Piecing It Together

Sterling Protectors #1

by Mackenzie Madden

One love.

One betrayal.

One last chance to put the pieces back together.

Gracie learned early on that love never comes easy, but Braxton challenges that truth when he stumbles into her life. He carefully dismantles the walls she’s built around her heart, and she lets him, convinced he is worth the risk.

Braxton knows at first glance that Gracie is his—the person who will become his everything. They begin building a life together, based on trust, loyalty, and love.

Until the past rears its head. Gracie watches on as Braxton makes a choice that throws their life into turmoil, leaving her devastated by the betrayal. She walks away, and he is faced with one last decision.

Fight for the woman he still loves, or let his past win?

Genres: Second Chance, Contemporary, Romance, Contemporary Romance, Family Drama, Small Town Romance, Found Family

484 pages, Kindle Edition

Published March 25, 2026

Reviews

[Capt.]

Not gonna explain much since my lovely friend Alina has already explained and wrote a very detailed review for this; go read it 💜

https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...

Have to include this review since it made me laugh 🤣
https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...

[Lea_D reads]

I really enjoyed this. The ow was a snake and I loved to hate her. Brax the H who developments an emotional affair after a traumatic accident pushes h Gracie away while she warns him to stop communicating with ow. OW is the younger sister of his friend. He doesn't listen. Did I think he was redeemable? Absolutely! Both characters for me had flaws they needed to overcome, and it showed with how they weren't always honest with each other. Definitely moreso Brax hence him confiding in ow instead of his girlfriend. They seperate. Brax continues with overcoming his trauma with help from his family and therapy and is celibate. While Gracie leaves and starts hooking up with her ex. Which you're probably scratching your head somewhat, but it made sense for her character seeking comfort and validation from someone she was comfortable with after losing trust in the man she fell in love with. Once she's back Brax and her start reconciling. Overall it was enjoyable, and I think this is this author's best work so far. I look forward to reading more stories in the future.

[Snafuzled]

I’m really into the angsty, OW, emotional cheating trope right now. If you don’t like that genre, you’ll hate this with the passion of 1000 fiery suns. I live for those gut punches, so I loved it.

Spoilery thoughts…

I really liked that it showed us this couple loved up at the beginning. Often in these tropes they drop you right into the heartache and I feel it makes it harder to root for the couple.

I did have grave reservations for the for first 40% and didn’t think the hero would be redeemable, especially after reading some other reviews. However, he turned it around for me and I was happy with their HEA.

I absolutely loved how she wrote the OM drama. It was enough to drive the MMC crazy for all that he lost, but it wasn’t a true love triangle. More FWB, and I dug that.

I didn’t like how the FMC started acting like a martyr towards the end in taking partial responsibility for their relationship problems. I didn’t agree at all. She may have had some of her own issues regarding her family, but the destruction of the relationship was ALL on him. I thought her decision to cut and run was 100% valid.

I really hope she’s writing Nick’s story, sounds juicy. Plus there are definite open ends I want to see resolved.

Overall good read. Thanks for the push, Nikki! ❤️

[Rappaccini's Daughter]

This is the 3rd cheating book I've read in the last two months where the hero emotionally cheats (and maybe kisses the OW, but no p-in-v action), so then the heroine goes off and fucks her ex while the hero is waiting around for her to make up her mind if she's going to forgive him.🙄

Unpopular opinion, but I HATE that. Way to lose the moral high ground.😏👍

[Serialbookstarter:Marla]

Maybe it’s just me but I Got bored with this one .When H’s ex crush shows up he gets all googly eyed . The ow starts sewing seeds of discord. The H is a dumb firefighter! Don’t get allup in my biddness for telling the truth! He keeps falling Into OW’s hugs and kisses. The fmc breaks up with him and he sees the light. Grovel grovel to hea.

[Irene]

woe is me, im a firefighter with an AMAZING SUPPORT SYSTEM THAT I DON'T USE instead im going to confide and cheat with the person LITERALLY THE ONLY PERSON my amazing sweet girlfriend begged me not to
lash out on the said girlfriend when she points out my wrongings AND LOSE THE HOUSE SHE WANTED SO BADLY EVEN THOUGH EVERYONE REMINDED ME NOT TO
basically easyy forgiven when i tell them the trauma (not even that much MY TRAUMA) she gives in EAASILY
AND I WILL HUG AND CUDDLE THE SAID OW WHILE WATCHING A MOVIE IGNORING MY AMAZING GIRLFRIEND

[Shell]

⚠️MAJOR SPOILERS IN THIS REVIEW⚠️

The H, Braxton is a firefighter. He endures a major trauma at work and chooses to keep his struggles to himself including keeping his girlfriend in the dark. At the same time his ex interest (not ex girlfriend) returns after 4 years away. She is also his best friend’s little sister. He feels confused and leans into her when he shouldn’t. He 100% emotionally cheats and lies to the h, Gracie, several times. He also shares his trauma with the OW. He absolutely does wrong. He deserves a long separation, therapy, coming clean, lots of grovel… etc. However the reason this book is a 3 for me is because the h runs away and sleeps with another man. I know this is an unpopular opinion but it ruined the book for me. I couldn’t get past it. I am not being sexist or misogynistic, I dislike this in any character, male or female. She didn’t bother to have a discussion with him she just took off and landed in bed with her ex. Then brings her ex back with her, he lives in the house that was their dream house and helps fix it up. I just couldn’t enjoy the book with this added part. No sex I would’ve rolled with it just fine. I like this writer and will continue to read her work. My rating is solely based on my enjoyment level, not her quality.

