Tate Collins moves into her brother’s apartment and immediately encounters Miles Archer, a pilot who refuses to engage in an emotional relationship. They establish a pact based on two strictly enforced rules: Tate cannot ask about Miles’s past, and she cannot expect a future together. As their physical arrangement continues, the narrative alternates between Tate’s present struggle and flashbacks to Miles’s high school tragedy six years earlier. These memories reveal the specific trauma that dictates his current inability to love.
Readers of contemporary romance who prefer heavy emotional weight over lighthearted tropes will find this story suited to their interests. It serves those looking for a depiction of how unresolved grief prevents new intimacy. The reader observes the mechanics of a "no-strings" agreement failing under the pressure of hidden history. Ultimately, the book provides a look at the transition from guarding one's isolation to pursuing the vulnerability required for a committed partnership.
Insights from Ugly Love
“I’m sorry it took me so long to find you.”
Miles admits he was never actually angry at Tate. He was just terrified that she was making him feel something real again.
“If I were capable of loving someone ... it would be you.”
Love doesn't fix the trauma of what happened to Miles and Rachel. It just gives him a reason to finally come up for air.
“God gives us the sweetness, and then he lets the ugly in.”
Miles keeps his heart under a heavy lock because of Rachel. He thinks loving someone again is a betrayal of his past grief.
“Love isn't always pretty. Sometimes it's as messy as it gets.”
Tate accepts the bare minimum because she hopes her love will change him. Watching her settle for those rules hurts more than the secrets do.
- Published
- 2014
- Language
- EN
