💑 REVIEW: "Just Married" by Jenna Bayley-Burke (Contemporary Romance)

Just Married by Jenna Bayley-Burke
	Publisher: Macmillan - Swerve Genre: Contemporary Romance Publication Date: August 30th 2016 (Affiliate links)
Other Books by Jenna Bayley-Burke
My Review
Description from Publisher:
Seattle attorney Miranda Rose arrives in Las Vegas determined to keep her best friend-with-benefits from making a costly mistake – marrying some stranger just to save his family trust. But once there, Miranda discovers she’s the surprise bride! One red-hot honeymoon later, they’re back to their over-scheduled lives on opposite coasts. But a marriage of convenience with regularly scheduled sexytimes turns complicated when Miranda gets the shock of a lifetime: she's pregnant...with twins. Miranda has always wanted a family of her own, but her infertility made it impossible. Besides, Callum’s difficult upbringing places him adamantly in the no-kid zone. Now she must decide between the man she’s been in love with for years and the children she’s longed for. Or will Callum surprise her yet again and come through when it matters most?
My Rating:	Heat Rating:
My Musings:
This was a book that kept my interest, but at times had me wanting to smack both of the main characters. Which, honestly, is sort of fun so long as things end the way I want them to! At the start, you have two best friends, Miranda and Cal, who live on opposite coasts and enjoy their sexual compatibility whenever they happen to be near one another. I liked Mira a lot, and she felt very genuine with the way that she dealt with everything, including Cal. Cal was also a fairly typical playboy at first, but you could still sense that he was deeper than that. The fact that these two were meant to be together was pretty evident from the beginning, in the best way. After Mira finds out that she is pregnant, there is a lot of conflict that, at times, was the reason I wanted to snap some sense into both Mira and Cal. They both seemed to be way too hung up on the lonely "inevitable" futures they envisioned and refused to see the more optimistic outcome that was actually more likely! This was largely due to their own insecurities, which made for an interesting, though angsty, journey to them getting over themselves. It did feel a little off since they were supposed to be best friends (who surely knew one another better than to make such sad assumptions?). I did think that the way that both characters grew more comfortable in what they wanted was fantastic. The previous annoyances I felt were paid off triple-fold and I appreciated them that much more as a result! Finally(!), these two saw what was right in front of them and not just the futures that they feared to be true, realizing that their futures could be whatever they wanted them to be. (How exactly all of that plays out, you'll need to read to find out, but rest assured, the ups and downs are worth it!!) Also of note: the romance. Especially despite the fact that Cal "doesn't do romance." The way that it was obvious what Cal wanted and for how long, but was too afraid to even admit to himself, and the tenacity that made it happen... It was relatively subtle, but gave you that sense that there was more to Cal than almost anyone gave him credit for. The last thing I wanted to touch on is what a great "mom" read this is! Any mom should be able to appreciate the amusing situations of Mira and Cal learning about becoming parents and about pregnancy. I also especially loved the myth busting that happened (a friend's labor starts and Cal is teased for feeling like it's an emergency rather than just chlidbirth, Mira figures out that she IS allowed to drink coffee, etc.). There are also some fun splashes of Scottish traditions, a wonderful supporting cast, and some sexytimes that you won't want to miss!
I received a digital ARC from the publisher for an honest, unbiased review. This in no way influenced my review. My opinion is my 100% own.

About Jenna Bayley-Burke
By day, Jenna is faster than a speeding toddler, stronger than a stubborn husband, able to leap tall Lego structures in a single bound...but by night, while the family sleeps she writes romance novels where no one ever has to scoop up after the dog, change diapers, clip coupons, drive carpool, do laundry, mop floors, get silly putty out of hair, vacuum, empty the vacuum bag (gross!), exercise, count calories, apply bandaids, clean up puke...wait where was this going? Oh, Jenna writes romance because it is glamorous. Just ask the dog.