The only thing they have in common is a property line! Cam Maguire is in Blackberry Bay to unravel a family secret. Meredith Price has moved next door with her daughter. He’s unattached. She’s a widowed single mom. He’s owned by a cat. She’s definitely team canine. All these neighbors have in common is a property line. One they cross…over and over. And Cam thought he knew what he wanted—until his family’s secret changes everything.
Sometimes you just want a story you can enjoy. You want a little bit of escape. If you want reality, there's a whole bunch of it outside the window...and none of it is pretty, or simple.
Cam and Meredith are this story. They are fun, there is the simplicity of a small town romance, which are sometimes the best kind. And, there's not a lot of drama. Not to say the story is boring, it isn't at all...but it's easy, and it's smooth, and it's 2 people who have a connection and want to see where it goes.
I liked both of the characters, I liked the depth added to the story by both of their backgrounds and especially Cam's. I thought it not only was interesting but gave a reason to want to see what happened next that was more than just the romance.
Overall, I enjoyed and recommend this title.
About Shannon Stacey: New York Times and
USA Today bestselling author Shannon Stacey lives with her husband and two sons in New England, where her two favorite activities are writing stories of happily ever after and off-roading with her friends and family. You can contact Shannon through her website, www.shannonstacey.com, as well as sign up for her newsletter.
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Excerpt,
MORE THAN NEIGHBORS by Shannon Stacey (Harlequin Special Edition)
“So
you’re staying for the summer, you said? Where do you usually live?”
“New
York City, actually.”
Her
hazel eyes widened. “Wow. That’s quite a change in pace.”
“It
is, but I was ready to get away for a while.” “What do you do in the city?”
“I
work for my dad,” he said, which wasn’t technically a lie, but wasn’t entirely
accurate, either. “A lot of accounting and paperwork and boring stuff like
that.”
She
was cute when she wrinkled her nose. “I’m not a fan of boring math-related
paperwork.”
A
yelp from across the yard caught her attention and she turned to see Elinor
swipe at the white puff-ball. Sophie was frowning and picked the dog up,
turning her body so the cat couldn’t see him any-more.
“Your
cat appears to be bullying my dog.”
“She’s
not my cat. And you’re embarrassing your dog by even making that claim right
now.”
She
arched an eyebrow at him. “If you don’t think cats can bully dogs, you don’t
spend a lot of time on the internet.”
“She
just wants the dog to know who’s boss, I guess.”
“It’s
his yard,” she pointed out.
“She’s
a cat.”
“Point
taken.” A genuine smile lit up her face and made her eyes crinkle. “They’ll get
used to each other. And speaking of that, now that I know you’re going to be my
neighbor for a while, I should prob-ably introduce myself properly. I’m
Meredith Price, and that’s Sophie and Oscar.”
“Calvin
Maguire,” he said, extending his hand. “But everybody calls me Cam.”
As
she shook his hand, he noted how soft the skin was and had to resist rubbing
his thumb over it.
She
tilted her head as she smoothly pulled her hand away from his. “How do you get
Cam from Calvin?”
“My
initials. Calvin Anthony Maguire.” His mouth twisted in a wry smile. “The
fourth.”
“Interesting.”
“It
was a better alternative than being Little Cal for my entire life.” He didn’t
really want to open him-self up to more questions about his family, since they were
the last thing he wanted to talk about. “Since Oscar’s from California, let me
guess. Oscar de la Renta?”
She
laughed. “Oscar the Grouch.”
“You’re
kidding.” He looked at the dog again, who looked like the kind they put on the
packaging of fancy dog food. “I don’t really see the resemblance, but maybe
it’s a personality thing.”
“He’s
actually named after Sophie’s favorite book at the time, and trust me, we spent
days explaining to her why we couldn’t make his hair green.”
“He
doesn’t bark a lot, does he?”
“I
wouldn’t say he barks a lot.” She glanced at the dog before giving him a sheepish
look. “It’s more like a really high-pitched yip.”
“That’ll
be fun while I’m reading over spread-sheets,” he said, picturing spending his
summer being harassed by a stubborn cat and a high-strung dog. “Maybe I should
have packed my noise- canceling headphones.”
She
looked startled for a second and then her eyes narrowed. “I have a child and a
dog, so I guess you’ll just have to figure out how to make it work.”
“Maybe
a muzzle?” he asked, but he wasn’t re-ally serious. Yipping dogs weren’t his
favorite, but he wasn’t a total jerk.
She
stared at him for a long moment before giving him an arch look. “I don’t know
if I can find one in your size, but I can try.”
Cam
chuckled, appreciating her comeback, but she didn’t even crack a smile. Maybe
she hadn’t been joking. And maybe she’d thought he wasn’t, either.
“If
you’ll excuse me, we just arrived and I have a lot to do.”
“Nice
to meet you,” he said as she walked, and she held up her hand in what looked
more like a dis-missive gesture than a wave.
That
was fine. If she wanted to play that game, she’d find out he didn’t really care
that much. She and her yipping dog could stay in her yard and he’d stay in his.
He
had better things to do, anyway. Like learning more about Carolina Archambault,
and figuring out how to convince her cat he was the boss.
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