From the bestselling author of Lulu’s Café and Under the Magnolias comes a “touching . . . slow-burning romance” (Publishers Weekly) with “enjoyably quirky characters and Carolina charm” (Booklist).

Josie Slater has allowed the circumstances anchoring her in Sunset Cove to become a life sentence. Since her mother’s death years before, she’s spent most of her waking hours helping her dad run the Driftwood Diner. As her best friends, Opal and Sophia, make their dreams come true, Josie watches her own art school aspirations drift on by. But when a French-speaking Southern gentleman from her past moves back from Europe, Josie is launched into a tizzy of what-ifs and I-sure-do-hope-sos.

August Bradford left Sunset Cove, South Carolina, six years ago to sow some wild oats and conquer his ambitious career goals. Finally ready to lay down roots, the successful artist is back in the coastal town and determined to win Josie’s heart. When he enlists Josie’s help in the preparations for a children’s art camp, Josie finds herself unleashing her artistic side in a way she hasn’t since before her mother’s death. August hopes to convince Josie to paint a life with him, but first he must convince her to let go of her apprehensions and give him―and her dreams―a fair chance.

• Contemporary Southern romance with a friends-to-more trope, perfect for fans of Denise Hunter and Rachel Hanna
• Book 2 in the Carolina Coast series