Blurb:

I’ve been running toward burning buildings for a decade. Then my best friend’s widow smiled at me for the first time in two years, and I knew right then I was in trouble.

After Caleb died, I made a promise—I’d take care of his wife. Keep an eye on her. Check in on her. Make sure she kept on living.

Collins insists she’s fine. She’s not.

So when she finally agrees to let me help pull her out of her grief, I vow to stand beside her however long she needs me, no matter how much it costs me.

Collins isn’t supposed to smile at me like she does. She’s not supposed to let me in. And she definitely isn’t supposed to be the best part of my day.

She was Caleb’s. I know that.

The problem is, I can’t stop wondering what it would be like if Collins wasn’t just someone I was meant to protect.

But mine.

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Universal Link: https://books2read.com/chasings

Audiobook Narration by: Connor Crais, Maxine Mitchell, Jason Clarke, Callie Dalton, JF Harding, Aaron Shedlock, Stephen Dexter & Jill Smith

Don’t forget to add Chasing Smoke by Piper Rayne to your Goodreads TBR!

Goodreads: https://bit.ly/4bJ6Ljs

*****

Review:

This one isn’t angsty exactly but it definitely wasn’t short of emotional ups and downs. I loved how Ansel was there for Collins and how he wasn’t willing to let her continue to hide herself away. How he was willing to do anything that she wanted to do, put himself into situations that could be embarrassing or uncomfortable. How he was confident in himself enough to show up over and over again.

I also loved how Collins recognized that there was work that she needed to do on herself before she was ever going to be ready for another relationship. How she handled ever difficulty that moving on handed her. And how she recognized her boundaries and stood by them.

There were a couple of things that might have been explored a little more. Not 100% sure if Ansel was a reformed rake or just someone who hadn’t found his person yet. You get the feeling that before Caleb’s death he was kind of a happy-go-lucky guy, not into getting serious about anyone. But then he’s all in with Collins and it isn’t really acknowledged. Also, there are some scars carried over from his childhood, and while they are brought up I don’t know that they are actually addressed. Overall these things were minor for the enjoyment of the story itself.

Because Piper Rayne weaves in lots of emotional moments – from the death of a spouse, to moving on, to uncovering some uncomfortable truths about those we thought we knew. Add in falling in love with your best friend’s widow / your dead husband’s best friend and it definitely brings additional issues. But I felt like they handled it with the grace and care they bring all of their stories.

Now what do they have in store for Sutton …?