How can the two most opposites attract?

Synopsis

Can the girl who hides in the shadows date a guy who chases the spotlight?

Eloise:

Ares de la Peña: VIP hockey goalie, stripper, bisexual playboy.

He lives for the limelight. He’s everything I should avoid, yet I’m drawn to him in ways I don’t understand. As our worlds collide, I discover he’s more than just the flashy heir to a billion dollar fortune. I’ll never fit into his world. But I want to.

Ares:

What is it about this girl? She hides her scars behind her bright hair, quirky clothing, and striking lipstick, but I see her. She’s the calm that quiets my demons, while running from her own. My reputation precedes me, which is usually a good thing, but in this case her preconceived notions about me aren’t working in my favor.

How can I make her see that what we have is far more than skin deep?

**Please note this book ends on a (small) cliffhanger for book 3**

My review

Eloise is a young woman who hides her scars behind her bright hair. She prefers nothing more than live in the shadows, without drawing any attention to herself. But that also means that she finds it difficult to make friends, and her anxiety after the accident that scarred her but also took her mother, only adds to her sense of loneliness.
But there is one guy who sees her… Ares de la Peña is a hockey goalie with a reputation. His family comes with money, at a young age he already was an addict, he is a stripper and he is a bisexual playboy.
So why is Eloise suddenly on his radar? And why can’t he get her out of his mind? But most important, what will it take for her to give him a chance and see the man behind all the show? 

I’m taking this review in a different direction than what I am used too. Because I think I first have to get all the anger out of me before I can start professing my love for this story and the amazing author that Lasairiona is! 

Because the end of this story made me SO furious! My dear Las, you don’t have to write such a cliff-hanger to make people want to read the next! Because we all love you and even if you would write crap, we would still read and adore it!
So tell me, WHY DID YOU DO THAT????? 

Okay, the anger is out of my system… 

What a wonderful, heart – breaking, heart – warming, steamy, accepting story this was! Beside the ending, there wasn’t a bit I didn’t love! 

There is Eloise, who has been through something terrible and is not only literally scarred by it, but she also lost her mother. And she is still having issues after the accident, pains that are inexplicable, but also her anxiety.
But I also felt that somehow she didn’t only lose her mother in the accident, because even if her father does his best, I could sense the distance between them. The love is obviously there, but it’s clear that Eloise’s father is also still facing the demons of the accident. 

I can only try to imagine how Eloise is feeling, with people looking more at her scars than at who is behind the scars. And it broke my heart to see how lonely she is at college. But I also was more than happy when she makes a new best friend, even if Tori made that decision for her!  

Eloise is also a curious woman, which is made clear in several occasions. Even when she sees Ares doing the heated thing with another man, she isn’t disgusted by it. On the contrary, she is intrigued by it. And even if I didn’t have the same reaction as her, I could understand her reaction. 

Ares… he must be the sweetest bad boy ever! He has his reputation and I loved it how he isn’t ashamed of all the things he has done or is still doing. Yes, he has made mistakes, and he has absolutely redeemed himself. But also, and that made me admire him, why should he be ashamed for being bisexual, or being a stripper? If that’s his cup of tea, let him live his life happily! 

But I wasn’t prepared for him to be so gentle and kind, even if he hides it. The hot chocolate – thing made me melt! If only there would be someone doing that for me!
And his protectiveness towards Eloise… what more can I say than ‘Oh Dear God!’. 

Yes, absolutely there are several heated moments in this story. Yes, those heated sparks fly of the pages.
And I have to admit, I had to use Google to see what his piercings are all about! 😊 

In this story we have an absolute Alpha, but with Ares falling for Eloise we also see a vulnerability in him, he wants to protect Eloise, wants her happiness, even if that would mean that he would be left behind with a broken heart.
We see a man that despite all his bravado is afraid to lose the one thing, the one person that he absolutely adores. 

But we also have a lonely, closed woman, who slowly starts to open up. And seeing that change in Eloise, seeing her not hiding any longer, was just marvellous.
She even finds the courage to fight for the man she loves. And she loves him for the man he is *now* and she doesn’t care about his past mistakes. Eloise understands on such a high level that everyone makes mistakes. But it’s the present that counts. 

I also had a lot of fun of getting to know the de la Peña – family better. I have a girl – crush on Athena I think I would have the best of fun with the brothers and can I try somewhere Abuelita’s dishes? I found it hilarious how they all teased Ares by *finally* having a girlfriend. Yet they also see how serious (for once) he is with Eloise.
But beside that, I loved how they accepted Eloise without prejudice and how quickly she became a real member of the de la Peña – family.  

Before I started reading this book, I thought it would be filled with a lot of steamy and explicit moments. But I was surprised to see that this in fact is truly a sweet story, about opposites with each their own yet different baggage, find each other. They find each other, they accept each other, they see each other’s beauty, and they are willing to fight for a future together.  

Now I am having a countdown to the next book, because I NEED MORE and I NEED IT NOW!!!