"In Lucky Harbor, the characters are as charming as the town itself."
Reviewed by Mandy Burns
Posted September 9, 2010
Romance Contemporary
Maddie Moore is ready to start a new life, since the one
she had in L.A. is in shambles. Her abusive relationship is
over and after losing her job, she is ready for a fresh
start at the Lucky Harbor Inn. Determined to make this
change, Maddie must first convince her sister not sell the
inn. Unfortunately, they have their work cut out for them.
Renovations cause a huge argument sending Maddie to the
local pub for some time alone. To Maddie's dismay, she
knocks over a hot guy's motorcycle and is caught by the man
himself. It has taken five years, but for Jax Cullen coming back to
Lucky Harbor after the horrors of following his father's
footsteps as a lawyer is the best thing he could have done
for his peace of mind. Settling in and making a new life
with his friends is absolutely perfect; even if he is
almost run off the road by a cute, crazy woman. Jax can't
believe his luck when he sees said woman, Maddie Moore,
attempting to pick up his heavy motorcycle after knocking
it over. Maddie is an enigma Jax is unable to let go. Fortunately, between her baggage, his baggage and the
secrets he is forced to keep, their time together has
promise. Jax only has to get past her fear and lack of
trust, but a little patience is a must. Working on Maddie's
renovation gives Jax the perfect opportunity to get to know
her. He only hopes she can forgive him when the time comes. SIMPLY IRRESISTIBLE is a beautiful start to this new
series. The characters are as charming as the town itself.
A pleasure to read!
SUMMARY
In one fell
swoop, Maddie loses her boyfriend (her decision) and her
job (so not her decision). But rather than drowning her
sorrows in bags of potato chips, Maddie leaves L.A. to
claim the inheritance left by her free-spirited mother-a
ramshackle inn nestled in the little coastal town of Lucky
Harbor, Washington. Starting over won't be easy. Yet
Maddie sees the potential for a new home and a new career-
if only she can convince her two half-sisters to join her
in the adventure. But convincing Tara and Chloe will be
difficult because the inn needs a big makeover too. The
contractor Maddie hires is a tall, dark-haired hottie
whose eyes-and mouth-are making it hard for her to
remember that she's sworn off men. Even harder will be
Maddie's struggles to overcome the past, though she's
about to discover that there's no better place to call
home than Lucky Harbor.
ExcerptChapter 1“I chose the path less traveled, but only because I was
lost. Carry a map.” Phoebe Traeger
Maddie drove the narrow, curvy highway with her past
still nipping at her heels after fourteen hundred miles.
Not even her dependable Honda had been able to outrun her
demons.
Or her own failings.
Good thing then that she was done with failing. Please,
be done with failing, she thought.
“Come on, listeners,” the disk jockey said jovially on
the radio. “Call in with your Christmas hopes and dreams.
We’ll be picking a random winner and making a wish come
true.”
“You’re kidding me.” Maddie briefly took her eyes off
the mountainous road and flicked a glance at the dash.
“It’s one day after Thanksgiving. It’s not time for
Christmas.”
“Any wish,” the DJ said. “Name it, and it could be
yours.”
As if. But she let out a breath and tried for whimsy.
Once upon a time, she’d been good at such things. “Fine.
I’ll wish for …” What? That she could’ve had a do-over
with her mother before Phoebe Traeger had gone to the
ultimate Grateful Dead concert in the sky? That Maddie had
dumped her ex before he’d dumped her? That her boss — may
he choke on his leftover turkey — had waited until after
year-end bonuses to fire her?
“The lines are lit up,” the DJ announced. “Best of luck
to all of you out there waiting.”
Hey, maybe that’s what she’d wish for — luck. She’d wish
for better luck than she’d had: with family, with a job,
with men—
Well, maybe not men. Men, she was giving up entirely.
Pausing from that thought, she squinted through the fog to
read the first road sign she’d seen in awhile.
Welcome to Lucky Harbor!
Home to 2,100 lucky people
And 10,100 shellfish.
About time. Exercising muscles she hadn’t utilized in
too long, she smiled, and in celebration of arriving at her
designated destination, she dug into the bag of salt and
vinegar potato chips at her side. Chips cured just about
everything, from the I-lost-my-job blues to the
my-boyfriend-was-a-jerk regrets to the tentatively hopeful
celebration of a new beginning.
“A new beginning done right,” she said out loud, because
everyone knew that saying it out loud made it true. “You
hear that, Karma?” She glanced upward through her slightly
leaky sunroof into a dark sky, storm clouds tumbling
together like a dryer of gray wool blankets. “This time,
I’m going to be strong.” Like Katharine Hepburn. Like
Ingrid Bergman. “So go torture someone else and leave me
alone.”
A bolt of lightning blinded her, followed by a boom of
thunder that nearly had her jerking out of her skin. “Okay,
so I meant pretty please leave me alone.”
The highway in front of her wound its way alongside a cliff
on her right. Far below the road on her left, the Pacific
Ocean pitched and rolled, fog lingering in long, silvery
fingers on the frothy water.
