REVIEW: Crashing into Love (Love in Bloom: #20; The Bradens: #12) By, Melissa Foster

Fiona Steele has a great career, strong friendships, and a loving family. To an outsider, her life appears happy and fulfilling. But the one thing that’s missing is true love, and the only man Fiona wants is the one she can’t have, sinfully handsome and seductively intense Jake Braden—the man whose heart she broke, which she has regretted ever since.

As an LA stuntman, Jake Braden’s at the top of his game. He’s hired for all the best movies, hooks up with the hottest women, and lives an unencumbered lifestyle where his needs come first—and where he doesn’t have to examine his life too closely. Except when he visits his family in his close-knit hometown of Trusty, Colorado, where he spends his time avoiding Fiona—the only woman who knows who he really is.

When Fiona’s best friend is hired to act in Jake’s movie, Fiona jumps at the chance to try to win him back. There’s no denying the white-hot attraction burning between them. With every encounter, Fiona hopes Jake can’t resist falling back into the love they once shared. But her well-orchestrated rendezvous doesn’t go over well with the brooding heartthrob. Living in the fast lane is perfect for a guy who’s buried his emotions so damn deep he’s not sure he can remember how to feel—and he’s not sure he ever wants to.

Review

I love Melissa Foster and her Love in Bloom series. All of these men are sexy and alpha and the woman can keep up with them. Jake and Fiona were high school sweethearts that had their life planned out together. They spent two blissful years learning and falling in love before one decision took that all away. Fiona and Jake were always meant to be and now Fiona just has to prove that to Jake all over again.

“Until that summer afternoon, when that mouth he’d fallen in love with broke his heart for good.”

Fiona Steele has everything. She has a great job that she loves, friends that she hangs out with, and a house that is all hers. The only thing she doesn’t have is Jake Braden, right now he is the only thing that she needs. For years she has fought with herself about getting Jake back but always found a reason to wait. Now she is done waiting. She has set up a job on his next movie and with the week before she plans on cornering him when she can. I really liked Fiona Steele. She was strong when it came to Jake. When she was a teenager she had a weak moment, a moment of doubt, which made her real. Teenagers on the verge of changing their lives make those rash decisions. It was believable and real. While she had her doubts in LA she fought them and fought for him. She was funny and you could really feel her love for Jake, no matter how he treated her in the beginning.

“I found myself, but a piece was missing all along. The most importance piece. I’m not while without you, Jake. You’re my missing piece.”

Jake Braden met the love of his life in high school and just as fast she left him. And she didn’t just leave him, she broke him. Now he lives his life in the fast lane. He focuses on taking risks and taking a different women to bed every night. He also spends all of his time keeping memories of Fiona out of his head and avoiding her when he is home. When Fiona finally corners him he doesn’t know how to take it. She makes him feel again and he doesn’t know if he can handle it anymore. I wasn’t sure if I was going to actually like Jake in this book. I loved him in the other books but he really started out as an ass to Fiona. Which was understandable to a degree but I also think that he needed to be that way. He made a great character arc. He started off as a selfish bastard and completely did a 180. He was sweet and kind and completely loving to Fiona once he let himself feel again.

“You knew what I needed, and what I needed was you. I love you, Fiona, with every ounce of my being.”

Jake and Fiona’s love story was all about having the guts to trust and take a second chance. Fiona needs to be able to trust that Jake isn’t the person he portrays and Jake needs to let their love have a second chance. Even though there have been years between the time they have been together they are all the other person can think about.  No matter how many times Jake tries to force Fiona out of his mind he only managed to bury her. She has always been there even when he didn’t know it. I loved that Fiona and Jake have been holding on to each other for so long. Even when thought they had given up they never had.

“Because if I go in there, I’m going to carry you to the bedroom, remove these pesky clothes…” He fingered the collar of her t-shirt, making her pant like a puppy. “And bury myself so deep inside you that we’ll both forget what it was ever like to be with anyone else.”

Melissa Foster’s writing is always flawless and this story is no different. If you thought every story was the same with little variations you were wrong. Melissa Foster can bring out so many emotions in one story. While I might have hated Jake in the beginning I didn’t in the end. We got to see some of the other Bradens being Bradens . I can’t wait for more from Melissa.

“This was what he’s missed most, this closeness. This intimacy that he’d only ever found with Fiona. The desire to love and be loved.”

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