3.5 Smooches
Synopsis
Kylah
I’ve always lived in the shadows of my athletic older brother and my charismatic twin sister. And that’s okay by me. I don’t mind being known as the shy wallflower. The gawky geek. The sweet, virginal girl. Well, that’s one label I’ve been trying to shed since starting my freshman year in college this year. The thing is, no one’s ever looked twice at me.
Until I met Van Gerard.
He notices me. He looks at me and seems to like what he sees. He understands and listens to me. He’s become a great friend. The problem is, I don’t want him as a friend.
I want more.
But my brother – along with a state line between us, and oh yeah, Van’s long-time girlfriend – are just a few complications getting in the way of what I want.
Van
I thought my senior year in college would be the best time of my life. I’m a starter on a Pac-12 basketball team, set to graduate with a degree in Finance. I have a girlfriend whom I’d planned to start a future with. I thought my life was already mapped out.
But then the bottom dropped out with a confession I never expected to hear, from the girl I thought I knew.
I thought wrong.
Luckily for me, Kylah Griffin was there to break my fall. She’s the best thing this year has given me. She’s helped me through a devastating blow that could have sent me reeling.
I know she wants more, but I’m not sure I can give it. Now that I’ve been burned, I don’t think I can go there again. Kylah’s not a hook-up, and she’s definitely not a rebound. She’s a sweet girl who deserves more than to be friend-zoned.
If only things weren’t so complicated.
REVIEW
Kylah is the girl that everyone knows as the sweet, kind, shy girl who is overshadowed by her twin sister and older brother. She’s the friend and never the girlfriend, never even had a real date. But she’s ready for that to change…and she wants it to change with Van, her brothers friend. Someone she instantly clicks with but someone who views her as just the friend again…or maybe Van just wants to view her as a friend, maybe really he wants more as well, but with a girlfriend, big brothers and many other things in the way can these two ever get the chance to try and be together?
“If someone calls me ‘a sweet girl’ one more time, I’m liable to throat punch them. Not even kidding.”
This was one of those sweet romances. A romance you could easily get into and read and where you want the two main characters to sort themselves out and see that they are meant to be with each other, no matter what obstacles are being thrown into their path.
“I don’t want Van to be unhappy. I care too deeply for him. So if finding a way to work out whatever their problems are and remaining together will make him happy, then I’ll back him one hundred percent. I’ll bury my crush in order to remain friends with him.”
We have our heroine, Kylah, our sweet, innocent, smart girl but who also has a sassy and confident side to her that’s buried deep, just needing someone to help bring it out of her. She was someone I could easily connect with; her personality and what she perceives as her flaws being what I sometimes see in myself. Seeing her grow and develop into a more confident and happier within herself, young woman was really lovely to read about.
“Honestly, I was elated to finally let her know just how much I wanted her. It felt like the weight of a thousand-pound boulder was lifted off my chest when I wrapped her in my arms. Once I kissed her, there was no turning back.”
Our hero in the story is Van. I loved that he let Kylah be herself around him and that the way he was with her allowed Kylah to have the confidence to do that. I also loved that his integrity and that he knew in the beginning he couldn’t do anything with Kylah, no matter how he felt, because he had his girlfriend.
“I want to make this work. I’m so glad you came into my life when you did. I don’t deserve you, but I want you. I want you so much.”
There was plenty to keep us entertained throughout. Not only did we have the delight of watching Kylah grow, we also got to read the blossoming connection of Kylah and Van; the friendships, the confidant and person to lean on and eventually the realisation that they both have feelings for each other, feelings beyond friendship. It is no easy journey for these two; we have the drama of older brothers and girlfriends, of lack of courage and knowledge in what to do and the distrust in relationships and love after being hurt before….plenty to keep you reading and wanting to discover what happens next!
~BETHANY
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