It’s the perfect summer: sun, surf, sand and a secret fling! It’s just fun and games… Until someone falls in love. Officer Dante Santangelo doesn’t “do” relationships, but the busy single dad happily agrees to a secret summer fling with younger, free-spirited Gracie Bravo. It’s the perfect arrangement. Until Gracie falls for Dante, his adorable twins and their ever-present fur baby. Gracie … ever-present fur baby. Gracie wants a life with Dante. Either she can say goodbye at the end of the summer…or risk everything to make this family happen.
New York Times Bestselling Author
more
I’m always excited when Christine has a new book published! She never disappoint with her strong independent heroines and tough yet compassionate heroes. This book stands alone although it is part of the Bravos of Valentine’s Bay series. This Gracie’s & Dante’s story. Although Dante is several years older than Gracie they’ve become good friends. Things begin to change between when Gracie moves out of her brother’s house & rents the cabin behind Dante’s house. It becomes apparent to both of them that they are attracted to each other. Dante thinks he is terrible at romantic relationships so he’s adamant that he is not a commitment type of guy. Gracie is very attracted to him & falls in love with his twin daughters. I won’t add any spoilers as to what happens as these two friends to lovers work through to their HEA in spite of plenty of nosy family members. Looking forward to the other books in this series!’
Dante Santangelo, divorced dad to twin daughters, police office, an all-around nice guy. He doesn’t do relationships. He did the right thing when his girlfriend told him she was pregnant, they married, and tried to make it work. Unfortunately for him, their relationship didn’t work, but he loves his girls.
Gracie Bravo, free spirit, unfortunate relationship queen, and broke, needs to get out from under her family and begin to make her own way. An inheritance she had is now gone, because, bad relationships, duh.
Dante has a rental. Grace needs a place to more that’s affordable. They’re friends, and a night of tequila shots and tacos on Dante’s deck leads to an offer of a place to live and more.
Heading back to Valentine Bay is always a pleasure. Reading about Dante and Grace, their relationship, and the families we’ve come to love, was like a cool drink on a hot day…refreshing and relaxing. Add in Dante’s two cutie pie girls and their burgeoning ability to wrap their dad around their fingers, to his chagrin and our delight, and you have a great read.
You can read Their Secret Summer Family as a stand-alone, but I think you’d get more out of the story by reading at least some of the other books in the series. And why wouldn’t you…they’re just so good!
Gracie Bravo and Dante Santangelo are the main characters.
Dante rents Gracie the cabin that he has on his property when she wants to move out of her brothers house. They spend time together and fall in love. Dante has two daughters from his first marriage. they spend lots of the summer with him and the occasional long weekend. He loves spending time with his kids and Gracie falls in love with the kids as she spent time with them. Gracie and Dante have to work through some issues to get their happily ever after. I recommend this book to anyone looking for a great book to read. I couldn’t put it down.
Their Secret Summer Family is the eighth book in Christine Rimmer’s The Bravos of Valentine Bay series. We’ve seen glimpses of both Dante Santangelo and Gracie Bravo throughout the series and finally we have their special story.
Dante, who is a police officer, pulls Gracie over for speeding. They’ve known each other forever as Dante is her brother, Connor’s, best friend. Immediately he is in tune to her emotions and invites her to his home where one thing leads to another and he offers her his cabin to rent.
Dante is a single father to twins who live out of state. He has feelings for Gracie but believes their age difference is too great for a relationship. After much contemplation, they decide to have a summer fling that would be kept between the two of them. Owen, Dante’s dog, loves Gracie from the start and adds another layer of fun to the storyline.
What happens when people discover their relationship? Will Dante give in to his feelings and decide to take a chance on forever?
Their Secret Summer Family is a heartwarming story. It is a standalone book but we also catch up with other characters from past books. I highly recommend reading it along with the rest of the books in the series. I received an advance copy which I chose to read and review. I look forward to the next book in the series.
This was a wonderful, uplifting heartfelt book. This is the story of Dante and Gracie, I was hoping for their story after their seeing them in A husband She Couldn’t Forget. They had definite chemistry. Dante is a single dad to two beautiful daughters and he doesn’t want to do marriage again, he’s been burned before and he doesn’t want to be hurt again. Gracie is a long time friend and she has feelings for him. What starts out as just a summer fling turns into a beautiful love built on trust, understanding and knowing that you have to put your heart out there again to really fall in love. I loved their story so much, another winner for Christine Rimmer!
