Redwood Bend by Robyn Carr

Katie Malone and her twin boys' trip along the beautiful mountain roads to Virgin River is stopped short by a tire as flat as her failed romance. To make matters worse, the rain has set in, the boys are hungry and Katie is having trouble putting on a spare. As she stands at the side of the road pondering her next move, she hears a distinct rumble. The sight of the sexy, leather-clad bikers who pull up beside her puts her imagination into overdrive.

Dylan Childress and his buddies are on the motorcycle trip of a lifetime. But the sight of a woman in distress stops them in their tracks. And while the guys are checking out her car, she and Dylan are checking out one another.

In one brief moment, the world tilts on its axis and any previous plans Katie and Dylan might have had for their futures are left at the side of the road. ( synopsis from B&N.com)

Mira, Paperback, 384 pages

Katie Malone has moved to Virgin River to be near her big brother Connor. Katie and her twin boys were forced to move from their home when Connor became the sole witness to a murder and was threatened by the killer. Katie was widowed when her husband was killed overseas in the Army and she wants to settle down and rebuild her family life.  On her way to VR, she gets a flat on her SUV and is rescued by a group of bikers, one of whom she recognizes as a former child star she had a crush on.

Dylan Childress left Hollywood when his grandmother Adele swept in and took him to live with her. Dylan was a big TV star whose best friend had just died at the age of 15 from a drug overdose/suicide attempt. Living with his grandmother taught Dylan how to have a normal life away from his fame obsessed mother and step siblings.  Dylan owns an air transport business in Montana and is in VR for a holiday.  Neither he nor Katie want to start a relationship that will go nowhere because of their different goals in life, but they can’t keep away from each other. It seems to be a romance that is doomed to cause unhappiness and misery but who listens to their head when the attraction is so strong….

One of the things I like about Ms. Carr’s Virgin River books is the slice of life aspect they have.  As in the real world, life goes on for all of the secondary characters while the hero and heroine are going through whatever angst they are into.  The community plays a part in the story and many times is instrumental in having the couples work out their issues. Dylan and Katie found normalcy and continuity in Virgin River which made it possible for them to come together when their own insecurities would have kept them apart.  This book has a satisfying and realistic ending that fits in with the rest of the series.