Cake & Consequences

Betray Me Once #2

by Wren Shaw

Her heart broke when he announced his engagement to another woman.

Tessa Hale never expected to be completely erased by Gage Langford. She thought their love was real…until he left a voicemail that didn’t ease any of her hurt before disappearing from her life.

Three years later, she isn’t the same woman Gage walked away from. She owns a successful bakery and has finally started to heal. Except the billionaire who traded her for a merger marriage is now free of his ex-wife and desperate to explain.

Tessa doesn’t owe him anything, but when Gage continues to show up, buried secrets unravel and the truth about that day threatens to break them both all over again. Now Tessa must decide if the man who threw her heart away can grovel hard enough to earn it back.

Genres: Second Chance, Romance, Second Chance Romance, Novella, Contemporary Romance, Contemporary, Family Drama

182 pages, Kindle Edition

Published February 18, 2026

Reviews

[Paula (in & out)]

So he is crazy in love with FMC and in a relationship with her but he gets engaged to OW whose Father co-owns the company because of his concern for OW's father & saving the company. He doesn't give FMC a heads-up until she sees his engagement announcement in the media.

Then OW manipulates things making MCs each think that the other walked away first when really it was all HIS fault no matter what shenanigans the OW played. Then he goes ahead and marries OW (when originally - supposedly - he was not going to marry her until he "discussed" it with FMC as if she would have been okay with it?) which by his standards would have been after the engagement went public and blindsided FMC. That's when he was going to go talk to FMC if she hadn't left his ass.

He never fights for her or goes after her, but he DOES end up marrying OW right away and consummates the marriage after 6 months instead of maybe at least staying faithful to FMC and 3 years later it is mentioned that the OW filed for divorce, not him. For someone who said he never for one moment stopped loving FMC or wanted to marry OW and that his marriage was "hell", why did he stay married to her for 3 years and why was it that the OW wanted the divorce and not him? Stuff like this crap make me want to hurl. Why even bother listing it as "romance"?

Ohhh, but he is so very sorry now that he is divorced. He sees his error of his ways and does one or two nice things for FMC and now all is forgiven and The End. I wonder though...Was it hell when he was deep inside OW for 3 years? Because apparently not since HE didn't ask for a divorce or maybe consider staying celibate to win back the one he supposedly never stopped loving. Lol. 🙄

Only saving grace is that FMC wasn't celibate either. She has a FWB with OM who was a waving green flag and whom she slept with for a year or two, but breaks up with him for the zero shitbag who barely even apologizes. This FMC made me embarrassed for all womankind.🤕🤦‍♀️

I wish she had chosen OM so I could at least have some respect there, but noooooooo. The pathetic nitwit folded real fast after just one stupid explanation that it was all OW's fault and he was a totally innocent - the poor demented fool. 🤷‍♀️

[Mairi Swan · Rating 4 out of 5]

I received this arc and this is my honest opinion.
This is a story of betrayal and grovel. A short one so you can read it in one sitting. I had already read the first one in the series and I was curious about this one too. They're interconnected stand-alones so you don't have to read the first one, just there's one or two cameos of the first couple in this story.
It was actually nice regarding its length. I believe that if it was a novel the author would have the space and opportunity to express more feelings. I would have liked more grovel but again I believe if it was lengthier there would be much more.
I'm not going to give spoilers as it's better to read it by yourself but I loved the redemption arc of both characters.

[LaBlue]

I think I’m too old for these kinds of books. I’m 40% in and it’s finally revealed what happened that broke up the main couple. The MMC agreed to the OW’s dad’s idea of a merger through marriage without consulting his then GF/FMC. It’s unclear if this was all in the same day but so far I can only assume it was based on his accounting of events. From that agreement the announcement was made publicly, he left a voicemail message saying sorry to the FMC, she tried calling and texting and her messages were blocked, he blocked her on all social media. He at the same time received a message from the FMC stating she was going to break up with him anyway and she would give him back his stuff, and during that day they both got boxes of their shit swapped out from each other’s places.

My problem with this was the first thing I mentioned above regarding the agreement to the point of announcing the engagement was what time frame? Like, I need to know how long was it between the two events happening, because then comes the obvious follow up question of, wouldn’t there have been time where he could have talked to the FMC and explained everything along with whatever stupid plan he was cooking up? But for arguments sake, if we go with what I am forced to assume above that it all happened at the same time and same day, then how did the MMC’s phone get into the hands of the person who sent the message to the FMC, blocked her on everything if he was trying to reach her (in the absolute laziest way possible I might add!), to explain to her this nonsense of a predicament he had gotten himself into?? Who got the FMC’s house key off of the MMC and went through BOTH of their apartments and cleaned them out without him knowing? Again all at the same time. And lastly, WTF didn’t he go to see her even ONCE in the six months between the announcement/break up and his actual wedding day, where he FINALLY fucks the OW/now his wife, to talk to the FMC??

Seriously, who breaks up so cleanly and easily without one single face to face confrontation between them, except for people who don’t actually want to be together? Which brings me to the simplest point I’m trying to make, where’s the love between the main couple? Who agrees to an engagement to someone else if they truly love their partner? Who doesn’t reach out repeatedly trying to get them to understand or forgive or fight for their relationship beyond a single text message and a single voicemail message that we get in this book? Only two people who don’t want each other at all.

This story has a weak foundation for the betrayal for me. The MMC is a pathetic simp who was happy to be puppetted for a CEO position. Honestly, if that was all it took for him to fold on a relationship he was happy in, then he would have fucked up his relationship with the FMC eventually anyway. His job was more important to him. That is proven by the fact that he returned to the FMC’s business to apologize to her staffer for his Karen behavior but he couldn’t reach out in person not one single time when he was engaged to the OW. His priorities are super skewed. Smdh

So this is why I feel I’m probably too old to read such a lame story. All I see are the holes. All I’m reading is how the love the MMC supposedly feels wasn’t real or strong enough. That other things were obviously more important to him. So while I rarely like second chances if cheating is involved, this book doesn’t technically have cheating but to me it does. His affair was with his job. And the fact that he willingly slept with the OW he supposedly didn’t want tells me that he was probably already interested in her even if only sexually before the FMC was even in his life. He probably would have cheated on the FMC with her eventually as it seems like she was always around him. And around him intimately enough that she could get her hands on his phone and his and the FMC’s house keys so easily. Now because I feel this is a cheating story, I want the MMC to suffer and the FMC to end up with ANYBODY ELSE BUT HIM!

