Sam Catalono is a single dad and in a custody battle, so he buys a sports camp to provide a good living area for his son, when he runs into the woman he never managed to forget and life seems to bring them together. Sam Catalona is in the midst of a desperate custody battle with his son's maternal aunt. When his son, Casey's, mother died unexpectedly, he permitted the woman to watch him while he finished out the sports season. As a successful professional athlete, he had contracts that mandated his appearance. However, the woman, Sharon, wanted to make the situation permanent and therefore, Sam's behavior must be above reproach while the custody was still being determined.
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Unfortunately, it is more challenging than he hoped, because along with the camp he purchased came the manager he knew very well when they were just teenagers. As hot and heavy as they could be as teenagers, he knew he had hurt when he left unexpectedly and he never had the chance to apologize. Now, she has never forgotten and is nowhere close to forgiving him for taking her innocence and then disappearing.
The manager in question is Libby Kovak and she stayed on at the camp, gradually becoming the manager over the last 12 years. She lived a constantly moving childhood and the home she bought, plus the degree she managed to earn, were the result of her hard work at the camp her entire adulthood.
When the two meet up again, sparks immediately fly. Bribed with the possibility of a new pavilion for the camp that she has wanted for so long, she agrees to stay at least through the summer. Sam is worried about the custody battle, even though his lawyer thinks he should have no problem winning, and at first Libby assumes that he is bringing a woman to live with him at the camp. He has hired a full-time nanny for his young son and therefore that belief is fostered.
When she discovers that he is very single and a devoted dad, she is shocked and a little sad, since she remembers hoping to be the mother of his children. More than a few kisses are exchanged, but they continue to squabble over minor issues. For instance, Libby believes that the changes he is instigating at the facility are not for the best and Sam thinks she is picking at anything she can find to criticize him for.
As the custody battle heats up, Libby has the opportunity to testify against him and does not. They finally have an actual talk about why he had to leave so quickly when they were teenagers and she finds out that Sam received his first job in professional sports with no notice, but he tried to tell her.
They almost make love, but don't. More details are shared about Libby's childhood and it is easy to see why she feels so abandoned. She never knew her father, her mother died when she was young and her grandmother loved her, but was not in a good financial position to raise Libby. The revelations between the two allow them to get to know each other as adults and the reader is also allowed to see Libby's interactions with Casey. A bond forms between them, which is unfortunately used against Sam in court. Fortunately, justice prevails and he maintains full custody of his little boy, and as the novel ends Libby agrees to stay at the camp past the end of the summer and they confess their feelings for one another. It appears they will be together and the concept of marriage is possible.
Best part of story, including ending:
I was pleasantly surprised by the amount of detail that went into everything. For instance, a complex back story was provided for both main characters and it was easy to understand why both behaved the way they did. Although it was obvious that the two would end up together, it was done well enough that you wondered how.
Best scene in story:
I really enjoyed an interaction that Libby had with her neighbor, Dani, where Dani showcased her unexpected computer skills. Dani is a single mom to three boys who always seems to pick the wrong guy and the wrong job, but she is an expert of finding both. Dani offered to write her resume, Libby declined, all in the midst of friendship and the antics of Dani's very active little boy. It was just a great example of female friendship and well-done details about the child.
Opinion about the main character:
I loved that she had accomplished so much with so few resources. In addition, she never blamed her grandmother for growing up with so little, and was in fact, very close to her prior to her death. Libby was just a great, well-rounded character and I was thrilled to see that she did wind up with Sam as the novel ends.
