Rating: 4 out of 5.

I really enjoyed this funny, flirty contemporary romance set in Napa Valley. Natalie loses her finance job in NYC and her fiance. She returns home to the family vineyard to lick her wounds. There she drowns her sorrows in cabernet and makes plans to start a new business. She is smart, capable, and knows her own mind. I liked her ability to own her mistakes, but not let them define her.

August is an ex Navy Seal who bought a vineyard in honor of his best friend Sam who died in action. It was always Sam’s dream to own a winery, but August doesn’t know the first thing about making wine and is failing miserably. August is honorable, loyal, protective, and is not afraid to show his feelings. He falls first for Natalie which is swoon-worthy in and of itself. Add in a sexy southern drawl and he’s the perfect book boyfriend.

Natalie and August have crossed paths a few times, with each meeting ending in an argument. But, Natalie can’t access her inheritance unless she gets married, and since no bank will loan money to August, she proposes a quickie marriage of convenience. She gets her inheritance, and the credence of his marriage to Natalie gets August the bank loan he needs to save his vineyard from going under. But, is it possible this fake marriage turns real? If it’s up to August, the answer is “hell yeah”.

One of my favorite things about the book is that the couple actually talk with each other, including talking about their feelings!! What?! (Want me to close a book and throw it against the wall? Include the “miscommunication trope” as a plot device. It drives me crazy and is lazy writing. My review of the book is guaranteed to lose a star for that alone. Ok. Here endeth my rant.) Natalie’s brother Julian and his girlfriend Hallie (the couple in the first book Secretly Yours ) make a brief appearance in the book.

I loved all the witty, sexy banter between the couple and the spicy scenes are steamy. I listened to the audio of the book and the narrator’s did a great job. This is a quick and easy read that is a great way to spend an afternoon.

I received a complimentary copy of this book from NetGalley and Avon and Harper Voyager. All opinions are my own.