FINAL UPDATE

This is a “cozy” betrayal lite book. We are told when things happen not shown it as it happens. We are told that the characters are having feelings about things but only shown it shallowly if at all. We see this couple reuniting but we don’t actually feel it. And the worst thing of all is the bonus epilogue that you have to get from the link the author added at the end and send to yourself, TWICE. Again, it wasn’t worth the effort either.

So the MMC is duped into marrying the OW and slept with six months later as soon as they married, but only for six months of their two year marriage and we are later told that he had bought the FMC an engagement ring before all of this happened, like that makes his stupidity any better. I honestly don’t have any words to express my disappointment in this story. It could have been so much better.

This book had a decent plot idea but zero emotional depth. It’s for someone just not me. Good luck.

[Pinky · Rating 3 out of 5]

Trigger Warnings: Cheating? (MMC dated FMC for a year but suddenly got engaged to OW with no warning; he didn’t kiss or sleep with OW until after the wedding 6 months later), death of mother to cancer recounted

This is the second nouvella in the Betray Me Once nouvella series, which starts with Nuptials and Neglect. You don’t need to read that to read this, but Ethan and Callie from the last book appear in this. I didn’t hate this book, but it just made no sense. The betrayal was bad, but then we find out some things that don’t add up. I don’t know if I missed something, so correct me if I’m wrong in the spoilers. Regardless, I couldn’t buy the love between the FMC Tessa and the MMC Gage. It felt like Gage didn’t have to do much to win Tessa over; I needed him to grovel more. It could be because this book is a nouvella, but things were resolved quickly. I couldn’t connect with the characters since we didn’t get to know them that deeply. The characters and story weren’t that memorable to me.


Three years ago, Gage betrayed Tessa by marrying someone else without any warning. Tessa has moved on with her life but is surprised to run into Gage again at her successful bakery.


Now for spoilers


Three years ago, Tessa was shopping at a grocery store to prepare a surprising dinner for Gage. While shopping, she texts Gage asking when he will be done with work, so that she knows when to start cooking. Gage reads the message and doesn’t respond. Since that’s pretty normal when Gage is busy, Tessa goes to checkout. She has been with Gage for a year now; he is a wealthy billionaire. Then Tessa overhears two people say that Vanessa is engaged to a Lanford. Since Gage’s last name is Lanford and he works at the Lanford company, Tessa Googles him. She finds a picture of Gage and Vanessa, where Vanessa is wearing a ring while he holds her hip. It is an announcement of their engagement. Tessa notices that Gage called her and left a voicemail. In the voicemail, Gage apologizes, saying he didn’t mean for Tessa to find out this way, but it doesn’t mean anything. Tessa can’t get her calls through and seems to be blocked on all social media with Gage. Tessa cries while she goes home. At home, she finds a box with all of her things that she left at Gage’s place, along with the spare key that she gave him. The photos they took together are damaged by her cosmetics, except for one strip. But her mother’s scarf isn’t in the box. Tessa doesn’t think she should ask Gage for it back since he went to great lengths to end things abruptly. She is shocked that Gage didn’t even talk to her before doing all of this. So she eats cake while crying and moves on with her life.


In the present day, Tessa has a successful bakery called Hale & Honey. Gage and Vanessa have been married for 3 years, but are now divorced. He hasn’t been happy since Tessa, but it doesn’t matter. Nothing about Gage made any sense to me, but I’ll get into it later. Tessa has over half a million followers on social media. She has a waitlist for baking, and even celebrities place orders with her. Serena is a celebrity who messages Tessa asking if she can bake a cake for her sister. Even though Tessa is busy, she makes time since she is a huge fan of Serena. Then Tessa overhears a man yelling at her new worker, Jenny. Jenny is young and has worked there for 2 weeks. When Tessa goes outside, she notices that it is Gage who is yelling at Jenny. He is pissed about a cake that his assistant ordered, saying he didn’t even want the cake in the first place. Jenny is confused so Tessa comes to take over, and Gage is shocked. Tessa yells at Gage for acting arrogantly since he was yelling at a regular worker for no reason. When Gage acts confused, she says that he is the one who ended things without telling her. She tells Gage that he isn’t welcome in her store after treating her worker badly and throws money at him. She says that not everyone is rich, that even if he has money, she won’t take him as a customer. Gage tries to apologize and explain, but Tessa says he should leave before she calls the cops. Gage says his lawyer can get him outta handcuffs in seconds. Then a guy named Jace, who works at the music store next door, comes in. He says he already called the cops for her. He puts a hand on Tessa’s lower back, and Tessa smiles at him. Gage is jealous but he leaves.


When Gage broke things off with Tessa, she met Jace later on. They became friends and started to have a fuck buddy relationship. Jace kisses Tessa, and she can tell that there’s more to the kiss. Jace knows who Gage is since Tessa told him about her ex. Tessa doesn’t think she has feelings for Jace and feels bad for leading him on. Gage returns to his office and asks his assistant, Susan, if she knew that Tessa worked at the bakery. The cake was for a divorce party that he didn’t want happening. Ethan, Gage’s friend and a worker at his company, comes in with Susan. Gage tells them about Tessa, and they’re aware of how things ended. Gage hated how things ended with Tessa, but thought that she ended things. It made no fucking sense, but his friends say he has an excuse to go to the bakery now. He feels terrible for acting like an asshole the first time he saw Tessa again. So Susan suggests that he go and apologize to Jenny. When Serena visits Tessa, she seems sad and says she needs an escape. Serena is the next book in this series. Tessa offers her number and says she is there if Serena wants to talk. Serena has a public relationship with her boyfriend.


Jace drops by to check in on Tessa, who is working overtime. He gives her coffee and kisses her, and Tessa kisses him back. He feeds her a chocolate that she made, and Tessa can tell that this is intimate. But she eats it, even though she doesn’t feel a spark with Jace. IMO Jace was better than Gage, way more thoughtful. She starts comparing Jace to the relationship she had with Gage. Jace knows that Tessa never got over Gage. It honestly made no sense since the time Tessa had apart from Gage was longer than their relationship length. He was married to Vanessa for three years, like girl please move on. Gage follows Tessa’s social media and is impressed with what she has built. He looks into Jace and can see that they’ve known each other for a long time. Which is the other thing, Tessa has been in a blurry relationship with Jace for the same amount of time. Vanessa walks into Gage’s office and asks why he tried to throw a divorce party. She sees Tessa on his screen and says that Tessa is the reason their relationship never worked out. She says that Tessa was a ghost in their relationship and continues to insult her. Gage tells her to stop talking about Tessa and tells her to leave. She tried to control him, but they got married for the wrong reasons. They married for a joint front for their company. Vanessa’s dad and Gage’s dad were the CEOs. But to own the company, Gage had to marry Vanessa. None of this adds up later; we get multiple reasons, and it makes no sense. Gage visits the bakery, and when Tessa is pissed, he says he is there to apologize to Jenny. He says sorry to Jenny and gives her some money. Jenny accepts his apology, and Gage feels bad.

