I've had really bad luck with romance books that feature kids in it lately. Sometimes that plot tool is done right, sometimes it isn't. In this case, Emma does it right. As if I had any doubt. Poor Chelsea is thrusted into the life of raising six kids, ranging from 14 to less than one. There were plenty of emotional, heartfelt scenes, but also plenty of downright hilarious ones with this gang of comical characters. 
 Jake is one of those guys who doesn't know how much of a good guy he is. He was dealt a bad hand growing up and because of that he think he can't possibly be good. But he is. Sure, he's a player, but he's nothing if not honest and I respected how he put it all out there, whether or not the women he slept with appreciated it or not. Honestly, I don't know what women who have one-night stands expect, but Jake is definitely not a jerk for not wanting more. Until he meets Chelsea. I love that moment when the main characters meet for the first time and the spark is there. I loved the progression and growth that Jake went through as he became more involved with this family. It was sweet watching him form a relationship with each member of the McQuaid family. 
 The only thing that bugged me was this one thing with Chelsea at first. There was this scene involving her friends that really annoyed me. It was irresponsible of her and I didn't like it at all. Plus, the way she treated Jake in that instance was so wrong and it kind of didn't fit with how she was before and after the incident. It's a small thing in the scheme of everything else that happened between them, but that was definitely something I could've done without. Aside from that, I liked Chelsea. I felt for the girl, dealing with the loss of her brother and sister-in-law who practically raised her is hard enough, but to take on SIX kids, changing your whole life like that, has got to be rough. That's part of the reason I didn't whole-heartedly fault her for actions during that incident. She also put up with a lot of Jake's crap when he went through his moods while he was trying to figure out whether he wanted this life with them or not. 
 Emma never fails to win me over with her charming characters and her talent for an entertaining story. Equal parts feel-good and scorching-hot, Sustained is yet another winner in her Legal Briefs series and you'd be crazy not to pick this one up. I seriously cannot wait for Brent's story.