Miramar Bay

In the tender, heartwarming tradition of Nicholas Sparks, this compelling novel of two strangers in a small coastal town marks a romantic tour de force for internationally bestselling author Davis Bunn. He had not come all this way just to break another woman's heart. When Connor Larkin boards a late night bus in downtown LA, he's not sure where he's going or what he's looking for. Putting his acting career-and his fiancée -on hold, he's searching for something he can't define, a part of himself he lost on the road to success. Once he dreamed of being a singer in the classic style of Sinatra and Bennett. But his lean good looks soon landed him in movies as the sexy "bad guy"-and in the arms of a famous young heiress. Now, with his wedding day approaching, Connor finds himself stepping into the sleepy seaside town of Miramar Bay-where one remarkable woman inspires him to rethink all of his choices. She needed to know his secrets, and to see if he'd tell her the truth. Sylvie Cassick is nothing like the pretentious starlets back in Hollywood. The daughter of a nomadic painter, she's had to work hard for everything-unlike Connor's fiancée. When Connor hears familiar music drifting out of Sylvie's restaurant, he feels as if he's finally come home. Sylvie isn't sure what to think when this impossibly handsome stranger applies for a waiter's job. Yet once he serenades her customers-and slowly works his way into her heart-she realizes there's more to him than he's letting on. And Connor realizes he's found his destiny. But as the outside world encroaches, threatening their fragile bond, Connor will have to risk losing everything to gain the life he longs for, and be the man Sylvie deserves. Filled with bittersweet longing, Miramar Bay is an unforgettable journey through doubt and desire-to the truth that can be discovered along the road less taken.

From the internationally bestselling author of Miramar Bay comes a deeply emotional novel that explores the challenges of living, the joys of loving, and the bittersweet act of letting go. I have this, Lucius thought to himself. I have today. Since the age of seven, Lucius Quarterfield has known he is dying. Doctors told him he had a "bad ticker" and might not live to see his next birthday. But somehow, the frail yet determined boy managed to hang on and surprise everyone. The bullies who teased him. The family who neglected him. The professionals who offered little hope for a normal life. To their surprise, Lucius not only survived to adulthood, he thrived, turning a small car dealership into a successful chain. But now, at twenty-eight, his time is finally running out. So he's returning to the one place he ever felt happy, near the only woman he ever truly wanted-the California seaside town of Miramar Bay. Was it so much to ask, a healthy tomorrow shared with a woman he loved? Jessica was the only daughter of the only dentist in town. An ardent reader and fan of Jane Austen, she was able to follow in her father's footsteps, as he desired. But Jessica preferred the simple things in life-a trait that captivated Lucius from the moment he arrived in town on business. Her carefree approach to living and playful, quick wit were a breath of fresh air to a man who devoted all his time to work. They were complete opposites and perfect complements. Soon they were falling head over heels-until Lucius pulled away, to spare her the pain of his inevitable fate. Now, after all this time, he won't put her through that again. His days are numbered. And whatever happens-with Jessica or anyone sharing his journey-he's going to make each moment count. Because he knows that everything is about to change, he just can't know exactly how. Warm-hearted, wise, and wonderfully moving, Firefly Cove is a powerful novel of first love and second chances that will live in readers' hearts for years to come.

From the internationally bestselling author of Firefly Cove comes a powerful novel of healing old wounds, surprising second chances, and letting the heart lead the way . . . What to do with a life where everything he's worked for is shattered? A top executive in the family business, Buddy Helms lives and works under the thumb of his powerful father. He's proved himself time and again to the manipulative patriarch-even saving the company from financial ruin. Yet for six years Buddy's waited to hear that he's worthy of his father's love and respect. Now, after another cold dismissal, Buddy's slamming the door on everything he's strived for. When his church counselor recommends a soothing tonic for his disillusionment, frustration, and rage, he grabs at it: the solitude of Moondust Lake, a retreat just outside Miramar Bay. Believing in others comes easily-it's believing in herself that's a risk . . . Kimberly Sturgiss is a professional psychotherapist, whose tragic past has granted her a rare ability to gently release her patients from their self-made prisons. She's well acquainted with the Helms family and the dark burdens that come with them. But the most intriguing challenge of all is Buddy. He and Kimberly share more than she's prepared to admit-the same emotional cage, the guarded heart, and the broken trusts that come with being alive. Maybe it's finally time that Kimberly finds herself, too-by reaching out to the man who's reaching out to her. Poignant and heartfelt, Moondust Lake is an uplifting novel about searching for all the things in life that matter, embracing them, and never letting go.

