I read this after Flirting with Disaster (first out of the series), but you can easily read them out of order. I had to go back and dip into Too Hot to Handle, which is about Alex's brother, to remember what happened then about their family history. I liked this story much better! Alex and Sophie are connected by a shared scandal - her mother supposedly ran off with his father when they were kids. However, they didn't really know each other growing up - she's 4 or 5 years younger than him - and he left town when he turned 18 and didn't come back until now, 16 years later. She's stayed in town and has had to deal with the gossip and craziness his mother has be stirring up for 25 years. Since's she's grown up to look just like her mom, she tries hard to minimize any similarities in behavior - no partying, no being irresponsible - but she's got a wild streak and so she will periodically have these crazy one-night stands or short flings with tourists. 
 Alex had to deal with his mother's craziness while he was growing up and couldn't wait to get away from her (and his brother). He leaves, get's into college, and eventually becomes a specialist engineer so he travels constantly for work and loves not being tied down. 
 I really like how Victoria Dahl balances the family issues, friendships, and personal angst, with a really good, hot romance and it all works together really well. The focus stays on the MCs and their relationship, but the other threads - Alex's mom's illness and Sophie's relationship with her (step)dad get a full treatment. 
 Overall, I like the heroines in this series better than in the previous Jackson series. These woman are older so you would expect them to be more together, but the women in the first series were all just a bit too flaky. Thankfully, I've never read a Victoria Dahl heroine who is TSTL, but Sophie - even with her hangups - was just more appealing to me than Merry.