[Debbie DiFiore]

This was a train wreck extraordinaire and a little bit too long. It took forever to read. I really cried in this one. The hero was an idiot and he totally pulled back from the heroine and let another woman in. Not all the way but enough to really hurt her. She was his teenage crush but they never hooked up. He told her he loved her but she went away to college and didn't come back for four years and now she wants him and she plays dirty. The hero let her too. There is so much stupidity in this book and it really angsted me out. I loved his family though. I would have kept them too. His mom is just amazing. Dad too. I really liked his best friend nick too. He was Paisley brother but he told the H he was being an idiot! While they broke up, she hooked up with her ex boyfriend for a weekend it sounded like and they had sex. good sex too according to her. I was not happy with that. I want them both to be celibate but what can I say. He seemed tone a good guy too. The whole book was good. Except the non celibate thing but it was too late in the book and I had to finish it. I wish that hadn't happened. But Braxton stayed celibate and went to counseling and put in the work. He really did love her. He was just dumb to let an old crush distract him.

[Jenny]

2 ⭐️’s

This book had so much potential. It started out great with the juicy kind of angst that I love. (There will be SPOILERS in this review btw)….. Braxton emotionally cheats on his girlfriend Gracie with his best friend’s sister (Paisley) after she comes back from college and he hasn’t seen her in four years. He once thought he loved her, but they were only friends and when he professed his love to her, she rejected him and left.

So, here we are four years later and Paisley shows up at Thanksgiving (home for good) and at first Braxton is blindsided and kind of star struck. He shuts that down pretty quick but Gracie still notices his reaction to her. Anyway, things escalate between Braxton and Paisley but only because Paisley relentlessly chases him and manipulates him into being alone with her. He keeps all this from Gracie (making excuses that he has a history with Paisley and it’s harmless) but he ultimately crosses the line when he completely ghosts Gracie one night and spends the evening with Paisley and lets her hold his hand and cuddle up to him. (He never wanted Paisley though. He never sought her out or texted her— that was all Paisley).

Anyway, it all comes to a spectacular head on Christmas when dummy Paisley tries to embarrass Gracie and but actually ends up exposing all Braxton’s lies to the entire family. It was incredibly satisfying to read. So Paisley’s exposed, Gracie breaks up with Braxton, Braxton’s devastated and can’t believe Gracie would break up with him. Braxton’s family fully sides with Gracie and bends over backwards to support her.

This all happens by 40% of the book. The rest of this book d r a g g e d. This book is almost 500 kindle pages and there was absolutely no need for it. There’s even a whole chapter of Braxton just playing video games with his friends. There just seemed to be so many filler chapters that weren’t needed. His grovel is so incredibly lame because he basically just waits around for her to come to him.

For a book that started out so good (IMO), it ended up being such a let down and I truly had to push through to finish it.

[Mona]

Ug full disclosure I skipped chapters after the 51% mark then I read reviews.— I shouldn’t have done that but I’m glad I did bc I think I would’ve been pissed if I invested more time. Maybe I’m not In the right mood for rage reading right now — I don’t know -The mmc emotional cheated and the fmc while on break slept with someone else - for some reason that puts a damper on things for me even though the mmc deserved her distance it still sucked the chemistry out for me, not that what he did wasn’t ick too. Like how can you come back from all that !?! Anywayss , aside from this the writing was engaging and I was wine sweating so, gonna give it 1.5 stars.

[Izzie d]

This is a contemporary second chance romance that deals with some distressing themes. Please read and take care of your mental health before all else.
Explicit language and sexual themes
References to childhood trauma, with emotional neglect
Child death—off-page, described in dialogue
Themes of PTSD
Physical assault and violent language
Emotional affair

The Hero has an emotional affair of sorts with a childhood friend, while they are broken up, the heroine seeks comfort with her ex. No details.
The Hero isn't with anyone else in the time of separation.

[drew]

IN LOVE with this book. Going back to reread immediately.

[Ame Nunamaker]

Loved this book! I had to force myself to put the “book” down at 3 am so that I could get some sleep. It’s hard to find a good betrayal/grovel book that focuses on the parts of that trope that interest me the most and this book definitely was spot on. It didn’t start at or skim over the betrayal. It lead up to it perfectly. The author wasn’t redundant, great characters that you feel invested in and can relate too, perfect amount of humor, grovel, and ending. I didn’t give 5 stars bc it’s EXTREMELY difficult and rare for me to give.

[Alyson Munion]

Pretty good

I really liked this book. Gracie and Braxton seemed like they had a decent relationship in the beginning but you immediately feel something up with Braxton and the reluctance from Gracie in the situation. Braxton screwed up in, what I feel, is the worst way in this type of situation. I loved how supportive Bridget was for Gracie and Nick was for Braxton. I also really liked Nolan and his role in the story! But I absolutely loathed Paisley from the very second she was introduced. And her mother, just ew. I really loved that Gracie took time for herself and didn’t become a doormat. I hate when the FMC doesn’t stand up for themselves. So that alone helped make this a recommendable book!!

