Have you ever heard of a man-in-waiting?
Yeah, neither has my best friend’s soon-to-be monster-in-law. Ooo, sorry, I meant mother-in-law. Nor has she heard of the term, what the bride wants, the bride gets.
With wedding planning underway and a short timeline, my best friend, Lia, has recruited me to help her battle the snarly beast that is Mrs. Beaver. Not scared at all, I accept the challenge as her man-in-waiting–aka, man of honor–and take matters into my own hands.
The only problem is, with every second we draw closer to the wedding, I’m starting to see my best girl in a different light.
She’s always been beautiful to me, but now . . . I find myself staring a touch too long. My hand lingering for one more minute. And when she’s upset? Allowing her to sleep in my bed.
And before I know what’s happening, it hits me like a ton of bricks. I’m in love with my best friend. Not just in love, but infatuated.
No one compares to her and nothing seems to distract me from that realization.
Not the girl I try to date while I help plan Lia’s wedding.
Not her angry fiancé who thinks I’m growing too close.
And not the looming deadline of her nuptials.
Which means, there’s only one thing left for me to do. Prove to Lia I’m the one she should be with instead. But with the pressure of her engagement, the stress from her soon-to-be mother-in-law, and the breath-stealing nerves running through me, I’m finding it a lot harder to claim the girl than I would like to admit.
Say a little prayer for me . . .
It’s official: Breaker is hands down my favorite Crane brother. Huxley does the gruff, broody alpha so well and JP is the goofball, but Breaker is just a sweet, funny guy who loves his best friend but doesn’t realize he’s in love with her until she’s about to marry some tool. Lia and Breaker have been friends more than ten years. They met in college and have been inseparable ever since. They geek out together over Scrabble tournaments and novelty Yahtzee sets. She comes before anyone or anything else in his life. Well, except for an autographed Lord of the Rings poster, but at least he doesn’t hang out with pigeons. Breaker does get wasted at one point and almost donates to a pigeon charity at JPs urging, but luckily Kelsey is there to save him.
Lia’s fiancé Brian is a dud. He’s pretty boring and a total workaholic, although she’s willing to overlook that but then it gets worse. She knew he was a mama’s boy and that his mama could probably make Satan himself cower in fear, but mama just keeps getting worse as the story unfolds and it becomes apparent that Brian doesn’t have a spine at all and he’s definitely not interested in acquiring one, at least not where his mother is concerned. Breaker knows Lia’s making a mistake marrying Brian, but will Lia figure that out before it’s too late? She’s way too good for him.
We get plenty of the other Crane brothers, plus lots of Lottie, Kelsey and Myla. Ryot has a cameo and he’s not the only one. Breaker briefly dates Birdy and I just love her so much so I really hope she gets a book (fingers crossed). The supporting cast was fun and hilarious, but the MCs stole my heart. Lia is a sympathetic character and her interactions with Brian’s mom are the best. Breaker is an ideal book boyfriend in every way. These two were perfect, individually and together.
And in case you’re wondering, Kazoo doesn’t make an appearance in this one but they spend a significant amount of time discussing him, which is even better. I get a Maris vibe, like on Frasier, when we hear all the stories about his notorious sister-in-law and get to see how it affects Niles but we never actually see her. But it works here, just trust me on this.
If it’s not apparent, please note that I absolutely adored everything about these characters and their story. It’s one to savor because you will delight in every tiny morsel, I promise. I received an ARC from the author in exchange for an honest review.
