But if she was going personal for this story—if she was going to tell the truth—first, she had to find out the most important truth, once and for all. It was time to find out it Sam Compton wanted her back.

Just One Night

Riley McKenna knows sex—good sex, bad sex, kinky sex. Her articles in Stiletto magazine are the publication’s most scandalous—and the most read. But when Stiletto’s fiftieth anniversary issue requires her column to get a lot more personal, Riley is forced to confront a long-hidden secret: Her own sexual experience is limited to one awkward college encounter. Now Riley is about to call in the favor of a lifetime from the one man who’s always held her heart.

Sam Compton knows two things about Riley McKenna: She’s the only woman for him. But as his best friend’s little sister, she’s also completely off-limits. Sam shouldn’t even consider her proposition: to have a one-night stand in the name of research. But the thought of another man putting his hands on Riley is more than Sam can handle, and soon he’s agreeing to one night with New York’s resident sexpot. But Riley’s full of surprises, and what starts as “one time only” soon becomes “just one more time.” And then one more. And before they know it, Riley and Sam learn firsthand that when it comes to love, there’s no such thing as just one night.

The third book in the Stiletto series (aka the series that made me fall in love with Lauren Layne’s writing) is Just One Night, which follows Riley and Sam. Like her best friends, Riley has made a career at Stiletto talking about relationships. She’s made a name for herself as the resident “sex expert,” except she has a secret: her sexual experience is more of a theoretical nature than practical. It hasn’t been a problem before, but when Stiletto’s fiftieth-anniversary issue requires her to write “the story behind the headlines,” Riley has to confront why her sexual experience is limited to an awkward one-off in college—a why in the shape of her older brother’s best friend, Sam.

When I read this the first time, I marked it as your classic friends to lovers, which is why it was my second favorite of the series—I just love that trope so much. However, on re-read, I realize it goes beyond that. First, there’s the added tension for Sam that Riley is his best friend’s little sister, who he promised to stay away from. And on top of that, it is so clear that Riley and Sam are both deeply in love with each other and have been for years, but because they’re stubborn idiots, neither realize that. It’s not just friends to lovers; it’s idiots pining to lovers, something I love even more. There’s just something so satisfying about two characters finally getting together after spending the whole book screaming, “oh my God, get it together, you two!”

If I thought the sexual tension between Grace and Jake in Love the One You’re With was intense, it’s off the charts between Riley and Sam. They take banter to the next level, but it’s all in good fun. And once they do end up acting on it… oh boy (Riley may not have had a lot of experience, but she is still a sex columnist after all). But sexual chemistry aside, I think this is actually one of the sweeter stories in this series. Underneath the verbal sparring, you can really tell how much these two care about each other. The history between them and how they’ve affected each other’s lives is so apparent, which is what makes their story so sweet.