Synopsis
There are a few things Coconut Creek has that Pine Ridge does not. Palm trees, sandy beaches, butterfly museums—infuriatingly attractive special forces veterans. When Colorado elementary school teacher Ophelia Brody decides to ditch her divorced family for a Christmas in the sunshine state with her college roommate, she doesn’t expect a mile high meet cute to tailspin the entire trip.
Frankie Casado is cocky, presumptuous, shameless—and he’s just the right distraction from her depressing, fruitless dating life back home for a few weeks. It just so happens the retired fighter pilot is in somewhat of a rut of his own, and the circumstances around their coincidental meeting and unavoidable physical attraction are the perfect excuse for a festive fling. The rules are Ophelia teaches him how to date again, and Frankie shows her exactly what she should be demanding behind closed doors.
Friends with benefits until the ball drops in the New Year. But a little bit of long-lost Christmas magic just might find a way to stir up more than their complicated pasts.
Rating
★★★★
Thoughts
Whew! My Probably Smut book subscription box may have sent me straight to Santa’s Naughty List this month. Hopefully there is still time to redeem myself.
Ophelia and Frankie had undeniable chemistry, which made for a fun read. But further, the story offered well-developed characters who were interesting to learn about. Beyond the very spicy scenes, the main characters experienced some personal growth, which I always love.
My only criticism is that in real life, any military or ex-military dude who spoke so much about his military career would earn a sharp eyeroll and hard pass from most ladies. I felt like the author worked a bit too hard to convince us that Frankie had been in the military. Still, after living the military life for nearly half of my life, even in the location where the story takes place, I thought it provided a pretty good snapshot of some of the difficulties that our military members deal with—from family separation to medical and mental health issues. And that, I applaud.
I look forward to the next book in the Dirty Delta series!