It's Always Been You

Pine Creek Duet #2

by N. Thompson

Being his secret behind closed doors wasn’t enough.

Scottie Mercer is my brother’s best friend, and the person I have and will always be in love with. But, I refuse to be anyone’s secret. I know my self-worth.

Now he’s begging for a second chance, but he’s not ready to tell his secrets and neither am I. How will we be able to make it work?

I love Tessa Crawford, but I pushed her away when life became too much. Protecting her meant hurting her.

I now have custody of my nephew, and I’m ready to fight to get her back.

Just when I think we are going to get our happily ever after, someone starts terrorizing our small town.

Who have they put in their sights?

Tessa.

They can’t have her, she’s mine.

376 pages, Kindle Edition

First published January 3, 2025

About the author

N. Thompson is a contemporary romance author living in the Midwest. She writes about small towns that have captured her heart since childhood.
If she isn't writing, she can be found with a book in her hand and her Italian Mastiff at her side. In her spare time, she likes to drag her husband to antique stores.

Reviews

[Sandy (Sandy.Reads) · Rating 4 out of 5]

4.25⭐️

This second installment in the series was just as captivating as the first, and I couldn’t get enough of it!

I was thrilled to see this book focused on Tessa. She’s such an amazing, free-spirited character, and I loved diving deeper into her story. Her dynamic with Scottie, the man who broke her heart and is now desperate to win her back, was both emotional and compelling.

I devoured this book in less than 24 hours because the pacing was so quick and addictive. That said, the ending felt a bit rushed, leaving me with a few lingering questions I wish had been addressed.

Overall, I really enjoyed this book and can’t wait to see if there’s another installment in the series. Fingers crossed we get more of these characters and their stories soon!

[Melissa Wilks · Rating 4 out of 5]

Thankyou to author N. Thompson for the opportunity to read and review It's Always Been You, book 2 in the Pine Creek Duet.
In this book we meet Tess and Scottie, her brother's best friend, the one person she has always and always will love.
Whilst I hadn't read book 1 prior to reading this I found It's always been you a quick paced read that I thoroughly enjoyed.
Tropes include:
Brother's best friend
Second chances

[Alyssa J · Rating 5 out of 5]

LOVED this. I’m so happy it followed Tess and Scottie. They both seemed important in book one but we barely knew about them. So that intrigued me. This again was such a sweet story & yet at times I was scared for them. I love the tight knit friend circle they have. This is a true winner and I will always recommend it!

[Bailey Choma · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book will have you on the edge of your seat until the very end. I’m typically not a fan of second chance romances but after I loved All Because of You I knew I had to give this book a chance. And I promise you won’t be disappointed either. This book had so many twists and turns and kept be hooked every step of the way I couldn’t put it down. I had really disliked Scottie after how he mess up with Tess in book one but boy does he redeem himself. If you are looking for a small town romance to fall in love with this is definitely the series for you!

[Courtney Long · Rating 5 out of 5]

Always tugging at my heart 😭🥺🥰

N. Thompson does it again! I seriously cannot put her books down!

I love this duet so much and how it wrapped up all their lives but I will say I’m so disappointed with how Faith was written off in this. She was her best friend since they were kids and they both just stopped talking and seeing each other?! I get where both would be coming from, Tessa obviously dealing with everything but to brush off her best friend by saying things like “I don’t have time to hold her hand.” Faith also would be struggling with the guilt over what happened so it’s not really fair to shut her out but make sure everyone else was ok. Also don’t like that Shelby only told Tess what Faith said and not that Scottie blamed her and went off on her first. I think he was just as bad in that situation. I am bummed that they didn’t reunite in the end but I still love this story.

I also knew exactly who was responsible for everything happening but when that third person entered… my mouth hit the floor and I instantly started bawling my eyes out! I was not expecting him to be involved and it did devastate me to read that he was.

[Brienne Krivickas · Rating 5 out of 5]

After devouring All Because of You, the first book in the Pine Creek Duet, I couldn’t wait to see how Scottie and Tessa’s story would unfold. Let me just say—It’s Always Been You exceeded every expectation and left me utterly captivated.

N. Thompson takes us deeper into the lives of these characters, each with incredible depth and complexity. The seamless storytelling, subtle hints of what’s to come, and the way everything comes together in the end feels like a perfectly wrapped gift.

This book has everything: a wide range of emotions, suspense that keeps you on the edge of your seat, and just the right amount of SMUT (seriously, if you know, you know). It’s a rollercoaster of love, passion, and heartfelt connections that makes you want to pack up and move to Pine Creek just to be closer to these characters.

I could read about this town and its people forever. A must-read that deserves way more than 5 stars—this one’s a solid 10,000/5! If you haven’t started this duet yet, what are you waiting for?

[Jen · Rating 5 out of 5]

The second book in this series follows Tess and Scottie’s journey to be together. After reading the first book in the duet I was thrilled to once again be transported to Pine Creek where this group of friends all work hard, love hard, and fight to make their futures better. This story has a great unraveling of the past which helps us understand Scottie’s hesitation for love and family. Tess is so deserving of a beautiful life filled with love after all she has been through. The author does an amazing job of making you feel like these are your friends and you are so excited to see their journey through this book. There is a great sprinkling of spicy scenes, genuine heart warming moments, and an ending I didn’t see coming. I love all the characters in this duet and am so sad it’s over. I could delve into the goings on in Pine Creek over and over. Loving these books by N Thompson!

[Carole Copeland · Rating 2 out of 5]

Drawn out

Had to skim a lot of it. Too drawn out and overly descriptive. I was bummed the author dropped Faith like she was insignificant. She wasn't written that way and then suddenly she had this rift between the two. It's like the author didn't know what to do with her and just dropped her from the story. Could had made her be a real villian but she didn't so it is confusing why this happened in the story. Kinda sad as she is the best friend. Didn't make sense. Maybe Faith can have her own story.

[Mary-Anna Cassis · Rating 4 out of 5]

Scottie and Tess are perfect for each other. DJ scenes and the suspense scenes just made me cry🖤