When Gage speaks to Tessa, he asks why she is pissed. He says that she is the one who didn’t fight for the relationship, like the fuck? Tessa says that she found out about his engagement through the news since he didn’t tell her. She says that he left his box of things, along with his spare key, at her apartment. He blocked her on all social media with just one voicemail. Gage says that she ended things with him, and they are confused. They take their phones out and compare the messages. Gage got a message from Tessa saying she doesn’t need an explanation from him since she planned to end things anyway. He found a box of his things at his place and saw that the spare key was gone. He assumed that Tessa did this on her own. They check the phone numbers on the contact names they have saved for each other and realize that a couple of digits are off. So someone changed the contact names with very similar numbers and sent text messages acting as both of them to break them up. Gage knew this was Vanessa’s fault. She has been fighting him on everything for the divorce. But this doesn’t matter to me. Gage got engaged to Vanessa while he was dating Tessa; this doesn’t change that. I was glad that Tessa called him out for it. Especially cuz he went through with the marriage. Gage says he is sorry and he will make it up to her.


Gage hires a private investigator and tells Susan and Ethan. Then he visits Ethan at his home with Callie, who is pregnant. Gage thinks that his life would have been like this with Tessa if he hadn’t married Vanessa. Ethan tells Gage that he has a lot to grovel for. What doesn’t make sense is why Gage went through with the marriage. He claims that Vanessa’s dad told him that he had an illness that was getting worse. They needed Vanessa and Gage to come up as a joint partnership to strengthen company ties. But later, he says that Vanessa used her dad’s illness as an excuse to trick Gage into the marriage. I don’t know if I read this wrong, but that’s what I got. So that wasn’t consistent, and painting Gage as an innocent victim made no sense. He knew he was in a relationship with Tessa and went through with this. It doesn’t take long to just tell Tessa what is going on. He didn’t wait for Tessa’s response before announcing the engagement. They literally took pictures together, smiling while Vanessa wore the ring. The phone number thing wouldn’t make sense either. Why didn’t Gage just try to contact Tessa if he truly cared about her? Especially cuz he saw that Tessa left her mother’s scarf at his place. He knows how important it is to her, but he doesn’t bother to go visit. Plus, Susan even told him to go speak with Tessa, and he refused to. He has no right to be pissed with Tessa when he is the one who got engaged without telling her. He is the one who wronged Tessa, so he should have been the one to fight for their relationship. His telling Tessa she didn’t fight just pissed me off. Especially cuz the story is trying to paint him like a confused victim. Sure Vanessa changed their numbers and made them break up. Yes, we find out that Vanessa hired shady people to box up Gage and Tessa’s things to each of their places. But Gage got engaged without telling Tessa or giving her a warning. He claims he was not going to go through with the marriage. He just did it for the news? For the PR for their company? None of it makes sense, but he said it was mainly cuz of Vanessa’s dad.


Gage visits Tessa to give her the scarf that she left behind, her mom’s scarf. Tessa’s mom died from cancer, and she misses her every day. When Tessa takes it, she goes and cries alone. Then she thanks Gage through text since they unblocked each other, and he says you’re welcome. I wish she hadn’t initiated texting him first. That’s the other thing that doesn’t make sense. How did neither of them realize the number thing was wrong? Especially Gage. I would understand if Tessa shut him out, but how did Gage not know he blocked Tessa on everything and that her number was wrong? Makes no sense. Tessa calls her dad since she misses him. He moved away when her mom passed away, but he says he is always there for her. Tessa tells him that Gage gave the scarf back, and her dad makes her feel better. He says that he wants Tessa to be happy, no matter who it is. She realizes that she still has feelings for Gage. She thinks it isn’t fair to lead Jace on. So she visits Jace and tells him that he deserves better. That she doesn’t feel things for him. So Jace tells her to give him time, but he hopes to be friends. Gage asks Susan for help on how to win Tessa back. Susan helps to investigate Vanessa, but recommends that Gage go to therapy. They come up with ways to make Tessa’s life easier. Gage anonymously sends money to Tessa’s building to fix her elevator. The elevator is unreliable, so Tessa always takes the stairs. She is shocked to find someone fixing it and finds it to be fishy. Then, the community centre that Tessa goes to, where she goes to classes with kids, had renovations done. Someone donated a blanket cheque to use on whatever they needed. The only condition was to renovate the kitchen first with the best baking equipment. They painted the colour of the room, the colour of Tessa’s bakery walls. I didn’t care for these gestures since Tessa never mentioned these being issues until Gage threw his money at it. Usually, when it comes to grovel, I like seeing the FMC mention how annoying something is. For example, the FMC constantly mentions that they feel bad that the kids don’t get fed well. Then, when the MMC starts to grovel, the impact of his gesture is noticed cuz we, as the reader, know that the FMC wanted this to be done. But these gestures were random, and Tessa would mention them in the moment when this was helpful to her. I didn’t even know Tessa did half these things until it was mentioned (the cooking classes for kids and stuff, especially cuz she has a busy bakery). Plus, it felt like all Gage was doing was throwing money at the problem.


