I love Brooks! I’m so glad that we got more character development from him and really got into his back story! I really enjoyed Siena but at times she was too much, but when you got more of her backstory it started to make more sense. She did put me through an emotional rollercoaster and I was happy to see that once Brooks figured out that communication is key, he absolutely killed it and gave all the green flags. I was so sad for Brooks towards the end but I’m glad that both of them had their meddling friends. The ending was a little cheesy but I ate it!

Thank you Atria and NetGalley for the ARC!

Only Between Us is a steamy yet tender sports romance about Brooks Attwood, a former NFL player, who’s trying to clean up his reputation to make it back in the league by fake-dating Siena, a favorite of a different ex-NFL star. Both agree to the relationship to fight for the things they love, but end up fighting their feelings for one another knowing this was only a temporary agreement.

I was excited to read this story after getting the chance to read Only In Your Dreams and really enjoying it. What I didn’t expect was to love this one so much more! From the very start, this story was captivating and the chemistry between these characters felt so natural and flowed so seamlessly with the storyline. The pace of the story was great, and was so easy to read. Getting to know and love these characters came easily as their personalities and back stories were integrated so well in the progression of the plot. Also I enjoyed that the side characters played a meaningful role in the development of the story line as well. It makes getting to know this little universe so much better, and peaks my interest and more books to come in this series. This was a perfect quick fake dating sports romance that left me feeling all the feels!

If you’ve known me for any amount of time, you know my go-to rec has always been Only in Your Dreams by Ellie K. Wilde. So to say I was counting down the days for Only Between Us would be an understatement. I was on the ARC list back before Ellie got picked up by a traditional publisher (so well-deserved!) and I have bravely and patiently waited for this sequel. Let me just say: it was worth every single second.

Super Specific Tropes:
• Fake dating (with so much pining)
• Cinnamon roll MMC with a dominant side 🍯🔥
• Fiery, independent FMC who doesn’t back down
• Found family I would sell my soul to join 🫶
• Thoughtful and swoony gestures galore ☕
• Sizzling sexual tension and satisfying payoff
• NFL drama + reputation redemption arc 🏈

Brooks is everything. I was almost worried he’d be too perfect—too sweet, too golden—but nope. He’s the ideal blend of thoughtful, tattooed, quietly spicy, and completely obsessed with Siena. The man literally gets 20 different coffees and teas just to make sure she has one she likes. That’s the kind of MMC I will never shut up about!!!

And Siena? 😍 Ellie writes strong, smart, independent FMCs SO well. She’s bold, sharp, emotionally layered, and never afraid to challenge Brooks—or talk back with a little spice of her own. Their chemistry is unreal. That slow-burn, edge-of-your-seat tension? No one builds it better than Ellie K. Wilde 🔥

The found family vibes in this series are everything. I want to live in this world, sit at their kitchen tables, and be part of their late-night pep talks and inside jokes. It’s cozy, chaotic, and full of heart.

This book has everything I love about fake dating: forced proximity, pretend kisses, “what if it was real?” moments, and two people trying (and failing) not to fall in love. I devoured it.

Ellie K. Wilde continues to be the most horrendously underrated author on planet earth. This book was ABSOLUTELY FANTASTIC and was the perfect harmony of humor, vulnerability, tension & joy.

I absolutely ADORED this book and am so honored to have received an ARC. This series is truly sunshine in a bottle and I love it so so much!

This is the second book in the Oakwood Bay series, and it was way better than the first one which I honestly did not like at all. There is Brooks who we met in the first book of the series at the end of which had decided he wanted to try to go back to pro football. In this story his reputation has taken a hit, and so in order to increase his chances of getting signed to his dream team he ends up fake dating the FMC Siena after a social post goes viral.

