EPIGRAPH
"Love is patient, love is kind, love means slowly losing your mind."
— 27 Dresses
"So many broken-hearted people have got to hear the birds sing, and see all the little flowers grow, just the same as if the sun hadn't stopped shining forever!"
— Emily Dickinson
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SYNOPSIS
BROOKE 'BRIE' SHERIDAN has been looking forward to her senior year of college since the start. Ever the romantic (and not hopeless, as she's been reminding everyone since she has known how to describe a feeling), loving is what she does best—friends, family, partners, life—so, naturally, a breakup with her long-time boyfriend right at the start of the year throws a wrench in her plans. With no boyfriend and no subject to feature in her senior project, the perfect future she'd idealized feels more like a fever dream.
RHETT PRICE doesn't do relationships. He hardly does anything that requires the bare minimum of commitment, really, but there's only so far that mentality can take you when a) you play a team sport and it's not every man for himself out there, and b) you don't want to be the type of person that peaks in college. There comes a time when you have to start taking life seriously and, when presented with an ultimatum by his family, he knows he'll have to change his ways if he wants the future to be as bright as he wants it to.
After unceremoniously having had her heart broken by Rhett one too many times in the past, Brie has no reason to either trust him or to even consider accepting the help he's offering—especially when there's always a caveat when it comes to him. Sure enough, him accepting to be the new subject for her senior project comes with its added benefits, but she also has to help him out in return, aiding with the rehabilitation of his image. If she can forgive him, even after all the times he has left her heart shattered into a million little pieces, they'll both get what they want out of their futures.
Brie has never been one to walk away from her dreams, and Rhett Price won't be what stops her from achieving all of them—especially when she's unsure of how genuine he's being when he tells her he wants to make it up to her. She has been burnt enough to know better and, if he thinks he can play her to get what he wants, he's mistaken; after all, two can play that game.
It's only a matter of who falls first and harder. All's fair in love and revenge.
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DEDICATION
To my hopeless romantics out there, those who keep going after they get their hearts broken. If you're still going, if you're choosing to move forward and keep trying, remember it's one of the bravest things anyone can do. You are loved. Forever and always.
To the loves of my life, the brightest lights — smidorii / falling-into-you / thaliagrace- / champagnekatie_. You have changed my life for the better, and I'm forever grateful for all of you.
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CAST
madelaine petsch as brooke 'brie' sheridan
cody christian as rhett price
havana rose liu as nancy huang
adam dimarco as andrew 'andy' de haan
sydney sweeney as magnolia hawthorne
grace van patten as paige de haan
diana silvers as jackie caulfield
charles melton as scott 'jeff' jefferson
madelyn cline as lucy ripley
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CONTENTS
dual pov
in case you can't tell, this is somewhat of a second chance romance. HOWEVER, this is brie and rhett's story, not mine, not yours, and it doesn't mean you have to or should return to the arms of the people who have hurt you. can people change? sure they can. are you allowed to not want to give them a chance? absolutely
fake dating! oh boy! goodness!
positive mental health awareness
descriptions and depictions of anxiety
sports romance. ish. the heavier focus is on the romance, though rhett is a sporty boi, and i don't know a damn thing about sports (have i not learned my lesson already)
i haven't decided whether there will be mature scenes or not, hence the lack of the mature label. if it changes, you know why
this is a fluffy, low stakes, very trope-y romance. i've been writing heavier books for far too long and i needed a break
no plot just vibes for the most part
slut shaming is ugly. mean girl behavior is ugly. no rude comments in my comments section s'il-te-plaît
fandom references make me cry and i will be deleting them. if you're asked to stop and refuse to, it's bye bye
no white-washing my boy rhett please! cody christian is half native american (he is of the penobscot and passamaquoddy nations on his mother's side). i'll do my best to write proper, positive representation
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DISCLAIMER & COPYRIGHT
My characters' opinions don't necessarily reflect mine.
This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, corporations, establishments and incidents either are products of the author's imagination or are used fictitiously. Any resemblance to actual events or locales or persons, living or dead, is entirely coincidental.
COPYRIGHT © 2023 CATERINA GEORGE. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.
No part of this publication may be reproduced, distributed, or transmitted in any form or by any means, including photocopying, recording, or other electronic or mechanical methods, without the prior written permission of the author. Feel free to quote it, but give me the proper credit.