Title:  It Had To Be Love
Series:  It Had To Be #2
Author:  Tamra Baumann
Genre:  Contemporary Romance
Published:  September 8, 2015
Publisher:  Montlake Romance
My Rating:  4 stars
Source:  NetGalley
Cover Description:

Tara Carter isn’t looking for romance. She’s content seeing patients at her new practice by day, then going home and cuddling with her puppy at night. Her new life in the tiny town of Anderson Butte, Colorado—known by celebrities as the place to lie low—is the perfect respite for a woman with a whopper of a secret. There’s just one problem: the town’s sexy sheriff knows she’s hiding something.

Sheriff Ryan Anderson, weary of small-town drama, has sworn off dating locals and thinks a fresh start in a bigger city is in order. However, the more he gets to know Tara, the more his heart tells him that she could be the woman of his dreams. But he wants to get to the bottom of whatever she’s trying so hard to keep under wraps. Can he uncover her secret before it drives them apart forever?

Read on for my thoughts on It Had To Be Love.  No true spoilers, promise.

Tara had secrets.  She was on the run from an abusive past and hoped that finally she had found a place to stop.. and live her life.  Ryan wanted to know what those secrets were.  His interest in Tara was far from professional.  As the town of Anderson Butte’s Sheriff, he wasn’t running her plates for outstanding warrants.  But he was attracted and she was keeping secrets.  In his opinion secrets were there for a reason, but they had to come out sooner or later when you cared about someone.

I enjoyed It Had To Be You on so many levels.  It had a bit of everything that I love about reading  – suspense, secrets, mystery, passion, romance and simply two fun main characters that I hoped found their way to each other honestly.  I understood Tara’s need for her secrets to be kept… and her fear and terror when the one person she feared most showed up again.  Ryan was a man of few words, but the ones he said mattered.  His desire for Tara and his need to protect her at all costs made for a strong relationship.

Sometimes a story is simply a very good story.  And this is one of those times where I think you should read about their adventure on your own.  It’s a tale well worth diving into.  I would recommend this story for readers of romance, suspense, mystery and anyone who just enjoys a good story.

*I received an e-ARC of It Had To Be Love from the publisher and NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. That does not change what I think of this novel.*

Available in a variety of formats including the Kindle and right now, Kindle Unlimited