This Time Around — Debra White Smith

R.J. rattled the knob and flung open the door. The beds were made... not one piece of luggage was in sight. On the dresser a small envelope was propped against a clock. Ripping it open, he encountered the braid he'd given to Sammie. Looped together, it now held a delicate band of gold--their engagement ring from 16 years ago.

Journalist Sammie Jones has a problem or, more accurately, two problems: R.J. Butler just became her boss at Romantic Living magazine, and he wants to woo her back to their former relationship. But struggling with the aftermath of abuse and betrayal, Sammie's only desire is to create a safe haven for herself and her son, Brett.

When Sammie stumbles onto a drug smuggling operation, her instinct for a good story lures her into a world of murder, madness, and greed. Turning to R.J. for comfort and advice, Sammie's heart, long held captive by bitterness, begins to open. But when the painful past erupts into the present, she faces the hardest decision of all...