*******************

Possible spoiler:
I feel that it should have also had one more TW/CW as I feel that this was more than just an emotional affair. There should definitely be physical affair added. While Braxton didn’t willing kiss Paisley and they were never intimate in a that way, they still went on what I considered at least 2 dates, whether Braxton wanted to admit it or not. On one of those dates he lets her wear his coat then the other he spends all evening ignoring his GF while he’s out with Paisley in another town, shopping, eating, going to the movies, holding hands, cuddling…. Then has the audacity to crawl into his GFs bed late af and smelling like another woman. Just because they didn’t have s*x doesn’t mean he didn’t physically cheat. Holding hands is a physical act. Holding hands = physical cheating which. Making this a physical and emotional affair.

[Rose]

Good angst! The OW Christmas scene was so freaking entertaining!!

I loved how the Hs family really stood by the h.

The pacing on this one was kind of weird though. The timeline felt a little wonky, I had no idea they were split up for as long as they were lol. It kind of felt like no time had passed at all or like time stood still. Idk, just kind of off in the execution for me. It got laggy in parts too especially after she came back from her hometown and the H was giving her space and when they start really coming back together again. He played things very safe here. I wanted more from this bit—more development, more action from the H, more emotion from the h. We moved from scene to scene, week to week just too fast for me to get invested. I wanted to see how played out but I was more engaged with the first half than I was with the second half.

I hope we get Nicks story soon! If things are going the way I think they’re going then his book is going to be fun!

[Mariana Ponce]

Hice muchos corajes con este libro y para explicarlo, voy a escribir todo lo que pasó, por lo que está lleno de SPOILERS:


