Published June 2019 by The Wild Rose Press
About the Book:
She hates average...he's as average as they come.
High school history teacher Doug Garvey is trying to enjoy his last few weeks of summer vacation, but receiving his final divorce decree hits him harder than expected. After a brief fling fizzles, he fears love just isn't in the cards for him. If only he could find someone who's real, someone interested in something beyond herself…maybe a new running partner who can keep up with his more carnal appetite. When sexy, straight-talking Laurel runs across his path, he dares to hope again.
He's done with social-climbing posers...she's ambitious and has big dreams
Fired from an art gallery, Laurel Jepsen shelves her pursuit of an art career in San Francisco to help her beloved great aunt Maxie move into assisted living. While out on a morning run, she's harassed by a group of teens until a tall, broad-shouldered hottie steps in, pretending to be her boyfriend with a kiss that makes her wish it were true. But she's only passing through, not looking for a relationship.
Their fierce chemistry burns up the sheets—and the couch, the shower, the forest—but falling in love would ruin everything. Laurel can't stay in Eugene, and he can't leave. Doug's only hope is to convince her the glittery life she's after could blind her to the opportunities already in her path.
My Take:
Laurel has big dreams for her life, but so far nothing is
working quite the way she wants it to. She wants to work in the art world and
live in a big city, but when she loses her gallery position, her parents arrange
for Laurel to stay with her great aunt Maxie for the summer to help the older
woman transition into assisted living. She still dreams of saving enough money
to move to San Francisco with her friend and join the big-time art scene.
While living in Maxie’s small town she meets a fellow runner
named Doug, who lives in town and teaches at the local high school. His mother
is in the same assisted living facility that Maxie is moving into, so Laurel
and Doug run into each other a few times – and then literally decide to become
running buddies. One thing leads to another and Oh! My! The chemistry crackles
between them and the sex scenes are steamy good! And yet, Laurel still isn’t
sure she’s ready to give up her dreams and settle for a small town guy and a
small town life – no matter how right things are between them.
The author writes with humor and heart, giving us a country
mouse / city mouse relationship, where the two aren’t as different as they
might think, and Laurel needs to open her eyes to the possibilities right in
front of her. The secondary characters were lots of fun to read as well - I
adored the colorful great aunt, and her gaggle of young artistic friends. The
author sends the readers through a rollercoaster of emotions before giving us
our happy ending, but it’s well worth the journey!
5 sparkling stars for this
one, and I look forward to reading more from this author!
Grab a copy now on AMAZON
...And come back Wednesday for a visit with the author!
