From New York Times and USA Today bestselling author Carrie Ann Ryan comes a sexy new contemporary stand-alone series.Hazel Noble has survived horrors she wouldn’t inflict on her worst enemy. Since then, she’s healed, found herself, and connected with a group of women she’s proud to call her friends. However, when they make a pact to start looking for love, Hazel finds herself not only up first … not only up first but also forced to face a past she thought she’d escaped.
Cross Brady has no need for a relationship. As the oldest of five, he’s always been the one his family can rely on. Now, all he wants is to work in peace and live his life. His priorities shift dramatically, though, when Cross finds himself in Hazel’s path.
Though the two initially fight their connection, they soon learn that it’s safer to fall for each other than keep running from what’s holding them back—not to mention, who wants them dead.
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Hazel is a Math Professor at the University of Boulder. Cross co-owns a Furniture making business with Chris. Chris Cross Furniture, the name made up by his sister Arden (from Wrapped In Ink with Liam Montgomery). They meet by accident. Hazel and her 3 bff’s decided it was time to date, Hazel is up first, her date had an emergency and couldn’t make it. Cross went in place of Chris to meet a potential client. They then decide to finish their ‘date’. They exchange numbers, and text, and go on dates. The girls text because they realize that Hazel and Cross had sex. So it’s a whole conversation involving eggplant emojis.
Cross asks her to his office, but it’s a setup by Thomas who went into business with Chris to steal from the business, which Cross figured out before. Macon, Cross’s brother is there and gets hurt. Thomas drags Hazel off with Chris. He hits Hazel and ties her up. Chris leaves to do something Thomas told him to do, comes back and Thomas shoots him. Cross shows up, Thomas also shoots him. Hazel wrestles the gun from Thomas and kills him. In the hospital she tells Cross it’s over. He heals up and goes to her, they talk and she apologizes for leaving. They make up.
There is a scene with Myra and Nate, but they don’t do anything besides look at each other.
Up next is Paris and Prior in From that Moment.
I received a copy in exchange for an honest review.
I love the premise of the story, meeting unexpectedly. Hazel via a blind date and Cross via meeting a client.
Hazel has been through some harrowing ordeals in her past, she is always looking over her shoulder and then here comes Cross and sweeps her off her feet, he noticed her reticence, so he took it slow.
His brothers and sister, her steadfast friends made for such fun interactions. Throw in some unexpected turns from Hazel’s past and something mysterious going on with Cross’s business partner, the story kept me glued to my reader.
Forever Only Once is a new series by Carrie Ann Ryan. It does tie into a few, or more, series of hers but you don’t have to read any of them first. Carrie Ann Ryan does a great job at connecting her books while still being able to be read as a stand-alone as well.
This book gives us the story of Cross and Hazel. This book packs punches right from the start and it’s a great ride all the way through the book. I enjoyed these two characters so much. I received this book in exchange for an honest review.
What an emotional start to a new series that will give you all the feels! Nothing makes me more happy than a romance that blossoms to so much more. Hazel’s strength and survival will have you cheering for a HEA with Cross. He makes her want more and she deserve it after what she has been through. What happens next is a journey of finding unexpected love that will melt your heart with the drama and heat level that doesn’t disappoint. I can’t wait for more of this series!
I love this new series!! Hazel and her friends are the family they never really had, and the family they need. They have made a dating pact so they can each find love, something they all deserve but never had. Cross is the oldest and has had to step in and take care of his brothers for so long, and now he just wants some peace. A mistaken blind date and meeting with a client as a favor ends up with them having a non-date, and leaves them wanting more. This has everything….pain, guilt, danger and the passion and connection that Hazel and Cross can’t deny!! I can’t wait for the next book!!
Forever Only Once is the first book in Carrie Ann Ryan’s new Promise Me Series. Hazel Noble has been through a lot and now her friends have decided to find each other love, Hazel is first up. I loved this story and can’t wait to read the rest.
This is book 1 in the Promise Me Series and Carrie Ann blew me away with this amazing story of healing and learning to trust again. I couldn’t get enough of Cross Brady and Hazel Noble’s story. Their struggles to get to the HEA they deserved was everything and then some. This story was full of angst, suspense, drama, healing, learning to trust again, heat and extraordinary love. I adore how we still get little connections to some of the previous Montgomery characters thrown in through their connections. This book leaves you craving the next couple in the series. It’s a must read.
Forever Only Once is the first in a new spin off series by CAR. I have read every book by CAR and they have all been so good! I love that these different series have flowed from one into another. You don’t need to read any of her other series to enjoy this book but really why wouldn’t you dive into her backlist?
