To Have and to Harley is the first book in the Bikers & Brides series by Regina Cole. Bethany Jernigan owes her bestie. So when wedding planning overburdens the bride-to-be, Bethany steps in to handle the nitty-gritty. But the guy in charge isn't anything like she imagined. He's gruff, tattooed, and 100% male. His staff is even rougher around the edges, and it's not long before she feels as if she's stepped into some kind of crazy alternate reality. Trey Harding never wanted this to get so out of hand. One little lie somehow snowballed into a world of dresses and flowers and food and holy-hell-he's-in-over-his-head. But it's not like he can confess he's not the wedding planner he's pretending to be--especially now that he's falling for the maid of honor and his long lost mother is also the mother of the bride! His charade is becoming a farce, and as engines rev and ribbons fly, Trey's running out of time to figure out how to tell the truth without losing his new family, his crew or the woman of his dreams.
To Have and to Harley is so much more than the blurb led me to believe. Trey looks like a hard man, because life has made him that way. Found as an infant in a gas station bathroom and moving through the foster care system has left him with physical and emotional scars. He has formed his own family, a group that works to keep drugs of the street, and protecting others in less than law abiding ways. Suddenly he discovers his mother has been searching for him, and in an effort to make a good impression he claims to be a wedding planner rather than a motorcycle gang leader. I love his balance of sweet guys and burly exterior- but I have to admit that every biker I have ever know was also a teddy bear no matter how big or scary he might appear- so that seemed par for the course. Bethany has not had an easy life either, and I liked the slow forming friendship and burn between our wounded characters. I like that Bethany is strong and sweet, she also has a vulnerability and determination dichotomy that just made me love her right away and cheer her on. I also enjoyed how she stood up for herself and those she cares for, even when she gives in to the attraction and budding relationship with Trey- she puts her loved ones first. I do think that she was a little naive on more than one occasion but I found the ride firmly enjoyable.
To Have and to Harley is a fast, fun, and heart warming romance. I liked the balance of sweet and surly and am looking forward to reading more from this series and author in the future.
