What do you think?
The One Who Lost Himself: Second Chance at a First Chance (Avery&Cade)
Three years ago, Avery Benett kissed a stranger outside a crowded club and told him that if he wanted to see her again, he would have to find her.
He never did.
Now he is standing in her law firm.
Cade Hensley is supposed to be a client. He is also married, in the middle of a divorce, and the only man Avery has never quite managed to forget.
What begins as unfinished attraction quickly becomes something neither of them expected. Because behind Cade's confidence is a past he would rather keep buried-and a man who has spent years doing what everyone else needed from him.
With Avery, he finally starts choosing something for himself.
But loving someone is easy when nothing is asking you to let them go.
He never did.
Now he is standing in her law firm.
Cade Hensley is supposed to be a client. He is also married, in the middle of a divorce, and the only man Avery has never quite managed to forget.
What begins as unfinished attraction quickly becomes something neither of them expected. Because behind Cade's confidence is a past he would rather keep buried-and a man who has spent years doing what everyone else needed from him.
With Avery, he finally starts choosing something for himself.
But loving someone is easy when nothing is asking you to let them go.
474 pages, Kindle Edition
Published September 14, 2026
About the author
Jessica M. S.
5 books42 followersJessica M. S. is an Austrian author with a lifelong love for stories, complicated characters, and the kind of romances that stay with you long after the last page.
After spending years getting lost in books, she eventually realized she didn’t just want to read stories—she wanted to create them, too.
She writes contemporary romance about imperfect people, messy emotions, chosen family, and relationships that feel real. Her stories are filled with banter, chemistry, vulnerability, and the quiet moments that make falling in love feel inevitable.
When she isn’t writing, she can usually be found reading, overthinking fictional people, or already planning the next story before the current one is finished.
After spending years getting lost in books, she eventually realized she didn’t just want to read stories—she wanted to create them, too.
She writes contemporary romance about imperfect people, messy emotions, chosen family, and relationships that feel real. Her stories are filled with banter, chemistry, vulnerability, and the quiet moments that make falling in love feel inevitable.
When she isn’t writing, she can usually be found reading, overthinking fictional people, or already planning the next story before the current one is finished.
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 3 of 3 reviews
October 4, 2026
ok so I finished this at 2am and then lay there for another hour staring at the ceiling
Cade. CADE. I don't think I've ever been this frustrated with a man I simultaneously wanted to wrap in a blanket. He is so nice. That's the entire problem. He says yes to his father, his ex-wife, his friends, literally anyone who needs something, and somewhere along the way he just… stopped having a life of his own? And nobody noticed, because he never once made a fuss about it. I spent half this book wanting to shake him and the other half wanting to make him a sandwich.
And Avery sees it. She sees it early. But she doesn't try to fix him, which I appreciated way more than I expected to.
There's a bit where she tells him she isn't embarrassed of him and then he just… doesn't say anything. Doesn't fill it in for her. Waits until she gets to the rest herself. I had to put my kindle down for a second.
And things DO happen here — there's a whole storyline with her firm, the ex-wife situation gets properly complicated — but it all lands in the conversations. Kitchens, cars, takeout on the floor. That's where you actually feel it. I kept waiting to get restless and it just never happened. I would genuinely read another 200 pages of these two arguing about what to have for dinner.
It's not a fast book. If you need something exploding every chapter this isn't it. But if you want to just be inside a relationship with two people for a while — yeah. Yeah.
also the divorce night scene. that's all I'm saying
Cade. CADE. I don't think I've ever been this frustrated with a man I simultaneously wanted to wrap in a blanket. He is so nice. That's the entire problem. He says yes to his father, his ex-wife, his friends, literally anyone who needs something, and somewhere along the way he just… stopped having a life of his own? And nobody noticed, because he never once made a fuss about it. I spent half this book wanting to shake him and the other half wanting to make him a sandwich.
And Avery sees it. She sees it early. But she doesn't try to fix him, which I appreciated way more than I expected to.
There's a bit where she tells him she isn't embarrassed of him and then he just… doesn't say anything. Doesn't fill it in for her. Waits until she gets to the rest herself. I had to put my kindle down for a second.
And things DO happen here — there's a whole storyline with her firm, the ex-wife situation gets properly complicated — but it all lands in the conversations. Kitchens, cars, takeout on the floor. That's where you actually feel it. I kept waiting to get restless and it just never happened. I would genuinely read another 200 pages of these two arguing about what to have for dinner.
It's not a fast book. If you need something exploding every chapter this isn't it. But if you want to just be inside a relationship with two people for a while — yeah. Yeah.
also the divorce night scene. that's all I'm saying
October 4, 2026
The book follows Avery and Cade who met at a club but did not exchange contact. After 3 years, they reconnected because of work.
I am 40% into the book and sadly I think I will DNF this one. The banter feels awkward with short replies, especially Cade's lines. Majority of the book seems to be banter between 2 people which feels too much. The writing was mediocre, nothing special or captivating enough for me to want to keep reading. There may be more that's happening later in the book but it is hard to care for the MMCs when I don't really relate or connect when them. I think less conversations and a bit more charcter development could help.
I would maybe come back later on to finish this book and i may give a different rating.
I am 40% into the book and sadly I think I will DNF this one. The banter feels awkward with short replies, especially Cade's lines. Majority of the book seems to be banter between 2 people which feels too much. The writing was mediocre, nothing special or captivating enough for me to want to keep reading. There may be more that's happening later in the book but it is hard to care for the MMCs when I don't really relate or connect when them. I think less conversations and a bit more charcter development could help.
I would maybe come back later on to finish this book and i may give a different rating.
October 4, 2026
This is a 10/10 read. Loved it from start to finish. Cade and avery 🫶 cant wait to see what happens with the other characters in the series. Fantastic read and author 😊
Displaying 1 - 3 of 3 reviews