Hazel and Cross were such great characters. Hazel’s past has closed her off into the security of her world of work and her girlfriends. Little did she know that Cross was what she needed in her life. Cross comes with some problems of his own but he and Hazel meet and it is just what he needed to.
I can always count on Carrie Ann Ryan for a great HEA!
Cross Brady being the eldest of his siblings and trying to protect and look after them, as well as being the co-owner of Chris Cross Furniture, doesn’t give him much time for a social life. And he was happy with his life, well until he accidentally meet beautiful, funny women named Hazel Noble.
Hazel Noble is a math professor who works at University of Boulder and she has not had a happy life. But she is healing and moving on, when she joined a group of women getting their life on track. Now they have all made a pact to find love and guess who is first up ?
When Cross and Hazel met you could feel the chemistry and the attraction. And maybe this was her start of a new life of being happy with someone. But things doesn’t always go the way you want it to. And just when she is ready for that next step, her past comes back. A past she had hoped would stay where it was… In the past. Will Cross be able to hold onto his women and the new life they are trying to create or will the past just be too much too handle
Loved this authors new releases. And this one I really enjoyed. Love a story that has some dark pasts and everything isn’t that easy. When two people fight tooth and nail for what they deserve, that makes for an awesome story Definitely a story that I can see myself reading again
What started out as a dating pact between friends takes on a life of its own in Forever Only Once. Hazel and her four friends are tired of being single and afraid to move on in life so they made a pact to help each other out, setting up each friend on blind dates in hopes they could find love.
Hazel recovering from a abusive marriage is skeptical, being a math professor, she has a very analytical mind but agrees to this crazy plan anyway. Drawing the “short straw” literally she is up first. When Hazel shows up for her blind date its a case of mistaken identity and what could have been a disappointing night turns into quite a pleasant evening.
Cross Brady is an artist of sorts, working with wood as his medium, he has made quite a good living building beautiful furniture. Going into business with his friend right out of college was good when it started but has turned out to be quite a chore, somewhere along the way Chris, his partner changed and now Cross has to decide if he wants to continue with the partnership or dissolve it.
Showing up at a fancy bar downtown to cover a meeting Chris couldn’t attend turns out to be the best thing that has happened to Cross in a long time.
Cross and Hazel start a slow but progressive relationship which takes a turn when things get dangerous. Life takes on a new meaning when your forced to face your feelings in a hurry.
Omg I loved Hazel and Cross’s story. The way their story is laid out and brought to HEA finish was so enjoyable. I love the way Carrie Ann sucks you into her stories and brings you into her characters’ relationships it is truly a talent to be able to do that and I truly recommend you take a chance and read her work.
Love this series
Love the Montgomeries
Love the Brady Brothers
Hazel and Cross grabbed my heart
intense emotional
beautiful heartstopping love story
ready for more
This is the start of a new series and what a way to start it!
Hazel is a survivor, shes been through some horrific things in her past but is picking her life up thanks to her friends she has surrounding her. They make a pact to help each other find love and Hazel is up first!
Cross Brady is the oldest of 5 siblings and has been so busy with his family and his work he hasn’t been looking after himself.
When Cross and Hazel meet accidentally, a complete meet-cute, they hit it off so well. Even though Hazel has fear she finds herself drawn to him and feeling safe, their chemistry is electric. Cross will takes things at Hazel’s pace and is totally swoon-worthy!!
This one is full of drama, passion, love, friendship, suspense, twists, and once you start this one you will not want to put it down until you have finished.
I can’t wait to read the next ones in this series, Myra, Paris and Dakota seriously intrigued.
Hazel & Cross’s story is the first in a new series by Carrie Ann Ryan. Each centers on a blind date that Hazel & her friends have decided to set each other up with. Cross is not who Hazel was set up with. But neither know that at first. Theirs is more of an accidental meet. She is a math professor and he is a wood artist. They had such a great time with their accidental blind date that they decide to take a step into the dating arena. It is fun watching them navigate through the ins & outs of dating through their texting, friends, and family. There is a twist or 2 thrown in there as true with Carrie Ann Ryan’s stories. This is a wonderful start to this series. Looking forward to the others.
4.5-loved it stars!
Forever Only Once by Carrie Ann Ryan is the first book in her Promise Me series and I loved it. Hazel was so strong and yet vulnerable. She has gone through so much, but is it time to move forward? With strong friends beside her, can she open her heart to love? Cross is the oldest of five siblings. He is their protector and that is his priority. He has no time for relationships. Then he meets Hazel. They feel an instant connection and chemistry, even if they try to deny it.