El libro comienza con Gracie y Braxton hablando y teniendo sexo, ella nota que tiene moretones pero Brax no dice nada. Brax es bombero. Gracie dice que ella trabajaba en una cafetería(luego se menciona florería ) él entró ahí, donde se conocieron, le pidió una cita y poco a poco fue cediendo hasta terminar juntos. Van a una fiesta de navidad con familia de Brax, su mejor amigo y sus padres, una cosa que ella nota lejana, pues sus padres no la querían y ahí en la fiesta llega Paisley, hermana de Nick, mejor amigo de Brax, que regreso después de 4 años. Ella los ve muy cercanos y no sabe cómo reaccionar. Lo deja pasar, pero cuando regresa de ayudar a recoger los escucha hablar y como ella le dice a Brax que si le contó de ella, ya que Brax se le declaró a Paisley antes de que se fuera, ella se intenta acercar, le tiemblan las rodillas a Gracie. Nick llega y ella está así. Cuando van a casa y están durmiendo, Brax se la pasa pensando en Paisley, que fue su todo y no se que. Después sale con Nick, le advierte de Paisley y está llega, le dice que pueden volver a ser amigos y él cede. Empieza a cambiar con Gracie, lo nota, lo confronta y él solo dice que es porque tiene que cubrir a compañeros de trabajo en la comisaría pero ella sabe que algo más pasa. Bridget, su amiga la ve triste, la consuela y la lleva a un bar a tomar. Se encuentra a Paisley y esta le dice que siente que no haya ido a tomar algo con ellos el domingo, claramente, Brax no invitó a Gracie, lo que le duele porque dijo que iba con Nick. Brax le llama y llega por ella, ve a Paisley. Está se le cuelga y le dice que la lleve a casa, él llama a Nick. Al día siguiente, ella le cuenta que lo escuchó y las mentiras sobre Paisley, mentir por omisión, es mentir. Él dice que no siente nada por ella, y promete que guardara las distancias. Van a ver la casa que llevan tiempo queriendo ver. Gracie confía en el. Van a ver la casa y ella habla de tener un hogar que nunca ha tenido(sus padres no la querían). Hablan y Brax decide que no puede decepcionarla. Follan y se dicen te amo. Brax está en un trabajo, su jefe le dice que hable con alguien, algún terapeuta del accidente, y pregunta por Gracie, él no le dijo nada. Va a casa cuando ve a Paisley. Hablan, ella dice que nadie tiene tiempo para ella, él piensa en Gracie pero dice que Paisley es parte de su vida y no se alejara así sea lo que Gracie quería, le promete que seguirán siendo amigos. Visita a sus padres, le dicen que hable del accidente con Gracie. Habla con ella de su día pero no le cuenta de Paisley. Paisley va a verlo a la estación de bomberos, le lleva comida, empieza a cuchichear de Gracie y que quiere que sean cercanos. Se acercan y él se aparta. Otra vez, se dice que no pasó nada, no hay nada que ocultar y no le dice a Gracie, que va y le lleva comida a todos. Solo acepta ir a ver a un terapeuta, Gracie le pide que le explique que pasó, él le dice que esa noche no hablara del accidente, pero resulta cortante, cambian el tema y quedan en una cita, fin. Saliendo de la terapia se topa a Paisley, que dice que estaba de compras por ahí casualmente y a ella si le puede contar todo lo del accidente donde iba una familia y murió una niña que no sacó a tiempo por así decirlo, luego Paisley se lo lleva de compras cuando con Gracie nunca tiene tiempo. Después se fue a ver películas con ella y dejó a Gracie plantada. Dejó que Paisley lo abrazara, se recargara en él y lo tocara, aunque se sentía culpable. Luego ella sugirió que se quedarán en un hotel a ver películas juntos, eso ya no lo aceptó. Llegó a casa, Gracie lo olió, no dijo nada y él solo dijo hablamos mañana. Al despertar ella ya no está, va a ver a sus padres y le dicen que Esther(madre de Nick y la zorra) les dijo que pasó él día con esa zorra. Sus padres lo regañan por no hablar con Gracie y le dicen que perdió la casa que iban a comprar, pues no mandó los documentos por estar con Paisley. Sus padres le dicen que está arruinando todo. Sabe que algo anda mal pero en vez de arreglarlo se va a tomar con Nick, llega Paisley, quien le ha insistido en verse y él no marca límites, hasta toman y ella va a decirle a Gracie que pasaron la noche tomando y se quedaron en casa de Nick, aprovecha para entregarle el celular que Brax dejó esa noche. Reconoce su aroma de como olía Brax la noche que llegó tarde. Bridget le dice que lo termine y no se deje caer en eso. Decide pasar navidad con ellos como despedida y llega la zorra que se hace víctima y cuenta todo: que comió, tomó y que Brax le contó muchas cosas. La familia la apoya e insultan a Gracie. Ella le da su regalo a Brax, el saco que le prestó a Paisley. Ella está decepcionada, se va y la madre de Brax la acompaña. El estúpido no comprende que hizo mal JAJAJAJA para mí si fue infiel, aunque sea emocionalmente, pero lo fue. Su familia lo regaña y su madre le pide que deje en paz a Gracie. Paisley lo busca y el le dice que ya no son amigos, ella dice que sabe que la quiere pero él le dice que no lo busque más. Días después, Theo su compañero y él hablan, él le dice que busque la micro infidelidad. Le manda un mensaje a Gracie para recordarle un evento al que la invitó. Gracie recibe fotos de él en ese evento besándose con Paisley y llora. El sigue justificando lo que pasó por su accidente, empieza a tomar, ve que Gracie no llego y la zorra lo besuquea, Nick lo golpea. Raewyn (madre de Braxton) la busca, le pide perdón por lo que hizo su hijo, no lo quiere ni ver y le dice que ellos compraron la casa, se la quiere regalar. Gracie pide permiso para irse de la ciudad un tiempo y le pide que no le diga nada al infiel. Nick le dice a Brax que le pegó por qué le faltó al respeto a Gracie, le cuenta que Paisley estuvo años en una relación con un hombre casado y que no se lo dijo para no lastimarlo. Va ver a sus padres, su madre no le quiere decir donde está Gracie, sus padres lo regañan y le dicen que se está destruyendo. 10 días después, Gracie, visita su casa pero cuando su madre se pone a decirle que si se esfuerza pueden confiar en ella se va al restaurante con Elyse, su amiga. Ahí aparece Nolan, su ex. Hablan y quedan de volver a verse. Raewyn llama y le pide que escuche. Pasó un mes y Gracie bloqueó a Braxton. Ahora el está en boxeo. Es un poco más consciente de lo que hizo. Habla con Nick, quien está mal porque las familias se distanciaron y sabe que Paisley es mala. Cuando sale ve a Gracie, pero no está sola, está con un hombre. Gracie fue a su nueva casa, la que compartiría con Brax pero que ahora es suya por regalo de los padres del mismo. Nolan la ayuda y dice que en dos meses se acercaron y dejó que la curara con una noche de sexo, se acostaron. Sus ex suegros la visitan. Regresa a la florería y va a verla Esther(madre de Nick y Paisley). Llega Braxton, ella le recrimina las cosas que hizo y queda que hablarán otro día. Braxton va con sus padres, les cuenta y ellos le dicen que le están rentando la casa a Gracie, que no está sola, dicen el nombre Nolan y el lo identifica, esta con su ex. Se los encuentra y le dice que luchará por Gracie. Gracie está trabajando y se meten a robar. Llama a la policía. Nick le avisa a Brax. Él llega, ella está herida. Nolan llega y le duele que Gracie lo llamó a él, así como él hizo con Paisley. Van a visitarla a casa. Quedan en hablar. La policía la interroga. Habla con Brax del accidente y él pregunta por Nolan, ella le cuenta que se acostó con él, que son
amigos. Él se tensa pero no le reprocha, pues no eran pareja en ese momento. Le dan fotos a Gracie para identificar al ladrón y ubican al tipo y a su hermana, Halsey, ella es inocente. Sale a comer con Bridget y Nolan, se alejan un poquito cuando aparecen Paisley y Esther, le echan la culpa y la confrontan por atacar a Brax y su acoso sexual. Finalmente la dejan humillada. Llegan sus ex suegros, Nick, Brax, la defienden y las víboras se van. Brax pide hablar con Gracie. Hablan y prácticamente la convence de que si lo intentan luchará por ella, yo siento que si volvería a caer porque es débil. Huye al primer problema, y entiendo que tenía un trauma pero eso no justifica la traición y minimización de los sentimientos e inseguridades de Gracie. Poco a poco se van acercando, Gracie sigue conviviendo con Joseph y Raewyn(padres de Brax). Nick les presenta a Halsey y Brax temerarios que la este usando para llegar a su hermano, Halsey es buena persona. Se siente en familia con ellos. Brax le dice que le va a demostrar que puede confiar en él y tendrán una cita. La lleva a patinar porque recordó una anécdota que ella le contó y el cariño que le tiene al patinaje. Terminan la cita y se besan, con la promesa de otra cita, justo el día de su cumpleaños. Le lleva flores, hace una fiesta sorpresa e incluso aunque es un tema difícil, invita a Nolan. La escucha hablar con sus padres, les dice que es su cumpleaños y que no los necesita, Gracie lo besa. Él le regala un cuadro de su casa, lo mandó a hacer. Se van a casa y lo pasan juntos. Él le chupa el coño y luego la penetra. Dedos, por detrás, etc. En la madrugada repiten. En la mañana llegan sus padres y están felices por ellos. Joseph le dice que Gracie es su hija, es familia, no por sangre, por elección. En el epílogo, 5 meses después: siguen juntos, poco a poco van construyendo algo. Analise(hermana de Brax) se hizo muy amiga de Gracie, salen a tomar y llegan Brax y Nick. Es navidad y Gracie le da la llave de su casa, se muda con ella y son felices. Fin.


