The Ivy Years Book 2: The Year We Hid Away by Sarina Bowen

The Ivy Years Book 2

She’s hiding something big. He’s hiding someone small.

Bridger Macaulley used to be a player both on and off the ice. But now, while his teammates chase the next hockey victory, Bridger worries that the dean will discover he’s housing his eight-year-old sister in his dorm room. Juggling a full course load and a big secret, it’s only a matter of time until the other skate drops.

Scarlet Crowley is the only freshman at Harkness College who had to sneak past TV news trucks parked on her front lawn just to leave town. Her name is as new as the shiny student ID it’s printed on. The only way to survive college will be to conceal her identity, even if it means lying to the green-eyed boy she's falling for.

Bridger and Scarlet form a tentative relationship based on the understanding that some things must always be held back. But when grim developments threaten them both, going it alone just won't work anymore. And if they can't learn to trust one another now, the families who let them down will take everything they've struggled to keep

goodreads.com/book/show/46019051-the-year-we-hid-away

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My Review: 5/5 Stars

Another great book in this series! You meet Bridger in the first book, now it's his turn for his own story. Bridger has had it rough. His father is dead and his mom is a drug addict that has brought herself down a path where Bridger is left with no choice but to get his little sister, Lucy, out of their home. He hides Lucy in his dorm as he struggles college, jobs, and full time parenting to an eight-year old. Any semblance of a life is gone this year but as long as he can protect Lucy he'll deal. What he doesn't expect is fall head over heels for Scarlet. Despite the chaos in his life, when he is with her, those moments are all wants. The downside is juggling everything and keeping it all a secret. He doesn't want to ask for help because he knows his friends will drop everything for him and it is too much for him to ask. Meanwhile, Scarlet has her own secrets. She runs hard and past to college to escape her toxic home where her father is accused of horrible things. She gets to Harkness with a new name and a plan to keep her head down and hope no one will ever recognize her. Too bad she can't keep her eyes off Bridger. 

The two of them fall into a friendship that leads to more but it is only a matter of time when secrets come out. This story was really great for so many reasons. Their romance was sweet and their relationship was built off a friendship that turned to more as they slowly confided in one another. The pacing was really great and not rushed. There wasn't a big reveal and then things blow up and a rush ending and happily ever after. I liked that we saw things come to light and how they actually had to work through ALL the problems. It was more real and it hooked me in to see how they would get past all the hard things and find a solution that would leave everyone happy and in one piece. There was drama and romance and even some suspense. And like i said, i was hooked. I read it fairly quickly. Just a great story!