Be With Me by J Lynn

Author: J. Lynn
Publisher: William Morrow
Date of publication: February 2014

Teresa Hamilton is having a rough year—she’s in love with her big brother’s best friend, but he hasn’t spoken to her since they shared a truly amazing, mind-blowing, change-your-life kiss. She got out of a terrible relationship. And now an injury is threatening to end her dance career for good. It’s time for Plan B – college. And maybe a chance to convince Jase that what they have together is real.

Jase Winstead has a huge secret that he’s not telling anyone. Especially not his best friend’s incredibly beautiful sister. Even though he and Teresa shared the hottest kiss of his life, he knows that his responsibilities must take priority. He certainly doesn’t have time for a relationship. But it doesn’t help that all he can think about kissing the one girl who could ruin everything for him.

I was really looking forward to this one after reading Wait for Me.  I am happy to say that I liked Be with Me just as much.  Tess is now on her "Plan B" after injuring her knee in a dance recital.  All she wants to do is dance, but she may be facing the loss of her dream.  She also now has to see Jase everyday.  Jase knows he should stay away from his best friend's little sister, but she is just too tempting.

While Jase was an idiot for a lot of the book, I did like him.  I'm not normally one for angsty stories, but Jase and Tess's story was understandably angsty. Once I found out what held Jase back and had him running scared, I decided to cut him some slack.  Tess was really good for him.  She taught him how to open himself to love again.  I felt really bad for Tess.  It broke my heart to watch her realize her dreams for the future were over.  I think having to reshape how you see your future would be hard for anyone.  The chemistry between the two was very hot.  I also thought they had some great banter between them.

One thing that the book does touch on is domestic abuse.  Because of Tess's background, she is able to spot the signs of abuse in her roommate's relationship with her boyfriend. I was happy to see that Tess addressed it with her roommate and didn't ignore it.  There are a few surprises in the story that I don't want to reveal in my review.  I think it would ruin it.  Let's just say that if you liked Wait for Me, you'll like this one! I can't wait for the next one!