Forever Be Mine by Lauren Smith – a Review

Amazon / B&N / Kobo / iTunes / Google Play

Description:
What’s love got to do with it?
Her life was a Tina Turner song. Celia Lynton had been told her entire life that she couldn’t marry for love, marriage should be a business agreement, poor men were only after the family fortune, blah, blah, blah. But now, there is no fortune. There’s only debt, and an urgency to find a way to pay her younger brother’s tuition at a school that can tend to his special needs. So yeah, there’s going to be a marriage. One of convenience. Just like her parents wanted. She’ll marry a future Scottish earl—a very rich future earl—and her brother will get to attend school. There’s just one problem: Celia is in love with another man.

You can’t always get what you want.
His life was a Rolling Stones song. Carter Martin has loved Celia since they were kids. Never mind he’s too quiet, too studious for someone who lights up a room when she smiles, add to that his father works for her family. Being the son of the “help”, he could never be good enough for her. So he’s worked hard his entire life to show his boss, the Earl of Pembroke, that he can take over his father’s position as Steward of the estate some day and take care of the family who has taken care of his for generations. Little does he know, Celia has a plan of her own…an intimate trip to Italy where they won’t be able to keep their hands off each other. How can he resist the only woman he’s ever loved?

Review:

Forever Be Mine by Lauren Smith is the 4^th book in her Love in London series.  I have not read the earlier books in this series, but this read very well as a standalone, and I loved every moment of this wonderful sweet contemporary romance.

We meet our heroine, Celia Lynton, as she makes plans with her friend Callum, a future earl, to get married.  Seems Celia’s father lost all their money, and the family has moved in his brother; causing Celia to make arrangements to help her autistic brother Matthew to go to the school of his choice.  Callum will pay Matthew’s tuition and Celia will bear him the heir he needs to become the earl.  The problem is that both Celia and Callum are in love with someone else, but for both, duties come first.

Carter Martin is following in his father’s footsteps as steward of the Earl of Pembrooke’s estate.  He is in love with Celia, but he doesn’t make enough money to help her pay for Matthew’s tuition.  When he learns she is marrying someone else, he is despondent, but Celia invites him to take a trip to Italy for a month at her Aunt’s place, and enjoy their last days together. 

What follows is a beautiful heartwarming story, as we watch both Carter and Celia show how much they love each other.  The chemistry between them was hot and steamy, but most of all their love was so  sweet, it was tearing our heart out (as well as theirs) that they would never be together.  But sometimes magic and miracles do take place.

Bravo to Lauren Smith for not only bringing us to tears many times, but creating a wonderful couple, and fabulous secondary characters.  It was so heartwarming to see others ( uncle, friends, Earl) come forth to express what love is all about, and never let it go.  Forever Be Mine was a tearjerker, but also so sweet and emotional.  If you love pure sexy romances that pull on your emotions, you need to read this book.  Thank you Lauren Smith for this wonderful story.

Reviewed by Barb

Copy provided by Publisher