Cómo dijo, infidelidad, es infidelidad, ya sea física o emocional, aquí hubo y Brax era tan egocéntrico que solo pensaba en él, no puedo creer que después de toda la separación y así, ella finalmente volvió con él como si nada, me faltó arrastre y dolor para él.

[Prac Agrl]

Really?!

The H and h are happily together, though it's obvious from the beginning that both of them have unresolved issues. Instead of addressing them, they simply ignore them and hope things will work themselves out.

Then an old family friend of the H (the obligatory evil OW) enters the picture. The H reconnects with her out of nostalgia. While I wouldn't call it outright emotional cheating, there were definitely blurred boundaries. Some situations were orchestrated by the OW, but the H still handled them poorly.

Here's where the story completely lost me.

Instead of talking to him about what happened, the h immediately ends things, goes on a trip, runs into an old flame, and spends the weekend sleeping with him.

How is that okay?

The situations are actually very similar. The H reconnects with a woman he supposedly had feelings for and spends time with her. The h, after what is essentially a one-sided breakup, reconnects with an ex and actually sleeps with him. Yet somehow readers excuse her actions by saying, "Well, she broke up with him," or "He emotionally cheated first."

I'm sorry, but that doesn't make it any better.

What also frustrated me is that the heroine's own emotional baggage is barely addressed. She clearly has attachment and trust issues stemming from her parents, yet everyone keeps insisting that the H needs therapy while completely ignoring the fact that she does too. She never seems to acknowledge her own flaws or unhealthy coping mechanisms, and the narrative never really holds her accountable.

Instead of communicating, she drinks excessively, blocks her boyfriend, avoids every difficult conversation, and then jumps into bed with someone else. Yet no one seems to call her out on any of it. Frankly, she isn't exactly in a position to lecture anyone about emotional maturity when she hasn't dealt with her own issues.

And that's another thing I couldn't get past. Even if you decide to take a break from your relationship, does that automatically erase all your feelings? Is sleeping with someone else immediately really the answer? To me, both characters struggled with setting healthy boundaries, but the heroine's actions were treated as completely justified while the hero was judged far more harshly.

In the end, I felt the author gave the female lead far too much leeway. The story wasn't balanced. She needed therapy just as much as the H, and sleeping with her ex wasn't something the narrative should have brushed aside.

To make matters worse, that ex eventually moves into the house that was given to her by the H's parents. That honestly came across as incredibly ungrateful and left a very bad taste in my mouth.

[Kazzy]

4⭐️
If you love OW drama, angst and relationship troubles this is for you.
-OW drama
- second chance
- relationship betrayal (not infidelity)
- small town
- found family

Our H betrays the love of his life when he emotionally cheats. H is a firefighter and dealing with a traumatic event which causes him to pull away from his loved ones… he does however confide in his best friend’s younger sister… who just moved back to town, who he grew up with and H is blind to her other motives….
Gracie our h feeling betrayed and walks away when enough is enough… I felt her heartache.
I loved the drama, angst and H family, Gracie’s family are selfish assholes- all she wanted was to be loved unconditionally… she finds a family with him until it all blows up… I must say I was entertained for the most part… near the end though I got a little bored, it easily could have been 100 pages shorter… I did however like our side stories- Nolan, Nick, Ryan and Annie… I hope the author continues the series….

[Stefanie]

Braxton and Grace

I'm a huge fan of this author, Ms. Madden. I love her writing!

If you want OW drama, angst and a huge betrayal, then this is for you! I like be how you get the gut-wrenching punch and the OW drama from the beginning. She doesn't give up and knows exactly what she's doing. Her responded and planned meetings. And our H as messed up as he was knew exactly what he was doing. The lies, half truths it always comes out.

But that Christmas scene was brutYal!! And that was the tipping point for everyone. It changed everything for everyone. Friendships were list and new ones gained. H knew things had to change if he wanted h back.

I will say I loved, loved this one!! Highly recommend

[Lex Margot]

Loved it

Another hit by Madden ! I loved the flawed characters and the strength of the heroine. No one is perfect in this story and it makes for an entertaining read!

[Christine]

Emotional

There is so much that happens in this book that to call it just a romance or a second chance romance is doing the plot a disservice.

The book is s as bout family both blood and chosen. It’s about self doubt and lessons Learning to stop the self doubting tendencies, it’s watching relationships implode and new relationships start. It’s about letting go but also about embracing love.

You want to read in one sitting but life gets in the way and you rush and get back into the story!

A great read!!!

[SAE]

Mixed feeelings.

I have mixed feelings about this book, while the writing was ok, it wasn't really exciting, I started to skim the pages because it just dragged on..... so much woe is me... so many missed communication moments... it just annoyed me so much!!
I wanted the ow to have some kind of consequences... nope nadda... the fmc sleeps with her ex... well respect lost there!!

[ᴀᴅᴇʟᴀ]

*Slight spoilers ahead*

If the emotional affair didn’t prove that he was a shitty boyfriend before, the fact that he never gave her flowers in their two years of dating solidified it for me. While trying to earn her forgiveness during their “dates”, he gives her flowers and she starts crying because no one had ever done it before. Braxton, what the fuck were you doing for two years?

