{"id":61966,"date":"2021-10-29T08:00:41","date_gmt":"2021-10-29T12:00:41","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.escapistbookblog.com\/?p=61966"},"modified":"2025-08-29T01:41:02","modified_gmt":"2025-08-29T05:41:02","slug":"arc-review-sealed-willow-springs-4-by-laura-pavlov","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.escapistbookblog.com\/?p=61966","title":{"rendered":"ARC Review: Sealed (Willow Springs, #4) by Laura Pavlov"},"content":{"rendered":"

\u00a0Sealed by Laura Pavlov is live!<\/strong><\/h4>\n

Book #4 in the Willow Springs series<\/strong><\/h4>\n

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A sexy-as-sin single dad. A sassy, hotheaded diva.\u00a0 Two players. One game. What could possibly go wrong? <\/b><\/h4>\n

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Amazon<\/a>\u00a0 |\u00a0 Amazon Universal<\/a>\u00a0 |\u00a0 Paperback<\/a><\/strong><\/h4>\n

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\n

\r\n <\/div><\/div><\/h4>\n
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Blurb<\/strong><\/h4>\n

Roman Amato is perfect on paper.<\/span><\/p>\n

Sexy and broody and arrogant.<\/span><\/p>\n

He\u2019s a divorced single father, so he\u2019s completely off-limits.<\/span><\/p>\n

I\u2019m not looking for anything other than a hot date to take to my sister\u2019s wedding.<\/span><\/p>\n

I have something he needs, and he has something I need.<\/span><\/p>\n

The fake dating gods have shined down on both of us.<\/span><\/p>\n

We write up a contract so everything is aboveboard.<\/span><\/p>\n

Signed, sealed and soon-to-be delivered.<\/span><\/p>\n

Rule number three is written in all caps\u2026<\/span><\/p>\n

NO CATCHING FEELINGS.<\/span><\/p>\n

It couldn\u2019t be more basic.<\/span><\/p>\n

I pride myself on staying in control.<\/span><\/p>\n

But from the moment I slip onto the back of his bike, I enter a gray area.<\/span><\/p>\n

I despise gray areas.<\/span><\/p>\n

This is supposed to be temporary.<\/span><\/p>\n

Temporary is my specialty.<\/span><\/p>\n

But Roman Amato makes it easy to want forever.<\/span><\/p>\n

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\"\"<\/h4>\n

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Add to Goodreads<\/strong><\/a><\/p>\n

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Review<\/strong><\/h4>\n

4.5 Big Sexy stars<\/b><\/p>\n

This is such a gorgeous read! A single-dad, fake relationship romance with two absolutely sensational characters, and a love story that is sexy, swoony and emotional, and that completely stole my heart.<\/p>\n

This is the fourth book in the Willow Springs<\/i> series, but it can easily standalone. The series follows a group of five best friends, and we\u2019ve followed them through high school, college, and now beyond, and this is the story of hot-headed, super-confident, Coco.<\/p>\n

Coco is the loud, confident, ball-busting member of the group. Though born into wealth and privilege, she has a difficult relationship with her family, but she cherishes her girlfriends, who she loves fiercely, and she\u2019s creating a fabulous life for herself as an up-and-coming stylist in the city. With her spoiled sister about to be married, Coco needs a date to take to the wedding. Not just any date, but somebody who fits the bill as \u2018Big Sexy\u2019, the fake boyfriend she\u2019s been using to keep her family off her back (and who doesn\u2019t actually exist), and also somebody who won\u2019t catch feelings, and will consider the weekend the business arrangement that it is.<\/p>\n

Enter Roman Amato. A broody bar owner, he is just as anti-relationship as Coco is, but physically he fits the bill \u2013 tall, gorgeous, tattooed, and he rides a motorcycle. Just the kind of guy she would go for\u2026 if she were interested. She also has something that Roman wants, so the two of them strike a deal, complete with a contract, that he will be her loving boyfriend for the weekend of wedding festivities, after which she will return the favour for his own family event, and then they\u2019ll go their separate ways. Simple, right?<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019m flattered, really. But I don\u2019t date. I\u2019m definitely not the guy for you. But thanks for the offer\u2026\u201d
\nHer head fell back in laughter. I just insulted her, and she couldn\u2019t contain herself. What the fuck was her deal?
\n\u201cUmm\u2026 yeah, that was a serious miscommunication. But you\u2019re adorable when your head is so big it\u2019s threatening to explode.\u201d<\/i><\/p><\/blockquote>\n

In between running his own business and being the sole-custody single father to an almost-5-year-old son, Roman has no time for relationships, but something about the sassy, self-assured bombshell has Roman intrigued. And when she presents him with an offer he can\u2019t refuse, he\u2019s all in.<\/p>\n

It\u2019s such a great set-up, and from the very beginning the sparks fly between Coco and Roman. Though our initial introduction to him shows him being all gruff and broody, underneath all of that he\u2019s an absolute sweetheart. A good guy with a huge heart, and supreme boyfriend skills. His hand holding, intense looks, steamy kisses and sweet declarations during their weekend together are gorgeous, and it\u2019s clear that the two of them share a connection beyond their agreement. And though they may not have been interested in a relationship, when the contract runs out and neither of them are able to let the other go, everything is about to change.<\/p>\n