Gage gets a visitor, and it is Tessa. Turns out Gage donated to Tessa’s mom’s cancer hospital. Tessa bakes for them, so he sent money, and they made a plaque with Tessa’s mom’s name. Tessa says she knows that Gage is behind everything, and he doesn’t deny it. He says he messed up years ago, but wants to make it up to her. Susan fakes that she needs food, so Gage asks to take Tessa out to a restaurant they used to go to. He remembers what she orders, and they talk. He opens up about therapy and working on himself. Tessa asks if he was celibate, and he says he wasn’t. He had sex with Vanessa 6 months after their breakup, since he got married to Vanessa. But he says he didn’t have sex with Vanessa in a long time, and his sex life with Vanessa didn’t last long either. Tessa was the same; she slept with Jace around 6 months after their breakup. Gage claims he wouldn’t have gone through with the marriage if he knew Tessa would stay, which makes no sense. What was his plan? The announcement was out so regardless, Tessa would deal with bad publicity. But Tessa gets notifications, and turns out, Vanessa made fake posts about Tessa stealing Gage. The rumours are that Tessa broke up their marriage, and everyone is leaving negative comments about Tessa’s bakery. Tessa freaks out, so Gage promises to fix things. Gage calls his dad and Vanessa’s dad over to expose Vanessa for what she did. Vanessa tries to act by crying, but Gage says that Vanessa used her dad’s illness to force Gage to marry her. Which makes no sense cuz Gage originally said that Vanessa’s dad asked him for help with the engagement while he was sick. Maybe I read this wrong, but this wasn’t consistent. Especially cuz Vanessa’s dad was shocked that this happened and disgusted that his daughter used his illness to manipulate Gage. Plus, doesn’t it make it worse for Vanessa and Gage to divorce after getting married if they got married for the company for a united front? Makes no sense. Gage tells them that Vanessa used PR to tank Tessa’s company. Both of their dads tell Vanessa she needs to post an apology and fix things. Their dads fire Vanessa and tell her that she will only get the inheritance money that is left for her. They also tell Gage he needs to take time off as CEO since he made choices emotionally rather than for the company. Vanessa’s dad is stepping in temporarily. So none of this added up to Gage being forced to marry Vanessa. It seems he didn’t even need to do it in the first place.


Gage visits Tessa, saying that everything is fixed. He comes into her place, and they have sex. He doesn’t use a condom since Tessa was tested a month ago after being with Jace and is on birth control, and Gage is clean too. She says that this doesn’t mean she forgives him, but she does. Gage tells her that he is not CEO. Gage visits Tessa’s store and helps with cleaning. Tessa got more positive PR cuz Vanessa posted her video owning up to what she did. When she needs to send a quick order by flight, Gage offers his jet. When Tessa says she also needs to do deliveries with her van, Gage says he will do it. Gage wants to start a nonprofit organization to take leftover food from restaurants and grocery stores and give it to hospitals and shelters. He takes her on a date to a park, and they bake together. They continue to go on dates, and Gage admits that he had a ring for her. He carried it around, but he never got the chance to ask her to marry him. Tessa says she isn’t ready, but she will be someday. 3 years later, Tessa’s dad walks her down the aisle but tells Gage he better not break Tessa’s heart. Gage even sent an invitation to Jace since Tessa asked. They get married, and Gage has his own company going on. Vanessa’s dad asks Gage to take over, and he does, but he has his own shit too. In the bonus epilogue, it’s three years later, and Tessa is pregnant. They see Vanessa is married to an old man her dad’s age, it’s her 5th marriage. She tries to insult Tessa, but Tessa can see that she is bitter and jealous. She spent all her money and has to rely on marriages for money now. That’s about it. As you can see, the story was a bit inconsistent. I wasn’t a fan of the story trying to paint Gage as innocent when he fucked up. He married Vanessa cuz he wanted to be CEO. Sure Vanessa may have tricked him in some ways, but he didn’t fight for Tessa. I especially hated how he wasn’t celibate. But thankfully, Tessa wasn’t either.

Stay safe folks!

[VoraciousReader · Rating 2 out of 5]

The blurb was very misleading; there was no grovel in this book. The h forgave the H almost instantly. So disappointing. I'm giving it 2 stars but only because I finished it.

[Izzie d]

This is a quick read, it doesn't really feel there is time to establish any depth to the characters, betrayal or promised grovel.
There is more to the betrayal than mentioned in the blurb but still it doesn't really feel as though she had much of a backbone with him.
The Hero is intimate with his then wife after some time into the marriage and the heroine also has a sort of relationship with other man.
He has therapy and apologies but it didn't feel enough as although there is interference that causes the breakup he was to blame and she would have been hurt.

[Rose · Rating 1 out of 5]

Tessa is pathetic. there was no substance no depth. she forgave him almost instantly.

[Allie | Looking for Likeminded Souls | Addicted to my Kindle 🫀 · Rating 3 out of 5]

It was kind of more buying than groveling

“None of this was about being seen or thanked. I’m not trying to buy forgiveness. Or push you into anything you’re not ready for. I was just trying to do right by you. Finally.”

Although Gage says he doesn’t need a thank you, and didn’t want her to find out he is the one who donated the money to the causes she believes in, or fixing her building, I call BS. I mean, in a week, everything that needed cash to get fixed in her life got fixed and her mom‘s name was even on some of it, which made is obvious who was behind it. Given that she didn’t have dozens of rich people in her life.

Apart from that, the book didn’t feel grovelly, Gage just blamed his ex instead of reflecting on his own merits in the 💩show and didn’t even have the hinsight to deal with the ex before he dragged Tessa into this mess again. Basically she was hurt because him twice in my book and second time even her business was on risk.

[Jessica · Rating 2 out of 5]

Not enough substance

I get this is a novella, but halfway thru, I was already done with this book. It literally took nothing before the h was back with the H. There wasn't even an entire conversation about what exactly happened. There was a quick revelation of the OWs scheming, but the H still dropped her, still got engaged while he was with the h and that seemed to just be forgotten. I was really looking forward to this story, but it was honestly a huge disappointment. The H spent a bunch of money but before he even did that (which is such an easy thing to do for an insanely rich man and has no real value), the h was already texting him. It felt like lazy writing and no real substance.

[Rose · Rating 2 out of 5]

This is the second one that I’ve tried by this author that hasn’t worked for me. The angst is always good but the romance is not. She needs to figure out how to get some balance. By the time we are 70% in our h and H have had like 2 short actual conversations. There’s no chemistry built. The last half is better in terms of interaction but it was too little, too late and I just didn’t care about them at that point.

It feels like she’s writing off a list of what wattpad readers like in betrayal books—therapy, celibacy talked about, no real betrayal just a misunderstanding, etc. None of it feels organic and I could not feel the authors passion for her story in this read.

Overall: 1.5

[Joanne · Rating 2 out of 5]

This was a quick read but the FMC had too little self-respect. I like that she took herself out of the relationship with the MMC but she went back to him too quickly, and like another reviewer said, should have been with the OM instead who was a green flag.

People can change, but to me, the MMC made amends too late to be worth anything.

[Tmstprc]

DNF’d @ 63%… maybe it’s me, maybe I’ll come back to it.

[Bev · Rating 2 out of 5]

Disappointing with zero grovel, doormat h, weak H and TSTL characters. Everything I really wasn't expecting and didn't want to read 🤷‍♀️

[Kiley · Rating 4 out of 5]

Cake & Consequences, Book 2 of the Betray Me Once series, was about 37-year-old Gage Langford, the heir and CEO of Langford Tech, and Tessa Hale, the owner of the Hale & Honey Bakery (the reader never learned Tessa's age).

