Rhys Rivera is the star short-stop for the Longview Lumberjacks. Many know him, even more love him. He has a pretty face, a quick smile, and an air of danger about him that everyone seems to adore.He’s not known as the bad boy of baseball for nothing.It all started with his father, who decided to be a criminal mob boss, then die.Fortunately for his uncle, Rhys wants absolutely nothing to do with … absolutely nothing to do with the family business and runs before anyone can figure out which way is up.
By the time his uncle, the successor to his father’s criminal empire, thinks to look for him, Rhys has made too big of a name for himself to be taken out quietly, and he wants to keep it that way.
Fast forward eight years, and Rhys is living life one breath at a time, just waiting for the other shoe to drop. That shoe coming in the form of a nosy neighbor who has no idea just how hot she is in her mail carrier uniform.
Her sweet little body and positive outlook on life make him want to laugh at how naïve she is when it comes to the way of the world.
The harder he tries to stay away, the weaker he seems to get, until one day he decides to put his morals on hold long enough to satisfy his cravings.
One time is all he needs—or so he tells himself.
But then two pink lines change everything, and all of a sudden, he doesn’t have just himself to worry about anymore.
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After I finally got control of my tears, after finishing Mess Me Up, I wondered about Rhys. We got glimpses, but nothing that really told us who he was, what was driving him to be who he was. I knew there had to be more to the story, more than just a woman, to pull apart friends the way she did. Now I know there is so much more to Rhys than I ever could have imagined!
Rhys had a rotten childhood. So far out of the ordinary, that I can’t even begin to tell you. But he has his sister, and he has baseball. That’s all he needs, really. But then his past begins to intrude on the life he has built, and he has to figure out a way to fix everything.
Henley is….girl next door, but not. Despite her disability, she isn’t afraid to stand up for herself, and that makes her strong. It’s really not a disability, but more of an obstacle that she has worked hard to overcome. Her life has been good, but it seems like something is missing. She has family, a job, a home, but she wants more. She volunteers at the local hospital but I think it is really more of her giving, loving personality that drives her, rather than her need to feel useful. She lets nothing stop her from getting what she wants, and nothing stand in her way.
This book was fun, interesting, and really ties together all of the stories in the baseball series and the Bear Bottom Guardians series. There was some drama, some serious parts, but the connection between Henley and Rhys was absolutely….perfect. There is no other way to put it. I loved them separately, but together they were amazing! Another must read from LLV!