I Want to Hold Your Hand (Green Mountain, #2) (Green Mountain Romance, #2)

by Marie Force

[EBookObsessed]

The close knit Abbott family will always work together to solve any problem, but there is one thing that hurt them all so deeply, and there is nothing they can do about it. Caleb Guthrie was a long-time friend of Will and Hunter Abbott and the husband of Hannah Abbot Guthrie. His death was a shock to the family, but there is nothing they can do for Hannah while she grieves the loss of her husband. Until she is ready to move on, they have to sit and wait as the years pass.

The Abbotts aren’t the only ones waiting to see if Hannah will move on. Nolan Roberts has been waiting in the wings for the last few years hoping against hope that Hannah will agree to go out with him. Nolan is a long time friend of both Hannah and Caleb and he understands how Caleb’s loss has effected Hannah and he is willing to go as slow as she needs in order to be a part of her life.

The dance at the Grange a few weeks ago and Nolan’s kiss at the door, changed something for Hannah. She forgot the simple pleasure and excitement of being with someone. Hannah is wracked with guilt over the thought of kissing someone else, since she is Caleb’s wife, and Nolan is such a kind, sweet man she doesn’t want to lead him on. Yet if she was going to find love again, she couldn’t ask for a better man than Nolan.

Just when she is ready to take a step forward with Nolan, Caleb’s dog, Homer, passes away and it once again brings a finality to Caleb’s life, and Hannah’s emotions are in turmoil. Except this time, she has Nolan’s support as well as that of her family. It is Nolan who suggests a big send off for Homer, just like Caleb would have done, and Hannah feels her guilt lighten since Nolan understands her so well and what she needs in order to move forward with her life.

Nolan Roberts might just be Hannah’s second chance at love, but not everyone is ready to let Caleb go and let Hannah move on with her life.

THOUGHTS:
We spent more time getting to know the Abbott Family in Book #1, All You Need is Love, but they weren’t far away in Book 2. They are there to support Hannah but they would like to see her move on with her life and stop being alone. Caleb has been a part of Hannah’s life since she was 13, first as the annoying friend of her brothers, and they slowing into a first love. Caleb is portrayed as someone large than life, always the center of a crowd a friends who love him and Hannah. But we also get to see that not everything was perfect between Hannah and Caleb. His larger than life personality also included excessive party drinking, and Hannah refused to start a family with Caleb until he was ready to “grow up.” This also causes Hannah some pain since she believes that her chance to have a family died with Caleb.

We see Hannah moving forward with her plans, suggested by Cameron, to turn Caleb’s home into a retreat for war widows which bridges her need to hold onto Caleb’s memory and a moving on with her life.

She couldn’t have chosen a better man to move on with than Nolan. He is so understanding of the pain she is suffering and how hard it is for her to move on. Trying to move on, causes Hannah to swing on an emotional pendulum and whenever she pulls away, Nolan is afraid he is losing her, but he is willing to give her the time she needs to work through her feelings, as long as she doesn’t just walk away. We feel his frustration but he is already in love with Hannah that he won’t give up entirely on their future.

It is a sweet story of moving on from the pain of loss, and we see how the further loss of Caleb’s dog brings another finality to Caleb’s loss which rocks Hannah just as she tries go reclaim her life.

We also get a glimpse of future stories which would involve Mountain man Colton and Hannah’s twin, Hunter. I am not sure who’s story is next, but I am enjoying spending time with the Abbotts.

Received ARC from the publisher in exchange for an honest review.