedding, everyone knew they were meant to be.
Catching up with old friends.
That’s what it felt like while reading this book. The relationships were both fun and heartbreaking, but that’s why we’re reading these! I do wish the sex wasn’t So raw…old prude issues.
Even Better Than The First. To me, this story was even better than the first book in this series, Worth the Wait – which was excellent in its own right. Cat and Hank’s interactions seem just as real, and given what both are dealing with, even more personally impactful for me. Without going into detail on this review, suffice it to say that I am thankful that these types of issues are being explored in a romance novel, as often they are not. So very many kudos for that and for the excellent-as-usual story and writing. 🙂
Cat, was a very famous model, she had everything she ever wanted, at least is what she thought, life and circumstances put her in a very bad situation, a past relationship that left her scared and afraid in someway.. until someone got into her life that made her doubts disappear and hope started to grow in her heart again.
Hank had a very difficult life, he had to take care of his family especially his mother, his work was everything. he didn’t have time for relationships or even to date.. everything consumed his life and mind but soon something will happen that he will have to refocus his priorities and decide if he wants to take charge of his personal life again..
so many things happened for these two to finally lower their walls and start to love again.. Hanks has so many issues and Cat has a secret that she is not so entirely sure she wants to share.. her life has changed so much after finding out some news and now she has to decide if she is willing to let Hank In or keep walking her life alone..
in Worth the trouble we get to see other characters that we met before David and Vivi also we get to learn more about Jackson story and many other great characters that made this story more enjoyable..
great story and great characters.. looking forward to meet Jackson on Worth the Risk..