The book opened three years earlier, with Tessa purchasing food and wine to prepare a special meal to "acknowledge how hard" Gage, her boyfriend with whom she had been in a relationship for the past year, had been working. As she approached the checkout, she learned from others twittering excitedly that her boyfriend was not only merging his company with another's, but had also announced his engagement to another woman named Vanessa Carrington, the heiress of the company his was merging with. Gage hadn't even bothered to let her down easy before the announcement was made, rather choosing to inform her in a voicemail he had left earlier in the evening, but she had missed it. "I'm sorry you had to hear this way, Tessa. It's not what you think. Don't hate me. Please." After trying to call him back and checking his social media that not only had he dumped her, but he'd blocked her as well, basically erasing her from his life. She returned home in tears, only to find a box containing the key she had given him to her apartment and all of her things that she'd left at his place. He'd waited until she wasn't home and returned her things...minus the scarf that had once belonged to her mother. Then she noticed he had removed all of his stuff from her place as well. After a week of hiding out in her apartment, she was once again ready to face the world...and she did so with gusto. While neither was celibate the whole time they were apart, Gage didn't sleep with the other woman until six months after the announcement...and that was after they were married. As for Tessa, she had remained celibate for at least a year, but (according to her inner musing) she had stopped being celibate around the same time that Gage stopped sleeping with his wife, which wasn't long before he filed for divorce.

Three years later, Tessa was the proud owner of her own bakery, which was very popular with celebrities, on social media, and with the members of high society. She was in the middle of filming a new design when Gage entered her establishment and was berating her newest, shyest employee. It was apparent from his expression that he was just as surprised to see Tessa as she was to see him, but she covered it better. However, Tessa promptly put him in his place before kicking him out of her bakery. Gage wanted to argue, but the guy from the shop next to Tessa's entered after hearing the shouting, letting him know the cops were on the way. Gage promptly left, but wasn't happy about it. What Tessa didn't know was that the cake Gage had been arguing over...was for a Divorce party...his divorce party.

It took a full week before Gage returned to the bakery to apologize. Afterward, he told Tessa he missed her, his marriage had been hell, his divorce had been worse, and that he hadn't had a single happy day since his relationship with her (Tessa) had ended. If he'd been hoping that would sway her, it only made her freeze him out more. But then he said something that threw her for a loop. He said he'd only gotten with his (now) ex-wife because Tessa had walked away from him...not the other way around. But her response went further and knocked his legs out from under him when she told him he was the one who broke things off. As they both gave their own version of what happened three years earlier, they each began to realize they had been lied to...by an unknown person who interfered in their relationship. Once he made that realization, Gage set out to find out the truth about the breakup three years earlier and set things right between him and Tessa...if he could. However, it didn't take long for Gage's ex-wife to start destroying everything good that Tessa had accomplished in the past three years...and Gage wasn't going to take it lying down.

This story had more than its fair share of angst, drama, heartache, an emotional rollercoaster full of twists and turns, and controversy. The plot and storyline were simple yet easy to navigate, and the comeuppance and grovel were adequate to satisfy most critics, although some of the comeuppance didn't get page time, but that was okay in the end. However, the ending timeline was a bit too far out to be completely satisfying. But then again...the extended epilogue provided a touch more to the comeuppance view that helped smooth the disappointment somewhat. Unfortunately, the story wrapped up so fast it felt like being hit by a runaway locomotive. I wanted to see more of the relationship being rebuilt between Gage and Tessa, and I also wanted to see more of how Gage got his revenge on his ex-wife. Nearly all of that was left out, and the reader had to guess at what all Gage had done to finally expose Vanessa's treachery. THAT was a major disappointment. Unfortunately, it felt like too many loose ends were left unfinished.

Both main characters were well-developed and mature, but the fact that neither of them managed to have a face-to-face confrontation in the beginning was disappointing. While I realize the lack of communication was the entire reason their relationship went to hell in a handbasket, one would think the author would have included something major that the reader wouldn't discover until the book nearly ended. Be that as it may, the book still deserved a four-star rating. Looking forward to Book 3.

[Suzy100 · Rating 2 out of 5]

Download this around 1 am when I was having trouble sleeping. And it drew me in and kept me up until I hit one of the dumbest dates that I’ve ever read! Seriously, we are led be believe that they made cinnamon rolls from scratch outdoors? With a toaster oven plugged into a battery backup? And no sink to clean up. Then they sat on a blanket while the dough rose? What sort of suspended disbelief was I supposed to employ here? Ridiculous!

Here’s my star rating guide

0 stars- just no / couldn’t finish
⭐️ not good.; poorly written
⭐️⭐️ meh
⭐️⭐️⭐️ enjoyed; would recommend; fun
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ so good! would read again
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ memorable; loved it; unique; top of class in genre

[Carole Copeland · Rating 3 out of 5]

Had some good moments

This book started out well. I liked how it jumped right into the story and not give this long detailed journey of how they met, how they lived etc. The story became rushed in areas. Glossed over outcomes with little depth. The writing was like here's the problem, here's the hurt, and boom very little depth on how it was resolved. I did what I hate and signed up for the extra epilogue. Don't need extra emails lol It wasn't worth the sign up. They went, met, and departed. Not much of a confrontation. What I really hated about this story was having the lead female character be weak and selfish, and sleeping with someone when she knew she wasn't interested. Just to prove something? That just shows women as weak and not the strength to embrace our feelings and know when we are not ready to start anything. And I was almost convinced that these two had a deeper love, the two main characters. That it was alright to be alone and only want to be with someone for the right reasons. I was just glad that the other guy wasn't in the story much. I just felt it wasn't needed. Women can figure out what's in their hearts other ways than sleeping with someone.

[Marle · Rating 1 out of 5]

Very Disappointing ….and So Boring…

I had been eagerly awaiting this novel to be released. What a disappointment. The plot does not work from the very beginning. She is in involved with her boyfriend for a year. She is in the store planning a special dinner for him and is notified via media that her boyfriend is engaged to someone else! The rest is manipulation and miscommunication. But somehow the fact he was not planning on going through with the marriage makes it ok? Maybe even worse is that there is no depth to the characters. They are cardboard and you never feel like you know them. A disappointing second book to the Betray Me Once series. Yawn .

