Storms of the Heart, By Lainee Cole

Emerson Lane finds herself in a terrible storm with her life tossed to the wind. Her job situation at the university is on the rocks and returning home to Twin Creeks is bitter-sweet. At the tender age of sixteen, Emerson Lane was taken in by her Uncle Wayne when she lost both of her parents to a car wreck. She loved her dear mother’s brother, but back then, moving to the small town, on the heels of so much loss, wasn’t an easy transition. Hormones raging and grief stricken, Emerson was hell bent on running in all the wrong directions to find herself. Hitting on Uncle Wayne’s student, Justin Lomax (Max), seemed like a good idea at the time. Now, stuck out in the rain and having to walk the road to her uncle’s home, she feels like she is running away again. Greeted by a scared German Shepherd and the one and only, Sheriff Justin Lomax, Em hopes for the floor to open up and swallow her. Max rejected her affections seven years ago, and now he is acting like she has something to do with her uncle’s disappearance.

Em tries to rein in her rattled emotions and focus on what’s in front of her, but Max is just as gorgeous as she remembers. Emerson stands tall as she finds herself in the middle of two storms, a literal one that makes her as nervous as her uncles’ German Shepard, Thor, and the figurative one that has her back in Max’s arms.

Her uncle missing and leaving her to work closely with Max on the upcoming town celebration is more than just uncomfortable, it’s downright embarrassing. Max’s accusatory attitude, Uncle Wayne’s MIA status and her situation with her job puts her between a rock and a hard place. All she wants, more than anything, is to find her uncle and make up for the past. Will she ever find Wayne and will the tempest inside her turn into clear skies? Will Max finally see the woman she’s become? Don’t miss this intriguing mystery about love and finding the threads that weave together a small town, lost love and a promise for the future. Lainee Cole had me from the first page. Incredibly well-written and engaging, her characters were quick witted and likable. Storms of the Heart, is a quick read, packaged with love, mystery and a happy ending.