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RJ Scott
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Love Happens Anyway: A fake boyfriend for Christmas story Kindle Edition

by RJ Scott (Author) Format: Kindle Edition
4.4 out of 5 stars 691 ratings

New York, Christmas, millionaire, fake boyfriend

Derek needs a fake boyfriend for the holidays, and Luke desperately needs cash to save his family’s bar. It’s the perfect arrangement—or so it seems. But when Christmas magic ignites unexpected feelings, could love be the one thing neither saw coming?

Derek’s life is in chaos. His shiny new career feels like a bad fit, and his parents won’t stop pressuring him to settle down. To survive the relentless holiday parties and awkward family dinners, Derek hires Luke to play the role of his boyfriend. It’s supposed to be simple: no strings, no complications.

For Luke, the offer comes at just the right time. With Halligans, his family’s bar in the Financial District, hanging by a thread, he’s willing to do just about anything to come up with the twenty-thousand dollars they need. Pretending to date a stranger with deep pockets? Easy money.

But when sparks fly, and their pretend relationship starts to feel a little too real, Derek panics, and Luke steps back. Yet love has a funny way of finding you, even when you’re running from it. No matter how hard they try to resist, love happens anyway.

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  1. Print length
    182 pages
  2. Language
    English
  3. Publication date
    December 2, 2017
  4. File size
    3.5 MB
  5. Page Flip
    Enabled
  6. Word Wise
    Enabled
  7. Enhanced typesetting
    Enabled
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Product details

  • ASIN ‏ : ‎ B077WSVY2B
  • Publisher ‏ : ‎ Love Lane Books Ltd; 1st edition (December 2, 2017)
  • Publication date ‏ : ‎ December 2, 2017
  • Language ‏ : ‎ English
  • File size ‏ : ‎ 3.5 MB
  • Text-to-Speech ‏ : ‎ Enabled
  • Screen Reader ‏ : ‎ Supported
  • Enhanced typesetting ‏ : ‎ Enabled
  • X-Ray ‏ : ‎ Not Enabled
  • Word Wise ‏ : ‎ Enabled
  • Print length ‏ : ‎ 182 pages
  • Customer Reviews:
    4.4 out of 5 stars 691 ratings

About the author

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RJ Scott

RJ Scott

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RJ is the author of the over one hundred novels and discovered romance in books at a very young age. She realized that if there wasn’t romance on the page, she could create it in her head, and is a lifelong writer.

She lives and works out of her home in the beautiful English countryside, spends her spare time reading, watching films, and enjoying time with her family.

The last time she had a week’s break from writing she didn't like it one little bit and has yet to meet a bottle of wine she couldn’t defeat.

She loves to talk to readers and can be contacted via rj@rjscott.co.uk

Customer reviews

4.4 out of 5 stars
691 global ratings

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Customers say

Customers find this book to be a heartwarming holiday read with a perfect gay love story theme. They appreciate the believable characters, particularly Luke and Derek, and one customer notes how the MCs take time to get to know each other. The book evokes feelings of Christmas, with one customer mentioning it creates a world that enricheses their own.

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39 customers mention "Readability"39 positive0 negative

Customers find the book sweet and wonderful, describing it as a cute Christmas read.

"...This is an excellent book to be enjoyed by a fireplace, wrapped in some blankets on a cold winter day!" Read more

"...There are a lot of details in this romance that make it really really good...." Read more

"...I loved all the characters but especially the two MCs. This is a wonderful fun, light-hearted romance that's sure to please any reader." Read more

"...Like all of RJ Scott's stories, there is a perfect HEA and I adore how Derek stood up to his parents and his old foggy WASPY co-workers...." Read more

21 customers mention "Character development"19 positive2 negative

Customers enjoy the characters in the book, particularly Luke and Derek, with one customer noting how well Luke fits into Derek's life.

"...Derek's character growth is awesome and the book pays homage to first responders and the legacy of 9-11." Read more

"...I loved all the characters but especially the two MCs. This is a wonderful fun, light-hearted romance that's sure to please any reader." Read more

"...I loved his relationship with his mom and sister and how well he fit into Derek's life...." Read more

"...Here she has given us two marvelous main characters who are worlds apart but who encounter similar inner turmoil...." Read more

14 customers mention "Romance"14 positive0 negative

Customers enjoy the romance in the book, particularly appreciating its perfect gay love story elements and how love can develop unexpectedly.

