Rowdy by Jay Crownover

Marked Men #5

          After the only girl he ever loved told him that he would never be enough, Rowdy St. James knocked the Texas dust off his boots and set out to live up to his nickname. A good ol’ boy looking for good times and good friends, Rowdy refuses to take anything too seriously, especially when it comes to the opposite sex. Burned by love once, he isn't going to let himself trust a woman again. But that’s before his new co-worker arrives, a ghost from the past who’s suddenly making him question every lesson he ever learned.

          Salem Cruz grew up in a house with too many rules and too little fun—a world of unhappiness she couldn't wait to forget. But one nice thing from childhood has stayed with her; the memory of the sweet, blue-eyed boy next door who’d been head over heels in love with her little sister.

          Now, fate and an old friend have brought her and Rowdy together, and Salem is determined to show him that once upon a time he picked the wrong sister. A mission that is working perfectly—until the one person that ties them together appears, threatening to tear them apart for good.

I think Rowdy is my new favorite. But it is so hard to choose, they are all tattooed, hot and really sweet guys. But a modern day James Dean.. *fans self*.

In the other books, he was always one of the more mysterious characters. We didn't know a lot about him other than he really liked to live up to his name, but he was still a really sweet caring man. Fiercely loyal to his friends, and always there to make someone smile. Given that, I really loved getting to know him in this book. He is still that guy, but underneath it all, he is definitely so much more. Deep down he is still somewhat this scared and lost little kid without a connection to much of anything. Sure he feels pretty settled in with the Marked boys and he thinks of his friends as family, but at the same time, he has no real connection to a past with them. Until a blast from the past shows up.

Salem, she is who I wish I was bold enough to be like. The way she dresses is how I wish I felt comfortable enough to. (like someone from the 50's, but with tattoos.) So we have a modern day James Dean with a modern day Betty Paige, and they make one hot pair. Salem has known Rowdy since he was 10 years old, and hasn't seen him in almost as many years. Tired of living under her fathers iron fist and tight-knit rules, she leaves town after she graduated leaving a 15-year-old Rowdy feeling more lost than ever. Ten years later, they reunite and after a couple speed bumps, one being Salem's younger sister Poppy the girl Rowdy thought he was in love with in college, they find a way into each other's hearts and lives again.

What is so amazing about these books, is that the bare bones of the stories are about people getting their heads out of their asses and realizing that the person meant for them has been staring them in the eye forever, but there is also always a much deeper plot surrounding them. This book, for instance, is about more than Rowdy and Salem realizing they've loved each other for years, it's about being true to yourself, and what family really is.

I can't wait to read Asa's story. I am a little sad that this series is coming to an end, though.