I liked this one.
Football romance meets fake dating meets romcom.

There were times I was straight cackling.

Brooks & Siena 💕
NFL player comeback
Wild child vibes
Cute dog

I have a soft spot for books with backgrounds like Sienas.

Brooks that man is top notch. Like damn.
I loved him

Netgalley arc review ✨

Brooks Attwood is a pro football player who experienced a severe injury & is attempting to find a spot on his dream team, the Rebels. Enter Siena Pippen, the ex-girlfriend of a huge NFL star, who is looking for funds to save her family's failing business. The only plausible solution? Fake date... until it becomes real.

✨pro football
✨forced proximity
✨fake dating
✨badass fmc
✨down bad mmc

OMG i could not get enough of this book!!! Brooks was so swoony & sexy, and spent so much time teaching Siena how worthy of love she is. Siena was such a ball buster, super independent, and a mega badass. I loved seeing her learn to lean on someone else while also showing up for someone else. The spice was.... unreal. i was sweating. there was so much heart and love in this book. when he washes her hair??? yeah i'm cooked.

"And just so you're aware? You aren't an afterthought to me. You are the thought. From the moment I wake up to the second I fall asleep. It's you."

🌶️🌶️🌶️🌶️

thank you to Atria Books via NetGalley & Ellie K. Wilde for an ARC of this delicious book 🫶🏼

Wow, I am so lucky to have been approved for this ARC because it was so good! I honestly thought I wouldn’t like Brookes’ story as much as I liked Zac and Melodys but I was wrong. I LOVEDDDDD Brookes and Sienna so much. I honestly loved every single thing about this book including all the side characters. I cried, laughed and fell in love all alongside the characters. Perfect book all around! I linked my Goodreads review down below which is the same as what I said here, but I will definitely be making a TikTok review on the book since I loved it so much! TikTok: @ashleyrebitzke

3.5 stars! Fake dating isn’t my favorite trope but this book did a good job! I was entertained throughout due to the banter and spicy interactions! It was a very easy read and I would recommend to my friends who love sports romance!

There were a lot of miscommunications which really bugged me and I’m also not a big fan of assumption making, which happened in the beginning of the book.

Thank you NetGalley for this ARC!

Thank you so much to Net Galley and Atria Books for the ARC! I received this copy in exchange for my honest review and as always I’m so appreciative of the opportunity.

This is 100% one of the best books I’ve read this year! The witty banter and the scorching hot romance was absolutely incredible. This book presented the fake dating trope perfectly mixed with a heart string tugging backstory. Most of the time when books try to bring in a character with a foster care story it feels cheap or used yet here it perfectly explained why the FMC had such a journey with accepting the love she actually deserved. The heart and spice married perfectly and while this was my first Ellie Wilde book it definitely won’t be my last!

I will be posting this review in full on my goodreads profile, featuring parts of this review on my Instagram account story, and placing the story into the highlights portion of my Instagram page under ARC reviews (or page) on 4/22/2025.

Only Between Us by Ellie Wilde is a compelling and emotional read that captures the complexities of love, secrets, and vulnerability. The characters are well-drawn and their chemistry is undeniable, making it easy to get swept up in their story. While a few plot points felt a bit predictable, the heartfelt writing and raw honesty more than made up for it. A touching and memorable romance.

I love a good fake dating trope—add football into the mix, and I’m all in. Last year, I picked up the first book in this series as a way to dip my toes into the world of sports romances, and I ended up falling head over heels for it. The writing, the characters, the chemistry—it had everything I wanted. So when I saw the ARC request for the second book, I didn’t hesitate for a second. This book did not disappoint.

Brooks and Siena’s story hooked me right from the beginning. Brooks is trying to claw his way back into pro football after an injury sidelined him, and a leaked scandal has put his career on even shakier ground. Meanwhile, Siena wants nothing to do with football—or its drama—after a toxic relationship with the League’s golden boy. When a viral photo and a case of mistaken identity throw them into the spotlight as the NFL’s new “It couple,” they decide to fake a relationship to get what they both need.

I’ll admit, I’m always a little nervous with fake dating plots. Sometimes the chemistry feels rushed, or the banter comes off too forced. But it is nailed here. The pacing is spot on, the build-up is believable, and the banter? Chef’s kiss. Brooks and Siena have that perfect mix of tension and tenderness, snark and sweetness. Their dynamic felt authentic and full of heart.

What I especially loved is that they didn’t lose themselves in the romance. They pushed and challenged each other, yes—but without changing who they were at their core. So many times in this trope, one character bends too much for the other, but not here. The growth was mutual, and it made their connection all the more satisfying.

This book delivered everything I was hoping for: swoony moments, sharp humor, heartfelt character growth, and a romance that felt earned. I couldn’t put it down, and I’m already counting down the days for the next book in this series. If you love fake dating, sports romance, and characters with sizzling chemistry and surprising depth—this one’s a must-read.

Ellie K. Wilde is such an underrated author in this genre. She absolutely nails the sweet and spicy romance. I spent the entire read smiling, giggling and kicking my feet.

