The Cuddle Clause by Roxie Ray

Living with a werewolf is… complicated.

Maggie James is thirty-one, freshly dumped, and emotionally scorched.
Losing her relationship also cost her the apartment and the business she built with her ex. Now she’s broke, unmoored, and answering a roommate ad from a total stranger.

A stranger who turns out to be a neurodivergent werewolf with a detailed lease agreement… and a legally binding cuddle clause.

Roman Velasquez likes quiet, structure, and his Good Plate.
He’s used to living alone—until pack politics force his hand. To avoid being mated off for supernatural convenience, Roman needs to convince his Alpha that he’s already claimed. He panics, blurts out a lie, and suddenly he and Maggie are fake-mated, cuddling after full moons, and trying very hard not to catch feelings.

It’s just a roommate agreement. Just magical paperwork. Just a fake relationship to stop a supernatural power grab.

They both know the rules.
Don’t touch the plate.
Respect the schedule.
No falling in love.

Too bad they’re already breaking all of them.

My Review

Maggie’s world gets flipped upside down when her boyfriend breaks up with her. Somewhere along the way she lost herself in that relationship, and now she’s also homeless. She starts apartment hunting in San Francisco, which is basically impossible when you’re single and broke.

Enter Roman. He’s very organized, very neurodivergent, and honestly the perfect contrast to Maggie’s chaos. I loved his vibe from the start. He’s endearing in his own unique way, and I really appreciated the autistic representation inside a paranormal story. His pack is dealing with a mating mandate, and to protect himself he claims he’s already involved with his new roommate. So now the cuddle clause turns into fake dating too.

The neurodivergent rep is handled really well and feels natural to the story. Add forced proximity and fake relationship on top of being roommates and the chaos just works. Maggie’s inner thoughts are hilarious and had me laughing more than once. This book balances comedy and drama in a really fun way.

Of course fake starts to feel real and neither of them knows how to handle that. The tension builds and eventually sparks, and Roman is basically a cinnamon roll trapped inside a wolf shifter. Their relationship feels complicated but genuine.

He keeps acting like it isn’t real while she’s hurting because no one is actually saying the truth out loud. The communication struggles are what really hit emotionally. This story focuses less on big romantic gestures and more on showing up for someone, learning how they think, and choosing them even when it’s messy.

I loved the roommates to fake dating to falling in love progression and all the denial along the way. I didn’t love the third act breakup, but I did enjoy the emotional comfort and growth that followed. It’s steamy but still very much about finding yourself and unexpected love.

Overall I really enjoyed this one and all the characters. My heart felt full by the end and I love that it works as a standalone.

If you would like to read The Cuddle Clause by Roxie Ray you can find this book on Amazon. As an Amazon Associate I earn on qualifying purchases.

If you lie this book you may also enjoy books with these tags and categories: Romantic Comedy, Paranormal Romance and Fake dating.