There are a few too many tropes in this book for my liking, but I really did like Siena and her story. I enjoyed the growth she went through during the story, and how she was finally able to say 'I need help' by the end. Brooks was a little confusing to me. I liked how he seemed super mature and was the clear communicator in their relationship. I also liked how he fell first and worked hard for Siena's trust and affection. What I didn't love was that we were told multiple times that he was a bad boy. At no point in the story did he ever act like a bad boy, but I guess we are supposed to believe this is true since it's what we are told. Also my biggest issue with the story was honest the spice. It was so over the top descriptive, cringey and just not necessary to the story. Sometimes a little goes a long way, and I think with the serious backstory of Siena, the overly graphic smut added nothing to the story. Overall it's a cute, quick read with likable characters, albeit slightly forgettable. 3.5 stars.

Thank you to NetGalley and Atria for the arc in exchange for an honest review.

This was such a captivating slow burn romance that had me hooked from the beginning. This is my second book from this author and so far I am really impressed.

Rating: 4.5

This was such an enjoyable read. Brooks and Siena are perfection! Their story is sweet and spicy. They started of with a bit of animosity but grew as a couple. I love how they became friends to lovers and he falls hard first! They supported and brought out the best of each other. Love all the characters in this book and I’m excited/interested to see what happens with the other friends in the future books.

This was my first ARC and I would like to thank Ellie K. Wilde, NetGalley, and Atria Books.

Brooks is working his way toward a comeback but his playboy reputation is proving to be an obstacle. If a steady relationship means playing professional football that’s what has to be done. When a photo of him and Siena goes viral he seizes the opportunity. Pretending to be madly in love is one thing but things grow more real the longer they stay together.

I’ve been waiting for this sequel for months and it did not disappoint. You can’t go wrong with a steamy fake dating romance especially with an mmc like Brooks. He’s so protective and caring. Love him.

I was sure this would be a five star read but the third act break up dragged down my rating a little.

There’s plenty of banter and likable characters in Oakwood. Hopefully we get another book in this series because I need Summer and Parker to get together.

I can’t recommend this book and series enough. It definitely deserves more hype.

Read this if you like
🏈Football romance
🩷Fake dating
🔥Spice
💫Protective mmc

I’ve been stuck in a reading slump after picking up too many 2-star books lately, but this one completely changed that. The writing is so good: easy to follow, beautifully detailed, and engaging from the very beginning. I started reading and genuinely couldn’t put it down.

I read it on my Kindle, but I already know I’ll be buying the physical copy for my bookshelf when it's released.

This was my first book by Ellie K. Wilde, and it won’t be my last. I loved the spice (there’s plenty!), but the plot was just as strong and kept me hooked.

A few highlights for me:

- A grumpy(ish) golden retriever guy? Yes please.
- A German Shepherd? Adorable! I only wish there had been more of him.
- The banter? The spice ? Made me giggle all the time!! So good
- And the tropes: *One Room*, *Fake Dating*, and *Forced Proximity* are some of my absolute favorites, and they were done so well here.

My only small gripe is the third act break-up. It’s a trope I don’t usually enjoy, and it’s the only reason I’m giving it 4 instead of a full 5 stars.

Still, this was such a fun and spicy. I’m so glad I picked it up.

Thank you to Atria Books via Netgalley for this ARC in exchange for an honest review.

What could possibly go wrong when a benched and injured NFL star and an ex WAG team up to fake date and clean up their respective images in sports media? Obviously their obvious disdain for each other won't fade and they won't fall in love with each other, right?

Brooks and Siena's story proves that even the strongest of soldiers will fall victim to the fake dating-to-falling in love pipeline. Mixed with fun humor and tender moments, their love story is the perfect beach read this summer!

i loved this book so so much! ellie is such a master at tenderness in her writing. siena is such a queen. a true tender and strong character and the way brooks loved her should truly be standard. everyone should check this book out when it releases because it's definitely a standout! 💕💞💕💞

LOVE this book!! Ellie writes the best sex scenes. They are sexy and wild and just the right amount to be believable.... also, I love Brooks Atwood!!

3.5 ⭐️
This book reminded me a lot of Fangirl Down. Not sure if that was because of the athlete angle (or the excessive… language?) but I feel like they'll attract similar audiences. I liked this one a little better than the first, and I liked how it teed up what I'm assuming will be book 3. However, it dragged on a biiiiit too long, and I found that the plot points with both of their exes were unnecessary character development additions. Overall, though, I would recommend this book if you liked the first one or are interested in Tessa Bailey's style of writing.
Thank you to NetGalley and Atria for the ARC in exchange for an honest review!

