Just This Once by Mira Lyn Kelly is the third book in the The Wedding Date series. The series is about a group of friends from college and how they all fall, one by one in love. This particular novel focuses on Sean Wyse III. He is heir the Wyse hotels and has been groomed to take the leadership with the right woman - rich with a pedigree - you know - the right kind.

Molly Brandt is not the “right” kind. She is hard working, spontaneous fun person. She laughs and loves, while bartending and starting her own cleaning agency. She is the younger sister of Max (one of the group of friends) and has always hung out with them and been the youngster. Molly has always had a crush on Sean, but it has never gone anywhere until now.

Molly and Sean, both struggle to keep it friends only and then struggle to keep it just between themselves. What a difficult proposition when the nothing has ever been a secret between the group of friends… and Molly and Sean are HOT together. Add in friends in each other’s space, Sean’s overbearing snobby parents and Sean being Molly’s roommate and you have an entertaining story. Just This Once by Mira Lyn Kelly was a good read.

I am a fan of the best friends to lovers trope so I figured I would enjoy this story. I did not read the two books prior to this, but the blurb drew me in so I gave it a go. Unfortunately, I never felt a sizzling connection with Sean and Molly. Maybe it was something that built in the books prior, but their chemistry fell flat for me in this one.

Molly has been in love with Sean, her brother's best friend and now hers, for quite some time. She thinks she has buried it far, far away. Things change when Sean throws Molly's freeloading roommate out and he moves himself in. Panicked, she tries to get him to move back out as she knows her crush is real and it's reared its ugly head.

Sean is the heir to a luxury chain of hotels. His mother is pushing him to marry, and to marry someone who she feels is right for the position. ie. wealthy, fashionable, be able to hold their own amongst the elite of the city. That plan has not been working out too well for him. He hadn't really given Molly a second look, until he moved in with her and started to see her in a different light. Molly is not what his mother would pick for him and that's too bad. I understand the family pressure, but in this day and age, I think a grown man should have some balls and stand up for what HE wants.

Meddling family is always a concern, but with all their interference, and the lack of chemistry between these two, I had a hard time with the book.

reviewed by Deb

Sean had a plan to get a free loader out of Molly’s house. Protecting his best friend came naturally and he would do what he had to no matter if she needed it. Moving in with Molly while his apartment was being renovated was just the thing that would change the dynamics of their relationship. The lines begin to blur and they begin to see what was lying in wait all along. The simmering heat threatens to consume them both.

I have enjoyed Mira Kelly's books in the past, and this title did not disappoint. I loved the friends to lovers aspect. It was very well fleshed out as the main characters explored and examined how it would impact them and their tight knit group of friends. When two people who seemingly shouldn't fit into each others lives throw love into the mix, anything can happen.

I received an ARC in exchange for my honest review.

Even though you make the best plans for your life, it can be full of surprises. A great romance sprinkled with sweet moments between two friends.

4.5 stars - I sincerely enjoyed Just This Once, in which two best friends finally decide to give a relationship a try. Long standing relationship concerns on his side, and fear on hers make for a sincere, saw a fragile partnership initially that made me question if it could holdup to outside forces. Yet, watching the next-level intimacy bloom and then quiver, but not break, showed just how much these two are meant to be. It was a real treat!

I received an ARC of this book, from the publisher, via NetGalley, in exchange for a fair and honest review.

For as long as they've known each other, Molly Brandt and Sean Wyse III have been best friends. Sean always thought of Molly as his "little sister", until he didn't. BUT Molly's brother is his best friend, so Sean knows he can't pursue Molly. Molly also doesn't fit into what his parent's perceive as his ideal match. Sean is heir to the Wyse luxury hotels, so Molly's carefree spirit doesn't exactly mesh with his "checklist".

Molly has always had a crush on Sean, but she's worked really hard to push down those feelings not wanting to jeopardize her friendship with Sean. Molly works several jobs in hopes of one day owning the building where she currently resides. While she's not college educated, Molly runs her own cleaning service, tends bar, and creates websites. She's NOT Sean's ideal match, but wishes she were. Having a heart of gold, Molly wants to help everyone. When she can't get rid of her free loading roommate, Sean decides to take matters into his own hands. He kicks her roommate out, then moves in himself.

