Drilled

[2.4] the trope game in this is strong—best friends-to-enemies-to-lovers, forced proximity, only one bed!!—but it is with a heavy heart i give the final installment of the four bears series this rating. those who've been with me for a while know how much i thoroughly enjoyed each book irrespective of majority opinion, but the handling of the main conflict simply didn't work for me on multiple levels.

⚠️ this review will be filled with major spoilers so proceed with caution! ⚠️
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- the way the main conflict was dealt with was a gigantic thorn in my side the entire book

let me set up the scene: 15 years ago, Ridge was set to marry Apollo's sister Anna and live happily ever after, but the night before the wedding, Ridge realizes in a somewhat drunken state that he's actually gay and burns rubber to get the hell away, leaving her at the altar. when he attempts to explain to Apollo why he'd left, Apollo responds with a punch to the face, moves out, and they never speak to each other again.

skip to present day, they're stuck fixing up a remote campground together for a month. the beginning consists of Ridge's numerous one-sided attempts to explain himself going sideways as the last thing Apollo wants to do is hear him out. Ridge laments that it's not fair for Apollo to punish him for this long and he should at least get a chance to say his piece. sensible enough, yeah?

but here's the thing, while i was certainly frustrated with Apollo for dodging any attempts at communication, i think he's fully justified in feeling the way he does. putting myself in his shoes, i can't imagine how much it had to have hurt for someone he essentially trusted with his life do that to his little sister. talk about a raging disappointment.

during their arguments, they basically get all up in each other's faces and then, because their lips are practically touching anyway, how about we violently snog instead