Better than Friends

Bestseller Shalvis returns to Sunrise Cove (after Summer Escape) for an irresistible enemies-to-lovers romance. PR guru Olive Porter fled Sunrise Cove, Calif., 12 years ago after accidentally hitting her high school crush turned fake boyfriend, Noah Turner, with an ATV at their graduation party. Meanwhile, Noah traded his dreams of professional baseball to stay in town and work as an investigative agent for the National Park Service. After Noah’s work partner Joe—who is also Olive’s twin sister’s husband—is seriously injured in the line of duty, Olive returns to her small hometown to offer moral support. Initially, Noah and Olive clash over the past, but they soon discover intense chemistry and begin an affair that they try to hide from their disapproving families. Then a bombshell revelation from their high school days surfaces—but will the new context for what happened back then be enough to allow them to get together for real? The drama pairs with tenderness and plenty of steam to keep the pages turning. Series fans and new readers alike will be drawn in by the clever plotting and buoyant prose. It’s another winner from Shalvis. (Jan.)