The Buy-In by Emma St. Clair: When Pat’s dad buys a small town, he has reservations… until he finds out it the 
town of Sheet Cake. Coincidentally, Sheet Cake is the hometown of the one who got away. When he goes with his dad to see the town for the first time, he unexpectedly runs into her at the diner. Even when he gets shooed out of there, he has his mind set on winning her back. He has to find a way to convince her that leaving her was the biggest mistake of his life.
The last person Lindy was expecting to see was Pat. When she finally composes herself after her friends boot him from the diner, she tries desperately to put up walls to block her from heartbreak again. When she finds out that his family now owns the town, she tries to find ways to avoid him at all ways possible until he is arrested at a town party with his brothers and then accidentally punches a cop in the face. Technically it was because of her since she was being proposed to for the thousandth time by one of the local boys… He just missed that guy and punched the cop instead. Since he is now on town arrest via a ankle bracelet, Pat seems to be sticking around much to her chagrin.
Little does Pat know, the cop that he punched is one of Lindy’s best friend’s brother. When Pat ends up crashing at his house, he learns a lot more about Lindy. When he finds out that she really needs to get married in order to fight for custody of the niece she has raised since birth, he steps up to the plate. Lindy is immediately against it since she doesn’t trust her heart or her body to resist him. After they come up with some ground rules, they decide to try it… Good thing that Pat is good at bending the rules.
Lindy has gone through a lot in her life. From a sister who avoids all responsibility and turns to drugs to a mother who is dealing with trying to remember who she is, she has a lot on her plate. Never one to ask for help, she finds herself trying to keep Pat at arm’s length. When he starts to fix things around her house much against her wishes, she finds herself falling for him all over again. When he builds a bond with the niece she is raising, her ovaries almost can’t handle it. Over the course of the book, she starts to learn what it is to accept help from those who offer it and how to appreciate the love others share with her.
Pat’s biggest regret was leaving Lindy, but now he’s having an even harder time trying to get back into her heart. He wants to help with everything all the time, but he has to learn how to communicate with her again. As he bends the rules, he really understands what’s important in life. Growing up in an affluent family, he had a lot of opportunities provided. Now he is working hard to not only prove to Lindy but also the town that he is the real deal.
Overall the book was super dang cute! I loved that it was the first one in the series and can’t wait to read the rest. It definitely set things up for other books by having us meet the characters, but it truly focused on us getting to know Pat and Lindy. You find yourself enthralled in their tension from their first interaction in the diner, and you root for them the whole way.
Book Info:
Publication: January 24, 2022 | Amazon Digital Services | Graham Brothers #1
“You can’t Schitt’s Creek a town, Tank.”
“And you can’t verb a noun, son.”
When a family of former pro football players buy a small Texas town, they didn’t intend to start a war with its residents … or to fall in love.
Ever since his career-ending injury, Pat has bounced from job to job, idea to idea, short-lived relationship to short-lived relationship. But when his father purchases the town of Sheet Cake, Pat suddenly sees his life with clear purpose: get his brothers on board with his dad’s wild idea and win back the one woman who got away.
Lindy was supposed to be traveling the world, not stuck in a small town, caring for her niece. But she would do anything to keep custody of Jo–even if that looks like a marriage of convenience with the man who already broke her heart once.
Now if she can only keep herself from falling back in love with her husband…
This is a small town, marriage of convenience romantic comedy with plenty of sizzle while keeping the bedroom door closed. Perfect for fans of Sarah Adams and Sariah Wilson!
