AIDEN. Gotta love assholes. You see, I have a thing for the big jerks who redeem themselves by the end of the book, especially if they are the brooding, grumpy and uncommunicative types. Aiden is a perfect combination of all of the above. I was nervous. Quitting a well-paying job—a steady one, at least while Aiden had a career—was scary. But that excuse was getting older and older. There were a few moments between them that left the biggest smile on my face. When Aiden showed up at a certain convention to support Vanessa, I had a perma-grin and happy tears! Both of these characters were completely fantastic. I can’t even tell you who I loved more. Vanessa — her inner monologue was torture! I tried to love her, but she was so whiny, and despite her saying again and again that she's being 'MaTuRe,' she wasn't! DAMN IT, SHE WAS SO IMMATURE. Her coping with her anger and striving to be the best version of herself were great, and most of the time, I actually appreciated how she dealt with the situations. But maybe I was tired of constantly being in her mind only! TORTURE, LIKE I SAID. New York Times and USA Today bestselling author Mariana Zapata’s most beloved book, The Wall of Winnipeg and Me—now with new exclusive content!

H rating: 3 stars. Aiden. He was a cold jerk at times, and others he was sweet. I felt he was tolerable at the end -- definitely not one of my favorite Hs. However, I love slowburn romances, and the pacing of this romance was exactly right. Watching Aiden slowly warm up and open up was so heartfelt and made for a really sweet reading experience.

Maybe you've never had someone care about you like this before or doing something for you, but what If you don't respect that the other person doesn't like that?! Idk It pissed me a little! When Van quits, it's no surprise that she gets no reaction from Aiden, not even a nod or a shrug, which only fuels her anger. But when Aiden shows up, and keeps showing up, at her door with an absurd offer she is perplexed, buuuuttt when he offers her a deal she can't refuse, she finally caves. Over the years, my attraction to him had dwindled so that the only thing I really mooned over—correction: appreciated in a healthy, normal way—was his work ethic. And Stephen Dexter, again, is great in so many other books. I can almost believe his version of Aiden, but not Trevor's. He's honestly more convincing as Zach with the Texas accent. But he makes Trevor sound whiny and much much younger than Aiden, when he's supposed to be much older.

I don’t want to say a word on the plot. Mainly because the “twist” in here drives the plot and I loved where it took the story and was glad I didn’t know beforehand. And you know where The Wall of Winnipeg ended up? On my Utter Perfection shelf. Only six books reside there. Only 6. Out of 1589. That's how much I adore this book. Also, using the mundanity of everyday life is really effective with these books because you grow to appreciate all the small little nuances of the characters. Note: if you like plot driven romances you will probably hate this. Melodrama is not something to be found here. But I appreciate it so much, and it makes the story so believable. So this was my second book by this author and damn it was just as good as the first. This book focuses on a socially isolated/stunted/cold pro football player and his (slow fuggin burn) relationship with his personal assistant. I know I wrote it above but this isn't for the faint of heart, these books are SLOW. BURN.Did I hate this book? No. Is it a new favorite? No. It felt like turning a Hallmark movie into a miniseries. Fine to watch in the moment but way too long and shallow to enjoy over and over - for me. I will miss it more than you'll ever know and I will never forget Aiden & Van and their amazing and beautiful love story for aslong as life. My dad used to beat the shit out of me because he could, once a week at least until I hit puberty. I’ve gotten into enough fights in my life; I’ll fight somebody if there’s a good reason, but not for a game.❞ He's Archer, Remy, Sebastian Stark, Diaz, Erik “Ripper” Jacobs, Gabe Bonner, Cal Bonner, Ian North, Levi (call sign Ace), Theo, Ghost Teague, Ronan, Grayson, Axel Carillo, Paul Langdon, Jimmy, Nate Sawyer, Ben, Hector, Tanner, Lee Nightingale and Joe Callahan - all wrapped up in one big, hot YUM.

Aiden was clearly lonely. He had no friends. He didn’t know what it was like to have a friend, not until Vanessa became more than just his assistant. He was emotionless, expressionless, cold and serious, showing no sign of pity or remorse, which was why many, including Vanessa, found him to be arrogant and rude. But the way he tries to become Vanessa’s friend after realizing he messed up warmed my heart and actually, not even kidding, had me squealing. Aiden and I weren’t BFFs, much less confidants. Then again, why would we be? This was a man who didn’t have more than possibly three people he spent time with when he managed to tear himself away from training and games. Vacations? He didn’t take them. I didn’t even think he knew what they were.I am a fan of romance developing in a mediocre pace, not too slow and not too fast, but the time between Vanessa and Aiden was perfect. Their banter had me wanting to highlight it all. Full of humor and sarcasm, the two took a while to like each other, but as the reader, it's easy to feel the tension between the two and how their marriage of convenience slowly becomes something much more real, much more emotional. And when Aiden kissed her for the first time? Yeah, I couldn't have asked for better timing. I had planned it out and built up my business so that wouldn’t be the case, I reminded myself as I sat there watching Aiden eat. I knew what I was doing. I had money squirreled away. I was good at what I did, and I loved doing it. The legendary “Wall of Winnipeg” may be adored by thousands, but after two years Van has had enough.

anyway, i don’t understand or know how is it possible to love and obsess this much over fictional characters and a couple but i do. i guess it’s time to reread WoW for 7th time and ' Wait For It' in the process for the 5th time🫠 this was it! I WAS DONE WITH IT THAT SHE KEPT ON TALKING ABOUT HIS BODY IN EACH CHAPTER! So what If he eats a serving for 4 people? It's his money, his food! He didn’t have pictures of family or friends anywhere in the house. His entire life revolved around football. It was the center of his universe. It's almost like you have to earn it in Zapata's books. And, like anything in life, the things you earn are the things you appreciate the most. And you seriously appreciate this love story by the time you get to end.

I was in Aiden’s lap. He was cross-legged on either side of me, each of his muscular thighs cocooning my hips, his chin just behind my ear. I shivered. After two years, Vanessa has had enough of Aiden “The Wall of Winnipeg” Graves. For a while now, she’s thought about quitting her job. She knows it isn’t the best idea. After all, she knows how many people would give to have her job - being an assistant/housekeeper for the best defensive in the NFO isn’t an easy job to find. But as much as this job is helping her, she can’t continue putting her dreams of graphic design and starting her own business behind. So when she tells her boss, Aiden, that she is quitting, she at least expected him to feel bad, to ask why or give some sort of feeling, but after seeing nothing, Vanessa knows she’s making the right decision. Instalove: No, but the h had feelings (a self-admitted crush) for the H at the beginning of the story. Vanessa Mazur knows she’s doing the right thing. She shouldn’t feel bad for quitting. Being an assistant/housekeeper/fairy godmother to the top defensive end in the National Football Organization was always supposed to be temporary. She has plans and none of them include washing extra-large underwear longer than necessary.