If you enjoy best friend's little sister or friends to lovers stories, this is the book for you!!! I loved it! Molly's quirkiness paired with the "polished" Sean makes them an absolutely perfect couple. The hurdles they have to overcome only make this story that much better. I read a gifted copy and all opinions stated are my own.

I received a free, advanced copy of this book from NetGalley.com. This is my unbiased and voluntary review.

This is the first book that I have read by this author. The author provides enough backstory about the previous books, so the new reader is not lost. Not only is this a best friend's sister romance, but also a best friends romance, as Molly and Sean became best friends, closer even than Max's and Sean's friendship. The characters and the scenario are skillfully developed in a very entertaining writing style.

Sean has known Molly since she was 15, when she left home and moved into the dorm room shared by her brother, Max, Brody and Sean. Sean was the one who bribed student housing to let her stay. At first she was like his little sister, but as the years past, they became best buds. Little did Sean realize, that Molly also had a deep crush on him and had to bury it deep, so their friendship wouldn't be ruined. As the heir apparent of the Wyse Hotels, he is expected to marry a sophisticated, educated, poised, elegant, connected woman. Acting like a big brother, Sean forces her dead beat roommate out of her apartment and plants himself in the room, so the weasel can't worm his way back in. He realizes that he would rather be with Molly, then any woman that he ever dated. Can he convince Molly that she is the one he would like to spend the rest of his life with?

I really enjoyed this. I thought it had heart and humor and warmth. I'm a sucker for a friends to lovers romance, and this was extremely well-written, and I felt the chemistry between Sean and Molly was off the charts HOT. There are some VERY steamy love scenes in this one, which I really enjoyed <evil grin>, but I especially liked that Molly wasn't a typical romantic heroine. She was quirky...she had a strong personality, she worked several jobs, she had pink hair, and she preferred combat boots to high heels. She was definitely NOT the kind of girl that Sean had been looking for his whole life, as his parents had groomed him to find the "right" kind of wife--but I think she was EXACTLY the kind of girl he needed. I liked that the author let us view the relationship from both sides--we didn't have to guess what each of them were feeling -- we knew. And I liked seeing Sean a bit off his game and feeling confused and flummoxed--I got the impression that doesn't happen to him much. It made it more fun for me. I loved Molly. I thought she was a very well-developed character and when she gets her feelings hurt, my heart bled right along with hers.

There were a few "typical" romantic conflict elements that felt added for dramatic effect that I didn't love--they felt a little forced, and I didn't think they were necessary, but overall, I really enjoyed this pair a lot, and I liked the friends and family around them. I thought this was a good book, lots of fun to read, and hard to put down. I haven't read any other works by this author, but I enjoyed this one so much, I plan to seek more out.

I received an ARC from Netgalley in exchange for an honest review. All opinions expressed are entirely my own.

I loved Sean and Molly’s story with all those combos of Brothers-Best-Friend & Friends-to-Lovers mixed with few surprises. They kept me awake but I simply had to finish their book in one sitting! I just had to see what will happen in the next page and the next....
It was interesting to read how Molly starts to have all sorts of feelings about Sean who was idolised by her long ago, before she forced herself to see him as her brothers best friend and her friend too.
But all those ignored feelings, not just by her, starts to wake up more when Molly thinking that she will force him to feel uncomfortable and move out from the apartment, starts to be more flirty....and I will stop here because I don't want to write spoilers.
This book is funny, entertaining, sexy and emotional too. Perfect book for this autumn weekend.

Molly and Sean have been best friends for years and have never crossed the line. When he takes it upon himself to evict her roommate and move in with her, the game changes and neither he nor Molly can ignore the chemistry and rightness of things between them.

This is the first book in this series that I read and I really feel like that put me at disadvantage. There's lots of mentions of things that happened in previous books that aren't explained enough to make sense to someone jumping in and I never felt like I understood the foundations of the relationship between Molly and Sean. I did like this book and maybe my feelings about it will change after I read books one and two of this series.

