About the Book
He broke her heart. Now, he’s back, and he’s determined to show her what they had isn’t over. . . and he can prove it with just one kiss.
Single mother Carly Collins likes predictability. However, when her son Jaden’s health is threatened, her neatly controlled world is tossed into a tailspin. Nothing is certain anymore, especially her feelings for Josh Dixon, Jaden’s father, her first love and the man responsible for shattering her heart sixteen years ago.
When Josh Dixon walked out of Harbor Pointe, he left behind his only shot at a real family. Now a successful tech mogul, the town rebel has found a cause—ensure his son’s recovery and prove to Carly and Jaden that he’s not the same guy he was back then.
Carly and Josh are forced to wade through messy emotions and questions that have gone unanswered for years, which would be easier if not for the pesky feelings, every bit as strong and impossible to ignore as they ever were.
Will forgiveness win, giving Carly and Josh a second chance at love . . . or will the past prove too much to overcome?
Excerpt
“Josh, it’s Jaden.” She interrupted his thoughts.
“What about Jaden?”
His heart lurched, mind spinning with endless possibilities of things that may be wrong, the stuff his nightmares were made of. Only nightmares were usually fiction—his were filled with real memories.
The screaming baby. The high fever. The day he realized he was more like his father than he cared to admit.
Her voice pulled him back to reality.
“We’re in the emergency room. He collapsed during the Memorial Day parade.”
“Is he okay? What happened?”
“They’re doing some tests now. They aren’t sure.”
He paused, unsure what to say. He’d always felt so helpless in these situations. He didn’t have a way to fix it. What words would make it better?
And Carly had always been the kind of person who had everything under control. Still, he was Jaden’s father—he wanted to be there for his son whether they wanted him there or not.
“Is it serious?” he finally asked.
She paused. He could practically picture her, chewing the inside of her lip, her brown hair pulled up into a messy bun on the top of her head. He hadn’t spoken directly to Carly in a long time, in spite of his renewed relationship with Jaden over the past year. She left most of the planning to their son, which he supposed was best. But sometimes he wished for a reason to talk to her.
Not this, though. This wasn’t the kind of reason he was hoping for.
“It could be,” she finally said. “It could be serious. It could be nothing. He could be dehydrated or maybe he overheated. But they mentioned that something could be off with his protein levels. They aren’t sure.”
“I’m going to head up there,” Josh said matter-of-factly.
“No, Josh, don’t,” she said. “It’s not necessary. It might be nothing.”
“But it might not be nothing,” he said. “And I don’t want to take the chance.”
Carly sighed.
“You can’t seriously think I’m going to stay here while my kid is in the emergency room.”
He could practically feel her biting her tongue. He knew what she was thinking. How may other things had he missed over the years? There had been plenty, and he was well aware of that, but he’d made a promise to Jaden over a year ago. He was late to the party, but he was in for the duration.
Carly didn’t believe him then, and she didn’t believe him now.
I’m going to prove to you that I’ve changed.
Review
Just One Kiss is a second chances story with a lot of heart. It’s not always easy to root for a guy who walked out on his family when his son was just an infant, but Josh’s humility won me over from the beginning. He acknowledges that he’s given Carly no reason to trust him and therefore makes no demands, but he’s determined to prove to her by his actions that he has changed, and that means being there for both Carly and Jaden when Jaden faces a health crisis.
What made this story even more engaging was that, despite rooting for Josh, I could totally understand Carly’s desire to protect her heart from further disappointment. And Courtney Walsh brought this tension to every scene without having her characters resort to pettiness and overdone animosity. Neither did they see-saw between giving in to their attraction and pushing each other away. Rather, Josh steadily chipped away at Carly’s defenses with his gentle flirting AND his steadfast determination to be the man she and Jaden need. Not to mention that one kiss… Okay, so maybe that was the one exception to the “steadily chipping away” comment!
I did find some of both Carly’s and Josh’s inner narratives a little repetitive at times, particularly in the earliest chapters of the novel, and there were also some predictable moments in the plot, but these things only detracted momentarily from my overall enjoyment of the story. And if I hadn’t already been sympathetic toward Josh, learning his history as it came out through the novel would have clinched it.
Finally, I can’t conclude without mentioning Jaden and his example of unmerited grace toward Josh.
No, he couldn’t explain everything to Jaden—maybe not ever—but it turned out Jaden didn’t ask for explanations or reasons. He simply said, “Let’s start over, Dad.”
And so they did.
Nobody in all his years had ever shown him that kind of grace.
Jaden’s health issues provided a great focus for the story and added a whole extra layer of heart, both literally and figuratively!
In short, if you’re looking for a second chances story that will reel you in, heart and all, then make sure you pick this one up.
I received a copy of this novel from the author. This has not influenced the content of my review, which is my honest and unbiased opinion.
About the Author
Courtney Walsh is a novelist, artist, theatre director, and playwright. Just Let Go will be her eighth inspirational romance novel. Her debut, A Sweethaven Summer, hit the New York Times and USA Today e-book bestseller lists and was a Carol Award finalist in the debut author category. A creative at heart, Courtney has also written two craft books and several full-length musicals. She lives in Illinois with her husband and three children.
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Thanks for the lovely review, Katie! I love Courtney’s books, and this one was no exception.