Front Range University Book 3: Beautifully Conflicted by Michele Lenard

 

Front Range University Book 3

Competition is my love language.

The first time I saw Bennet Armstrong’s baby blues staring up at me from underneath his helmet, stunned and confused that I’d tackled him, I was smitten.

So, I tackled him again. And again. Whether he had the ball or not, I’d take him down, just so I could have his eyes on me.

I thought we were connecting. He thought I was a poor sport. Needless to say, when we found ourselves on the same team years later, he was not a happy camper. It got even worse when Coach paired us together for our pre-season workouts, giving me a chance to stoke his competitive buttons, which I seem to do whether I intend to or not.

Bennet hates to lose, but there’s more to the fire in his eyes than a desire to beat me. He might not know it, but I do, and I’m determined to show him I’m right.

To do that, I have to bring him to his knees, and that reveals some wounds I didn’t know were there. Wounds that are so deep they blind him to the truth about himself, and us.

I should leave him in peace, and maybe I would if I didn’t know in my soul that he’s supposed to be mine. Now I just need to convince him, and what better way to do that than by making him want to win me?

**Beautifully Conflicted is a high-heat MM romance between two rivals turned lovers. It’s a medium angst story that includes sports, hurt/comfort situations, and a bi-awakening with lots of humor and spice. This is book three in a series of interconnected standalones.

https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/220205329-beautifully-conflicted

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My Review: 5/5 Stars

Bennet and Damien have always been rivals on the football field since they were kids. Or at least that is how Bennet interpreted it. Truth is, Damien has always had feelings for him and love the competitiveness between them that pushed them to make them better players. And what Damien thought was flirting in their banter, well, for Bennet, not so much. When Damien transfers to Front Range, they are finally on the same team. And Damien begins to wonder if they can finally be friends and maybe more if he can figure out if Bennet likes him back. For Bennet, he thinks it is the end of the world and no one seems to see what he does when it comes to Damien. It takes a bit but Bennet slowly figures out Damien and who he is and all his quirks. And maybe, he wasn’t actually trying to antagonize him, but he was genuinely trying to be nice and flirt. But there comes another problem with that. Bennet has always pushed the side of him that could have been interested in guys. With how he grew up, he knew it would not be well received and he was never willing to risk his family and his potential career in the NFL for the one guy that had the potential of making him forget all of that. So he’ll push away…but that can only last for so long. I really loved Damien, he was just so sweet and genuine. Bennet it took a bit for me to warm up to but the more we got to know him, the more you realize exactly what his state of mind is and understand him a bit more. And I loved him more when he finally was able to just be himself and say what and who he wanted. It was a hard journey for both of them but a very sweet ending! Loving this series and I can’t wait for more.