Hanna Brooks is a bodyguard. She is a trained professional and has worked all over the world as part of an elite team of Executive Protection Agents. She is conscientious and thorough, aware of her surroundings and the potential dangers of protecting a client.

She’s not had as much success protecting her heart.

After a relationship with a fellow protection agent ends badly, Hannah needs something new to throw herself into. There is a possible promotion in her future, running the new office in London, but unfortunately she’s competing with her ex for the spot. But when a last minute job comes up in their native Houston, Hannah throws herself into it, hoping it will get her that promotion.

But when that job turns out to be protecting Hollywood heartthrob Jack Stapleton while he’s in Texas with his family, helping his mother recover from cancer. But there is a catch with this job. Jack doesn’t want to add any extra stress to his mother, so he doesn’t want his parents to know that the studio is insisting he has protection. He’d been taking a break from films for a couple of years, so the team is taking his protection seriously but categorizing the threat as light. Jack does have a stalker who knits him sweaters and breeds corgis. But they still have to protect him at all times, without his family knowing what’s going on, so he agrees to let Hannah be his bodyguard only if she pretends to be his girlfriend.

Hannah is a little intimidated by Jack. She’s watched him in movies for years, seeing him bigger than life in action movies and romances. One of her movies has her all-time favorite kiss. Pretending to be his girlfriend isn’t her first choice, but she understands that he doesn’t want to upset his mother. And when she meets Jack’s family, Hannah understands. There is a sweetness there that she never had in her own family, and she too wants to protect that. Jack’s brother is angry with him for reasons he doesn’t explain to Hannah, but she can work with that.

After Jack’s mother’s surgery goes well, she suggests that everyone move out to their ranch for the next month, until Thanksgiving. And when Jack’s stalker shows up at his rental house in town, the protection team thinks it’s not a bad idea for him to stay at the ranch. Hannah does what she can to stay the pretend girlfriend, but she struggles with her crush on Jack. And when he acts like they are a couple, her confused feelings grow. But when photos of Hannah and Jack at the hospital together are released online and death threats come in against her, she has to protect more than just her heart. More than just her client. She may have to protect her own life as well.

The Bodyguard is a heart-warming romance with genuine laugh-out-loud moments. I’ve heard this called a rom com, and there is romance, and there is comedy, but it’s not as formulaic as a typical beach read rom com. Author Katherine Center has created these characters with depth and secrets, with honesty and flaws. This is a story of healing and hope, with romantic overtones.

I listened to the audio book of The Bodyguard, narrated by Patti Murin. She had an intelligent snark to her for Hannah’s voice that I found particularly charming. She really brought Hannah to life for me, especially when Jack was making fun of her and she was being feisty. I wasn’t sure how the story would play out, with the bodyguard and the movie star, but these characters were very real to me, so all of my worries were for nothing.

I am a big fan of rom coms, books and movies, and this has a classic story for that formula of storytelling. But Center took that idea and grew it into something deeper and richer and fantastically entertaining. I think romance fans can find something here that they could enjoy, but it has a lot more layers than a typical romance. And while I was laughing out loud whenever Jack called Hannah “Stumpy,” or when she showed him just how capable she was at her job, I was also so moved by the moments of true family they had. This book has it all, from a great story to phenomenal characters to real feelings and a perfect ending.

An early copy of the audio book was provided by Macmillan Audio through NetGalley, with many thanks.