Cooper Haynes has arrived to Sanctuary Island to stand next to his best friend Miles' at his wedding. He is bound and determined not to fall prey to what Miles' considers the island's romantic allure, causing everyone who comes there to fall in love. Why? Because the woman he loved, the woman who broke his heart, is also across the aisle as a bridesmaid. His ex, Vivian Banks. Cooper is still attracted to Vivian and decides to use the opportunity to use and lose Vivian the way she did him all those years ago.
Vivian's life has been turned upside down since she made the regretful decision to follow her family's wishes instead of her heart's. When she sees Cooper, all of those feelings come rushing back. She has a feeling that Cooper will try to make her fall in love with him all over again, although she wonders if she ever stopped, and decides to give herself one more night of pleasure in Cooper's arms and hopes that she can watch him walk away with her heart still intact.
This is the third and final installment of Ms. Everett's Billionaire Bachelors series. And she has saved the best for last! This bulk of the book takes place after Miles' wedding which was a nice change from the first two books in the series. I felt like she had the most character development in this one. You start off feeling sorry for Miles' broken heart. You feel his anger at Vivian and you really want to hate her, knowing how she led Miles on only to leave him waiting at the courthouse to get married without even a reason as to why she left.
And yet, by the middle of the book, you are cheering for them to get back together! When you find out why Vivian left and how badly she had yearned for Cooper after all these years, you realize the place they both need to be is by each other's side. Cooper has spent those years apart chasing death and "living life to the fullest" while Vivian has fallen farther down than she could ever imagine. Coming to Sanctuary Island was a new beginning for her and after seeing Cooper, she realizes she wants a new beginning with him as well.
This final book really is the best, not only in terms of characters, but also in tugging at your heartstrings. So many novellas that come out don't come close to developing characters the way Ms. Everett does. If you are looking for a quick, romantic read, you cannot do better than Lily Everett!!
(Book One - Billionaire Bachelors Series, The Fireside Inn)
(Book Two - Billionaire Bachelors Series, Bonfire Beach)
An ARC was provided by NetGalley in exchange for my honest review.