I had to skim read the beginning because I couldn’t take reading about them being happy knowing what was coming. I don’t like a cheating trope, I despise it. And while this was “micro cheating” I still don’t know if I would be able to forgive him, which made this hard to read.

Reading the parts about his emotional affair were uncomfortable because it felt off? I think the author wrote it with that intention, but it was like he was having an out of body experience just letting it happen. He didn’t seem to enjoy OW’s presence or feel any attraction to her, but that didn’t stop him from going against Gracie’s wishes of not being alone with OW.

To all the women out there going through a situation like this, pls let me hold your hands and say that if you have to ask your man to not be alone with someone, just leave him. Braxton owed Gracie the loyalty of not being alone with OW, and still chose to ignore it. I understand that he went through something traumatic but if he folded for a woman that he wasn’t ever with romantically, I wouldn’t expect him to be loyal in the long run when things get tough.

The OW, Paisley, was a POS that i honestly couldn’t stand but do I blame her for getting the wrong impression? No. Braxton was giving her all the signs she needed to keep pursuing him. So why was he shocked when she busted a scandal at Christmas? I had to put the book down because I was getting heated and thought “why are you shocked, idiot you practically dated her behind your girlfriend’s back!?”

Omg another detail that made me sick was him losing the offer on the house they were going to buy because he was on a “date” with Paisley. The fact that they still ended up living there after that is insane to me, I would’ve sold it. Living there would only remind me of him being a shitty boyfriend.

One more thing. I feel like Braxton’s parents were painted like saints who loved Gracie and would do anything for her, yet they knew that Paisley and her mom were scheming to get Braxton to cheat, and still had them over for Christmas dinner. If they were truly as ride or die for her as they claim to be, why would they not protect her by at least warning her that they were going to show up? They all let her be blindsided multiple times, Braxton included.

Rehashing all of these details, and i’m mad all over again. I just felt like Braxton is the type of guy you meet before finding your husband. I felt like he was redeemable because all things considered, he didn’t go further than holding hands, but I still didn’t feel like he should’ve been forgiven.

It also irked me that this book made me contemplate something I had never contemplated before: that emotional cheating is not as bad as physical cheating. And I hate that. Cheating is cheating, plain and simple. If I were in Gracie’s shoes, I don’t think I would have been as forgiving and I think that’s why I’m so upset that it ended this way. Every time a good moment was had, I would just remember that he’d done this before behind my back with someone else. I don’t think I could get over it. I had to skim the parts where they got back together and happy because it just made my skin crawl.

I don’t know, all I know is I wish I hadn’t read this because it bummed me out. I might be getting my period soon, maybe thats why.

Anyways, if you made it this far ty for reading my review🫶
I just finished the book and needed to get this all out so that I (hopefully) never have to think about this ever again.

[tyna]

Awful fmc

[Saunders]

save me from adults characters who haven't grown up.

[JillyB]

First off, I love this story! This is going in my coveted “will read again” pile. It has that beautiful combination of angst, passion, emotional turmoil, and humor. Mackenzie Madden has a way of not only getting the reader invested in the hero and heroine but also the supporting characters. Don’t mistake that for meaning the supporting characters take over the story, because they do not, but they enrich the story the way you want your supporting characters to do.(however, on a side note some of the side characters will be getting their own stories, and if they weren’t I would be camped out on the author’s lawn demanding it LOL even if her lawn was in Antarctica! )

Themes that I love that are in this story:

My initial interest in this story came from the fact that the ow was not only an unrequited love for the H, but it was the whole she is like a “sister” to me trope! Those little “sisters” can cause a lot of destruction

Overheard and uncovered

Micro cheating-emotional only

Supportive family and friends(but they call you out on your crap)

Om drama….but the good kind

Second Chances

OW DRAMA:
BFF baby sis(she is the one that got away, but is now back to stake a claim)
She seems sweet, but is up to no good, but hero is blinded
Sows seeds of doubt in heroine
Has secrets that get exposed, and she goes down!!!

So here is a general overview: Gracie is our heroine, and she has been with Braxton our hero for almost 2 years. They do not officially live together yet, but they are looking for a home in the small town that Brax has always lived. Meanwhile, they spend as much time together as possible when he is not on firefighting duty, and she is not working at the floral shop. In flashbacks we see how they met and their cute interactions with each other. We also get some of the passionate scenes that will have you tilting your phone so no one can take a look!

Gracie has trust issues. Her parents were never affectionate and were always worried about the optics. A child was inconvenient, unless they could use her as a trophy or status symbol of some sort. Braxton’s family is warm and inviting. His dad(Stephen) is a a retired firefighter, his mom(Raewyn)a SAHM and his younger sister is currently in college. They love Gracie with all their heart, and when Braxton screws up they do not abandon Gracie. They support her while giving their son support he needs as well.

Braxton’s parents are very good friends with Nick, his bff’s parents(Esther and Joseph). It so happens that Nick has a younger sister Paisley. Braxton’s unrequited love interest. She dismissed him and his feelings 4 years ago, and hasn’t seen him since. She is back in town and staying for good. She is ready to put down roots. The problem is she is “rooting” for a taken a man. The man whose heart she broke once. The man who is currently looking for a house with his girlfriend. Paisley is quite sure his feelings for her can be resurrected, and she goes all out!

