I’m forty, flabby, and frustrated. Don’t get me wrong, I have a good home, a decent job, and great children. I had a loving marriage for twenty years where we had our ups and downs. It wasn’t perfect; but it wasn’t awful. Then he died.After the grief took its course, and the reality of my life set in, I grew frustrated. It wasn’t the bills or the struggle to keep my interest in my work. It was … It was life without a man – the only man I’d been with for twenty years. And before you go all feminist on me, it isn’t that I can’t be an independent woman, but there are certain areas where a man is necessary.
You need a fuck buddy, my friend said.
I didn’t even know what that meant.
Is it friends with benefits?, I asked.
Better, you don’t even have to be friends, she offered.
Boy, did I need an education in the modern workings of dating, and sex.
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A coming-of-an-older-age novel. A story for the over forty.
Something new from L.B. Dunbar — a stand alone rom-com!
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This is a fantastic story of relearning to find your way in the romance world after forty. The story had ups and downs, smoking hot moments, and a lot of personal growth and depth. Loved it!
This was a great book. It was refreshing to read a book about people over 40 having lives
Life turns in the strangest directions when faced with tragedy. Mary Elizabeth (Emme) knows the ache that losing your loved one can bring. Married for over 20 years, Emme now faces the loss of not only her marriage but the insecurities that dating at an older age can bring. With two teenage daughters in the mix, Emme has little time to spend in the dating world.
As everyone reminds Emme, there are needs in her life that just can’t be ignored. The dating world brings about a ton of insecurities for Emme. Her body isn’t what it was prior to having children. When you add to that the fact that her former husband was the only man she had ever slept with, Emme is full of doubts about herself.
Determined to get back into the swing of things, Emme decides to get back into the dating world without any ‘distractions. Mereck comes barreling into the scene offering Emme the solution to her dating woes. Confident and secure, Mereck possesses the body of a much younger man, and the prowess that attracts much younger women. Nothing about Mereck has the world commitment attached. It is the perfect scenario to Emme’s situation. As the two begin to spend more time together, they both find the rules of their relationship are getting crossed at each turn. Is Emme really cut out for a friends-with-benefits relationship?
The Sex Education of M.E. was an interesting view on finding love after a tragedy. Emme’s character exudes the typical insecurities that any woman in her 40s would have after childbirth and a life spent with just one partner. I loved just how relatable this story was. Mereck….well….I am still debating on him. The secrets he held close to his heart didn’t always sit well with me, but I ‘might’ forgive him after making it to the end of the novel. Seriously though…..this was a wonderful romance that left me smiling in the end.
– Mary Elizabeth/Emme is 40, flabby and frustrated. She has a good home, decent job and great children. Her husband died about a year ago after 20 years of marriage. After the grief took its course and reality set in, the frustration began. A friend suggested a f… buddy, not a friend with benefits. Emmie decided she needed education on current relationships. – Emme was interesting, and I loved Merek, who she met and with whom she developed a relationship. Emme’s friend Gia was fun and entertaining. This is a good read.
Emme has been widowed for a year and misses sex. She is in her 40’s and doesn’t quite know how to go about having a sex buddy. She meets Merek who says he will give her a ride. Both of them have family and don’t want attachments. What happens when they catch feelings can they let there pasta go. Great characters and storyline. Highly recommended. Amazing book. This is my first book by this author definitely not my last. Loved it.
I’m forty, flabby, and frustrated. Don’t get me wrong, I have a good home, a decent job, and great children. I had a loving marriage for twenty years where we had our ups and downs. It wasn’t perfect; but it wasn’t awful. Then he died.
Emma need so get out of her rut. Her friend recommended a friends with benefits relationship with a handsome fella. Can she do this?
Another great over forty, second chance at love read. You will fall in love with Emma, Merek and all of the other characters. A bumpy ride it will be but will they find the happiness they want.
I’m really loving the over forty stories by this author! Enjoyed Emme & Merek’ story and their bonus story too! Emme’s friend Gia was a hoot!
Clever insightful look at two individuals who allowed their pasts to tarnish their present and their struggle to move on and move forward. Together.