Thank you so much Atria Books and Netgalley for the
ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review.
I read Only In Your Dreams a month ago and I was so sad I had to wait for the second one! Being approved for the arc was a dream!
I loved this book so much, i love the fake dating trope, and I loved how complex the characters were. Sienas guilt, Brooks fear. They complemented each other so perfectly
Perfection, no comments❤️✨🫶🏼

Thank you to Atria Books via Netgalley for this ARC.

I remembered really enjoying the first book in this Oakwood Bay series before it was traditionally published, (“Only in your Dreams”) so I’ve been waiting for this one for a while.
I, however read another book by this author in between “The No-Judgement Zone” and unfortunately didn’t like that one so it left me a little bit nervous.
I liked this one though. It had some drawbacks for me but overall it was sweet and spicy (sometimes a bit too much spice for me but I knew what I was getting into lol).

The FMC’s out of pocket sexual comments in the beginning reminded me a little bit of Willa from Heartless by Elsie Silver.

The MMC pissed me off especially in the beginning because he very clearly was
projecting his insecurities toward the FMC without critical thinking and that’s definitely one of my least favorite scenarios.
Though, I found the way he admired her in his mind very sweet, even if he’d ruin it by letting his insecurities take over like everytime 😭. I also liked that she called him out on his assumptions about her.

Him predicting her dirty jokes was funny, he just knew what she was thinking lol. I also liked that despite the FMC having issues and not feeling “worth the trouble” for people, she still had a personality outside of that. I’ve run into it too many times now where a book will focus too much on one specific issue a character has (insecurity, people-pleasing etc) and even if the issue is very relatable, it will get repetitive and annoying and even make a character feel flat because of the lack of other prominent attributes. This wasn’t that!

The way her parents took her in made me tear up, it was so sweet.
I also liked that the drawback for a real relationship was realistic!

Who doesn’t love a fake dating, sports romance! Love them! I love the idea of each character having their own stories to dive into. I could not put this book down. I loved the banter, the characters, and the spice. I loved all the personal growth in this book! Loved the characters especially Brooks who’s swoon-worthy. The side characters were amazing.

This book had me in a literal chokehold that entire time I was reading it. Fake dating truly just may be one of my fav tropes ever.
🏈🏈🏈🏈🏈🏈🏈
Brooks Attwoods, the MMC who is tying to get back on his NFL team, but do to a little mess he got himself into, he needs a relationship to make himself look better and that's when he meets Siena. Siena is such an ICON, I literally loved her the entire book and loved her character growth throughout the book. Brooks literally was so obsessed with Sienna and worshiped the ground she walked on. This man has the filthiest mouth ever, there were so many times where he had my jaw to the ground. I loved the little push and pull moments they had throughout the book. The chemistry between Brooks and Siena was unmatched. Now, I will say that I hate a third act break and that was the only part of the book that I didn't like.

I mean who doesn’t love a fake dating, sports romance?!
Especially with cute kids, a dog named Pete, and each character having their own stories to dive into. I could not put this book down.

I had so much with this book! I loved the characters, the spice, the banter - it was all a great time. I read the first book in the series and enjoyed it, but I thought this one blew it out of the water. I was also kind of surprised with the twists at the end, which was refreshing for a sports romance. Overall a really fun read and I’m excited for the next book!

Thank you Ellie K. Wilde, Atria Books and NetGalley for the Arc!

isn’t it just the best when two freaks meet each other?

and isn’t it even better when they are little broken and flawed but grow together?!!!

seriously, this book was amazing. definitely the best of the series so far!! brooks and siena were such a great couple to read, and i loved how flawed and vulnerable and real they were. and of course, the steamy bits (oh my god the STEAM!!!) were pretty amazing too!!!

UGH READ THIS BOOK

thank you to the author, the publisher, and netgalley for this ARC!!!