Kelly Lawson loved her mother -- sure Shanna wasn't the run of the mill parent but becoming a single mother at eighteen and giving her daughter the best life made Kelly her champion. After becoming Sand Points public affairs officer, Kelly found herself battling an old boyfriend Ben Santoni- now the new police chief. She and Ben had history -- well if you could call dating one summer a history. Funny thing was Ben still harbored ill feelings about Kelly calling their short relationship off and running off with a local fireman without even a thought about him. If truth were known, Kelly was lucky Mitch was there for her after her mother died. Who knows how her life would have been without him.

Ben recently moved back from the city and was having trouble readjusting to small town life but with his young son in tow this was the right place to be. But even small towns have their share of troubles and Sand Point was now enmeshed in solving two murders and threats to their mayor. The mayor's been finding parallels between the two murders and the plot of a popular novel which Kelly finds absurd since as the anonymous author she knows they are merely a coincidence. The two victims don't seem to have anything in common. Ben has to get to the heart of these crimes in order to calm the fears of the locals and of course protect them and his family. He had to prove himself to the town and the mayor whose brother who held the position for a time seemed very willing to move back into the office.

Ben and Kelly would make an excellent team in this investigation if only they could get past their vitriolic relationship. Ben seems unable to get past Kelly's childhood with the towns slut for a mother. And Kelly won't forgive him. But Ben is concerned that, although he doesn't truly believe the books have any connection with the murders, he is worried whether the author is in any danger. And the more he voices his concern, the more anxious Kelly becomes. Is there someone out there with targeting Kelly or is she just overreacting to Ben's continuing concern for the author's well being? Being thrown together is forcing them to realize their youthful attraction may not have been as fleeting as they had believed. But at the end of the day, can they get past their differences and fashion a future together? Ben's goal is to keep Kelly safe but that will ultimately test their resolve to keep their lives separate -- Kelly to protect her already fragile heart, and Ben to protect his son from getting too close to Kelly.

Julianna Morris keeps us well entertained with the playful, sometimes caustic, but always enjoyable banter between the two strong leading characters in the story. The dialog is believable and makes it hard to chose sides.

Book Summary

Coming home should be simple.

For Ben Santoni, however, it's anything but straightforward. Kelly Lawson isn't the sweet girl he remembers. She's tougher now, and her icy demeanor makes it clear she hasn't forgiven him. So, fine, he'll keep his distance even though her attitude challenges his role as police chief.

But when a murderer strikes and Kelly is threatened, personal feelings can't come into play. It's Ben's duty to protect her, and that's what he'll do. As the case progresses, objectivity becomes impossible. Because suddenly, Ben wants far more than just to keep her safe….