4 Stars ~ In her last year of high school, Laura's mother had packed them up and moved them away from Three Rivers. Not finishing her last year with her classmates wasn't what hurt, it was leaving Travis, the one friend who she could always count on. A decade's past and Laura's been connecting with another former school friend and when she finds her murdered, the trail of the killer leads her back to Three Rivers. Laura's a former FBI agent now working for a prestigious private investigations firm. Taking a leave from her job, she's out to prove that the murder of her friend is connected to two other murders. Returning to Three Rivers brings her back into Travis' territory; a former marine, he's now a police detective and hopefully, just the man to help her. When her rental car explodes outside of Travis' home, he declares “This isn’t just your fight anymore. Neither one of us started this but we’re sure as hell going to finish it.” Finishing it is a harder task they they anticipated. This killer somehow knows every move they make before they make it, and his threats to Laura's life are like a game to him. Working together, Laura and Travis find that their bond is stronger than ever. While Laura admires Travis' patience and level headed approach, she's a take charge sort and isn't above breaking some rules. Travis quickly learns that she has the smarts and the skills to protect herself and that she's not above putting herself out front to protect him too, there is unconditional trust. And deep rooted and sometimes just barely below the surface, is the heat of awareness that grows stronger every moment they're together.
I really enjoyed Travis and Laura's reawakening. Travis is on a path that brings him closer to his Navajo roots and that connects him to his home in Three Rivers. Laura grew up bullied and shunned by her peers and while she hated leaving Travis behind all those years ago, he was her only pull to her home town. This is their only conflict in their deepening relationship but as they work together to catch the killer they discover in each other and within themselves a greater bond. Ms. Thurlo built their relationship not only on the shared past of teenagers but also on their growing awareness of each other as adults, both on a sexual level and on a level of mutual respect and admiration. This blending of past and present brings life to these characters. I was also fascinated with the Navajo culture and traditions portrayed. All in all, I enjoyed Travis and Laura's journey to HEA very much.