From New York Times and USA Today bestselling author Catherine Bybee comes a bittersweet romance about the power of love in the face of heartbreak and loss.

Brooke Turner has always had a complicated relationship with her father. But when his health takes a turn for the worse, she drops everything to care for him. He’s her dad, after all, and he needs her. What Brooke doesn’t anticipate is the unraveling of her long-term relationship and a cross-country move to San Diego’s Little Italy.

Luca D’Angelo is the oldest of three children and a single father to a young daughter. When his mother rents the top floor of their house to Brooke, he’s angry. Who is this beautiful stranger with no ties to the neighborhood? Can she be trusted in such close proximity to his family?

As Luca learns of Brooke’s difficult journey with her ailing father, his heart softens. And Brooke, who witnesses Luca’s struggle as a single parent, develops feelings for him, too. But when it all falls apart, will love heal their wounded hearts?

Excerpt

She shifted in her seat, stared at him. “What the hell are you doing here?”

“I told you, I—”

“And I’m not beautiful. I’m a damn mess.” She pushed in closer, as if Luca couldn’t see her. “look at me. Puffy face. My eyes are so bloodshot if a copy pulled me over, he’d ask me what I’ve been smoking. I haven’t had a decent night’s sleep in months and look at this.” She lifted her hair to reveal her forehead and pointed at a vein she knew was always there. “This pulsating barometer is a testament to my skyrocketing blood pressure that puts the cherry on top of just how unbeautiful I am right now.”

Out of breath, she sat back, swiveled her head to focus on the home.

She heard Luca take a breath. “Okay then. Fine.”

“Fine? What is fine?” What the hell did that mean? She looked at him now, spoiling for a fight. Something, anything to cut out the misery that had become the hamster wheel of her life.

“You don’t want me to call you beautiful, I won’t call you beautiful.” He looked as if he were holding back a smile.

“Good.” She focused out the windshield.

“What about—”

“Besides, I’m your tenant,” she cut him off.

“You’re my mother’s tenant.”

“Family home. Family business.”

“I was firmly against renting the apartment. my mother oversees your tenancy.”

“Whatever.” Brooke’s stomach was starting to churn. “You don’t think I’m beautiful, you just feel sorry for me.”

Luca started to laugh.

The hair on Brooke’s neck stood up. “What is so funny?”

“You’re rather obsessed with my opinion of your beauty” Luca sat back now, completely comfortable in the car with one hand resting on the door through the open window.

He was relaxed, confident, and entirely too sexy, and she was pissed that she noticed.

“I like where I live and don’t want to mess that up.”

“Then don’t.”

A brief look his way, then back out the window.

He was staring at her.

“I won’t.”

“Good.”

A few seconds passed.

“Stop staring at me.”

He shifted but didn’t stop looking at her.

“If you’re as exhausted as your diatribe expressed, I can’t help but wonder just how stunning you’ll look after a few good night’s sleep and a little pampering.”

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About the Author

Catherine is a #1 Wall Street Journal, Amazon, and Indie Reader bestselling author. In addition, her books have also graced The New York Times and USA Today bestsellers lists. In total she has written thirty-six beloved books that have collectively sold more than 10 million copies and have been translated into more than twenty languages.

Raised in Washington State, Bybee moved to Southern California in the hope of becoming a movie star. After growing bored with waiting tables, she returned to school and became a registered nurse, spending most of her career in urban emergency rooms. She now writes full time and has penned the Not Quite series, The Weekday Brides series, the Most Likely To series, and the First Wives series. Learn more about Catherine and her books at www.catherinebybee.com