I love the longer book. I really enjoyed reading this book.
Loved this book. Took Dante a little while but he finally got it. Nic, Nat and Owen were the cutest.
I LOVED this book!! I couldn’t put it down (not caused by self-isolation). Dante doesn’t want to fall in love with Gracie but once she moves to the cabin next door it’s inevitable. The chemistry between them is dynamic and you can’t help yourself from rooting for them. I can’t wait for the next installment of The Bravo’s of Valentine Bay. Christine Rimmer really keeps providing entertaining and exciting stories.
I just want to start my review by saying that I am so happy I was able to read and advance copy of this book. Things have been kinda crazy and this was an awesome escape. I picked it up this morning and read the whole book in one day. If you love romance I think you will thoroughly enjoy this book.
It starts out with Grace meeting up with her friend Dante and he sees that she has had a bad day, he invites her to his house to hang out and discuss her problems. While she is there things get a little heated and one thing leads to another.
He offers his empty cabin to Grace to move into so that she can get out on her own and out of her brothers house.
A great storyline, wonderful characters and now I feel a little lost because I have finished the book. I sure will miss them.
I love Grace and Dante. Starting out as best friends really strengthened their bond. When it turns to love, Dante wasn’t ready, until Grace was no longer with him. Good storyline and strong characters. Match well made.
Fantastic book. I’ve been waiting for this story ever since that brief glimpse of Dante and Grace at the bar in The Husband SheCouldn’t Forget. I had a feeling there was something there, and I was right.
Grace is the youngest of the Bravo clan and the last to move out of the family home. Now that her oldest brother Daniel is married (TheNanny’s Double Trouble), she feels like a fifth wheel. She also butts heads with Daniel regularly because of his overprotectiveness. She’s ready for a place of her own.
Dante is a divorced father of twin girls. He likes his job as a cop, has a terrific house, and sees his daughters regularly. He has a fairly active social life, but romantic love and marriage are not in his plans. Been there, done that, and failed, and has no intention of trying again.
I enjoyed the opening. Dante pulls Grace over for speeding, but after writing her the ticket, he invites her over for dinner and to talk about whatever it was that was bothering her. They are long-time friends, thanks to Dante’s friendship with her brother, Connor. I loved seeing their mental processes, as each catalogs the non-friend attributes that they’ve noticed. I liked their conversation over dinner and their ability to talk about anything. However, this dinner is accompanied by a bottle of tequila, and it isn’t long before inhibitions begin to fade, especially on Grace’s side. Her method of making a point fanned the banked flames into an unexpected fire. Unfortunately, Dante was filled with regrets by the next morning and pulled back, while Grace was ready to run with it.
I thoroughly enjoyed the development of their relationship. It was fun to watch Grace tempt and torture Dante after he pulled away, hoping for a repeat performance. Dante’s struggle to resist was formidable, but it was only a matter of time before he caved. They agree to a summer fling, but Dante insists on it being secret. He doesn’t want to deal with family expectations when nothing will come of it.
With Dante’s daughters visiting for six weeks, opportunities to be together were not easy to come by. It was amusing to see how they managed it and witnessing the growing intensity. Grace also spent time with Dante’s daughters, getting to know them. It didn’t take long for Grace to realize that she wanted more than just the secret summer fling. I ached for her when she accepted that Dante was never going to give her what she needed. There were many times when I wanted to bash Dante over the head or shake him until his teeth rattled. Grace makes him feel things that he’s never felt before, but he refuses to admit it. I hurt a little for him, too, because it’s his own fears that hold him back. I loved the “full circle” conversation that set him straight. Dante’s big moment at the end was great, and I loved his daughters’ reactions.
As always, I love the family relationships in these books. Dante is close to his family and has a marvelous relationship with his daughters. I found his history with his ex-wife interesting, especially the insight provided by Connor. He is also close to the Bravos, thanks to his friendship with Connor, who is married to Dante’s sister, Aly. There have been occasional strains on the bond, and I loved seeing a little bit of “gotcha” at Connor and Aly’s party. The Bravo family continues its traditions of family dinners and loving support. Grace knows that they have her back, even when she asserts her independence. I loved the time she spent with Hailey and Harper, and can’t wait to read their stories.