Morgan
Always Only You by Chloe Liese (Berrgman Brothers #2)
Goodreads Summary:
Get ready for an emotional ride filled with laughter, longing, and a sweet slow-burn in this sports romance about love’s power not in spite of difference, but because of it.
Ren
The moment I met her, I knew Frankie Zeferino was someone worth waiting for. Deadpan delivery, secret heart of gold, and a rare one-dimpled smile that makes my knees weak, Frankie has been forbidden since the day she and I became coworkers, meaning waiting has been the name of my game—besides, hockey, that is.
I’m a player on the team, she’s on staff, and as long as we work together, dating is off-limits. But patience has always been my virtue. Frankie won’t be here forever—she’s headed for bigger, better things. I just hope that when she leaves the team and I tell her how I feel, she won’t want to leave me behind, too.
Frankie
I’ve had a problem at work since the day Ren Bergman joined the team: a six foot three hunk of happy with a sunshine smile. I’m a grumbly grump and his ridiculously good nature drives me nuts, but even I can’t entirely ignore that hot tamale of a ginger with icy eyes, the perfect playoff beard, and a body built for sin that he’s annoyingly modest about.
Before I got wise, I would have tripped over myself to get a guy like Ren, but with my diagnosis, I’ve learned what I am to most people in my life—a problem, not a person. Now, opening my heart to anyone, no matter how sweet, is the last thing I’m prepared to do.
Always Only You is an opposites-attract, forbidden love sports romance about a nerdy, late-blooming hockey star, and his tough cookie coworker who keeps both her soft side and her autism diagnosis* to herself. Complete with a meddling secretary, tantric yoga torture, and a scorching slow burn, this standalone is the second in a series of novels about a Swedish-American family of five brothers, two sisters, and their wild adventures as they each find happily ever after.
*This is an #OwnVoices story for its portrayal of autism by an autistic author.
My Review:
The first book in the series is my favorite book of 2020 so far, so my standards were set very high for this book. Well, not only were those standards met, they were way exceeded! This is an amazing “office”/forbidden romance, friends to lovers, slow burn, sports romance with own voices autism representation and I loved every single second of it.
I have never really felt the need to have a “book boyfriend” like others say they have, until this book. Ren is mine. I am claiming him now. 😉He is the biggest cinnamon roll character, and I love him. The way he loves Frankie and patiently waits for her, and then the way he cares for her is so swoon-worthy! He takes care of her so sweetly, but without making her feel like she is not capable of doing anything on her own.
Frankie is a grumpy heroine, and I love her for it. She is a rockstar at her job and how she manages all of these pro athlete’s social media presence. Frankie also has autism. While autism looks different in every person, I loved seeing the way Chloe wrote Frankie. It was so real! I am a teacher, so I love and teach many autistic kids and see these characteristics on a daily basis. Many people may not know what it’s like to be autistic though and this book did an amazing job at representing that. Frankie also has arthritis. While I am not as familiar with this, I feel it was also represented really well in this book.
Ren and Frankie’s chemistry is so good, y’all! I was hooked after the first chapter! They can’t be together because she works for the sports team that he plays for, but they become really good friends. I love that it kind of turns into a friends to lovers story as well as the forbidden romance. I was swooning and obsessing over their chemistry from the very beginning of the book. I was just holding my breath waiting for them to get together, and was so happy when they did.
5 stars
I received this book for free from the author in return for an honest review.