THE CHESAPEAKE BRIDE

A charming world traveler sets his sights on an intelligent architect who has no time for courtship.

Owen Parker has spent most of his 38 years traveling and resisting his great-grandmother’s urges for him to settle down. He’s lived and worked in places like Alaska, Australia, and Costa Rica, but there’s something that calls him home to Cannonball Island, a close-knit community near Chesapeake Bay, where his great-grandmother runs the local general store. Owen’s friend Jared Chandler has a diving job for him, but when the Maryland Historical Society gets wind that there may be something important lurking in the Chesapeake’s murky waters, Owen has to hold off. Also in town is Cass Logan, an architect heading up a multimillion dollar development deal to renovate the abandoned, wind- and sea-damaged homes along Cannonball Island’s shore. Unfortunately, the Historical Society’s decision to halt any disturbances to the water until scans and tests can be done has put the project on hold. After a heartbreaking but amicable divorce from her college sweetheart, Cass is thankful for the distractions the small island provides, and while she’s not exactly itching to get back into the dating game, she’s noticed Owen’s attention on her more than once. Owen and Cass are both hesitant to start a relationship; Owen is wary of putting down roots, and Cass is still coming to terms with her divorce. Living in such a small and oftentimes meddling community, Cass and Owen are thrown into each other’s paths over and over again. The romance is slow and sweet; readers who vie for more sexual tension between main characters may find this a little too tepid. However, the lack of unnecessary melodrama, angst, and over-the-top gestures makes this a refreshing contemporary romance between two adults who act as such.

Stewart's (Last Chance Matinee, 2017, etc.) latest is an endearing beachside romance.