Meet Me at the Lake by Carley Fortune

Short Summary: An unexpected meet takes two people on a twenty-four-hour adventure, after which they make a promise to meet up one year later—with life-changing effects when one person keeps the date and the other does not. 

Fern Brookbanks has spent the last ten years thinking about what could have been if Will Baxter, the young man she spent a day and night with in her early twenties, sharing her dreams and her secrets, had kept his promise to meet her at her mother’s resort a year later. 

Now thirty-two, grieving her mother’s death, inheriting the resort she is not sure she wants to run with her ex-boyfriend, now friend, Fern’s life did not turn out anywhere close to how she imagined or dreamt it would. The resort is losing money, and Fern doesn’t know where to begin to set it right, or even if she wants to.  

When the offer of help comes in the person of Will Baxter, whom to her shock and surprise made an arrangement with her mother to help, Fen is torn between the realization this new wealthy man may be the one person who understands what she is going through, but can she trust him? Will is still secretive, and she knows he is hiding something—something big. Ten years ago, Will rescued Fern from her apathy and inductiveness. Can she do the same for him now?  

If you are looking for outstanding beach read, Meet Me at the Lake is for you. Author Carley Fortune weaves this tale using two timelines with a seamless ease. I was totally engaged with the characters and the story by the end of the first chapter. Fast paced, heart-tugging, romantic, funny, and a little bit steamy, I did not want to put this down until I reached the end of this fun read.