A few things I loved about Only Between Us:
⭐ Emotionally developed characters: Siena and Brooks are romantically connected, but maintain their independence.
⭐ A+ banter. Flirting like this makes the world go round.
⭐ Fake dating to the MAX. Ugh there's nothing like the tension this trope brings.
⭐ The smut. We can't ignore it. It makes me feel young again (I'm only 28).
⭐ No BS miscommunication or third act breakup. You still get excitement and "will they, won't they", but you don't roll your eyes.

Fans of Stephanie Archer will eat this up. My GOODNESS I loved this one.

I received an ARC of Only in Your Dreams and devoured it, so I was beyond thrilled to be permitted to read Only Between Us as well. Siena and Brooks are both compelling characters with relatable insecurities and fears, who recognize the brokenness in one another and seek to help the other heal. Fake dating catnip. Four stars.

Thanks to NetGalley for the ARC!

Only Between Us is a steamy sports romance about a former pro football star who has to fake date the popular ex of another high-profile player so they can both get what’s most important to them—all while trying (and failing) to keep things from getting real between them. After an injury sidelined him for two seasons, Brooks Attwood’s pro football comeback is on shaky ground. Explicit photos from a series of post-break-up hook-ups have leaked, and they’re killing his chances with the Rebels—his old team, and the only one he wants to play on. As he trains with the hope of being signed, Brooks’s plans to keep a low profile are suddenly upended when his selfie with a bold fan goes viral, and tabloids mistake them as the football world’s newest It couple. Turns out, Siena Pippen is the ex-girlfriend of one of the league’s most well-known players.

I enjoyed this one even more than the first—and I really liked the first in the series. The banter is sharp, there’s just the right amount of angst, and the football backdrop adds a fun energy to their story. I also really enjoyed the side characters and am hoping a few of them get their own books in the series down the line.

Tropes included:

Fake Dating

Enemies to Lovers

Sports Romance

Only One Bed

Okay, so Only Between Us by Ellie K Wilde totally caught me off guard—in the best way. It’s one of those books you pick up thinking it’ll be a standard romance, and then suddenly you’re way too emotionally invested and up reading until 2 a.m.

The chemistry between the main characters is chef’s kiss—intense but also really grounded in emotional depth. Wilde does a great job balancing the slow-burn tension with real vulnerability, and the way the characters open up to each other actually feels earned. Like, you’re not just watching a love story unfold, you’re watching two people work through their mess and choose each other despite it.

There’s also a good mix of angst, banter, and some swoony moments that had me grinning like a dork. And the writing? Super smooth and natural, which made it so easy to sink into the story.

If you like romance with depth, tension, and a good emotional payoff, this one’s worth adding to your list. Definitely one of my favorite recent reads.

Brooks is a washed up injured football player attempting to make a comeback in the NFL. Sienna is a former NFL girlfriend/influencer who is down on her luck and needs to make a quick buck. Brooks and Sienna agree to have a fake relationship in order to help his chances getting on a family-friendly team and pad her pocketbook. This is a sweet story of close proximity that is exactly what you want it to be.

This was enjoyable. Nothing groundbreaking, but still kept me engaged til the end. Wilde is great at letting well-worn tropes unfold in slightly unexpected ways.

I liked Siena. She was a fun blend of black cat (see: traumatic childhood) and NLOG (see: the viral video of her being surrounded by doves Snow White-style at an NFL game).

Brooks is an inoffensive offensive lineman (ba dum sha). He has all the trappings of a fuckboy grump (cheating ex, questionable encounters in alleys). But we get to meet him two years after his rock bottom, so he's verging on smitten golden retriever by the second act.

I will ask–and this is by no means specific to this book–what is up with authors shoving the next book in the series's couples down our throats? I understanding wanting to tease the audience; but "show don't tell" is still at play here, my dudes. Show us the chemistry and flirting; don't have your POV characters stop and ponder the chemistry and flirting.

Anyway, Summer and Parker are next, there will be bondage involved, and I will read it immediately upon release. If not sooner...

Speaking of which: Big, huge, hearty thank you to Atria for the ARC (which was provided in exchange for an honest review).

I really enjoyed this book. There is nothing better than a sports romance that has fake dating as well. Two of some of my favorite tropes. I am so happy that I got to read this early. I had not read the first one in the series before reading this, but I had to go back and read the first one due to how much I was loving the second. Brooks was the ideal sports boyfriend. He was funny and charming which is always a win for a main male character. Siena the fmc was super fun as well and independent. She was a fun main fmc which I have found it hard to find in the last sports romance books I have read. This book was just fun, and I flew through it. I did not want to put it down, and was immediately hooked.

Sierra wants nothing more than to spend the day honoring her dad by visiting his favorite football stadium, but her day takes a turn when hotshot, Brooks Attwood, literally grounds her. Brooks Attwood is a retired NFL player who has spent the last two years training for his comeback. He spends those two years coaching at OBU—the same stadium Sierra and her dad visited to watch games. Sparks fly immediately between these two, and Sierra posts a selfie of herself and Brooks to social media, and the world runs with a story that is not true. Sierra (the ex of Brooks' football nemesis) and Brooks are madly in love. Soon, the sparks are drowned by a cold bucket of water, AKA Brooks' arrogance. Brooks thinks that Sierra wants to use him to gain public attention, and Sierra believes Brooks is infuriating. While these two leave the stadium thinking they will never cross paths again, they soon learn that they both can benefit from the world thinking they are madly in love.

