5⭐️/ 4🌶️ 

Nothing like a wedding day to bring everyone close and celebrate a beautiful union right? WRONG! Because, for Veronica Sutton, on the day of her wedding instead of preparing to marry her fiancée, she busted a runaway bride after finding out said fiancée had been cheating on her! (Gasp) the audacity of that man! Absolute trash! Anyways, after Veronica busted a getaway and essentially kicked her ex fiancée to the curb, she was suddenly jobless, homeless, no money, no nothing, and didn’t know what to do next. Austin Buckley on the other hand was juggling the many responsibilities of being a single dad to his twin children and running the family business with his dad. Austin needed all the help he could get, but when his sister is unable to nanny his kids like she usual does, Austin needed to find a replacement a.s.a.p.! Both in Cherry Tree Harbor, Austin and Veronica were in the right place, at the right time, and it seemed like a lucky opportunity that Veronica found out about the nanny position. Set in the lovely small town of Cherry Tree Harbor, this story also had the single dad trope, boss/ nanny romance, lovable characters, cute kids, humor, romance, heart, and a whole lot more. For this being my first book to read by Melanie Harlow, I was so excited to read all the amazing things about Veronica and Austin’s story. 

I love small town stories and this book was another one to add to the books I adore! From the moment that Veronica stumbled into the diner in Cherry Tree Harbor, she immediately had everyone’s attention, I mean, she was still wearing her wedding dress so that obviously got people wondering what her story was. Veronica was a lovable character and with her friendly demeanor and outgoing personality, it was easy for others to talk to her and feel gravitated toward her personality. I for one, would totally befriend Veronica, she was the kind of woman I would back up no matter what! Plus the rest of the townspeople were immediately taken with Veronica and coming up with ways to help her out (needed a job, place to stay, etc. since she was dependent on her ex fiancée). Veronica even managed to Austin’s kids to like her right away! If there’s one thing to know is that, if the kid likes you then it’s a good judge of character. Even with Austin being a grump, he couldn’t help but see the appeal of Veronica as well. All in all, Veronica was easily the kind of woman you couldn’t help but admire and want to befriend her or in Austin’s case imagining all the different ways he’d want to have her in his bedroom!

Who doesn’t love a grumpy/ sunshine romance because I. LOVE. IT! Austin was grumpy, but if you asked his kids they’d even go as far as say he could be a “stick in the mud” sometimes haha. For the longest time, even from a young age, Austin had lots of responsibilities from helping his dad raise and take care of his younger siblings to then putting aside his own dreams when even more things happened. Having his own kids at an unexpected time wasn’t a bad thing, but it did change the direction in Austin’s life. Austin was a devoted dad and always wanted to make sure his kids knew that they were loved and would always be cared for, he wanted present for them. I feel like as the story continued, it revealed a lot of what Austin wanted in his life and things he missed before not only being with someone romantically, but also his own ambitions. I admired the way Austin was so determined to help his family out in any way possible, always putting them first instead of being selfish and doing things his own way. That’s not to say that Austin didn’t like his life, he was very grateful for his family and kids, but I got the feeling that he hoped for more in his future (both romantically and career wise). 

This book was chock full of amazing moments and delightful tropes that I loved! I love when a man is protective, assertive (but in a good way, if you know what I mean), and willing to go to any length for his love, and that was exactly what Austin was for Veronica. Once things were starting to get more serious between Austin and Veronica, Austin’s protective tendencies increased significantly, feeling the need to make sure Veronica was alright. The moment when Veronica was face to face with her ex fiancée and Austin legit broke his nose, not gonna lie, I was cheering for Austin! (I don’t condone violence but in that instance it was warranted!). Seeing Austin became concerned and worried about Veronica’s well being was so sweet, and even Veronica loved it! Also, Austin getting jealous seeing Veronica dance with other guys kind of made me laugh because, he could have easily danced with her, but instead was throwing death glares at everyone haha! Plus, it was the first time in a long time that Veronica felt safe and that she had someone who cared about her in a way she hadn’t felt like with her mom. 

Why did I not read a book by Melanie Harlow sooner?! I mean I have some of her books already, but I plan on reading them according to the series. Anyways, back to what I was saying, THIS BOOK WAS EVERYTHING! It had all my favorite tropes from grumpy/ sunshine, small town, boss/ nanny romance, forced proximity, SPICE, lovable characters, and a whole lot of heart. I admired both Veronica and Austin, they were intriguing, loving, and despite their differences, they worked perfectly together. The romance was perfect and the spice was deliciously written like, dang Austin and Veronica’s chemistry was sizzling hot!!! Melanie Harlow knows how to write spice and it was fantastic! Adelaide and Owen were such adorable kids and even Xander ( Austin’s brother) were a nice touch to the story. I’m very curious to see if the other siblings will get their own stories because, I’m dying to know the whole backstory behind Ari and Dash (Austin’s younger brother). The way Veronica not only regained her independence, but found herself at home in Cherry Tree Harbor was heartwarming and lovely to see that she found that place she was meant to be. The ending was romantic and Austin finally realized what he needed to say to Veronica to get her to see just how much she meant to him. Then the epilogue! OMG! SO FREAKING PRECIOUS AND HELLA SWOON WORTHY! Not to mention the kids wanting to make me cry tears of cry over what they said! A fantastic book by the lovely and creative Melanie Harlow, safe to say I’m obsessed and will continue to devour each and every one of her books I can get my hands on!