Meanwhile, Braxton is fighting some internal demons that have nothing to do with unrequited childish -love. Yet Paisley represents a time in his life that was carefree and simple, before there were grown up responsibilities and boo boos that could be cured with a bandaid and a kiss. Nope, life has gotten very real for Braxton, and his inability to deal with it head on has resulted in a fracture within his relationship with Gracie.

What unfolds is a series of events and betrayals. The betrayals by Braxton are not loud or in your face. They are silent, and insidious. It is what he doesn’t say, or what he purposely withholds. It is his actions or inactions. The events are often calculated by the ow. She knows how to take a situation and make it, shall we say, questionable! She says things, she does things, and to some it may seem innocent, just a friend reconnecting with a friend, an ear for listening. Nothing wrong with that, right? This combined with Braxton pulling away emotionally for other reasons not connected to h or ow, create the perfect storm. It sows the seeds of mistrust. By the time Braxton gets hit with the full impact of his mistakes, and how many boundaries were crossed, it is too late. Gracie leaves him, and she does some reconnecting of her own👀.

When Gracie returns to their small town several weeks later, she is renewed and reenergized even though she still has a broken heart. During this time Braxton started getting some much needed help. He also realized that in order to win back Gracie he needed to fix what he had broken. IT helps that he has such a wonderful family, I would take him back just for them alone lol!


I realize I am leaving out the nitty gritty and spoilers. I can tell you I had the opportunity to read this story a couple of different times. The first time I read it, it was chapter by chapter drops. I got all my coworkers involved as I retold them the latest chapter. They would ask for updates(even the guys in my department lol)The second time I read it , the story was complete with chapters being reworked. I thought I loved the story the first time, but the second time put it in a whole different category. There was no skimming, I was glued to it like the first time. Why? Well for one, the author puts forth a lot of heart in the story without it becoming a Hallmark special of the week. I loved most of the characters she wrote about and the ones I didn’t love, I wasn’t supposed to! She also infuses humor throughout. The characters felt real and authentic, not caricatures of people! I had many LOL moments. In addition to this she did not shy away from the passionate moments as well! It was, um, great to see Braxton and Gracie connect in all ways 😜She also infused the very real issues of stress, and intense moments that can mess with a person’s mind to the extent that they are able to go through the motions of living, but miss out on essential cues. Especially men who are often told to suck it up! Not all things are meant to be dealt with on your own, and yes even though it may be obvious to open up to the one you love the most it doesn’t always happen that way. (Bartenders and hairdressers can attest to that!) Mackenzie Madden also kept up the pace in this book. In stories you expect that there is the rising action(angst galore) leading to the confrontation, and then there is the aftermath, the time where the character needs to make amends. Sometimes an author can lose their readers a little bit in the aftermath. That was not the case here at all. And she did not need to add little tricks or unnecessary drama(however, there was still some drama, and the comeuppance! I do so love a comeuppance) Basically this story had me hooked from the beginning to the end. Finally, one of the most prevalent features in this story is love. I always felt Braxton’s love for Gracie even when he was being completely stupid, mainly because I knew he was struggling. I also felt Gracie’s love for Brax. In addition to this the supporting characters, such as his parents and Nick were so forthright and loving. I don’t know how many more books I will end up reading this year….but I already know that this is in my top 5 favorites! I don’t care what comes out, this will not relinquish its spot!

[Carole Copeland]

I wanted to like this

I really wanted to like this. There were some spots that dragged this story out that wasn't need but what most disappointed me was once again an author has a woman who has to seek self worth by sleeping with someone else. So not a fan of that. We are reading a story of how these to overcome adversity. The author even has her acknowledging that is wasn't a good thing. I want to read about strong women who know that, yes they are hurt, but they love the guy who hurt them and aren't in any frame of mind and wouldn't want to just give themselves to some just to do it. And this is another story where the lead male is traumatized and yes he crosses boundaries but he also was manipulated into situations and hadn't even thought of cheating on her. Dumb not to see what the OW was doing but still the author doesn't have him present as making this a more emotional and physical cheating book, but the lead female, I know, I know, they weren't together, actually cheats. Knowing she still loves him, knowing she still needs closure...case the doors not fully closed. Also, the reason the author gives for her needing to sleep with some doesn't fit. She wants to feel safe and chosen so ahe picks her ex who doesn't chose her and can't offer safety like she wants, so it's meaningless. Let's write about strong who don't do revenge sex and don't value themselves just by sleeping with someone.

[BAG of Books]

Braxton and Gracie have been together for a year and a half and are planning to buy a house together in Braxton’s home town of Sterling Creek. This is a big deal for Gracie because she’s estranged from her uncaring parents and she basically has no real family.

Braxton, a firefighter suffering from unexplained PTSD and nightmares, refuses to talk about whatever happened to him.

At Thanksgiving, Nick's sister Paisley returns home after four years away at university. Gracie immediately senses something strange between Paisley and Braxton. She later overhears them discussing how, the day before Paisley left for college, Braxton confessed that he loved her. Paisley admits she hoped he would be single when she returned, but Braxton says he loves Gracie. He also admits he never told Gracie about his feelings for Paisley.

Gracie feels blindsided and asks Braxton for complete transparency about any future contact with Paisley. He agrees but repeatedly breaks that promise. Paisley begins "running into" him, and he hides it from Gracie, breaking her boundary pretty much immediately after agreeing to it.

One day, after finally attending counseling for his PTSD, Braxton spends the afternoon with Paisley, who "ran into him" again, tells her about the PTSD incident (something he never told Gracie), and goes to the movies with her in what looks like a date. He misses the opportunity to make an offer on the house because his phone is off, and another buyer gets it instead.

