Every Little Kiss by Kendra Leigh Castle (Harvest Cove #2)
Contemporary Romance
March 3, 2015
Signet
Reviewed by Helyce
It was wonderful to return to the lovely coastal town of Harvest Cove and revisit the characters from book one. In Every Little Kiss, we are treated to a love story where both characters have experienced trauma and loss of different kinds and they have a lot to overcome just within themselves before they can truly be together.
Emma Henry grew up with the stigma of being one of the “Henry” girls. The close knit town was not happy when her dad showed up with a girl from out-of-town and proceeded to marry her and have two daughters, Emma and Samantha. Emma’s mom, Andie, is a total free spirit and didn’t really fit in to the ideals of the quiet town, but she didn’t care. She went about her life, taking care of her family. Their lives were shattered when Emma’s dad died from cancer when Emma was only 12 years old. This loss at such a young age began to define and shape how she would view relationships the rest of her life.
Seth Andersen has seen a lot of war and has experienced loss in the most traumatic of ways. After several tours in the Middle East, an injury brings him home to his family. He takes a job at the local precinct as a police officer, but his attempt at “normal” isn’t working and he becomes a bit of a hermit; ignoring family and friends and being a bit of a shut in. He realizes that he needs something different and with the kind offer from his Uncle who lives in a small town, Seth decides to move across the country and try to regroup in a town that is a bit more laid back than the big city he’d lived in. He finds the town of Harvest Cove to be exactly what his uncle described. He settles in and is feeling good with life in general for the first time in a while.
A nuisance call from a neighbor about a loud party next door brings Seth face to face with Emma as she literally pours her drunken self out the front door when Seth arrives. After having way too much to drink, the normally quiet and staid Emma has let loose in ways she never has. She is so drunk, that after Seth gets roped into driving her home, he stays with her in her apartment, nursing her through the night, to make sure she’s ok.
I absolutely loved how Seth and Emma meet for the first time. Sure, Seth knew of her and had seen her around, but this incident with drunken Emma had a way of putting them together that skipped over a lot of awkward chitty chat. Emma did things that night that begin to haunt her the very next day and the fact the Seth had already nursed her through the evil effects of alcohol and had pretty much seen her at her worse was probably the best kind of icebreaker for these two.
Though there are definite sparks between Emma and Seth neither of them really know what to do about it. Emma is not looking for a relationship and neither is Seth but he’d love to date Emma and get to know her better. The whole town thinks that something is going on with them anyway, so in an effort to tone down the rumors, Emma suggests to Seth that they “fake” date until the effects of her drunken antics blow over. Seth is a bit insulted and refuses.
But fate had a way of throwing these two together. After an explosive night of hot sex, they step back a bit and decide to explore the whole dating thing. They cannot deny that the chemistry between them is off the charts, so they spend some time seeing if they mesh outside of the bedroom. It proves to be difficult for both of them.
I struggled a bit here with Seth and didn’t quite understand why he was so closed up about his past and personal life. I can understand him not wanting to share much about his life in the service, but I wasn’t quite able to grasp why he kept personal information about his family from Emma. At the same time, there is Emma who is falling hopelessly in love with Seth, but refuses to open her heart because of her deep fear of losing that person.
Emma’s fears take an all too realistic turn when Seth is injured in the line of duty. Instead of rushing to his side, she stays away and decides she needs time. I wanted to slap her upside the head. While I understand where Emma’s fears came from, the last thing a person in love does in stay away. But Emma chooses to ignore everything about the situation until her mom and sister force her into a mini-intervention and encourage Emma to see the error of her ways.
Secondary characters bring humor and intrigue to round out this love story. I am especially enamored with the character of Shane who is one of those guys that though successful, is still acting like he’s a 20 something-year-old frat boy. Women don’t take him seriously and I’m excited to see who the author pairs with him to settle him down. In additional to Shane, Ms. Castle has given us a cast of characters who are all intriguing in their own right and she’s teased and tempted throughout these first two books. I really do look forward to where she takes us. Next up is One of These Nights due out in September.
Rating: B
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