The Inn At Shadow Lake by the late Janet Edgar
If someone proposed to you years ago, and you refused, could you see yourself dating that person years later?
Zach and Julie dated in college and when he asked Julie to marry him, she refused, angering Zach. He stormed off on his Harley, not giving Julie a chance to explain why she’d said no.
Now, a number of years later, Julie is stunned when Jack miraculously appears at her inn. He’s the “mystery man” who’s made reservations to stay at her establishment for a lengthy time. Unbeknownst to Julie, Zack is a special agent, seeking a deadly terrorist ring and Julie is a prime suspect.
As part of the ruse, Jack needs to pump Julie for information about one of her “beaus”. He romances Julie, asking questions, however, while romancing her, he finds those dormant feelings of love resurfacing. But his gut is telling him that Julie is innocent, however, he wonders…why hasn’t she mentioned that her groundskeeper was murdered? Is she somehow responsible for his death?
Julie finds herself falling for Zach and her daughter Emmie is smitten with him, too. Since her husband has died, she’s been lonely, and Zach fills a special place, deep in her heart. She senses that Zach is hurting and she wonders what has happened to him since their huge breakup in college.
This book was a good shorter book that you can read in about a day or so. The suspenseful moments keep you guessing until the very end. I enjoyed reading about the classy, secluded inn. It’s a great setting for a good suspenseful story. Both Zach and Julie have been hurt in the past, and they need to learn to rely on God, first and foremost, to help them through their troubles. Overall, this was a nice, inspirational story that wasn’t too preachy.
So, if someone proposed to you years ago, and you refused, could you see yourself dating that person years later?
HELL NO!!!!
Hi, Dorva
I doubt I could do that, either. But, that was the premise for the book. I guess for some it could work, but, not for me.
I don’t know if you’ve ever read Jane Austen’s novel ‘persuasion’? That basically happens – she rejects him, under duress from her family, then he comes back into her life years later and she has to deal with seeing the man she loves right there all the time. It’s hard to say for sure what you would do – perhaps the people you were then, and the people you are now, are entirely different. Perhaps you’ve become more compatible and got over the barriers that used to divide you. But maybe you’ve grown further apart? Every couple and person will be different. What do you reckon, Cecilia?
Yes, people do change, grow, over the years. I’d imagine that might be the cause of so many divorces in the USA. I’m thinking when you’re young, it’s easier for family and friends to have power over your dating decisions. However, if you’re older, more mature, I’d think those friends and family members would no longer have as much control over whom you date. I’d think that you’d probably make that decision on your own, and stick to it, as an older person.