[Angel W · Rating 5 out of 5]

I received an ARC copy of this book and I'm leaving this reviewing of my own free will as a thank you to the author

this was such a fun read. loved the way he took responsibility immediately for everything he had done past and present once some truths slapped him in his face. the read flowed with laughs and some painful truths. finding forgiveness when there is another party involved can sometimes be hard but actions spoke loud and his were brutal but necessary. I can't wait for the next book

[Bookish.Midnight. and. black · Rating 1 out of 5]

short, no depth. ridiculously plot. she thinks he really wants to marry ow so she disappears. he thinks she wanted to break up so he marries ow. they don't communicate with each other and it's really stupid.

[Heather · Rating 3 out of 5]

I liked this one better than the first one, but the external conflict was resolved too quickly/easily so the drama was over before it really even started. Reading for the soap opera feelings and this didn't deliver as much as I was hoping for.

[Lauren Kapavitch · Rating 1 out of 5]

This was so ridiculously bad, and it has shit all to do with the fact that it’s a novella. It’s a travesty that some reviewers are trying to use that as an excuse for why this book was a gigantic disappointment to so many.

In depth review as soon as I have some more time…

[Chalice · Rating 3 out of 5]

2.5 stars

The couple: Gage and Tessa

Romance trope: second chances
Series: Betray Me Once
Length: 182 pages

Plot: Gage and Tessa had been a couple for a couple of years when she was blindsided by the news of his engagement to another woman. Several years later, he's back and wants to make amends. But can she trust him?

Commentary: There was little sustantive groveling. There is no way anyone could have forgiven him. He was dating Tessa and she heard on social media that he was getting married to someone else. He had no real explanation except "I was gonna talk to you about it. It wasn't what it seemed." But it was. He decided to marry the other woman for business - money, essentially. He didn't share anything about what was going on with Tessa and expected her to "fight for him" and "understand" and wait for him. It was such a ridiculous situation. He didn't love the other woman, but he did marry her and consummate the marriage. There are some things you can forgive but I don't think this was one of them. He was such a dumb, limp noodle of a hero.

Previous book in the series: Nuptials & Neglect

[I’m a Paula too… Thompson · Rating 3 out of 5]

I gave this three stars because this book was just average. It had some weird stuff going on, especially with the OW, who caused most of the initial damage. We didn’t find out that she did all that stuff until pretty late in the book, so initially it’s easy to think that he was just leasing the FMC on.

I certainly recognize that people can react differently and also comprehend differently too. I didn’t really think that the MMC gave up as much as he finally caved. The OW was a terrible person so I do think it’s weird that he didn’t initiate the divorce. So that part I agree with other reviews.

Anyway just an average read. Not awful and not spectacular.

[Libby · Rating 2 out of 5]

Gage. 🤮.

[Van · Rating 1 out of 5]

I’m too Spanish for this shit
You don’t forgive someone as mean. I do believe he thought money could buy forgiveness, the sad part is that he was right. He got that money thanks to the marriage to the OW

[Makenzie Goodson · Rating 3 out of 5]

I will say this book is a second chance romance with a baker and CEO rich man. There’s maybe some grovel. Idk it’s a personal opinion thing. I did really like the first book but I knew this one wasn’t going to be my favorite and it definitely wasn’t. For me it’s cause I felt like the Gage didn’t love Tessa. At least three years ago when everything went down and maybe even now.

So, the reason I feel that way is 3 years ago tessa found out from social media that gage, her boyfriend, is engaged to another woman named veronica. She has a voicemail from him saying it’s not what it seems and not to hate him. Right after Tessa finds out she’s blocked from any communication with him and goes home to find his stuff gone and her stuff in a box with a key. All her stuff is there except a scarf. Now I feel he doesn’t love her cause first of all he was talked into this engagement by veronica as her father is a founding member of the company he runs, but he’s sick and feels the company needs to be on like steady ground i guess. So he thinks we’ll fake an engagement to make him feel better and not hurt him more. He doesn’t tell his actual girlfriend about this but thinks I’ll explain it after i’m engaged to another woman. But he gets a text from tessa saying it’s okay I was going to end it anyways. We find out later that veronica set it up to look like they both broke up with the other. BUT gage who originally was going to not go through with the engagement and only did this to appease the board. He not only doesn’t go fight and talk to tessa after getting a break up text, he continues to marry the other woman. What?! Yes it’s so clear that you love tessa with the way you went to fight and explain the situation but also with the way you went through and married the other woman. Sir that makes no sense. PLUS he never, not once in the 3 years they’ve been apart, checked up on her. He was surprised when he went into a bakery and saw her there. Only then was he like oh she looks great and this is what I’ve missed out on.

I’m sorry but those are not actions of someone who loves someone else. To not only not explain before doing this, but to then not even try to fight and explain afterward. To go through with the marriage, he says he thought about her everyday and missed her but I don’t believe it. Cause you didn’t once check up on her, figure out what she was doing. Then to see her and be like oh this is what I’ve been missing out on. I wonder if he would of tried to get with her if he didn’t accidentally run into her.

I had to come back and edit this cause I thought of something that made this make even less sense. Which is that he married this woman 6 months later. He was not forced, held at gun point or black mailed. If you love someone else and just got out of along term relationship with them why are you marrying someone else 6 months later? He said he wasn’t going to go through with marrying her, so why did he? He could of had a long engagement to her. Or stayed engaged until her father was better. But instead he marries and fucks her 6 months later??? Yes his love for tessa is so clear.

Then the grovel. At first he throws money at it, but at least it was in a goodish way. Toward her apartment complex, her charity, hospital where her mom was treated. To me at first it seems really shallow. Like you could do one thing for her before but now after your marriage is over your doing this. IDK ex wife does try to ruin tessa’s bakery but gage outs her for both manipulating the marriage and the slander. Then he delivers her bakery things and takes her on dates. That’s it. Don’t get me started on when they were talking and his secretary pokes her head in and says remember you were going to get me lasagna. So gage asks tessa if she wants to get lunch with him. Then while there proceeds to tell tessa that the secretary said that to get him to ask her out to lunch. Tessa really sat there and thought that was annoying impressive. girl what are you talking about?! that was so obvious and irrelevant to y’all’s lunch.

Anyways. This was a decent story but It also felt shallow I think it’s because Gage really could of prevented all of this and because of that it feels like he didn’t really love Tessa. Like I would of loved to read like the fake breakup stuff still happened and the night before his wedding he goes to tessa. Like prefect. They find out what happened, he gets to go on the wedding day and say NO. Then he grovels at tessa’s feet. He even had her scarf, the prefect excuse to see her. But does he? NOPE. ugh. OR even if he did go through with the wedding it’s miserable and he checks on tessa all day. He sees her with Jace and gets jealous. Then divorced veronica and grovels at tessa’s feet. OR like I said before had a long engagement, breaks it off and grovels at tessa’s feet. All of those would of at least showed he cared about tessa. Plus I would of loved an actual confrontation with the ex wife. There wasn’t any ow drama cause Tessa and veronica had no interaction with each other. At least Tessa wasn’t celibate and had a fuck buddy relationship with Jace.

