Always Emily-Mary Sullivan

Always Emily Mary Sullivan Harlequin SuperRomance, May 6 2014, $6.75 ISBN: 9780373608478 Over a decade and a half ago in Accord, Colorado, young teenager Emily Jordan fell in love with her twenty-year old BFF Salem Pearce; though attracted to her too, he knew she was too young for him so did nothing. Instead of waiting for her to grow up, he had sex with Annie, a girl his age. When she became pregnant, Salem married her. Four years ago, Annie died leaving him a widower single dad to their children. Thirty yeas old archeologist Emily goes off on another dig, but this time returns home suffering from malaria and framed by her boss-lover Jean-Marc for stealing a prayer book that she took from him. As he slanders her name all over the Internet especially within their field, Emily feels a deep need to take the tome back to the rightful owners the National Museum of Sudan and also decides to commit to Salem and pray he does likewise to her though she accepts his daughters must come first. However, as the pair struggles with love, the uncovering of human remains leads to Salem’s arrest at a time when she must make one last sojourn overseas this time to Khartoum. This is a strong contemporary romance as the lead couple deals with complex issues in an attempt to forge a permanent relationship while secondary players also have tsuris like cyberbullying. Character-driven by the protagonists and a fully developed support cast (including the arrogant nasty Jean-Marc), readers will enjoy this second chance at love. Harriet Klausner