I received this book in exchange for an honest review.
This is a nice read if you don't expect it to be anything that it isn't. It's a quick holiday romance with a nice bit of steam that'll give you a warm feeling and a couple hours of escape from the holiday stress. I would recommend not delving to deep into the background though. Bullies to lovers is always a bit problematic and the resolution is okay, so if you don't enjoy this type of trope you may want to pass on this one.
While I do like the two main characters (I would have liked a glimpse into Jake's head) I don't understand why Jake fell back into bad habits. It was probably just a jumping point to push them into the next phase, but I wish it would have been done without Jake resorting to insults again.
On more of a side note I would have liked just a bit more background information, without delving to much into the topics. Why did Clay leave and just never returned? Has he not seen his mother since? What is his actual job? Why is his mom in the hospital?
Overall a fun and quick read that doesn't require you to think too much about it.

(Spoilers ahead)

The premise of this book sucked me right away. Former enemies with a secret crush to adults who clearly can't resist each other. I wouldn't have minded seeing some actual flashbacks to Clayton and Jake's school days. Also I was really curious about Jake's pov tbh, since he was the one who had stayed in the town and dealt with coming out later/difficult relationship with his father, etc.

(Sidenote: I was a little confused as to why Clayton felt like he'd outed Jake...to himself and needed to apologize for it. If there had been a lot of people around for the conversation it would have made more sense, but as they were all alone except for a bunch of Christmas trees, I think it was a safe conversation to have. Also if that's the worst thing Clayton's ever done, he's lived a pretty squeaky clean life...)

Overall it was a quick, holiday read. Thanks to Netgalley for the ARC.

Thomas weaves a short, yet entertaining holiday romance. The protagonists, Clay and Jake, have a nice contrast that signals why they never dated until now. Yet, it's not enough to make it feel forced, which is kinda nice given how many stories in the genre will do that. They are reunited just in time for the holidays when Clay's mother falls ill. This is a great book for anyone who appreciates LGBT romances and wants a nice escape with a holiday twist.