Ellie Wilde did an excellent job of creating a laugh-out-loud romance with depth that had my heart wanting more. Brooks is not a toxic professional athlete, unlike many sports romances, which often take a different path. He is truly good, and it doesn't take long for him to realize that Sierra is the one for him. Sierra has a heartbreaking past and a family that loves her, but she can never shake the feeling that she is not worth it. These two characters are a true match made in heaven - they listen to one another and learn how to speak without words, understanding each other on a level deeper than physical intimacy. Speaking on intimacy - this book was SPICY! In the best way. Wilde has you waiting and waiting for these two to get together finally, but doesn't shy away from some 'nontouching' intimacy *blushing*.

I highly recommend this book and will immediately proceed to read book one in this series. Thank you, Atria and NetGalley, for the e-arc!

Oh Brooks Atwood the man that you are🫶🏽
A Fake Dating football romance full of tensions and yearning!

In the second installment of the Oakwood Bay series, we get to know Brooks Atwood. After a huge taking a huge hit in football, that forced him to retire, Brooks is gearing for the biggest comeback the league has ever seen with his eyes set on the Rebels. The only problem is, when Brooks retired, he spiraled, gaining bad rep as a playboy, not the ideal image for the Rebels. In comes Siena Pippen, a beloved social media star and Ex-WAG who is instantly mistaken as Brooks' girlfriend when a post goes viral. What better way to clean up Brooks' image than fake dating the football sweetheart?

Thoughts and Potential Spoilers:


Some scenes in this book genuinely altered my brain chemistry. Talk about Hot and Bothered!! From the moment they met, Brooks and Siena were clearly attracted to one another! I always feel like that can get messy in a fake dating trope, and sometimes it felt like it was teetering on messy but never went over the edge. The instant attraction vs bad first impression/mis-communication was a bit tough for me to get through especially when they both had internal monologues about how attracted they were to one another. BUT when they finally got passed that and banter became flirting?!?! and the spice started spicing?! Delicious! the pacing of the relationship was a bit of a rollercoaster, sometimes moving really quickly but other times it felt like weeks would go by before the reached a new level, though it did make sense with Brooks and Siena as characters. Fiercely loyal, dedicated and caring, even when the relationship was "fake"

I loved it and I'm especially excited about how Summer and Parker's story has been set up so well for a third book!

Thank you so much to NetGalley and Atria for providing me an ARC! All thoughts and opinions are my own!

I loved reading this second installment in the Oakwood Bay series. This time we focus on Brooks, and we get to learn more about the other side characters from the first book. I really enjoyed every second of this book. Brooks is super sweet and Siena is a fun, strong FMC. Their story was a fun and steamy one. Definitely worth the read!

Thanks to NetGalley for an advanced copy of this book!

Thanks so much to Netgalley and Atria Books for the ARC!

To start, I'm definitely a sucker for sports romance and fake dating, so I promptly requested this ARC when I saw it. I've had the first book on my TBR for a while and still haven't read it, but I was more interested in the synopsis of this book anyway. Now I fully plan to read book one next because I really enjoyed this one!

Brooks and Siena start their fake relationship when a photo of them goes viral and they both realize they can gain different things by fake dating. Brooks wants his position on his old football team back and needs them to think his bad boy persona is reformed, and Siena needs the money that dating him could bring her. As with most fake dating trope books, the dating slowly becomes less and less fake.

I do think the book could've been shorter - I did enjoy the book overall but there were multiple times I found myself getting bored for chapters at a time, and I think that shortening it would easily take away the more boring bits while keeping the story relatively intact. I removed a star for that, but otherwise I did really like the characters and their growth during the book. I especially loved how supportive Brooks and Siena were of each other, as they both quickly recognized they were going through their own stuff and supported each other so much throughout the book. I think a more accurate rating would be 3.5-3.75 stars but I'm rounding up. It was definitely good enough to get me interested in reading more by this author.

Where was my second epilogue with Sophia!? In all seriousness, I loved this book. Absolutely devoured it and I’m not even the biggest fan of fake dating. Siena and Brooks carved a permanent hole in my heart. I’m a sucker for relationships where they are comfortable enough to truly be themselves no matter what and that was them to a T. I also get super tired with smut but not this time! I allow it for hot people only.

I really wanted to like Only Between Us, but unfortunately, it didn’t live up to the hype. The premise had promise—NFL drama, fake dating, and second chances—but the execution fell flat. Brooks and Siena’s dynamic felt forced more often than fun.

The plot leaned too heavily on clichés and over-the-top sexual dialogue, and I found myself skimming through repetitive inner monologues and predictable twists.

Overall, while the idea was interesting, the characters and pacing just didn’t deliver the kind of compelling romance I was hoping for.