All He Ever Dreamed by Shannon Stacey

Josh Kowalski is tired of holding down the fort—better known as the Northern Star Lodge—while his siblings are off living their dreams. Now that his oldest brother has returned to Whitford, Maine for good, Josh is free to chase some dreams of his own.

As the daughter of the lodge's longtime housekeeper, Katie Davis grew up alongside the Kowalski kids. Though she's always been "one of the guys", her feelings for Josh are anything but sisterly. And after a hot late-night encounter in the kitchen, it's clear Josh finally sees her as the woman she is.

Katie's been waiting years for Josh to notice her, but now that he has, she's afraid it's too late. Giving her heart to a man who can't wait to leave town is one sure way to have it broken. But Josh keeps coming up with excuses not to leave—could it be that everything he's ever wanted is closer than he could have imagined?

*****

All He Ever Dreamed is the sixth book in Shannon Stacey’s Kowalski Family series and, start to finish, I couldn't put it down!

A little back story: I’ve absolutely loved every book in this series, but there’s been something about Josh that has been tugging at my heartstrings since I first set eyes on him. He’s the youngest of the Kowalski siblings and as each of the others left home to build their own lives, Josh’s life has seemed less and less in his control. Everyone’s assumed he’d run Northern Star Lodge, but they never asked if that’s what he wanted to do. He was becoming more and more frustrated and bitter, but then one day he got a lucky break – literally. He fell off a ladder and broke his leg. As his siblings come home to help with the lodge, they start to see that Josh isn't as happy to be there as they thought he was, and this is when he finally tells them how he really feels about being left behind to run the family business.

So that brings us to now...Josh’s story, and it’s every bit as emotional as I had expected, and Josh is every bit the honorable, devoted – and very sexy – man I knew he would be! There were times I wanted to smack him right upside his gorgeous head and knock some of the stubbornness out of him, and other times I wanted to bring him home and love him all better! Such a great, great man he’s turned out to be.

Katie Davis – I adore Katie. Her mom, Rosie, has been the Northern Star's housekeeper forever, so Katie grew up with the Kowalski kids. She’s been Josh’s best friend for as long as she can remember, but that friendship became something more - to her. She fell in love with him. Katie knows that in Josh’s eyes, she’s just “one of the guys” and she’s sure he’ll never see her any other way, but with a little encouragement from friends and family, she decides to pull out all the stops and make him see that she’s all woman, she’s all his, and always has been! And this made for some very funny, very romantic, and very sexy reading!

And as always, these stories wouldn't be nearly as fun as they are without revisiting the rest of the Kowalski friends, family and neighbors! It's always such a treat to catch up with them. They are caring, devoted, amazing people, people I can’t get enough of!

The bottom line: Contemporary Romance fans, Shannon Stacey’s Kowalski Family series is not to be missed! These stories are sweet, sexy, emotional tales that are guaranteed to leave you with a smile on your face and a sigh in heart!

My thanks to Carina Press and Netgalley for providing me with a copy of this story in exchange for an honest review. It’s been an absolute delight!