"...This is a wonderful fun, light-hearted romance that's sure to please any reader." Read more

"...and Derek so perfectly complement one another and their love story was an amazing adventure of two people meant to be finding out just how..." Read more

"RJ creates a world that enriches our own. Love, sadness, laughter, regret and new opportunities bring couples and families closer together...." Read more

"A short, simple, and sweet holiday romance story with a couple of interesting characters, decent but quick attraction, and romantic full..." Read more

8 customers mention "Heartwarming"8 positive0 negative

Customers find the book heartwarming, describing it as a holiday read that creates a world that enriches our own, with one customer mentioning it brings lots of happy tears.

"...Derek's character growth is awesome and the book pays homage to first responders and the legacy of 9-11." Read more

"This is an adorable, heartwarming Christmas Story...." Read more

"...to real is very natural and believable, and you can really feel the feelings growing..." Read more

"...I needed several glasses full to get through this book... lots and lots of happy tears...." Read more

7 customers mention "Believable"7 positive0 negative

Customers find the book's portrayal of fake boyfriends believable, with one customer particularly praising how well the concept is executed.

"...Love Happens Anyway is a fake boyfriend for Christmas story that features two men who have their own turmoils and problems...." Read more

"...The transition from fake relationship to real is very natural and believable, and you can really feel the feelings growing..." Read more

"...RJ Scott writes pretend boyfriends or boyfriends for hire really well. The characters are lively and personality wise are a pleasure to read...." Read more

"So true, love happens anyway!! It doesn't matter how it when you meet, if it's meant to be, the love happens...." Read more

4 customers mention "Family dynamics"4 positive0 negative

Customers appreciate the family dynamics in the book, with one mentioning how new opportunities bring couples and families closer together, while another notes how the main characters had time to get to know each other.

"...I really loved Luke. I loved his relationship with his mom and sister and how well he fit into Derek's life...." Read more

"...The family dynamics were great too! As always listening to Sean Crisden was an absolute delight. I highly suggest the audio version." Read more

"...Love, sadness, laughter, regret and new opportunities bring couples and families closer together...." Read more

"...Nothing was rushed, the MCs had time to get to know each other and something that may have seemed like a mistake was actually a mature moment...." Read more

3 customers mention "Enjoyment"3 positive0 negative

Customers find the book enjoyable, with several mentioning it felt like Christmas, and one noting their appreciation for the holiday season.

"...What I loved about this is how much it felt like Christmas...." Read more

"I would recommend this book to anyone who enjoys the Christmas season along with a good ole gay romance." Read more

"This is such a cute story and so perfect for that warm, Christmasy feeling...." Read more

Top reviews from the United States

  • Gregg BD
    5.0 out of 5 stars Excellent!
    Reviewed in the United States on December 4, 2024
    Verified Purchase
    I’m not a huge fan of fake-boyfriend stories, but I love this author and thought I’d take a chance, and boy, was I correct in doing so.

    Derek is a wealthy CEO of an advertising company his family has had for decades, but despite all his advantages, he’s pretty unsure about himself and needs to get his parents off his back in the “why aren’t you in a relationship” arena. Luke needs an infusion of money to help finish repairing and reopening his family’s bar in NYC. Luke gets the money he needs and Derek gets the confidence he needs, and how that is all accomplished is worth the time of you reading this book.

    I also really enjoyed how 9/11 is interwoven into the story.

    This is an excellent book to be enjoyed by a fireplace, wrapped in some blankets on a cold winter day!
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  • Cat of Cat's Books: Romance Blog and Themepark
    4.0 out of 5 stars Wonderful Romance!
    Reviewed in the United States on May 6, 2018
    Verified Purchase
    There is so much to like in this romance between Derek and Luke.

    Luke is an ex firefighter who is reopening the family bar after a car plowed into it. Derek is the head of a ad agency who needs a fake boyfriend and Luke needs the money to repair the bar after the bank turned him down.

    Christmas and fake dating is always fun. There are a lot of details in this romance that make it really really good. Derek's character growth is awesome and the book pays homage to first responders and the legacy of 9-11.
    Helpful
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  • darket
    5.0 out of 5 stars A Wonderful Fake Boyfriend Book
    Reviewed in the United States on January 15, 2019
    Verified Purchase
    This is an adorable, heartwarming Christmas Story. Derek wants to hire his fantasy boyfriend he had conjured up to keep his mother off his back about getting married. Luke needs money to pay off the contractor for the work that was done on his families bar.

