Steven has regrets, big regrets, and he's leaning on alcohol and women to get him through each day. He has three people he cares about, his brother Hoyt, Hoyt's wife Lydia, and his best friend Lauren Brixton. She's the girl he can count on and he'd never do anything to ruin it, until one night he starts seeing her in a new light. Lauren promised to be there for Steven always, but she's tired of ignoring her attraction and watching him go home with women who don't care for him and drown his sorrows in alcohol. Using a situation to her advantage, she convinces Steven to spend some time with her and when the attraction becomes too much for them, it tests their relationship as friends. They could become more or they could become nothing at all.

This is one fast read, this can be a positive or a negative for you, in my case it was just right. This is a fairly predictable story of friends to lovers, however it's the man who needs convincing after he's sworn of love. I was glad for that, because I am so darn tired of the girls not going after a guy friend because of his history. Get over it! Lucky for us readers, Lauren is a confident female character who takes risks and puts herself in situations that could work for or against her. I liked that the multiple POV allowed us to see each character as an individual and get to know them, similar to the other books in the Shillings Agency series. In this case, I liked knowing Steven's thoughts a lot, there's more to him that meets the eye. His willingness to risk everything for Lauren shows he had suppressed feelings about her all along and I like that Diane gave us a glimpse of their promises before war and who they became at thirty, after the war.

Unfortunately, this one suffers from several cliches and while the short length works for this book, it takes away from the romance that Lauren and Steven could have shared. I think a lot more could have been done between them on the transition from friends to lovers, however their smutty-sex scenes were certainly fun. The good news is, the drama isn't over done and is cleaned up in a good way. I didn't feel like it pushed under the rug like a lot of best friends to lovers books do, so that's a big plus.

If you're a fan of quick romances with some plot and a lot of sexy, the Shillings Agency series is absolutely for you. It can be read as a standalone, however characters from previous novels are main players in the plot line. I, personally, am looking forward to Mark's story, because the quick glimpse you get of him in Say You're Mine was just enough to hook me. ( )

Steven had the key to his own happiness all along. He just had to unlock the door and let love in. Say You're Mine by Diane Alberts is a friends to lovers story. I have read many of those over the years but that does not take away any of the charm of this one. I received an ARC of this read in exchange for an honest review. First, let me say I am in love with each and every character that Ms. Alberts has allowed me to meet through her Shillings Agency series. Men with attitude find a new start after career ending traumas force them to make changes. Not only does she tackle the struggles that men who have faced war deal with returning to civilian life but she puts a microscope on how relationships with family and friends are affected. Say You're Mine is Lauren and Steven's story. Lauren's friendship with Steven has always been the most central part of her universe. Steven is forced to leave behind a career he loves due to events that were beyond his control. Never the less he blames himself. How would I describe Say You're Mine? When the chips are down, friends always have your back. Wonderful. ( )

Friends to lovers is the best kind of theme there can be. It always guarantees an HEA because they know each other inside and out. That is why Steven Thomas and Lauren Brixton make the perfect couple. Only thing is Steven can't see that Lauren has been in love with him since forever. But because she's never given him a clue he's happy to remain clueless until he starts seeing something in her that he's failed to notice before. And now that he has acknowledged his attraction to her it cannot be ignored.

Lauren knows that if she lets Steven know how she really feels she will lose him. She knows him like she knows herself, except that he never speaks about his time as a SEAL and what exactly it is that is eating him up from inside. She can’t bear to see him on the path to self-destruction. Loving him like she does, she is willing to even cross the one line that she knows he will never tolerate, just so that she can save him from himself. But she might just lose him in the process.

A slightly heartbreaking story (I admit I did get a little teary-eyed) about the horrors of war and how love can help overcome that trauma and heal you enough to try living and loving once again.

ARC provided in exchange for an honest review.
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Friends to lovers is the best kind of theme there can be. It always guarantees an HEA because they know each other inside and out. That is why Steven Thomas and Lauren Brixton make the perfect couple. Only thing is Steven can't see that Lauren has been in love with him since forever. But because she's never given him a clue he's happy to remain clueless until he starts seeing something in her that he's failed to notice before. And now that he has acknowledged his attraction to her it cannot be ignored.

Lauren knows that if she lets Steven know how she really feels she will lose him. She knows him like she knows herself, except that he never speaks about his time as a SEAL and what exactly it is that is eating him up from inside. She can’t bear to see him on the path to self-destruction. Loving him like she does, she is willing to even cross the one line that she knows he will never tolerate, just so that she can save him from himself. But she might just lose him in the process.

A slightly heartbreaking story (I admit I did get a little teary-eyed) about the horrors of war and how love can help overcome that trauma and heal you enough to try living and loving once again.

ARC provided in exchange for an honest review.
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