He was in my space, pushing my wet hair away from my face.
\n\u201cWhat is happening here?\u201d I whispered.
\n\u201cI don\u2019t have a fucking clue, but I don\u2019t know how to stop it.\u201d<\/i><\/p><\/blockquote>\n

OMG, I love this relationship! Coco and Roman are so fantastic together \u2013 they laugh, flirt and banter, and their chemistry is just amazing. And when you add Roman\u2019s son, Valentino to the mix, it\u2019s a recipe of pure win. This kid is freaking adorable, and his connection with both his Dad, and with Coco absolutely melted my heart. There are lots of fantastic family moments, giving the story authenticity as Coco is swept up into Roman\u2019s world. The two of them fall for each other in a big way, and it\u2019s a sweet, sexy love story, with so much heart!<\/p>\n

\u201cThis isn\u2019t about the contract or keeping up appearances. This is exactly where I want to be.\u201d<\/i><\/p><\/blockquote>\n

I loved Coco\u2019s journey in this book. She learns and grows so much, and watching her soften her heart to allow Roman and Tino in, is so beautiful. And after experiencing such a hard time, I loved watching Roman open his heart to love. The chemistry between them is palpable, and everything that happens between them is easy and natural, and I loved watching them come together.<\/p>\n

\u201cYou\u2019re mine,\u201d I said, teasing his lips with mine.
\n\u201cSince the day I met you.\u201d<\/i><\/p><\/blockquote>\n

There\u2019s lots of great moments with Roman\u2019s whole family (who are sensational), and Coco\u2019s family which has its own very interesting dynamics. There is some drama, but it brings a nice intensity to the story and is handled well, and for the most part this is a beautifully functional romance, which is just the way I like it!<\/p>\n

I loved seeing Coco\u2019s girls there for all of the ups and downs. They have each other\u2019s backs without question and are such a gorgeously tight-knit group. We get to see all of the couples from the previous books, which I loved, and we\u2019re all geared up for the final book in the series which has been building since the very beginning \u2013 Ivy\u2019s second-chance-romance with the boy who broke her heart in high school, now a huge country star. I\u2019m here for it!<\/p>\n

This book made me laugh, swoon and happy sigh, and I loved it.<\/p>\n

4.5 stars!<\/p>\n

An Advanced Review Copy was generously provided by the author in exchange for an honest review.<\/i><\/p>\n

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\"\"<\/h4>\n

 <\/p>\n

Willow Springs<\/strong><\/h4>\n

\"\" \u00a0\"\" \u00a0\"\" \u00a0\"\" \u00a0<\/p>\n

Frayed (#1) <\/strong>(Adelaide)
\nReview<\/a>
\nBuy: \u00a0Amazon<\/a>\u00a0 |\u00a0 Paperback<\/a><\/p>\n

Tangled (#2) <\/strong>(Gigi)
\n<\/strong>Review<\/a>
\nBuy:\u00a0 Amazon<\/a>\u00a0 |\u00a0 Paperback<\/a><\/p>\n

Charmed (#3) <\/strong>(Maura)
\nReview<\/a>
\nBuy:\u00a0 Amazon<\/a><\/p>\n

Sealed (#4) <\/strong>(Coco)
\nReview<\/a>
\nBuy:\u00a0 Amazon<\/a><\/p>\n

Claimed (#5) <\/strong>(Ivy)
\nReview<\/a>
\nBuy:\u00a0 Amazon<\/a><\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Bonus Novella<\/strong><\/p>\n

\"\"Captivated (#5.5)<\/strong> (Clementine)
\nFree from Prolific Works<\/a><\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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About Laura<\/strong><\/h4>\n

\"\"Laura Pavlov writes sweet and sexy contemporary romance that will make you both laugh and cry. She is happily married to her college sweetheart, mom to two awesome almost grown kids, and dog-whisperer to a couple of crazy Yorkies. Laura resides in Las\u00a0Vegas where she is living her own happily ever after.<\/p>\n

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Website<\/a>\u00a0 | \u00a0Amazon\u00a0<\/a> |\u00a0 Facebook\u00a0<\/a> |\u00a0 Instagram<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

\u00a0Sealed by Laura Pavlov is live! Book #4 in the Willow Springs series   A sexy-as-sin single dad. A sassy, hotheaded diva.\u00a0 Two players. One game. What could possibly go wrong?   Amazon\u00a0 |\u00a0 Amazon […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":61620,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"nf_dc_page":"","yasr_overall_rating":4.5,"yasr_post_is_review":"","yasr_auto_insert_disabled":"","yasr_review_type":"","_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[1132,9,1036,29],"tags":[59,1024,48,1243],"class_list":["post-61966","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-fake-relationship","category-romance","category-single-parent","category-steamy","tag-arc","tag-laura-pavlov","tag-review","tag-willow-springs"],"yasr_visitor_votes":{"stars_attributes":{"read_only":false,"span_bottom":false},"number_of_votes":0,"sum_votes":0},"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.escapistbookblog.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/10\/Sealed.jpg?fit=200%2C300&ssl=1","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/p7gaNL-g7s","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.escapistbookblog.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/61966","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.escapistbookblog.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.escapistbookblog.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.escapistbookblog.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.escapistbookblog.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=61966"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.escapistbookblog.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/61966\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.escapistbookblog.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/61620"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.escapistbookblog.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=61966"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.escapistbookblog.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=61966"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.escapistbookblog.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=61966"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}