Dex is many things, a college senior, the bassist for The Invisibles, a son, a friend, everything but a boyfriend. Everybody knows him as the shallow guy who’s up for a good time anytime. People rarely take the time to see the loyal guy lying just beneath the happy-go-lucky façade.
There are parts of Dex’s life he keeps hidden. Ones he believes no one would understand. Since he gave up on the idea of a dream girl long ago, he thinks he’s finally found the perfect balance of connection without commitment with Sam.
Chrissy used to know everything about Dex. When he left four years ago for college, she was left behind. Four years later, with nowhere else to turn, Chrissy calls the one person she’s always counted on, Dex. One glance at the sad eyes he’s tried to forget and Dex knows it’s out of his control.
With Chrissy’s return, lines begin to cross from friendship to something more, but will Dex’s secret force them apart forever?
(Can’t Let Go is the fourth novel in the Invisibles Series)
In Can’t Let Go, the fourth book in Michelle Lynn’s The Invisibles series, readers get Dex and Chrissy’s story – one that begins during childhood and extends into adulthood despite the distance and periods of no communication. At times, their relationship is easy; they share a bond over their dads’ gambling addiction and the need to step away from that kind of life and live safely and securely. For four years, they sit together on Saturday nights, waiting for their fathers and getting to know one another, and through those years, their connection grows. Dex sees himself as Chrissy’s protector, and he takes that job seriously, but as they turn into teenagers, everything gets more complicated and feelings develop beyond friendship, putting a strain on that easygoing relationship they’re used to and fracturing their connection because neither one can be up front about how they feel.
For Chrissy, she doesn’t want to be so dependent on Dex. Even though he has it rough with his father, most of the time, he lives with his mom, not having to experience the constant fear of not having enough to eat or a place to live. Because it’s always been just her and her father, she’s struggled a lot more than Dex has and sees herself as his inferior. She desperately wants a different life and the sympathetic looks from Dex are too much for her to handle. She wants to stand on her own, needing no one to shield her from this life. But that’s easier said than done and when she finds herself needing rescuing from Dex again after many years apart, the feelings that she’s held back…pushed down, come back full force, but Dex is not the same person – their lives are drastically different, and he’s done everything in his power to keep girls at bay. Will Chrissy’s return prompt Dex to reevaluate his decision on relationships or will he continue to keep her at arm’s length, refusing to acknowledge what’s between them?
In a lot of ways, Can’t Let Go is different from the other three books in the series. There’s still plenty of drama and angst, but it doesn’t seem as emotionally driven. The previous stories had me weighted down with emotion, but I didn’t feel like that with Dex and Chrissy’s story. Don’t get me wrong, what Chrissy goes through with her father and his issues is heartbreaking, especially since she’s the type of daughter who feels like she needs to help him at a cost to her own self, but Dex and Chrissy’s relationship isn’t happening, for the most part, due to Dex. Yes, Chrissy has some insecurities and that separates them as well, but Dex’s stubbornness causes a lot of the drama. There are several times throughout the story where I wanted to knock some sense into him and get him to realize sooner what he’s willingly throwing away, which I think impacted my investment in their relationship a bit. Despite those feelings, though, their story is a solid one that helps readers understand more about the closeness of the group and why Dex is why he is throughout the previous books.
I love The Invisibles series, especially because in each book, readers are allowed to see how the previous main characters are doing as well. Sadie, Brady, Jessa, Grant, Kailey, and Trey, along with Dex are a family who supports each other and steps up when they’re needed and that is one message that is found throughout the series. I love how accepting the girls are of Chrissy and how the guys go out of their way, as well, to make her feel welcome and a part of the group. It’s a fantastic unit of friends that every reader could hope to have as a support system. I’m intrigued by Rob’s story. I haven’t really liked him much in the other books, so I’m ready for Michelle Lynn to weave her magic and show me what he’s made of.
A complimentary copy was provided in exchange for an honest review.
4 poison apples
EXCERPT:
Already regretting my decision to call Dex in the first place, I keep my distance for the remainder of the night, allowing him to have fun with his friends. He doesn’t engage me very much, only telling me even more that he wishes I wouldn’t have invaded his perfect life. By the time we go to bed, we venture into the room that is reserved for the two of us. I guess when you come with so many couples, it negates the whole guys in this room, girls in the other equation.
I escape into the bathroom and change my clothes. By the time I return, Dex is already in his pajama pants, digging in his bag. He drops his phone and bends down to retrieve it. As he steadily stands back up, his eyes roam up my body and a warm current in my blood swirls, following the path of his eyes. He bites his bottom lip and takes a deep breath. “I’ll be back,” he says with a husky voice.
Once he rushes out, I climb under the covers to disengage any sexual urges neither one of us will entertain tonight. In this moment, I wish I could be one of those girls. The ones who could sleep with Dex only to feel the comforting arms of a man, but it’s the fear of after that keeps my hands pinned around my body. The fear that he would sleep with me out of pity, or worse, that he would only do it for his own pleasure and release.
He opens the door, and his blue eyes focus on the television and anywhere but at me. “I’ll sleep on the floor,” he murmurs, never casting a glance my way.
“Don’t be silly. We’ve done this before.” I flip to my side.
“When we were fourteen, Chris.” He grabs the pillow.
“Really, Dex. I trust you,” I tell him, facing him head on, and oh my lord, his muscles are everywhere. He’s always been built, but holy mackerole, he’s insanely big now.
He looks at me long and hard for a few seconds and then pulls back the covers. As he’s sliding under the crisp white linen sheets, the mattress dips next to me. I turn around so my back faces his. We both reach over and turn off the lights on our respective sides. The funny thing is if someone walked in right now, they’d think we were two elderly people, who have been married for years, instead of hot-blooded early twenty-something’s.
Minutes of silence fill the room, and even with me shutting my eyes, visualizing what I imagine the beach must feel like, sleep won’t come. Dex’s close proximity has my body hyperaware of his breathing and his body. “Do you want to tell me?” he whispers.
“I’m okay. Like I said, I just needed a break. Thank you for bringing me. I hope I wasn’t too much of an inconvenience for you,” I lie, and a huge breath releases from him.
“You’re never an inconvenience to me. If you don’t tell me, I can’t help you,” he adds, and I roll over, although, he keeps his back to me.
“Nothing. Like I said I needed a breather.” If I admit to Dex the real reason, he’ll try to fix it and save me like normal. Being here with his friends and the people that care about him, he deserves normality and that’s not in my life’s course.
My hands itch to touch the grooves and contours of the muscles that spread across his back, displaying how hard he works out at the gym every day. “Just wanted to feel normal. So, thank you again.” The lies just continue to flow. He doesn’t need my drama in his life. He has his together, why should my fucked-up past screw with it?
The pillow shifts from the slow shake of his head. “You’re welcome,” he says, and the silence encompasses us once again. Eventually, the light whistling of his breathing signifies he’s fallen asleep. I lie awake, observing the rise and fall of his back until my eyes relent to the exhaustion of the day.
Michelle moved around the Midwest most of her life, transferring from school to school before settling down in the outskirts of Chicago ten years ago, where she now resides with her husband and two kids. She developed a love of reading at a young age, which helped lay the foundation for her passion to write. With the encouragement of her family, she finally sat down and wrote one of the many stories that have been floating around in her head. When she isn’t reading or writing, she can be found playing with her kids, talking to her mom on the phone, or hanging out with her family and friends. But after chasing around twin preschoolers all day, she always cherishes her relaxation time after putting the kids to bed.
INVISIBLES SERIES:
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