SUGAR, SPICE, AND CAN’T PLAY NICE

Two ambitious people enter into an engagement of convenience to secure their family businesses on the way to pursuing their dreams.

In New York, Payal Mehra’s fashion brand is on the rise, but her family’s London-based lifestyle business is struggling. Ayaan Malhotra has always felt overlooked by his parents in favor of his older brother, who can seemingly do no wrong. It also doesn’t help that Ayaan is a bit of a wanderer when it comes to making future plans. Still, he’s an accomplished marketer who wants a stake in the family business even though his parents are planning to name his brother CEO. Both Payal’s and Ayaan’s parents have a merger in mind, professionally and personally. If Payal and Ayaan marry, Payal’s family will have the cash flow they need to save their business and Ayaan’s family will broaden their portfolio. At first, Payal and Ayaan are resistant, having recognized each other from a recent one-night stand, but they soon realize that a quick and secretly temporary engagement could solve their problems. Ayaan bargains with his family: He wants half the shares of the company for going along with their matchmaking. With her own family's financial woes settled, Payal will be better poised to focus on the next steps for her own brand. It’s lovely to see Payal and Ayaan bonding over their shared passions for business—watching them collaborate romantically and in relation to their work is the highlight of the novel. Payal is a sex-positive and career-savvy lead who could do with some better boundary-setting. The chip on Ayaan’s shoulder, while big enough to sink the Titanic, is understandable. Having to manage their family’s financial problems and high expectations gives Payal and Ayaan enough conflict for one book, so some extra hurdles—such as Ayaan’s stereotypically jealous ex-girlfriend—could have been left out.

A cute romance burdened by family expectations.