4 ⭐

Ohh this was a good one! Crystal and Cruxan were so sweet!

The gist: Crystal and Erin were kidnapped and Cruxan is sent to track and retrieve them. Once he finds them, he realizes that Crystal is his mate. He and Crystal must journey together to try and get Erin back from her captor.

Crystal is dealing with a lot of past trauma from an abusive relationship (TWs for mentions of past verbal, emotional, physical and sexual abuse). She is still weary of men and does not want this undeniable draw she feels towards Cruxan to go anywhere.

Cruxan is a ladies man (even amongst the Luxirians) and he has no idea how to interact with a female if it isn't sexual. It was so sweet watching him gape and struggle to interact with Crystal upfront since she wanted nothing to do with him.

This one was definitely more of a slow burn and I loved the patience and understanding that Cruxan has with Crystal. He never pushes her for more and everything is completely up to her. (And honestly, Cruxan is probably the only male out of the bunch that would have respected Crystal's choice to return to Earth. So major points for him.)

I also appreciated the Beks and Lihvan cameos. I love those two and they clearly love their friends and only want happiness for them.