Just Like Starting Over — Deborah Cooke

Once burned, twice shy. That's how it's supposed to work. I thought I'd learned my lesson after falling for Mike Cavendish in high school. Sixteen years ago, all my dreams were coming true, then everything went wrong in one disastrous night. It's so much more than a broken heart and a loss of trust. It's raising a daughter alone, abandoning your old life to make a new one, and being defined by your roles rather than your dreams. The only bright light is Sierra herself, a wise child who has taught me so much in her fifteen years. She is everything to me.It's because of Sierra that we've come back to my hometown of Empire to help my bestie Merrie launch her dream, The Carpe Diem Café. I'm sick of avoiding the past and I miss my grandmother. Why have I let Mike take that away from me and from Sierra? I'm sure I'm over him by now. I don't expect him to turn up, looking better than ever - much less acting as if he still cares, pretending he doesn't know that Sierra is his, wanting to start all over again.It's a proposition that I know I should refuse, but...it's Mike. And he's not the same guy I knew. Oh, he's still quiet and thoughtful, but tougher, more direct – and a whole lot hotter. He can make all of Sierra's dreams come true without even trying and when he decides to make me believe in forever again, I don't think I can resist just one night. Can I trust Mike's promises again? More importantly, can I take a chance and let myself fall head over heels again with the man who has always been my one and only?