*This is my voluntary review of an advanced reader copy*

“You remember all the times you told me to bite you?”
“You wouldn’t.”
“Oh, I would,” he assured. “I will.”

A fun, flirty brother’s best friend-slash-friends to lovers romance, Just This Once is all kinds of wonderful. I’m not entirely sure how I missed the first two books in this series, but I went into this one with high hopes. After all, I’ve read a few of Ms. Kelly’s books in the past, and she has such a charming way of writing.

As with others of hers I’ve read, the flow of Just This Once is easy and enjoyable, and all of the relationships—and there is a deep vein of friendship that runs through this book that’s fab—are on point. As is the way Sean and Molly handled their suddenly evolving feelings and changing relationship.

Look, I adore friends to lovers romance, but I have to admit to having a few frustrations with the trope that often sour it for me. However, those frustrations were well navigated or totally avoided here, giving me all of the highlights—the familiarity with one another, the “in” jokes, the history that gives weight to the romance—with none of the lowlights.

Which is, simply put, wonderful. Exactly what I hope for when I pick up a new book, especially from another author I’ve loved previously. And exactly why I’ll be looking for the next book in this series to come out ASAP.

“I’ll never get used to this. Waking up to you making my dreams look like nothing compared to my reality.”“You remember all the times you told me to bite you?”
“You wouldn’t.”
“Oh, I would,” he assured. “I will.”

A fun, flirty brother’s best friend-slash-friends to lovers romance, Just This Once is all kinds of wonderful. I’m not entirely sure how I missed the first two books in this series, but I went into this one with high hopes. After all, I’ve read a few of Ms. Kelly’s books in the past, and she has such a charming way of writing.

As with others of hers I’ve read, the flow of Just This Once is easy and enjoyable, and all of the relationships—and there is a deep vein of friendship that runs through this book that’s fab—are on point. As is the way Sean and Molly handled their suddenly evolving feelings and changing relationship.

Look, I adore friends to lovers romance, but I have to admit to having a few frustrations with the trope that often sour it for me. However, those frustrations were well navigated or totally avoided here, giving me all of the highlights—the familiarity with one another, the “in” jokes, the history that gives weight to the romance—with none of the lowlights.

Which is, simply put, wonderful. Exactly what I hope for when I pick up a new book, especially from another author I’ve loved previously. And exactly why I’ll be looking for the next book in this series to come out ASAP.

“I’ll never get used to this. Waking up to you making my dreams look like nothing compared to my reality.”

Sean and Molly have been best friends for many years. Sean sees her as passionate, exciting, unpredictable, a force of nature, and a free spirit. All those things make her one of Sean's favorite people, and she is too important for him to ever risk crossing the line with her - until he does - and all bets are off.

Molly has known Sean since she was 15 and developed a crush on him. He has always been there for her but has treated her like a little sister - until he doesn't - and Molly needs to deal with the change in their relationship. She knows that Sean's parents want him to choose a wife with the right name and connections and doesn't think she qualifies. She agrees to just enough of a relationship to satisfy their craving for each other, but it's not enough for Sean.

"What I'm talking about - asking you for - is you and me, together. Giving more than friends a chance, because this is the first time in my life that I'm not waiting for what feels right. I've found it. It's you... "

This is the third book in Mira Lyn Kelly's Wedding Date series and, while it can be read as a stand alone, characters from the previous books do feature in the story. Molly and Sean's story is intense and well-written, but I did not like Kelly's continual use of the F-word, as I feel it detracts from the quality of the story.

I received a copy from the publisher via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

Laughs, cringeworthy awkwardness, hot steam, sweets, and fun - all that and more!

Molly has had an on & off crush on her brother's best friend, Sean, since she was a teen. All grown up and with those feelings under control (most of the time) she and Sean are best friends. A little fake flirting to make him uncomfortable enough to leave her apartment won't hurt, right? Wrong...oh so wrong. That can of worms is wide open now - for both of them!