Gorgeous, all of it, but what registered more than
anything was the silence. No horns blaring while jockeying
for position in the clogged fast lane, no tension-filled
offices where producers and directors shouted at each other.
No ex-boyfriends who yelled to release steam. Or worse.
No anger at all, in fact.
Just the sound of the radio and her own breathing.
Delicious, glorious silence.
As unbelievable as it seemed, she’d never driven through
the mountains before. She was only here now because,
shockingly, her mother’s will had listed property in
Washington State. More shockingly, Maddie had been left one
third of that property, a place called Lucky Harbor Resort.
Raised by her set-designer dad in Los Angeles, Maddie
hadn’t seen her mother but a handful of times since he’d
taken custody of her at age five, so the will had been a
huge surprise. Her dad had been just as shocked as she, and
so had her two half-sisters, Tara and Chloe. Since there
hadn’t been a memorial service — Phoebe had specifically not
wanted one — the three sisters had agreed to meet at the
resort.
It would be the first time they’d seen each other in five
years.
Defying probability, the road narrowed yet again. Maddie
steered into the sharp left curve, and then immediately
whipped the wheel the other way for the unexpected right. A
sign warned her to keep a look out for river otters, osprey
– what the heck were osprey? – and bald eagles. Autumn had
come extremely late this year for the entire west coast, and
the fallen leaves were strewn across the roads like gold
coins. It was beautiful and taking it all in might have
caused her to slide a little bit into the next hairpin,
where she– oh crap—
Barely missed a guy on a motorcycle.
“Oh my God.” Heart in her throat, she craned her neck,
watching as the bike ran off the road and skidded to a stop.
With a horrified grimace, she started to drive past, then
hesitated.
Hurrying past a cringe-worthy moment, hoping to avoid a
scene, was the old Maddie. “Dammit.” The new Maddie
stopped the car, though she did allow herself a beat to draw
a quick, shuddery breath. What was she supposed to say —
Sorry I almost killed you, here’s my license, insurance and
last twenty-seven dollars? No, that was too pathetic.
Motorcycles are death machines, you idiot, you nearly got
yourself killed! Hmm, probably a tad too defensive. Which
meant that a simple, heartfelt apology would have to do.
Bolstering her courage, she got out of the car clutching
her Blackberry, ready to call 9-1-1 if it got ugly.
Shivering in the unexpectedly damp ocean air, she moved
toward him, her arms wrapped around herself as she faced the
music.
Please don’t be a raging asshole …
He was still straddling the motorcycle, one long leg
stretched out, balancing on a battered work boot, and if he
was pissed, she couldn’t tell yet past his reflective
sunglasses. He was leanly muscled and broad shouldered and
his jeans and leather jacket were made for a hard body just
like his. It was a safe bet that he hadn’t just inhaled an
entire bag of salt and vinegar chips. “Are you okay?” she
asked, annoyed that she sounded breathless and nervous.
Pulling off his helmet, he revealed wavy, dark brown hair
and a day’s worth of stubble on a strong jaw. “I’m good.
You?” His voice was low and calm, his hair whipping around
in the wind.
Irritated, most definitely. But not pissed.
Relieved, she dragged in some air. “I’m fine, but I’m
not the one who nearly got run off the road by the crazy
L.A. driver. I’m sorry, I was driving too fast.”
“You probably shouldn’t admit that.”
True. But she was thrown by his gravelly voice, by the
fact that he was big, and for all she knew, bad to boot, and
that she was alone with him on a deserted, foggy highway.
It had all the makings of a horror flick.
“Are you lost?” he asked.
Was she? Probably she was a little lost mentally, and
quite possibly emotionally as well. Not that she’d admit
either. “I’m heading to Lucky Harbor Resort.”
He pushed his sunglasses to the top of his head, and be
still her heart, he had eyes the exact color of the caramel
in the candy bar she’d consumed for lunch. “Lucky Harbor
Resort,” he repeated.
“Yes.” But before she could ask why he was baffled about
that, his gaze dipped down, and he took in her favorite
long-sleeved tee. Reaching out, he picked something off her
sleeve.
Half a chip.
He took another off her collarbone, and she broke out in
goose bumps — and not the scared kind.
“Plain?”
“Salt and vinegar,” she said, and shook off the crumbs.
She’d muster up some mortification — but she’d used up her
entire quota when she’d nearly flattened him like a pancake.
Not that she cared what he — or any man, for that matter —
thought. Because she’d given up men.
Even tall, built, really good-looking, tousled-haired
guys with gravely voices and piercing eyes.
Especially them.
What she needed now was an exit plan. So she put her
phone to her ear, pretending it was vibrating. “Hello,” she
said to no one. “Yes, I’ll be right there.” She smiled,
like look at me, so busy, I really have to go, and turning
away, she lifted a hand in a wave, still talking into the
phone to avoid an awkward good-bye, except–
Her phone rang. And not the pretend kind. Risking a
peek at Hot Biker Guy over her shoulder, she found him brows
up, looking amused.
“I think you have a real call,” he said, something new in
his voice. Possibly more humor, but most likely sheer
disbelief that he’d nearly been killed by a socially
handicapped LA chick.
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