Back in college, I made a pact with Presley Grant—if we were both still single at thirty, we’d marry each other.
It was a joke. A fallback plan we never thought we’d need.
Now I’m an NFL star, playing for Presley’s father’s team, and she’s the team doctor—completely off-limits. But when an injury puts me under her care in the offseason, old chemistry resurfaces fast … and inescapably.
Then tragedy strikes.
Now I’m the legal guardian of my sister’s two young children, facing a custody battle I might lose. Because no matter how much I love them, the court might not see my career as stable.
And Presley … her dream of opening a football camp for underprivileged kids hinges on one seemingly impossible condition: she must be married or thirty-five years old to access her trust fund.
So, I make a proposal and cash in on our pact.
It’s supposed to solve everything—my family, her future. Temporary. Controlled. Nothing more.
But living together, raising two kids, and pretending to be in love—it starts to feel dangerously real.
And when the time comes to walk away … neither of us is sure we can.
(ARC Read)
You know those books that completely consume your life for a few days and then leave you emotionally stranded when they’re over? Yeah… The Pact was that book for me.
Ava Sutton took one of my favorite romance setups, the “if we’re still single at thirty” pact between best friends, and somehow turned it into one of the most emotional, heartfelt, and painfully romantic stories I’ve read this year. I was fully locked into Saint and Presley’s story from the very first chapter, and by the end I was sitting there emotionally wrecked, completely obsessed, and not remotely ready to let these characters go.
Saint and Presley made a pact in college that if they were both still single at thirty, they’d marry each other. Cute in theory, right? Except for Saint, it was never really a joke. This man has been in love with Presley for YEARS, and the level of yearning in this book? Absolutely unmatched. Every look, every moment of restraint, every tiny act of care between them carried so much weight because underneath their friendship was this massive love they’d both been trying not to touch for far too long.
Because the way he looks at me, like he wants to devour me, like the last eleven years have been nothing but a long, agonizing buildup for this moment.
And then Ava Sutton rips your heart out.
The grief woven into this story hit me so hard. You could physically feel the pain radiating off Saint after losing his sister—the guilt, the exhaustion, the helplessness of suddenly becoming everything for two grieving children while barely holding himself together. The heaviness in him was palpable. But Presley never lets him carry it alone. She steps in without hesitation to help with the kids, the logistics, the emotional weight of it all, and honestly? The way she loved him through his grief was one of the most beautiful parts of this entire book. Without Presley, Saint would’ve completely fallen apart, and she refused to let that happen.
I want to say yes. Because this messy, complicated life built out of grief and love doesn’t scare me as much as the idea of walking away from him does.
And those kids? Oh my GOD. Remi and Rhyan captured my heart. The little moments between them and Saint were some of the most emotional scenes in the book for me. Watching this NFL star who already adored Presley turn into this fiercely protective, loving guardian while trying to navigate unimaginable loss just made me love him even more. Wyatt St. Clair is genuinely top-tier book boyfriend material. Wave every green flag imaginable.
What made this romance work so well for me was how perfectly paced the slow burn felt. Even though they’ve loved each other forever, Ava never rushed the emotional payoff. The tension builds and builds until every single touch feels huge. And when they finally cross that line? WHEW. The chemistry in this book was unreal. The mutual pining, the emotional intimacy, the years of hidden feelings finally boiling over—it made every steamy scene hit ten times harder. And listen… the mutual masturbation scene in Presley’s office? Immediate hall of fame status for me. “Ruin the friendship” has honestly never worked out better for anyone.
“I don’t want to be gentle, Doc,” I whisper just under her ear, making her shiver. “I want to make you bite the pillow.” I kiss her neck. “Grip the sheets.” Lick. “And lose every ounce of self-control.”
I also loved how much heart existed outside of the romance. The friendships, the teammate banter, Presley’s relationship with her sister, the entire NY Titans found family dynamic, it all made the world feel so full and emotionally rich. Every relationship mattered. Every character added something meaningful. It’s the kind of story that makes you want to stay inside this world forever.
Ava Sutton truly delivered everything with The Pact: devastating emotion, breathtaking romance, scorching chemistry, beautiful found family moments, and a love story that felt both achingly tender and completely consuming. Saint and Presley felt inevitable in the best way possible, like two people who were always meant to find their way back to each other no matter how long it took.
“I can’t imagine living without you, or hearing you laugh in the hallway. I love you in a bone-crushing way, Saint. In a way that makes it hard to breathe when you’re not in the room.”
And that ending? Perfect. Completely perfect. I closed this book happy, emotional, and still desperate for more. Saint is easily one of my top book boyfriends of 2026, and this series just keeps getting better and better.
Release Date: May 22nd, 2026
Thank you to Ava Sutton for the ARC read!