Review: Loving You Is Easy by Wendy S. Marcus

Loving You Is Easy on December 9th 2014

She’s a survivor of the front lines of politics.

He’s a wounded soldier returning home from the battlefield.

Can they place their trust in the power of love?

Nobody plays the role of perfect politician’s daughter better than quiet, respectable math teacher Brooke Ellstein. But she won’t be caught swimming with the sharks again, not after the son of a wealthy donor sinks his teeth into her and gets away with it. Still, political connections have their perks, such as heading up the governor’s “Support Our Troops” pen-pal initiative—and getting first dibs on the smoking-hot sergeant whose picture shakes her right down to her goody-two-shoes.   When corresponding with sweet, classy Brooke, Shane Develen instinctively hides his commando tattoos and blue-collar roots—and he can tell that she’s hiding something, too. But Shane knows he’s gained her trust when Brooke gives him a blisteringly sexy photo. Then he’s injured in an ambush and a fellow soldier posts the snapshot online. Overnight, Brooke’s reputation turns to ashes. Even though he’s totally wrong for her, Shane shows up on Brooke’s doorstep, determined to set things right—and discovers that right or wrong has nothing on the chemistry they share.

Goodreads

I received this book for free from in exchange for an honest review. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review.

 

This is the first book I’ve read by Ms. Marcus and I enjoyed it.  Shane and Brooke are from two different worlds, hers being a world of politics and privilege  and he is a soldier from New Jersey.  Now, don’t get me wrong, Brooke is not a snob.  She lives her life as quietly as possible as a teacher, while staying out of the spotlight of her father’s political aspirations. Her father has always been busy with politics and her mother is a jerk with concern for Brooke’s needs.  So, she has chosen to lead her life on her terms.  Shane and Brooke are sooooo very different.  While he is just a regular guy from Jersey, she is very refined and at times very proper.

Shane and Brooke meet via a pen pal program that Brooke set up at her school and through those letters, they get to know each other.  I’ll admit that I would’ve liked to have read those letters or read more about the evolution of their friendship.  When they first see each other when he returns home for a short visit, it’s clear that they have bonded through those letters.  I enjoyed the scenes when they meet face to face for the first time.  Shane is flirty and playful with Brooke and I liked his personality.  Shane has made it clear that he does not want a girlfriend and Brooke has no interest in being some guy’s quick piece of ass.  (For lack of a better term)  Brooke has some pretty serious baggage she totes around due to an incident when she was younger.  Enter Shane who is wildly attracted to her and things get interesting.

This one took a turn in a direction I really didn’t fully see coming.  It started out as a sweet and sensual story and then quickly transitioned in a pretty serious and timely narrative of the dangers of social media and cyber bullying.

I felt so horrible for Brooke, when the crap hit the fan, it just kept getting worse for her and she just had to sit back and let it work itself out.  Luckily, Brooke has some very good friends that are instrumental in making sure her innocence is proven.

While all of this is going on, Brooke gets to know Shane and is family.  His family is…interesting and I’ll admit that I found some of the members of his family somewhat annoying and some of the drama that ensued felt a little OTT.

During all of this, we meet Brooke’s best friend and Rory, Shane’s friend who was deployed with him.  I really liked both of them and I hope that we get a story for them.

Overall, this was a great read.  I really enjoyed it and I’m looking forward to reading whatever Ms. Marcus has in store for further books in this series.

 

Oh no, no, no. Sex was not on her agenda for the evening. Some dinner, enjoyable conversation, maybe another kiss or two and she’d be making the hour drive north to her condo in New York. Her clothes would remain on, all of them, at all times. Even though she’d known him for months, technically, tonight was only their first date.

Either he’d picked up on her “no sex” vibe or he’d been kidding around with her because he finished up with, “ . . . hang out, just the two of us, watch a few movies, and talk to each other face-to-face in the same room for a change.” Which sounded wonderful, but in his hotel room? The two of them all alone? Was she strong enough to resist the pull of attraction that had her wanting things she shouldn’t? At least not yet. Because if they had sex when he thought of her only as a friend he’d have no need to make her a girlfriend, to make them exclusive, long-term.

In the quiet hotel elevator, Shane watched Brooke. So damn beautiful in a soft yet strong, sweet yet sexy, classy yet regular girl sort of way—so different from the brash blue-collar bad girls that frequented his favorite North Carolina and New Jersey hangouts.

She was wealthy, smart, independent, and way too good for him by far.

Had he not been chosen for her pen pal program, there was no chance their paths in life would have ever crossed. Yet here he was, so close he could reach out and touch her, so hard with need he had to brace his duffle against the bulge in his pants to keep from scaring her off.

The doors opened and Shane motioned for Brooke to go ahead of him; it was the gentlemanly thing to do, but it also gave him a chance to check her out from behind. Her navy blue and white striped dress went down almost to the floor and outlined her rounded butt and slender thighs perfectly. A long side slit offered tempting glimpses of the smooth, tan skin of her long legs. An expensive-looking, ultrasoft white sweater covered her shoulders, and fashionable white strappy sandals accented her narrow feet.

Everything about Brooke turned him on—made him feel damn lucky to be with her. Too bad he didn’t have the same effect on her.

Shane wished he’d had his phone handy to snap a picture of the expression on Brooke’s face when she said, “This room is all bed.”

He smiled. After sleeping on an uncomfortable cot for too many months he’d opted for the king over two queens. Right this moment he couldn’t be happier he had. “Make yourself comfortable.” He motioned to the bed.

The look she gave him made him laugh. When he got it under control he told her, “Lie down. Sit down.” He pointed to a hard wooden chair pushed beneath a small desk crammed into the corner. “Whatever you’d like.” He tossed his bag onto the bed, unzipped it, and dug around for a clean change of clothes, making sure to locate a long-sleeved shirt that would keep his tattoos hidden. “I’m going to take a quick shower.”

Standing in the entrance to the bathroom he couldn’t resist teasing her some more—Who knew? Maybe if he kept it up she’d give in and agree—so he stuck out his head and said, “Just letting you know I am purposely leaving this door unlocked so you can come in and join me. Consider this an invitation if you need one.”

“There you go again.” Sitting primly on the corner of the bed, Brooke looked up from what he assumed was the room service menu. “Confusing me with a girlfriend.”

The number one problem with good girls is no sex without a commitment. He sort of respected that. But it didn’t keep him from continuing his pursuit, for the fun of it as much as to get her between the sheets of his big, inviting bed. “Haven’t you ever heard of friends with benefits? I am very open to that type of friendship.”

“Of course you are.” She lowered the menu and placed it in her lap. “Unfortunately, I don’t play that game.”

Unfortunate indeed. Cold shower here I come.

3.75 Stars 

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