Hailey Sharp is starting over. She had been living in Hollywood, dating an actor and working on movie sets, cooking and serving the actors and crew as they worked. But when she found out that her boyfriend of three years had been cheating on her, she decided it was time to move on. She kicked him out of the apartment that she owned, sold the apartment, and found herself a cute storefront in San Verde where she could open a small take-and-go salad shop. By the Cup offers a variety of salads that showcase California’s fresh vegetables and Hailey’s creativity with food.
She stops into the coffeeshop next door for a caffeine fix and a sweet treat, and that’s when a good-looking man appears right in front of her. He clearly thinks he knows her, but she has no idea who she is. But then, he’s also calling her Hayden. And while that is the name that the barista who hadn’t been paying attention wrote on her cup, she smiles and tries to explain that her name is really Hailey and she has no idea of what he’s talking about. She finally figures out that he had been expecting to meet up with a woman he’d met on a dating app, and she feels bad for his disappointment, but she is not interested in dating. Hailey just wants her shop to succeed.
A couple of days later, Hailey is delivering a lunch order to a local radio station, where she finds her recent customers producer Everly and on-air talent Stacy, who had recommended her shop. She also meets the owners of the station, brothers Chris, Noah, and Wes Jansen, and she stops short. Wes is the one who had accosted her in the coffee shop, and he clearly looks embarrassed about that. They all laugh about it, and Wes insists he is giving up dating for a while. He feels so bad about it that he comes by Hailey’s shop to apologize and offers to help with her website, one of the many things she’d been meaning to get to.
As they talk, Hailey and Wes find they have an easy chemistry, and as the weeks go by, and Wes and his brothers spend more time in Hailey’s shop, they find that they are becoming friends. There is one area where they struggle though.
Wes is a fixer and wants to face any problem head-on. His family has money, so he has had the resources to fix a lot of problems that have come up in his life. Everything except his parents’ marriage. His father can be abrasive, and there had been a lot of fighting before he had finally kicked his wife out of the house. As the oldest brother, Wes had done what he could to protect his younger brothers from the drama, but there was no one to protect him. Now he likes to fix the problems he can, but he still struggles with the voice of his father in his head.
Hailey hates to ask for help. She doesn’t even like to accept help when it’s offered. There were just too many times in the past when she accepted help from someone she thought was a friend to be let down. She had believed in her boyfriend, until he had turned out to be a jerk. Now, she is starting over on her own. And she wants to do this on her own. But running a successful restaurant is a lot of work to do all on your own.
As the friendship grows between Hailey and Wes, Hailey figures out that she can trade favors with Wes, so she can get help without having to give up control. They spend time with his brothers and their girlfriends, and Hailey also spends time with her cousin Piper and her book club friends. As she grows a new life, one step at a time, she finds herself opening up and finding ways to expand her salad offerings. And Wes finds a life in California separate from his brothers, where he can be himself and follow some of his own dreams.
But despite their dedication to growing their friendship, they both find themselves increasingly attracted to each other. The small touches, the thoughtfulness, the vulnerability they find in their friendship could lead to something more. But will they find the courage to open up to the possibility of a deeper relationship, or will they let the opportunity for true love slip through their fingers?
A Guide to Being Just Friends is a sweet rom com from Sophie Sullivan, whose charming writing style draws readers in and makes them feel right at home. This includes some of the characters of her previous Ten Rules for Faking It and How to Love Your Neighbor, but this can be read as a stand-alone also. It’s fun and funny, and there is a genuine warmth to this story of friendship and starting over.
I have loved all three of these novels about the Jansen brothers, but this one may be my favorite. Wes and Hailey both have some awkwardness, and their friendship seemed to fill in those gaps, making them a cohesive couple. They genuinely brought out the best in each other, and watching this friendship develop slowly and bring out the best in both of these characters was amazing. It’s the perfect ending for the stories of these brothers and those in their lives, and I loved every minute of it.
Egalleys for A Guide to Being Just Friends were provided by St. Martin’s Griffin through NetGalley, with many thanks.
