Two of a Kind by Susan Mallery

Gideon Boylan - the hero of this story - is one of a group of former soldiers currently making their home in the town of Fool's Gold. Just about all of these former soldiers bare some type of mental scarring leaving them with emotional issues that need to be worked out. In Gideon's case, he was held captive and tortured at one point. He was the only survivor. He believes that the main reason he was able to endure and survive is because he didn't have any emotional ties to anybody back home like the others did. He thinks that is what weakened his fellow captives. Enter Felicia Swift. Felicia was in the military as well. She has been super smart all her life. Some people find her intelligence intimidating - her parents were freaked out. Her parents pretty much "opted out" on raising her, leaving her to basically raise herself in various institutional settings. She became emancipated at age 14. Due to her super brain, and how she grew up, she is aware that she processes things a little differently than everybody else. She and Gideon had a one night stand years ago. She was a virgin at the time and, after some consideration, picked out Gideon to lose it to. Flash forward to the present and Felicia and Gideon find themselves in the same town and still deeply attracted to each other. There are many things about this book that I loved - the great characters, the sexy romance, the comradery between the former soldiers, and the relationship that develops between Felicia and 13yr. old Carter. The mother-son type relationship between the two was very touching. In addition to liking Carter, she finds that she can relate to his situation because of her teenage experience. I also liked the tease of a possible love match between Consuelo and Kent Hendrix. After reading this book, I couldn't wait to read the next book in the series.