I loved the characters so much and just loved their journey. It was not an easy one, but I devoured it. Forever Only Once by Carrie Ann Ryan is a story about second chances, love, family and suspenseful. Carrie Ann Ryan has quickly become a one-click author to me. Her writing, characters and stories are captivating start to finish. This is a must-read!
Read and reviewed for Sultry Sirens Book Blog.
Happy reading!
I LOVED this book It had a little different twist to it that really threw me for a moment. There were girls wanting dates, there was a maybe stalker, there was HOT chemistry between Cross and Hazel, and as a bonus, we got to visit with old friends from other books. I loved how Cross and Hazel just seemed to get each other. It was nice to hear about Cross’s talent and how Hazel loved working with her students. I read the book fairly fast because I had to know what was going to happen. It even shocked me a little. Now I’m going to go back and read it again. Great addition to the story of these families. I got this book from the author for an honest review
Perfect start to a new series. The introduction of new characters along with some cameos of characters from previous series makes me so happy. These new characters are built with some serious back stories that I cannot wait to explore. Ms. Ryan sure did put all the feels in this first book, which means, I was crying, laughing and on the edge of my seat throughout the entire book. This is sure to be another knockout series!!
This story starts with a dating pact between friends, but the story comes with a twist!
We know Cross as a brother from Arden from Wrapped in Ink, Cross is the typical oldest brother who deserves his own story. Hazel also deserves her happy ending. In this story you just can’t help yourself from feeling for the characters and wishing that they get what they want. It might also make the single people (like me) a little envious of their story, I mean who doesn’t wish for something like this to happen to them sometimes
The two main characters both have interesting things going on with their life, there is probably a little more action in this story than in previous stories from Carrie Ann Ryan. This is something that I really liked it, it was unexpected and gave the story a little extra. This story was an easy and fun read while still touching sensitive topics, which is one of the strengths of Carrie Ann Ryan. With summer around the corner, I would definitely recommend this story to people looking to read something during their holiday.
Since this is the first in a new series it is ideal as a step-in to get to know the author, and if you like it then be assured there are a bunch of other stories to read in this ‘world’.
This is book 1 in the Promise Me series which is an offshoot of the Montgomery Ink-Boulder series, so if you read Liam’s book and loved Arden and her brothers? This is the start of her brother’s stories! In this one we get Cross Brady and Hazel Noble’s story. Hazel went through things that no one should go through, man or woman. But she has survived and is trying to move on with her life. She has a group of friends that are more like family, and they made a pact to help each other hopefully find love. And after being chosen to go first, she now has to face not only her own fears but a past that she had hoped to leave behind. Cross is the oldest and as such has always felt that he needed to be the one that his family could not only rely on but depend on no matter what. He wants to be able to do the work he loves in peace and just live his life. But when he meet’s Hazel, there is a connection there that he wasn’t expecting but can’t help but want to explore. But now that they are both trying to find out if they could have something special, will the past leave them be?
I thoroughly enjoyed this one! Hazel literally went through hell and came out the other side. While not necessarily whole, she did make it through and is slowly working her way to her new normal. She has such strength and is just a genuinely nice person that you can’t help but love her! Cross is this growly, protective, alpha male type but with a heart of gold. He will do anything and everything for the people he lets into his heart. These two are perfect for each other in that while Hazel is hesitant, Cross seems to have the patience of a saint and they move at the pace that is best for both of them. My only drawback was that the beginning is a little slow, but once you get further in? The story flows beautifully! Of course now I am impatiently waiting for the rest of their stories!! And I need to know more about Hazel’s friends as well!!
Hazel is a woman who has expericned things no woman should have to endure. Because of this she doesn’t date so she and her friend decide they are going to help each other out and set each other up.
Cross is someone who isn’t looking for a relationship. He focuses on his family and his work. He realizes that his partnership with his best friend is not working out anymore. Chris asks Cross to meet a woman at a local bar as a contact for the business but when he gets there he sees Hazel.
Hazel was set up on a blind date who doesn’t show due to an emergency with his daughter. Instead she spends time getting to know Cross and finds that she is having a good time with him.
These two hit it off early on and it is nice to see their relationship grow as they continue to get to know one another. They have some ups and downs when Hazel’s past comes back to haunt her and while Cross is trying to deal with Chris and what has been happening with their business.