Book 5 in the Love in the Pacific Northwest series
by
Pages: 351
Size: 5.00 x 8.00 in
Pages: 351
A lawyer and an architect walk into a bar…
Jocelin:
What do you do when your boss’s pushy nephew repeatedly asks you out and won’t take no for an answer? You create a fake boyfriend. One who works a lot, so he never comes to office functions or meets you for lunch. It works well until le salaud calls my bluff.
So that’s how I find myself at a client event, practically begging a handsome stranger to play said boyfriend. Only after I calm down do I realize le bel homme in the bespoke suit is no stranger at all. He’s my best friend’s brother, and mon Dieu, he cleans up well!
When Gunnar volunteers to keep up the ruse beyond one night, of course, I say yes. I’m no fool. But fake love can have very real consequences…
Gunnar:
Being accosted by the attractive, if slightly flustered, Jocelin Allard before I even make it out of the parking lot isn’t how I expect to start my evening. But pretending to be his boyfriend for a few hours seems like a harmless way to liven up an otherwise painful social event.
And as far as dates go, fake or otherwise, I could do a lot worse. He’s smart, gorgeous, and has a sexy accent. Plus, my sister would kill me if I left her bestie hanging.
When the evening goes shockingly well, almost effortlessly, our relationship turns real, and for a while, it’s total bliss. Until I unintentionally take a wrecking ball to my life. Again.
Heal Me is a low-medium angst, MM fake boyfriend, sister’s best friend, contemporary romance about bad decisions, past trauma, and loving someone including their flaws. It contains no cheating, and a guaranteed HEA.
Publisher: Pine & Moon LLC
Editors:
Genres:
Pairings: M-M
Heat Level: 5
Romantic Content: 5
Ending: Click here to reveal
Character Identities: Bisexual, Gay
Protagonist 1 Age: 26-35
Protagonist 2 Age: 26-35
Tropes: Best Friend’s Sibling, Death of Parent, Fake Relationship, Hurt / Comfort, Pretend Boyfriend / Girlfriend
Word Count: 107708
Setting: USA, Seattle, Washington
Languages Available: English
Series Type: Same Universe / Various Characters
I step out of the hired car and button my suit coat, then head for the front doors of Jupiter Winery. As planned, I stopped at my apartment to shower and change into a fresh suit. This is a party, which requires a whole different clothing vibe. And now, I’m here, fashionably late, ready to show my support for Gary. I’ve just reached the top of the steps when someone grabs my arm. I turn to find Victor Knobb standing at my elbow, wearing a rumpled gray suit, with his hair pulled up into a messy top knot. He smiles in a way I assume he thinks is charming, and I curse myself for not spotting him sooner. “Good evening, Jocelin. What a coincidence we showed up at the exact same time.”
If I know anything about Victor, it’s that, like his aunt, nothing he does is a coincidence. I smile cooly. “Yes. What luck.” More likely, he’s been lying in wait, ready to pounce the moment I arrived.
READ MOREHe looks behind me, then smirks. “No boyfriend tonight?”
Putain. “If he can get away from work, he’ll be here.”
The self-satisfied smirk on Victor’s face clearly telegraphs his prediction. He reaches for the door. “While we wait, why don’t you let me buy you a drink?”
Calling on the manners my mother drummed into me, I keep my smile in place while extracting my arm from his grasp. “This is a Gary Atkinson event. Hibernian Press pulls out all the stops for him, so it's an open bar.” I’d have thought Victoria would have clued him in on that. Speaking of… I look around but don’t see her. “Are you here alone?” Only when his eyes darken do I realize my words might be misconstrued as interest, and I hurry to mitigate the damage. “I wasn’t aware you were on the guest list.”
His smugness only intensifies, and I want to smack the look from his face. “Aunt Victoria insisted I come since I’ll be working with Blake soon.” There is so much wrong with his sentence that I could scream. Instead, I swallow my annoyance and let it pass until I speak with Alistair. He was in meetings all afternoon and unavailable to anyone. At least Victoria hasn’t spoken to him yet, either. Victor opens the door and waves me in. “Anyway, let’s go get that drink.”
As I’m about to politely tell him hell will freeze over before I willingly have a drink with him, the unmistakable roar of a Harley Davidson cuts through the air. We both turn to watch the bike come into view. The rider pulls up to the valet podium, exchanges a few words with the valet, then pulls away, parking in a designated motorcycle spot. He cuts the engine and swings his leg over the seat, pulling off his helmet as he stands, and my mouth goes dry.
Gunnar Osouf is a ridiculously gorgeous man, with ridiculously large, well, everything. As he walks toward us, my entire body perks up. His thick, dark hair, which had been artfully messy this afternoon, is now shorter on the sides, with longer layers on top. He drags his fingers through the low pompadour, puffing it up a bit where it had been squashed by his helmet. His facial hair is now neatly trimmed, revealing plump lips and perfect white teeth. And my god, the incredibly expensive navy wool bespoke suit he’s wearing accentuates his broad shoulders, chest, and narrow waist perfectly. Next to me, Victor, in his off-the-rack finery, growls.
