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The Summer Girlfriend

by Kristina Forest

A summer arrangement with real stakes

Regular price $19.78 USD
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Awards & Recognition

  • Author recognition

    By a USA Today bestselling author

    The metadata describes Kristina Forest as a USA Today bestselling author; this is an author-level recognition, n...

AlbakiReads Editorial

A summer arrangement with real stakes

Noelle Lewis takes on paid stand-in roles to save for college, while Jeremiah Smith II needs a fictional girlfriend to avoid a family summer gathering tied to a painful memory. Their practical agreement begins as a weekend arrangement and stretches across the season, bringing Noelle into Jeremiah’s family orbit and complicating the boundaries they set. The setup connects a familiar romantic-comedy bargain with questions of financial pressure, family expectations, and the gap between a performed relationship and genuine attachment. Heart Beach, New Jersey, and the Smith family’s summer house provide the setting for a romance shaped by both Noelle’s tuition goal and Jeremiah’s effort to reckon with his past.

Good fit for readers who enjoy

  • Romantic-comedy readers who enjoy fake-dating premises.
  • Readers interested in romances involving family gatherings and summer settings.
  • Readers who appreciate protagonists balancing romantic possibilities with personal or financial goals.

Themes

Fake datingFamily expectationsEducation and financial pressureRomantic attachment

Based on publisher information and book metadata.

Book overview

A fake summer fling between a stand-in girlfriend and a handsome business heir becomes way too real in this glittering new romance by USA Today bestselling author Kristina Forest.

Noelle Lewis doesn't have time for long walks on the beach, brunch with the girls, or summer vacations. She's too busy saving up to go back to college. After recently getting laid off from her bookseller job, her main gig is now serving as a "stand-in" bridesmaid, which doesn't pay enough for the upcoming semester's tuition. But then the perfect, if not unconventional, opportunity arises...

Jeremiah Smith II, grandson of the founder of Smith's Sweets--a well-known baked goods company--once lived a life of frivolity. Since his grandfather's death, Jeremiah's tried to clean up his act, but it's hard to focus when his family requests that he join them at their summer house in Heart Beach, New Jersey, where his most painful memory lies. To avoid going there, Jeremiah claims he already has plans with his girlfriend, and of course, his family tells him to bring her. The problem? Jeremiah doesn't have a girlfriend.

After a chance meeting, Noelle and Jeremiah come to an agreement. He'll hire her to be his stand-in girlfriend for the weekend, and she'll use that money toward her tuition. She figures it will be quick, easy money, but as it turns out, Jeremiah's family is lovely, and Jeremiah is even lovelier. Soon, a weekend agreement turns into an entire summer, and Noelle and Jeremiah will have to keep their hearts in check, or else it's sink or swim for them both.
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