Refuse to Sink

by Lindzee Armstrong

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She’s a widow mourning her Navy SEAL husband. He’s her husband’s best friend and has been in love with her for years. Can a marriage of convenience turn into a real relationship?

2024 Whitney Award Romance Finalist!

Meredith always knew that marrying a Navy SEAL might mean becoming a widow before turning thirty. But when her husband John unexpectedly dies after leaving the military, she’s left with two failing businesses, a mountain of debt, and a broken heart. At least she has Sawyer, her husband’s loyal best friend, to help her pick up the pieces of her life.

Sawyer has loved Meredith since long before she married his best friend—not that he’s ever let his feelings show. He’d never come between Meredith and John’s happy marriage, but when his best friend dies, everything changes. Suddenly Sawyer is putting his dating life on hold to help Meredith figure out how to move on alone.

When Meredith finds out she’s pregnant with twins and it’s high risk only a few weeks after the funeral, she’s terrified of raising two babies alone. But Sawyer makes her an offer she can’t refuse—marry him so that they can raise John’s children together. As Meredith battles her grief, Sawyer’s battling his own—while also trying to hide his feelings from Meredith. Can a marriage of convenience between friends turn into a real relationship?

This all-new second edition of Refuse to Sink has been revised and updated. If you love a marriage of convenience romance, sparkling chemistry, witty banter, and heartfelt emotion—without on-page steam—then you’ll love Refuse to Sink. Each book in the series can be read as a standalone, but readers will love returning to the interconnected world and characters.

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Book Details

Genre

Contemporary Romance

Subgenre

Beach, Military, Small Town

Series

Second Chances in Sapphire Cove • Book 3

Audience

Adult

Bell Peppers

🫑🫑

Profanity

1 None

Violence

1 None

Drugs, Alcohol, Tobacco

2 Mild

Publication Date

April 10, 2024

Language Versions

English

Narration Type

Human

Fiction Form

Novel

Sensitive Themes

Depression or anxiety, Grief or loss of a loved one, Medical procedures/hospitalization, Pregnancy/childbirth on-page, PTSD or trauma recovery

Representation

Single-parent or widowed-parent protagonist, Veteran/military service representation

Beautifully written!!

I have never read anything by Lindzee Armstrong before, OMG this was fantastic!! This was beautifully written and an amazing story, if I could give this 100 stars I would!! Meredith's husband John was a Navy Seal, he decided it was to dangerous so he retired. Shortly after his retirement he dies of a blood clot at home. John had asked Sawyer; one of his best friends, had him promise to take care of his wife if anything happened to him. Meredith is a mess, she never dreamed she'd be a widow before the age of thirty. She can't eat, she's always nauseous, vomiting, and always tired. Her friend believes she's pregnant, and a pregnancy test confirms it. Sawyer takes Meredith to the doctor and finds out she's having twins; how can she do all this alone? Sawyer offers to marry her, only a platonic marriage of convenience. She would have health insurance with Sawyer's offer, does she except? Love the plot, great setting, and strong intense interesting characters. I look forward to reading more from Ms. Armstrong!!!

What a Beautiful Story

Refuse to Sink was such an appropriate title for this story about Meredith, whose husband, John had just died at the age of 29. I liked how John's best friends, Zach and Sawyer were there to help Meredith. The three men had been navy SEALS together until two of the friends decided to get married. Quickly this story turned to a marriage of convenience when Meredith discovered she was pregnant with twins and Meredith's husband had asked Sawyer to take care of Meredith if anything happened to him. He took that vow quite seriously. She did not know that Sawyer was in love with her but he kept it to himself.I liked how I was quickly pulled into the book and admired how Sawyer wanted to help Meredith cope with her loss and the pregnancy. It was a beautiful, heartfelt story with a happy ending that touched my heart. I received an advance copy of this book and I willingly chose to write an honest review.

The author's best book yet!

I have read almost everything that Lindzee Armstrong has written and I firmly believe that this is her best book yet. There are so many emotions that come to play in this book and some very hard issues.Meredith's ex-Seal husband has passed away. She thought she had it made when she got him back home and by her side, but life is evil sometimes. I'm married to one of those men that seems to only take jobs that put his life in danger every single day. When you've finally gotten them to change their situation, it's so much harder to deal with when something happens that you didn't see coming . She soon discovers things are even worse than she thought and one of her husband's friends suggests a marriage of convenience in order to fulfill his promise to take care of her.This story was so good that I could not stop reading it. There were so many obstacles in the way of Sawyer actually getting to have a real romantic relationship with his friend's widow. The story was an in depth dealing of death and despair, finding your way back, and opening yourself back up to love.A truly wonderful story!

10 Stars!!! Heartbreak, Healing, Friendship & Love!!!

Talk about All The Emotions!!! This one was full of emotions. But Lindzee Armstrong delivered a beautifully, heart-wrenching, healing story that is full of love and friendship and family! I loved every minute of it and didn't want it to end.I love the title of the book and how it comes into play in the story. It really was perfect and gave so much strength to Meredith.How do you say goodbye to the love of your life? Especially when they are gone unexpectedly and you're left to carry on and keep living when they can't. That is definitely an emotion filled question and my heart ached for Meredith as she is grieving the death of her husband John. I loved their group of friends who rallied around her and lent her strength while they were also grieving.Sawyer was my favorite. His steady care and help for Meredith was truly beautiful. He missed and was grieving for his best friend as well. I loved watching them work together through their separate and similar grief. It was truly beautiful and heartbreaking all at the same time. Get ready for an emotional rollercoaster.I loved it so much! One of my favorites by this author. She truly wrote a book that shows grief and living in an accurate light, but shows that there can be joy and hope and love again when the time is right.Content: Clean. The book does deal with the death of a spouse and grieving. Pregnancy with twins. Remarriage. It was all done in a very sensitive manner.I received a copy from the author. All thoughts and opinions in the review are my own.Happy Reading!!!

I could not put this one down!

I loved this book by Lindzee Armstrong. It was a book I did not want to put down.This book starts off with the funeral of Meredith's husband. John had died suddenly, leaving Meredith all alone with their two failing businesses. Soon after the funeral she discovers that she's pregnant with twins. And things become overwhelming so quickly. Luckily, she has great friends willing to step in and help her.One of those is Sawyer. He's been in love with Meredith for so long, and no one knew. He realizes quickly that the best option would be for the two of them to get married so that she would always have someone right there to help her.I loved that Sawyer was the person Meredith didn't know she needed. He was there for her when she was so sick she couldn't do anything. And with no judgement. This book is such a great book about second chances and moving on.