Paisley later manipulates the situation further, bringing Braxton's phone to Gracie's workplace to make it appear they spent the night together. Although Braxton, Paisley, and Nick had only slept at Nick's house after drinking, Braxton again failed to tell Gracie. When Gracie also discovers the secret afternoon outing with Paisley, she decides to end the relationship.

Gracie secretly plans to spend one final Christmas with Braxton's family because she has no family of her own. She doesn't know Paisley and Nick will also be there. During the gift exchange, Paisley smugly reveals Braxton's secret outings and gives Gracie the same perfume she wears herself. Gracie planned to break up with him anyway, so she gives Braxton his own gift wrapped phone (the one Paisley brought to her) and leaves.

Braxton hopes Gracie will eventually forgive him, but on New Year's Eve, photos are posted of Paisley kissing him at a fire station party. Gracie believes he cheated, unaware that Paisley forced herself on a drunk Braxton.

Afterward, Braxton's mother, Rae, reveals to Gracie that, when she heard that an offer was made while Braxton was dragging his feet, she outbid them and bought the house, intending to surprise Gracie and Braxton at Xmas. She offers Gracie a rent-to-own arrangement to buy it without Braxton if that's what she wants, but Gracie leaves town for several months while she thinks about it. Braxton takes a leave of absence to finally address his PTSD, while Nick reveals that Paisley had actually returned home after a disastrous affair with a married professor and had deliberately targeted Braxton. Following the forced kiss, Paisley has now left home again.

While gone, Gracie reconnects with Nolan, her ex-boyfriend and Declan's brother from “The Ring Thief.” They renew their friendship and sleep together (just once, I think), though Nolan returns to Sterling Creek with Gracie, as a friend and temporary roommate.

When Braxton finally works up the courage to visit Gracie at her flower shop, he arrives to witness Gracie’s confrontation with Nick and Paisley's mother, who blames Gracie for the fallout between their families after the Xmas debacle. Gracie reveals that she knew about Braxton's outing with Paisley before Christmas, because he came home smelling like Paisley's perfume. Braxton realizes, for the first time, that Gracie had already discovered the "date" before the Christmas confrontation, and that Paisley's gift of the same perfume was an especially deliberate and cruel provocation. Gracie agrees to talk to Braxton to have a closure conversation, but not that day. So, some more time passes with them having no contact with each other at all.

(And by this time, Gracie's still friends with Braxton's mom and has agreed to the rent-to-own contract. Rae told Gracie that the kiss was nonconsensual, but that doesn't mean Gracie wants to get back together with Braxton. The kiss isn't really the issue.)

Gracie is alone in the flower shop one night when someone breaks in just after she locks the door. Braxton arrives, but so does Nolan, and Gracie goes to the hospital with Nolan.

She later identifies a man in a photo lineup who had been in the shop earlier that day. He has numerous priors, making him the likely masked intruder. His sister, Halsey, cooperates with police and becomes a new secondary character. Nick may be fake-dating her undercover to get information about her brother, but he won't admit it, potentially setting up his own book.

Later, Paisley confronts Gracie at the neighborhood bar, blaming her for the fallout between their families. Gracie tells her she doesn't have the power to break up their friendship or fix it. Braxton arrives and tells Paisley that her entire plan was pointless, because he was never going to choose her, even after Gracie broke up with him.

Gracie and Braxton finally have the real conversation. He admits he believed Paisley was still the good person she had been before college and assumed Gracie would eventually come around. Gracie points out that Paisley came onto him at Thanksgiving, yet he still expected her to “come around”?? Braxton promises to rebuild her trust.

Meanwhile, Nolan and Braxton reach an understanding, and Nolan decides to return home and face the family pressure he's been avoiding, potentially setting up his own book.

Gracie eventually agrees to a date with Braxton. He patiently works to rebuild their relationship and eventually surprises her with a birthday party. They reconcile and get back together after the birthday party.

Epilogue: Christmas again.

Thoughts: The actual dating and rebuilding the trust part of the book was actually really short. Most of the book was a long separation.

[Margerm, Pat]

4 1/2 stars. One of my favorite tropes. H withdraws from his girlfriend h when a first love comes back to town. The H is a firefighter who experienced trauma at the scene of a car accident. He tries to deal with it on his own despite many offers of support because he doesn't want to appear to be weak. The h is a florist and settled in the small town looking for community, friends and a family that she didn't experience growing up. She thought she had found it with the H and his warm family until the OW who he once thought he loved returns after four years. The OW is mean to the h and insinuates herself back into the H's life. Likely suffering from PTSD, the H enters into an emotional affair with the OW despite warnings from the h and others. Everything comes to a head on Christmas and the h ends it. She leaves town for a few months to find herself and reconnects with her ex. It feels like the stories of some of the characters will be continued in future books.

[Jennifer Maxwell]

The fmc Gracie was so insecure about the mmc Braxton's childhood friend Paisley, that he had what would be considered an emotional affair with (totally understand her being upset).But Gracie has no problem with herself still being close friends with her ex that she had sex with to spite Braxton. She says it was because she was feeling down but I really believe she used having sex with her ex as a way to get back at Braxton. To then talk to her ex about giving him orgasms right as you say you might want to get back together with Braxton (who hasn't touched anyone since her). Or how she says she never would have forgiven Braxton if he had ever had sex with Paisley even if they were broken up, but he's supposed to just get over her doing it?🤦🏼‍♀️