From the internationally bestselling author of Moondust Lake comes an emotional and enriching novel of family, forgiveness, self-acceptance, and self-discovery When the darkness seems too hard to bear, there’s only one thing left to do. Six years ago, Daniel was a Los Angeles financial analyst who was too handsome for his own good. Too smart for his anchor job on the nightly news. And too enamored with the heady addictions of the high life. That man died in a tragic accident with his fiancée. With grief and guilt battling for control, Daniel moved to the quiet California seaside town of Miramar Bay with his best friend a rescue Labradoodle who still sees him through rough times. Daniels a different man now. Clean, sober, and taking things one day at a time with no commitments to anyone except himself. And just as his solitude begins to chafe, two souls in need of fresh starts unexpectedly enter Daniels life Realize that it’s time to wake up. Daniels self-centered sister has dissolved several longtime relationships. Theirs included. The latest? Her restless teenage daughter, Nicole, whom she’s dropped off in Miramar Bay without a backward glance. For Nicole, who’s never felt at home in the world, it only confirms the disconnect she’s always had with her mother. Now, left with an uncle she barely knows, Nicole is more adrift than ever. Yet to Daniels surprise, playing surrogate father is forging a bond that he needs, too. More difficult for Daniel is the possibility of romance with lovely and fragile Stella Dalley. Struggling with a trauma of her own, the single mother is as cautious about love as Daniel is no matter how healing it could be. But for Daniel, Stella, and Nicole there’s still hope for a tomorrow they can call their own. All they have do is to learn to trust in each other, and in themselves. A powerful novel of new beginnings, chances taken, and hearts lost and found, Tranquility Falls is a timeless love story to treasure.

From the New York Times bestselling author of Tranquility Falls comes a heart-stirring novel of secrets, starting over, and a love that could be one man's road to redemption ... Sometimes life flips the script ... Billy Walker is a North Carolina boy whose Hollywood star is beginning to shine. His rough past is in the rear view. Now seeing the world from the back seat of a limousine, Billy has no regrets about what he had to do, and the choices he made, to get there. But all it takes is one death-defying moment for Billy's world to shift. When an on-set accident leaves him shaken, plagued by haunting dreams, he's in desperate need of a rest cure. Given keys to a getaway cottage on Lighthouse Lane in Miramar Bay, he'll regroup, relax, and recover. Yet as Billy's dreams grow darker and more fearful, his only promise for light is in a stunning, mysterious, and uniquely gifted stranger ... And your next act is rewritten ... Mimi has never forgotten her tragic childhood in eastern Ukraine. Violence, a vanished family, abandonment, and a hard-won struggle to escape. Miramar Bay couldn't be a more beautiful or unexpected refuge. In yoga and dance, and imbued with a talent to read the unrestful visions of others, Mimi has a seemingly divine ability to comfort. She may be everything Billy desires, but Mimi knows what Billy needs. He must confront his troubling past and not just in his dreams. As their connection deepens, Billy finds himself falling in love, and waking up to something he's never felt before. But when the real world comes calling again, how can he say goodbye to a woman who's changing his life one illuminating sunrise at a time? Poignant, powerful, and surprising, The Cottage on Lighhouse Bay is a love story for every wounded heart that hoped for a second chance.

In an uplifting story brimming with romance, art, and intrigue, internationally bestselling author Davis Bunn returns to the breathtaking coastal California town of Miramar Bay, as a widowed art history professor hunts for a stolen masterpiece... Just when he thought he'd buried his past and was moving on... Four years after his wife's death, art history teacher Derek Gaines has finally made a kind of peace with himself. He tries his best to stave off memories. His days are ones of familiar routine. Guarded against further pain, he keeps relationships at a safe distance. It's all part of his necessary transition to surviving alone. If anything is truly responsible for Derek making it back from the brink it's his edifying work as a consultant for auction houses-and indulging a consuming sideline job: tracking stolen art. But Derek's latest hunt will lead him toward challenges both professional and personal-that he's not prepared to Face. He discovered the art of falling in love again... Joining Derek on his quest is Kelly Reid, the new junior vice president of gallery operations at Christies Los Angeles. She is driven, ambitious, fiercely passionate about her work-and a fellow wounded kindred spirit. Bitterly immune to men's promises, she's never letting herself be vulnerable again. Yet even as trust and affection remain frightening territory, a tenuous start to her partnership with Derek slowly builds toward something more. And soon, both will be tested beyond anything they could have imagined—in the deepening mystery of a lost painting, and in matters of the heart, which can be the greatest mystery of all. With love comes risk in The Emerald Tide, a powerful and emotional novel about daring to take a second chance.

A rapturous story of second chances, self-discovery, and long-held dreams that just won't let go, from the international bestselling author of the California-set Miramar Bay novels. A man adrift … Noah Hearst is leaving a life he's spent twelve years building. Professionally, a losing battle for his job after a hostile takeover. Personally, signing away his marriage in a split that was a long time coming. Now, the difficult part: deciding who he is, what he wants, and where to go next. Maybe it's time to realize a dream that's carried him through hard times: owning a boat. Traveling the ocean, exploring new ports, embracing the endless horizon. Blissful. Impractical. Impossible? For now, the dream alone gives Noah the strength to move forward … An unexpected lifeline … Jenna Greaves is an end-of-life nurse, devoted till her charges' final breath. She's been called a confidante, a surrogate daughter, and a best friend. She is all those to Dino Vicenza, a secretive millionaire who refuses to even speak with his greedy and impatient family. Gradually Jenna becomes Dino's only confidante, and something far more out of the ordinary; she shares the old man's passion for sailing the open seas. With his passing comes an unexpected bequest: a luxury yacht that invites Jenna to break free of old chains, if only she might find someone to help steer her toward new horizons. One twist of fate and Noah and Jenna are brought together in the most unexpected way to navigate their future-and discover more about life, each other, and themselves than they ever imagined.