I enjoyed this romance story. Better editing and less sweetness would have made the story a five. I realize that mine is but one voice and that is fine. I believe that the authors over did the sappy sweetness for me anyway. I liked all of the characters and they were fleshed out well. ( )

Lucas is the son of a US Senator. Lucas' father gets blackmailed to drop his re-election campaign, and a year later the family is at the Mediterranean island of Kalyphos with his father as US Ambassador.

Nicolo (Nico) is the Prince of Kalyphos. He has an older brother, so it is not likely that Nico will become King, but he has to live according to the laws of the monarchy. He is in the closet and afraid of how his orientation will affect his family.

Lucas and Nico have an attraction to each other, but they stay firmly in the friend zone for a while. They become very close, and get to know each other very well. I really felt that this friendship helped strengthen their bond when they did become involved. Their romance moved pretty quickly, but that was because of the friendship. There were a lot of challenges put in their way, but their feelings for each other pushed past those challenges.

The only thing that bothered me was that I am not quite sure what the motivation was with Lucas' ex. We know that there was blackmail to keep his father out of running again, but I would've loved to know a little more why. That was such a huge step to take just for the sake of it. I felt like there could've been just a little more to that story. Not a lot, but something to connect with what drove Aaron to do it. Otherwise, it just felt a little like a plot device rather than an integral part of the story.

The epilogue was one of my favorite chapters, not just of this book but ever. I absolutely loved the romance and family dynamics. I have already reread the epilogue, and I can see myself reading it over and over again when I need a pick me up. It was the perfect ending to the story.

I am voluntarily reviewing an ARC provided by the authors ( )