In science, every action might have an equal and opposite reaction, but not in life. Life is unbalanced. Life is complicated.
This series keeps getting better and better. The football aspect is even starting to grow on me. These books have just the right amount of emotion and heart. Nothing too sappy, but the perfect amount of realness. And Mateo’s story is just that. It made me want to crawl in and join that group of friends.
SYNOPSIS
First person in her family to go to college? CHECK.
Straight A’s? CHECK.
On track to graduate early? CHECK.
Social life? …..yeah, about that….
With just a few weeks until she graduates, Antonella DeLuca’s beginning to worry that maybe she hasn’t had the full college experience. (Okay… Scratch that. She knows she hasn’t had the full college experience).
So Nell does what a smart, dedicated girl like herself does best. She makes a “to do” list of normal college activities.
Item #1? Hook up with a jock.
Rusk University wide receiver Mateo Torres practically wrote the playbook for normal college living. When he’s not on the field, he excels at partying, girls, and more partying. As long as he keeps things light and easy, it’s impossible to get hurt… again. But something about the quiet, shy, sexy-as-hell Nell gets under his skin, and when he learns about her list, he makes it his mission to help her complete it.
Torres is the definition of confident (And sexy. And wild), and he opens up a side of Nell that she’s never known. But as they begin to check off each crazy, exciting, normal item, Nell finds that her frivolous list leads to something more serious than she bargained for. And while Torres is used to taking risks on the field, he has to decide if he’s willing to take the chance when it’s more than just a game.
Together they will have to decide if what they have is just part of the experiment or a chance at something real.
I totally connected with this story, since I was a very sheltered and school driven myself. I never really experienced the “usual college activities.” So I enjoyed Nell’s list making and the checking off of the items. I wish I did that, when I was younger. Work is important, yes, but if that’s all you have, you’re going to live a half life. So, I was glad to see Nell attempt to take control and change it for the better.
Mateo was the best kind of guy. No, scratch that. He was the best kind of guy, for Nell. His joking and flirting, around his friends, hid his true feelings. But Nell saw right through those and was able to help him move past them. He was the comic relief that was needed. Everyone group of friends need a Mateo.
I also enjoyed their smoking chemistry. To have that kind of instant attraction, is the best, when it is well written and not over the top insta-lust. And that is exactly what this was. The perfect balance.
Somewhere between my chest and my stomach there’s a knot that twists every time I see her. And I’m starting to enjoy it, the strange pleasure pain of wanting her.
I enjoyed seeing the other characters, and how they’re slowly dropping in the coupledom. We also see a glimpse of what’s to come in the next book. I’ve been waiting for that one. I’m very excited.
~Melpomene