Is it worth ruining a decade-plus long friendship for...? Awkward....

I loved Sean and Molly! Of course there were times I wanted to slap them silly - but that's the fun part. That's when you know you love these two!
It's a great read!
(As are the other books in this series that are about Molly's brother and about another couple in their circle of friends.)

I give this book 5 stars. The storyline between Sean and Molly was well written and a must read book. I whole heartedly recommend this book. Is love going to win? I voluntarily reviewed this Advanced Reader Copy of this book.

Brother’s Best Friend, Room Mate, Friends to Lovers!

This book has all these troupes in one book! Is it too much? Normally, I’d say, yes. But in this case, Mira Lyn Kelly weaves them together in a way that works.

The story of Molly and Sean started in previous books in this series (although I haven’t read those yet). The two are good friends, while Molly is the little sister of Sean’s best friend Max. Molly has had an interest in Sean for years, but she has put a lid on it knowing they are friends and she doesn’t want to jeopardize that friendship. She also knows she isn’t what Sean normally looks for in a woman.

Sean evicts Molly’s roommate to help her out of a bad situation. Then he decides to move in with her! Their close proximity makes it extremely difficult to ignore the sparks. So...just once will get it up of their systems! (Like that ever works!)

This was a fun book that hit that “will they/won’t they” question with fun, understanding and carefully thought out characters that interact in a wholly realistic way.

I received an ARC of this book courtesy of NetGalley and Sourcebooks, Inc. All opinions expressed in this review are my own and given freely.

I really enjoyed Molly & Sean's story. Sean is Molly's brother's best friend & also her friend as well. Sean steps in when he realizes Molly is being used by her roommate, he steps in to help her. Molly has always had a crush on Sean & thought she was over it, but when he moved in with her those feelings resurfaced. It was so much fun to read their story, to see them move from friends to being in a relationship.

Sean and Molly have been best friends for a long time, and when Sean notices that Molly has a freeloading roommate, he kick him out and moves in himself. The chemistry between these two is explosive, and I loved the witty banter between them. Can their feeling be ignored as they move from friends / lovers? This is a beautifully written story, which this talented author has done an awesome job in penning. This story is fun, light-hearted, and thoroughly entertaining. I was totally captivated throughout this addictive page turner. I look forward to reading more of this author’ work, and recommend for all readers.
I voluntarily reviewed an advanced copy from the author and NetGalley for an honest review!

I received an ARC of this book from NetGalley, but all opinions provided are my own.
4.5 stars

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Mira Lyn Kelly's JUST THIS ONCE is an embarrassment of riches in the tropes department.

Is brother’s best friend romance your catnip? What about roommates? Or friends to lovers? This book has them all, and in Mira Lyn Kelly’s supremely capable hands, they are done beautifully.

I’ve been a big fan of Kelly’s since I discovered her sizzling enemies to lovers, MAY THE BEST MAN WIN, last year. The books in her Wedding Date series are charming and sexy, with big romantic pay-offs and a lovely and loving cast of characters you’ll want to be friends with.

Here are the deets on JUST THIS ONCE:

Sean Wyse II has always loved Molly Brandt, his best friend’s beautiful little sister, just not like that (italics added). And Molly loved Sean like that (italics added), but she learned to let those feelings go because Sean has always just seen her as a little sister. Another reason? Sean is of the famous Wyse family, and he’s always said what kind of woman he wanted to marry: someone wealthy, from a good family, and with a suitable education.

Molly is none of those things.

But when she starts “fake” flirting with him in an effort to get him to move out of her apartment, he starts seeing her in a new way. Will they risk ruining their friendship for the blistering attraction between them, especially if their long history says that the aforementioned attraction would only be temporary?

If you’re looking for a delicious ensemble rom-com, look no further than JUST THIS ONCE. And go ahead and check out her other books in this series while you’re at it 😉.

This friends to lovers romance book was such a fantastic read that I couldn't put this book down until I finished reading the very last page! The storyline was great and the characters were so likable and believable, not to mention engaging, that I was totally enthralled until the very end!