    Luke doesn't have a job since he was injured as a firefighter and has had to recuperate the past year. No one would give him a loan. His good friend, who owns a-for-hire agency and has just the job for Luke to make the money he needs. Everything is planned out and a contract drawn up.

    Playing Derek's boyfriend isn't as easy as Luke thought it might be, because the man had already created Marcus and now Luke had to play that part he knew little about.

    I loved all the characters but especially the two MCs. This is a wonderful fun, light-hearted romance that's sure to please any reader.
    Helpful
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  • JMcJ
    3.0 out of 5 stars Too formulaic
    Reviewed in the United States on February 19, 2018
    Verified Purchase
    ARGH. I am struggling with this one. It should be a slam dunk, I think of RJ Scott and the Christmas Throw Away and I expect a great holiday story....but this wasn't that. I actually didn't really get any real "Christmas spirit" feeling from this book.

    One problem? Derek is not likable. At all. He isn't quirky - he's a poor little rich boy with mild but pronounced oppositional behavior tendencies. I am sure there is supposed to be some gooey goodness to him somewhere but he is an immature, internally whiny, outwardly arrogant, judgmental, stuck up, defensive doormat that is driving me crazy.

    The second problem for me was that the author is writing an American firefighter character born and raised in NY (but has no NY accent?!?!) but still uses English terms and then throws in 911 for what feels like emotional manipulation because there really wasn't any other reason for it. The story would not have changed if it hadn't been added to the backstory. It felt very, very off to me. For example, I don't think that you could walk up to many medically retired first responders and have them understand what "invalided out" means in NY city on a consistent basis. It's just not a term we use here.

    I stayed with it. Never warmed up to Derek and never felt the holiday spirit in this one
    14 people found this helpful
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  • Love Wins
    5.0 out of 5 stars Fake Boyfriend Christmas Romance
    Reviewed in the United States on December 25, 2020
    Verified Purchase
    I love RJ Scott's books especially her Christmas romances so imagine my chagrin when I discovered that I missed this one! Love Happens Anyway is a fake boyfriend for Christmas story that features two men who have their own turmoils and problems. Derek is lonely and the CEO of his family's marketing business. He inherited the family business from his father and grandfather and there's a certain way to run an advertising agency which dates back to the 1950s...very old-school. He always has to deal with his parents' well-meaning but meddlesome questions about when he will get married, which man to date, etc. What does Derek do? He makes up a fake boyfriend named Marcus that rescues kittens to fend off his parents. That blows up in his face when his parents tell him that they'll be in NYC for a day and want to meet Marcus and Derek for lunch.

    He panics and runs to the white pages to find a boyfriend for hire which lands him on Luke's feet. Luke is an ex-firefighter who is trying to scrap enough money to save his family's bar. He finds the perfect solution when he meets Derek who hires him for $30,000 to be his fake boyfriend and attend some business/personal events. Luke has his own scars and turmoil but needs the money so he agrees to be Derek's fake boyfriend. Derek and Luke try to make their business deal work without giving away the scheme. Both men have to deal with meddlesome family members, annoying coworkers, and each other as they navigate a fake relationship for Christmas. Like all of RJ Scott's stories, there is a perfect HEA and I adore how Derek stood up to his parents and his old foggy WASPY co-workers. Well-worth the read because Derek and Luke are perfect together. Both men balance the other and just fit together.
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Top reviews from other countries

