REVIEW: Two of Hearts by Christina Lee

Two of Hearts by Christina Lee: Dakota and her family are reeling from the unexpected death of her father. They are trying to deal with their grief while also moving on. Dakota is now in charge of her family’s casino on the reservation. She is intelligent, determined, and a natural leader. Shane is taking a much needed break from his work as a U.S. Marshal to return for the funeral. He’s burned out and is rethinking his future. He is loyal and protective.

Shane and Dakota have known each other since they were kids. Shane is also best friends with Dakota’s brother and is treated like a family member. Both Shane and Dakota realized they had stronger feelings for each other and tried a romantic relationship. But the distance and Shane’s desire to see the world lead to miscommunication and the end of their relationship.

Almost reluctantly her fingers slipped up my arms to grip my shoulders. “I’ve always been here. You’ve always been everywhere else.”
“You let me go,” I said against her ear, and she shivered. “Pulled down the shades and shut me out.”
“You wanted to go,” she whispered.

Now it’s 5 years later and both have changed. They’ve dated other people, but no one makes them like they do when they were together. Their chemistry never went away, but Shane is ready and determined to try to make a relationship work now. Dakota doesn’t need any more complications with the trouble brewing with her employees and a community that doubts her and her family. She doesn’t trust that Shane will stick around when the dust finally settles even if she can’t quite imagine her life without him.

“Him picking you up? That’s a date,” he said, eyebrow lifted, teeth clenched. “That gives the impression that you’re available and you’re not. You’re mine.”
I sucked in a breath and crossed my legs. Unable to control how turned on I felt in that moment, even though I wanted to thoroughly smack him. “I’m yours?”
His eyes met mine in near defiance and I couldn’t look away if I tried. “That’s right. And I’m yours. We clear?”

Two of Hearts is a second chance romance set within a Native American community. Christina Lee created a strong and fiercely loyal family who have a lot of challenges to overcome. Ms. Lee developed a believable connection between Shane and Dakota. Fans of Jeannette Murray and Lauren Christopher would enjoy Two of Hearts.
 

Book Info:

Published May 5th 2015 by NAL Trade

A gripping standalone adult contemporary romance about finding yourself while taking a second chance at your first love…

Dakota Nakos was always the resilient, strong-willed achiever. But when her father dies and she’s entrusted with the family’s casino, she feels vulnerable, scared, and more than a little emotional —not exactly the best time to see an old lover she’s never really gotten over.

Dakota once meant the world to Shane Garrity. Then suddenly he left town to train as a U.S. Marshal, and their love for each other crashed into a memory. Now he’s come home for her father’s funeral, and one look at the girl he left behind stirs up both memories and regrets, and reignites a fire he feared he’d lost forever.

Dakota may be the same driven girl she always was, but she’s also changed in ways neither could have anticipated. She’s not just a young woman searching for own identity in the Native American community in which she was raised, but one questioning her new life outside her father’s shadow. Above all she wonders if Shane can push past her weakened defenses to rekindle what they once had, or whether the intense blaze between them will ultimately reduce her heart to ashes.