Perfect book to be read at this exact moment of my life. Smartly written with a good balance of heat, humor, character development, and the heartbreak of letting go. 4.5 stars.
This is the story of M.E. and Emme. I absolutely loved the play on the character names!
Yes the characters are older, or vintage as I like to say, but Emme and Merek develop a love that is timeless.
I embraced the fact that they wanted break out of the “parent” title and embrace themselves as individuals. I could understand how Merek wanted to keep his home life separate from his player lifestyle.
Oh my me! Merek is beyond swoony! He is a silver tongued devil with a slight Irish brogue. He is everything I love in a hero.
I could so empathize with Emme. I could feel her insecurities. I could understand her needs and wants. I cringed at how she thought so little of herself and what she brought to the world. It was sad to read about how her marriage was debilitating her slowly and then the ultimate betrayal to her shaped her into the woman she was. But then I loved how she was finding herself again and how Merek helped her do that!
If you are looking for a smexy, real old love story, get your hands on this! I absolutely loved it! Thank you for writing this fabulous story and creating this beautiful world! I hope we see more of Emme and Merek in the future!
This heart warming story was so real and such a breath of fresh air of relatable characters, I loved it.
Being widowed is something none of us plan for and never want to face in our forties, but that is exactly where Emme found herself. She is now ready to jump into the dating scene that has changed dramatically in the last 20 years since she was married. Could she handle being a “Friends with Benefits”?
“We started with fire, but needed to step back from the blaze. Only from the moment I met her, there had been a spark.”
Merek never wants to settle down. He has a revolving door of woman at his disposal and is more than willing to show Emme just how “F Buddies” works. What he isn’t prepared for is how Emme makes him want more than just a random hook up. Is this player ready to find love?
This is for all the women who think that they cannot find love again when age is catching up to you, but this can also be for all the men who think they don’t deserve to be loved after you have been cut to the quick by your past.
I enjoyed following along on their journey of discovery. Their discovery of each other, discovery of love as well as a discovery of their pasts no longer defining them.
L.B., “Thanks for the ride.”
I could really relate to Emme.
This is my first time reading this author and I loved that this was about an older couple! Not that being 41 or 42 like Emme and Merek are is considered old, because I’m 41 and I don’t feel old at all. Like, I’m still trying to figure out what I want to be when I grow up. I loved that the story felt so real. There were quite a bit of funny moments, especially with Emme getting back out in the dating world. Emme and Merek sure are smoking hot together. I was all, get it girl! I’m going to have to check out some of the authors other books, I really liked her writing!
I loved it!
Being a 40+ woman myself, I easily found myself slipping into Emmes shoes and insecurities. She is a 40+ plus widow, and after a year of mourning she decides it is time to go out and live again.
Meeting Merek at her best friend Gias block party, Emme found herself thinking of him at a constant.
But true to form of an older woman, she feels that he would never be attracted to some one like her. This sags, thats too big..so may flaws unlike the 20 somethings out there.
Merek is a man who wants no commitment from any one…just a one nighter and that is it. He has been alone for so long, and he finds it easier that way. Until Emme…
What unfolds between these two is frustrating, heart warming and hot and sexy .
If you are over 40, I just know you will love this story!
Refreshing
I really related to this story and characters; it was refreshing to read a story from the point of view of single people who are in their Forties. This is a coming of age story a new chapter for emee single mom looking for what she thought was a good time no strings & Merek who wanted fun and no strings. Well the fates have different plans for them both. Thank you L.B for writing such a beautiful love story for over 40 crowed; gives one hope that love is possible……
I think this book was absolutely amazing and so well written! I am loving the 40 and over love stories from LB Dunbar. I feel I can relate so much more to them. These characters, Emme and Merek, are both simply wonderful. Emme being a widow and having children definitely makes this seem like a more realistic attempt for a woman her age to reenter the dating world after a 20 year marriage and very little experience beyond her husband and just how complicated it would be. Although this is a very sexy, steamy book , it has so much heart and soul intertwined with it. Love this story! Love this couple!
I highly recommend this book. I love that LB wrote a book for the over 40 crowd. I am over 40 and have been married to the same man for almost 19 years. This book gives some us older women something to look forward to.