Before he can say anything, I hurry down the steps to Gunnar. “There you are, mon chéri. I was afraid you wouldn’t make it.”
Confused, Gunnar reaches into his pocket and pulls out a lovely light blue silk tie. “Jocelin, were we—”
I gently pluck the silk from his hand, cutting him off mid-sentence. “Let me help you with that. We both know you’ll only butcher the knot.” Gunnar doesn’t say a word, but plays along, his eyes sparkling with mischief. I drape the tie around his neck and flip up his collar, keeping my voice low. “I know it’s presumptuous, but I really could use your help. The person at the door is someone I work with and…” My voice trails off as I try to find a succinct way of explaining the situation.
“Is he bothering you?” Gunnar’s tone is quietly menacing, almost a growl, and I quickly glance up. His expression is murderous as he glares at Victor.
I quickly tie an Eldredge knot, fold down his shirt collar, and smooth my hands along his chest. “Yes and no.” That brings his attention back to me. “He’s mostly innocuous but persistent. He keeps asking me out, and I keep declining, but his aunt is a partner in my firm—the woman you saw earlier today—so I have to tread carefully.” So far, Gunnar seems on board, but this next part is where I could lose him. “He has been so persistent, I may have told him I have a boyfriend. Incredibly, said boyfriend never makes it to any office functions, so Victor keeps trying.”
Gunnar’s face goes blank, and he takes a step back. “Oh. He couldn’t make it tonight?”
With a snort, I step forward and put my hands on his chest again, feeling Victor’s eyes boring a hole in my back. “Gunnar, I don’t actually have a boyfriend. I made him up.” With a deep inhale, I look him in the eyes and rip off the bandage. “I was hoping you’d play that role.”
COLLAPSEHeather Duff on Amazon wrote:Let’s start out by acknowledging Mrs. Clarke for being the GOAT that she is. If you don’t agree, your opinion is yours, but, respectfully, you’re wrong.
Moving on, I absolutely love this book. It’s a stark reminder that us ✨sPiCy BrAiN✨ people don’t exactly work the same way everyone else does, but we still deserve and are worthy of love. It also reminds us to hold space in a way that isn’t always how we expect to, because we’re not always right. Sometimes we need to meet folx where they are and not where we think they should be.
It will never be easy to love someone who has any form of PTSD. That’s it. Full stop. But seeing Jocelin accept Gunnar and want to learn how to (safely, for both of them) love him and support him? That’s the good stuff. Growing together and building a lasting HEA is the ultimate dream and I’m never going to not be here for it.
Also, seeing a character with PTSD portrayed as a giant teddy bear holding a cinnamon roll? The best. He’s not just a walking stereotype and I cannot stress how good that is to see in a book. People forget just how much influence entertainment can have on folx. Seeing realistic representation matters.
The author truly went above and beyond to make this book amazing, and they definitely deserve props for that. It was hard to read sometimes, but I don’t mean that in a bad way. It makes you feel all of the feelings by the end and it’s SUCH a good thing.
Mechanics were also great, even if sometimes my commas wouldn’t necessarily be the same. None of them were wrong, and everything else was good, so it’s a win on that front as well.
5/5. Gunnar is my new favourite MC in this universe. Well, Mrs. Clarke, then Gunnar. Kidding! Probably….not. Not kidding. I love her.
**Full disclosure: I received an ARC in exchange for my honest review. My honest opinion led to a very real and rambling conversation about PTSD and the ‘I love you, but…’ response. Not only did the author hold space for that conversation, but they listened (and HEARD) me, and stepped up. My review and rating are my own.**
5.0 out of 5 stars Beautiful
Reviewed in the United States on November 19, 2023
An emotionally satisfying story that will break you but you back together again.Gunnar & Jocelin share a large number of friends and family, it’s a wonder they haven’t spent more time together. But that’s about to change. When Gunnar comes to the rescue as fake boyfriend when Jocelin’s colleague is being a little too persistent.
By the end of the night, it’s clear these two have great chemistry. They fall easily into each other’s lives. Supporting, caring, laughing, sharing…they are beautiful together. Until Gunnar’s PTSD is triggered. It’s difficult to watch. Jocelin has never experienced it before and Gunnar is unprepared for how badly he’s knocked off kilter.
It takes a lot of soul searching and love from family and friends for these two to find their way forward. It’ll break your heart to see how badly they both hurt, but by the end you know their relationship will be able to weather almost anything.
There is so much love and healing, it’ll take your breath away.
Heal Me contains mentions of a parent’s murder, references to acts of violence including punching and stabbing, on page PTS response including emotional outbursts, and one instance of punching inanimate objects. Other character responses to the PTSD manifestations might be jarring to some readers who suffer from PTSD. There are intimate scenes between two consenting adult men.
PTSD is not a one-size-fits-all diagnosis. It can look very different depending on the causes and an individual’s personal situation. The author has done their best to accurately represent one possible presentation of the disorder and acknowledge that their character’s symptoms and reactions could be very different from those the reader might recognize. Sensitivity readers as well as a mental health professional were consulted to ensure that the representation is as authentic as possible.
If any of this is a concern to you, please skip this book. Your well-being is important.