[ThEAnGrYrEaDeR55 · Rating 3 out of 5]

Tessa is happily planning a date night for her boyfriend of a year, Gage—keys to each other’s apartments, shared routines, real future vibes—when she overhears gossip in a grocery store about a wealthy CEO getting engaged to another CEO’s daughter. A quick Google search confirms her worst fear: Gage Langford is publicly engaged to socialite Vanessa. To make it worse, he leaves her a vague “It’s not what you think” voicemail, returns her things, blocks her everywhere, and vanishes. He marries Vanessa. Tessa spends a week shattered.

Three years later, Tessa is thriving. She runs a wildly successful designer cake shop (Hale & Honey), has half a million followers, celebrity clients, and a loyal community. She has a FWB situation going on with the musician next door, Jace.

Then Gage walks into her bakery. He's tearing into her newest employee Jenny and basically acting like an entitled fool. Tessa absolutely unloads on him—and rightfully so.

From there, we get alternating perspectives and learn that Gage claims he never broke up with her. According to him, he received a breakup text “from Tessa,” found his key returned, and assumed she ended things over the engagement which he could "absolutely explain". The twist? Vanessa allegedly sabotaged their relationship—fake texts, cloned phones, break-ins, blocking them from each other—to clear the way for her engagement. It’s dramatic. It’s messy. It’s… a lot.

Even so, the big issue remains: Gage still agreed to get engaged. He SAYS he wasn't going to marry her and yet that's exactly what he did less than 6 months after the announcement and end of his and Tessa's relationship.

His explanation is corporate pressure. Vanessa’s father (co-founder and CEO) claimed failing health and insisted a marriage-merger would stabilize the company. Gage says he had a “plan.” Tessa doesn’t care—and honestly, neither did I. He made the decision without her. He didn’t fight for her. He didn’t show up at her door. He married someone else and consummated that marriage six months later. Miscommunication or not, those were choices. He even stayed married to Vanessa for a good 3 years despite it ending in a very nasty divorce.

The middle of the book focuses on exposing Vanessa’s manipulations (including her later attempt to smear Tessa publicly as a homewrecker), Gage stepping down from his company, starting therapy, and making grand gestures—anonymous donations to causes close to Tessa’s heart, fixing her building elevator, supporting her business. There’s not much traditional groveling—more “time apart + self-improvement + big gestures.” Gage says he never wanted Tessa to know who did all these donations but hello? Anyone else in her life a billionaire? Was transparent AF.

They reconcile fairly quickly once the truth comes out (yes, there’s unprotected sex less than a month after reconnecting 🙃), begin dating again, and slowly rebuild. Gage starts a nonprofit redistributing excess food to shelters, and the epilogue jumps three years ahead to their wedding. Tessa takes her time before accepting his proposal, which I appreciated. Trust had to be rebuilt but it seemed to happen in a whirlwind.

Overall thoughts:

This is a light, fast, mild drama second-chance romance. The opening betrayal packed the biggest emotional punch; after that, the story felt more like cleanup and damage control. I liked that Tessa wasn’t celibate during the separation (even if it was just a FWB situation), and I appreciated that Gage did change and grow.

But I struggled with how much of the blame was ultimately placed on the “evil other woman.” Vanessa absolutely manipulated things—but Gage still made pivotal decisions that hurt Tessa, and the narrative lets him skate past some of that a little too easily. He didn’t fight for her in the beginning, and that made the soulmate angle slightly harder to sell by the end.

That said, it’s not a bad read at all. It’s dramatic, easy to get through, and has a satisfying HEA if you can roll with the corporate marriage plot and suspension of disbelief around the sabotage. I just wanted a bit more substance—and maybe a bit more grovel—to fully buy the romance.

[BAG of Books · Rating 2 out of 5]

Tessa and Gage have been dating for a year. Gage is a tech CEO. One day, she sees that his company has released a statement, Gage is engaged to an heiress in a personal and business merger. Tessa is like WTF?

She has a missed call from Gage, but his voicemail doesn't explain anything. He just says, "It's not what you think. Please don't hate me." That's it. By the time she listens to it, he has already blocked her on everything.

He marries the heiress, Vanessa. They divorce 3 years later. Gage's friends, including Ethan and Callie from Book 1, throw him a divorce party, and he orders a cake from a local bakery. He goes to the bakery to complain about the cake. Tessa comes out from the kitchen, because it's her bakery. No discussion about the cake; she just gives him his money back and tells him to leave.

The guy who owns the music shop next door comes in when he hears them yelling, and this provides some OM drama, because he's her FWB, Jace.

Gage goes back to the bakery later, to apologize to the employee he yelled at. He also asks Tessa, "Why didn't you fight for us?" She thinks this is an absurd question, but he doesn't seem to think it's absurd at all.

So, she lays it all out there, how he broke up with her over voicemail and she came home to find her stuff in a box on her kitchen counter, and she was blocked on everything. He says no, she cleared her stuff out of his apartment, and she blocked him on everything. He also received texts from her saying she didn't want an explanation.

We know she didn't send the texts. But does it really matter if someone sent fake texts? He really did marry Venessa, that’s not fake.

He tries to tell Tessa it was a fake engagement at first, out of business necessity. He had a plan to not go through with the wedding. But Tessa doesn't want to hear what the plan was, because he never asked her if she agreed with this plan.

The story mostly focuses on Vanessa tricking them into breaking up with each other. He talks to Ethan about how to get her fired, then plans to win Tessa back. He doesn’t take responsibility for the breakup.

Tessa is also easily convinced that he didn’t leave her on purpose, he was manipulated by Vanessa. There’s no accountability. It’s just weird.

He makes a list of things that count as “groveling.” She volunteers at a youth center, and he fixes the place up and gets new equipment, stuff like that.

So, Tessa’s success with the bakery is mainly driven by her social media cake decorating videos. That’s how she was found by celebrities and influencers. She agrees to go out to lunch with Gage one day, and while at the restaurant, her notifications blow up. Someone put out a gossip story that Gage and Vanessa divorced because he and Tessa had an affair. Now she’s getting canceled, basically.

