When a woman returns home to Louisiana’s Butterfly Bayou, her high school crush finally notices she exists, in a small-town contemporary romance from New York Times bestselling author Lexi Blake.
Quaid Havery always planned to follow in his father’s footsteps. He went to law school and then came home to take over his dad’s legal practice. Being the only lawyer in small-town Papillon, Quaid is pretty sure he’s seen everything. After all, he was once asked to sue an alligator for defamation of character. He’s prepared for anything the town can throw at him, until he encounters Jayna Cardet. She’s gorgeous, smart, funny, and unlike any woman he’s met before….Except he has.
Jayna never thought she’d return to Papillon, but when her life gets turned around she must learn to live in the close-knit community again. She certainly never dreamed she would practice law in her little town, but she finds herself in the courtroom, and the opposing counsel is her former high school crush, Quaid. It wouldn’t be so bad if the man had developed a beer belly, but Quaid is more handsome than ever. And instead of ignoring her like he did in high school, he’s made it plain that he wants to get to know her.
Thus begins a courtship destined to end in a wedding or a war. Either way, the locals are popping some corn and eagerly awaiting the outcome.
Review:
I’m just going to drop this here with zero context:
Judge, all we’re asking is for a stop to the relentless nudity that is costing my client money.
You’re welcome. 😉
Jayna and Quaid’s story was so much fun! The chemistry between the two of them was off the charts hot, making their antagonism-to-friends-to-so-much-more storyline absolutely delicious–and the courtroom scenes? LOL funny.
But it’s not all steamy sex scenes and revege via nudity–Jayna and Quaid have some real obstacles to overcome before they get to HEA, and not a few of them involve getting the heck out of their own way. As much as they drove me crazy with their individual issues, Ms Blake 100% had me believing that they, at least, thought those obstacles were real and valid. Watching them–with help from some pretty unexpected places!–figure out their sh!t was beyond satisfying.
Bayou Beloved is the 6th book in the series, but it should work just fine as a standalone. But since I fully intend to read every book in this series, can I please request a Sienna and Landon book ASAP, please?
Rating: 4 1/2 stars / A
I voluntarily reviewed an Advance Reader Copy of this book.