A Kiss To Remember

Nora Simmons isn't afraid to get dirty. She's always been a tomboy so becoming a landscape architect just came naturally. She's a hometown girl and takes family and friends' concerns to heart. The discovery of a fancy car parked in the driveway of a deceased older couple brings her face to face with a man she fell in love with years earlier with a single kiss - unfortunately he doesn't recognize her and is only interested in hiring her to fix up the old house so that he can sell it. Ben Hollister has big plans for the proceeds from the sale of his grandparents home. He intends to open up his own law practice in the Bay area. He only spent one summer in Emmett's Mill - when his parents were divorcing. Ben doesn't believe in true love or happily-ever-after, in his own experience there is no such thing. His only concern is fixing up his grandparent's old derelict house and if that means putting up with Nora's temperamental disposition, then so be it. Nora can't understand why Ben would want to sell his grandparents home. It's a house she could only dream of owning, sure it needs a little work but his utter lack of emotional attachment to the place or the people who owned it is shocking. He's got to be one of the most insensitive men she's ever met. His decision to sell the house is bad enough but the simple fact that he doesn't remember her or their long ago shared kiss is just too much to tolerate. Nora agrees to landscape his property but she'll do it on her terms. Of course all her pent up rage and discontent take a back seat when Ben takes a tumble down a steep embankment while they're touring the grounds. In addition to his assortment of injuries, his ankle is broken and the doctor recommends he stay off it for at least six weeks. Since Nora was present when the accident occurred and Ben has no friends to help him it falls to her to play nursemaid. Now she's forced to take care of a man she's trying very hard to despise but what's making this situation so complicated is that all this time she's spending with him is allowing her to understand why he's so `cold-hearted.' They couldn't be more different if they tried, but will Nora and Emmett's Mill finally be able to show Ben just what he's missing in his life? A KISS TO REMEMBER is the third book in Kimberly Van Meter's SIMMONS SISTERS trilogy. While I've thoroughly enjoyed each of the sister's stories, Nora completely won me over with her spunky tomboy attitude and tough talk. Underneath the tough as nails persona there's a vulnerable young woman full of dreams and desires that makes you want to shake sense into Ben for hurting her. Ben seems self-centered and uncaring but as you read you get glimpses into his life and how he feels about certain things and realize that he's not as detestable as you first thought. I loved getting the opportunity to revisit Emmett's Mill and all the characters who I've taken into my heart through each of the books. Ms. Van Meter's writing has