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  • Wide Eyes, Big Ears!
    5.0 out of 5 stars Loved this stylish romance!
    Reviewed in Australia on December 30, 2020
    Verified Purchase
    In need of cash, Luke agrees to act as a fake boyfriend for disgruntled ad exec Derek, who has told family, friends, and colleagues he is dating a fireman. I really loved this. Luke is such a decent, patient man and Derek can only blossom from being with him. Although a shorter novel, the story and romance never felt rushed or incomplete and Sean Crisden’s stylish narration of the audiobook was smooth as silk. I’ll enjoy listening to this again!
    Report
  • Jutta
    3.0 out of 5 stars Cute and quick...
    Reviewed in Germany on December 31, 2017
    Verified Purchase
    just about covers it. I expected more from the author. A bit boring actually. Partly because of the genre, but normally Scott gets me to enjoy the journey to the happily ever after, this time I just read it to be finished.
    Stll well written and readable so 3 stars.
    Report
  • MaryE
    5.0 out of 5 stars Love is never wrong
    Reviewed in the United Kingdom on December 15, 2024
    Verified Purchase
    This is one of the loveliest Christmas stories I’ve read in awhile. Although now CEO of his family’s advertising company, Derek’s outward persona of confidence hides a nervousness and vulnerability in both his work and personal life. In order to get through a number of upcoming events, including a family dinner, Derek hires, through an above board companion agency, a fake boyfriend. Derek has invented his perfect boyfriend - a 6’2”, blue eyed, dark haired firefighter - which turns out to have a certain irony. Luke has invested, together with his sister Sarah, into the family bar Halligans but, in order to pay for ongoing work needed to let them be able to reopen it, he is in need of $20,000, which is just a little less than Derek is willing to pay for his fake boyfriend. Whilst certain restrictions have been placed on the contract a certain number of PDA’s have been allowed which is, inevitably, the start of the slippery slope. This really is a lovely Christmas story but there is also reference to a catastrophic event that impacts some of the characters.
    “You know what we are?” “Attracted to each other?” “That, and we’re idiots for not acting on it..” “After all, if our moms said it, it must be true.”
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  • Kristel Greer
    4.0 out of 5 stars A will they/won’t they plot with plenty of cute holiday cheer.
    Reviewed in the United Kingdom on December 28, 2021
    Verified Purchase
    Derek hasn’t had the best luck with relationships. Another Christmas season approaches with numerous work functions and family gatherings to attend where he will undoubtedly be asked about his love life Derek decides to take drastic action. He plans to hire himself a boyfriend to smooth his way through the parties and get his parents off his back. Enter Luke. He is $20,000 in debt in the family bay and needs cash. The deal seems like a perfect solution but he still agrees to it reluctantly.

    As the two negotiate terms it’s clear that Derek is uptight and too focused on other people’s opinions and Luke is dealing with a past that continues to haunt him which leaves them both scrambling to make the plan work. But between the festive season, an obvious sexual connection and the growing mutual respect and feelings that faking a relationship is creating in them, these two may have a chance at something real instead. Now all they have to do is get over their hang-ups and be honest with each other. If it was only that easy.

    🌟🌟🌟🌟. This was an emotional, flirty and fun romp through that classic holiday trope - fake boyfriends. Throw in the ‘only one-bed’ trope at one point and it’s perfect. Derek was sweet but lacked self-confidence in both his work and love lives. Luke had a lot of past emotional and physical trauma which left him lonely and didn’t have much self-worth. I loved how they both brought out the best in each other and how deeply they cared. It was a romance that gave me a lump in the throat while also giving me a goofy smile. Cute snowmen, a will they/won’t they plot with plenty of cute holiday cheer.
    Customer image
    Kristel Greer
    4.0 out of 5 stars
    A will they/won’t they plot with plenty of cute holiday cheer.

    Reviewed in the United Kingdom on December 28, 2021
    Derek hasn’t had the best luck with relationships. Another Christmas season approaches with numerous work functions and family gatherings to attend where he will undoubtedly be asked about his love life Derek decides to take drastic action. He plans to hire himself a boyfriend to smooth his way through the parties and get his parents off his back. Enter Luke. He is $20,000 in debt in the family bay and needs cash. The deal seems like a perfect solution but he still agrees to it reluctantly.

    As the two negotiate terms it’s clear that Derek is uptight and too focused on other people’s opinions and Luke is dealing with a past that continues to haunt him which leaves them both scrambling to make the plan work. But between the festive season, an obvious sexual connection and the growing mutual respect and feelings that faking a relationship is creating in them, these two may have a chance at something real instead. Now all they have to do is get over their hang-ups and be honest with each other. If it was only that easy.

    🌟🌟🌟🌟. This was an emotional, flirty and fun romp through that classic holiday trope - fake boyfriends. Throw in the ‘only one-bed’ trope at one point and it’s perfect. Derek was sweet but lacked self-confidence in both his work and love lives. Luke had a lot of past emotional and physical trauma which left him lonely and didn’t have much self-worth. I loved how they both brought out the best in each other and how deeply they cared. It was a romance that gave me a lump in the throat while also giving me a goofy smile. Cute snowmen, a will they/won’t they plot with plenty of cute holiday cheer.
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  • Kindle Customer
    3.0 out of 5 stars Wanted to love it.
    Reviewed in Canada on December 21, 2020
    Verified Purchase
    I wanted to love this story as I have a thing for fake boyfriend holiday romances but I didn't. I didn't really feel a connection between Luke and Derek and their was nothing spectacular about their story or romance. It was just ok.
    Report

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