Gage goes to his dad and Venessa’s dad, who are still involved with the tech company, and tells them everything. They fire Vanessa, and her dad pressures her to make a public apology video for the fake affair story.

Gage goes to the bakery to tell Tessa he’s handled things with the social media fallout. They have sex in the bakery kitchen (gross). They agree to date. (She already talked to Jace and made it clear there will be no more “benefits.”) Gage even spends some time helping her out at the bakery.

Small epilogue at their wedding.

The beginning gave a good set up for a lot of angst, but then it all just kind of fell apart, IMO. Tessa was too ready to put the blame on Vanessa, and Gage didn’t have to do much to win her back. The set up for the OM drama just never materialized.

[Mariana Ponce · Rating 2 out of 5]

De mis primeras decepciones del año.
A continuación, un resumen de la historia:
El libro comienza con Tessa, preparándose para organizarle una cena a su novia Gage, él no contesta los mensajes y ve que se anuncia su compromiso con una Vanessa, una mujer rica. Se le rompe el corazón y más cuando llega a casa y están sus cosas en una caja, Gage solo mandó un mensaje diciendo que no lo odie. 3 años después, Tessa es una pastelera super famosa. Gage llega a su pastelería y le está gritando a la empleada cuando ve a Tessa. Tessa lo confronta por grosero y lo corre, hay tanto grito que Jace, su amigo con derechos, llega, le pone la mano en la cintura, le dice que llamará a la policía. Gage se va pero solo piensa en la mano de Jace en la cintura Tessa. Gage se casó con Vanessa y recientemente está divorciado. Nunca dejó de pensar en Tessa y aún así, se casó con Vanessa por su empresa. Habla con sus amigos sobre Tessa. Al día siguiente va a verla y le dice que ella no lucho por ellos, claramente no es así. Tessa le explica como la dejó con un mensaje. Hablan y se dan cuenta que a él le hicieron creer que ella lo terminó y con eso el aceptó casarse con Vanessa. Que estupidez. Gage está pendejo, ¿cómo no buscó a Tessa? Osea, ¿se hace la víctima cuando todo acabó con un mensaje? En todo caso quien no luchó fue él. Sabe que fue Vanessa. Le dice que nunca dejó de pensar en ella y Tessa pregunta si ha sido célibe, a lo que él dice que no, pues si se acostó con Vanessa. Gage habla con Susan, su asistente, planea como desenmascarar a Vanessa, contratan un investigador. Tessa hace voluntariado en un centro de oncología, Gage hace donaciones y pone una placa en nombre de la madre de Tessa. Tessa va a verlo a su oficina y hablan de eso. Van a comer, cuando Tessa ve que unos influencers están desprestigiando a su pastelería, y además la acusan de ser la tercera en discordia por lo que Gage se divorció de Vanessa. Gage va a la empresa, hace una reunión y ahí confronta todo lo que ha hecho Vanessa, quien por cierto se la pasa haciéndose la víctima y llorando. Su padre la corre, y la obligan a resarcir el daño. Empieza con los influencers y tiene que pedir disculpas públicas también. Ya con eso Tessa perdona básicamente a Gage y van directo al sexo, él dice que lleva casi 2 años sin estar con nadie y ella terminó a Jace. Ya todo queda en el pasado y Gage no sufrió nada, solo Tessa. No me gustó. Se dejó manipular, era un idiota ambicioso y no pude perdonarlo. Si si, los separaron con una trampa pero a las horas él ya se había comprometido con Vanessa, ¿Dónde está el amor que sentía por Tessa? Luego, dice que fue un matrimonio por conveniencia pero, ¿se acostó con Vanessa? Si no la quería, ¿por qué lo hizo? Es que no tiene sentido. Actúa como un niño cuando ya es un adulto. Mínimo me habría gustado que se arrastrara pero no pasó, el libro es tan corto que no hay desarrollo de nada. Lo siento, para mí, Tessa estaba mejor sin él. Y no pude perdonarlo, para un hombre muy idiota está la vida real. Lo único que me gustó, fue que mínimo no fue lo típico de que la protagonista está de luto por años y se mantiene célibe, Tessa si estuvo con otro. Aún así, no lo recomiendo ni lo volvería a leer. Puro coraje hice.🤬

[JillyB · Rating 4 out of 5]

Cake and consequences

Lots to like about this novella! When rating/reviewing a novella I like to remind other readers that it will move quickly. Things in a novella will not be as fleshed out as it would be in a longer story. I am ok with that as long as the most important things are addressed and the story keeps moving in the right direction. This story moved quickly and smoothly and can be read in the quiet morning with coffee before everything gets hectic.

This is the story of Gage and Tessa. Wren wastes no time getting to the gut punch and then chapter 2 takes place 3 years later.

Tessa is in love with Gage who is in a much higher tax bracket than she is, but it doesn’t seem to bother him. They are each other’s “one”….until she finds out publicly via tv that he just got engaged to another and she has basically been dismissed(I don’t want to spoil the details)

Three years later she is running a wildly successful bakery with clients that fly her confectionary creations on private jets. One day She hears loud voices in her store and finds her ex(Gage) reading the riot act to her employee. She is shocked to see him as he (newly divorced) is as shocked to see her. They exchange words and with the help of her friends with benefits Jace, he gets kicked out of her bakery. However, some things Tessa said about their break up confuses Gage and now that she is in his periphery he has no plans to let her ever go again!

Since this is a short story I don’t want to spill the beans, but this is what you can expect in general terms:
* the h and H never got over each other, but trust once broken is hard to fix
* The ex wife is shall we say “unpleasant, manipulative, and a right old B*&ch!
* Not everything is as it seems, including how they ended.
* Nor The h or H have been celibate while parted, but the H has been “out of active duty” much longer than the h
* The family for both of them are good people
* Comeuppance is delivered
* The H is dedicated to the h and has made lots of changes to become worthy
* The h is not a pushover, but she never really did get over him or have any closure
* From beginning to end there is a total of 6 years….there is the initial 3 year jump at chapter two, and then another 3 year jump from last chapter to epilogue…the h wasn’t playing around when she wanted to make sure that she could totally trust him!
This may be a short story, but it is not short on drama, laughter, heartfelt moments, and smexy times! You will get the angsty moments and you will then cheer at other moments. This was a story that when I was done, I let out a contented happy sigh. I am a fan of short stories and novellas in general because I do not always have the time to devote to longer stories. This checks off my need for romance and I can still get some of the more mundane things done …like work!
If you read Nuptials and Negligence, you will get to check in how the couple is doing!