No Matter What (A Hearts of New York Novel #3) by Cara Bastone

A soft, soul-charged romance about two people who already chose each other—then got knocked off course by trauma and have to decide if they can find their way back. No Matter What is intimate and emotional, following an estranged married couple as they rebuild trust through small moments, awkward proximity, and a surprisingly vulnerable figure-drawing class that turns “we can’t even look at each other” into “please see me again.”

A year after surviving a life-altering accident, Roz and Vin can’t look each other in the eyes, let alone share a bed. Their marriage has been stuck in survival mode—separate rooms, careful distance, and all the words they don’t know how to say. Roz has been holding onto hope… until she discovers Vin has signed a new lease, making the separation feel suddenly real.

So Roz does what any soon-to-be-divorced Manhattanite might do: she signs up for a figure-drawing class. Between trying to improve her art and leaning on her best friend Raffi, she almost manages to ignore Vin’s move-out date—and the fact that he’s sleeping in their guest room. It would be easier if Vin weren’t Raffi’s older brother, and if Roz didn’t still find him devastatingly attractive and deeply, painfully kind.

Then Vin offers to let Roz draw him. Nude. For practice. Which is obviously a terrible idea for anyone trying to make a separation easier… and also the first time in a year they’ve allowed themselves to truly look at each other. As Roz tries to capture the wholeness of the person she fell in love with, they both have to decide whether the feelings they buried can become the foundation for healing—together.