Self-sufficient Penelope Reid has her life completely mapped out—a necessity after surviving foster care. Now she’s on a mission to prove that she’s capable of managing a halfway house at Twelve Bluebells Ranch. The last thing she needs is hindrance from the charming Luke Granger, who asked her to dance three years ago, then disappeared before the music began.
Luke lives a nomadic lifestyle as a security specialist. He’s never found a reason to put down roots until he’s reunited with the bossy brunette and her generous heart. When vandalism strikes the ranch neighboring Twelve Bluebells, securing the area is just another gig for him before he hits the road. But as Luke and Penelope work alongside each other and care for the ranch’s halfway house residents, his restless heart finds reasons to stay, and her careful walls begin to crack.
When crisis threatens everything Penelope has built and tragedy pulls at Luke’s wandering heart, they must decide if it’s worth the risk to lower their guards for a love that could give them the home they’ve always longed for.
Deborah Clack crafts a story with poignant emotions and witty banter in this no-spice romance about taking risks and finding belonging in unexpected places.
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Sexual Content - 0/5
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Violence - 0/5
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Language - 0/5
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Drugs and Alcohol - 0/5
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Summary
"Throw anything you want at me. . . . . . when you're finished, I intend to be the safe person for you to love."
Organized and efficient, administrative assistant Penelope Reid is marching through life exactly as planned, until she bumps into a charming security agent who stepped in and out of her life three years prior like a bad dance partner. (that's right, they never even shared that dance, did they?) At the moment, Penelope is razor focused on proving to her boss that she the is best candidate to manage their emerging halfway house at Twelve Bluebells Ranch and Luke Granger is proving to be a big distraction.
When unforseen circumstances throw Penelope's life out of control, she has no recourse but to depend on others, proving that her self imposed walls are not as stable as she imagined them to be. Seeing her future aspirations all but disappear, at least for the present, Luke's surprisingly stable presence in her life is proving to be a welcome balm, but will it last? The man is not known for sticking, and their fragile bond, while growing stronger, comes with no guarantees.
Very few authors have the ability to dive deep into the unfathomable wells of human emotion, but this author? She absolutely does! Every single conversation (many qualifying as entertaining banter) pulls and tugs at carefully curated layers of self defense in both of her main characters, using their words to both heal (and Penelope would add to annoy) and restore their broken places. "All the pieces. All the numbers. All the love. After we fall."
An extraordinary romance! So many life lessons!
I voluntarily reviewed a copy of this book from Haven Fiction. The opinions stated above are entirely my own.
Reviewed by Rebecca