December comes to quaint Hearts Bend, Tennessee, with a blanket of white and the glitter of Christmas lights.
For JoJo Castle there is no place like home. Her onetime love of adventure ended when her life in the big city came crashing down. Now that she’s home, she never wants to leave again.
Country music sensation Buck Mathews has charmed the world with his smile and his music. However, news of his mother’s illness brought him home to Hearts Bend for the holiday season.
Working with her cousin Haley in The Wedding Shop, JoJo has no aspirations of love. But when her high school crush returns to town, her buried feelings surface.
Busy with his career, Buck hasn’t had time for family and friends, much less love. Seeing JoJo in The Wedding Shop reminds him there are things more important than his career.
But JoJo and Buck have opposing life goals, and there’s no middle ground. Can love, especially the kind that touches hearts at Christmas, overcome her fears and his quest for greatness?
With the help of a very special wedding dress, there just might be a Christmas miracle.
THE WEDDING DRESS CHRISTMAS (The Wedding Collection Book #3.5) by Rachel Hauk is a heartwarming small town holiday romance novella. This story is a part of The Wedding Collection series which features a special magical wedding dress and while only novella length it packs an emotional punch. (Have the tissues ready.)
It is Christmas time in Hearts Bend, Tennessee.
JoJo Castle returned to the safety of her parents’ home after a horrific personal attack while working in Dallas. Her dreams of adventure and life in the big city are gone. While she is happy working with her cousin in The Wedding Shop and helping with projects around town, she has no interest in love or marriage for herself.
Buck Matthews left Hearts Bend with a dream of country music stardom. His dreams have come true, but he comes home for the holidays when he receives news of his mother’s illness. While his career is at its height, being home reminds him of the things that are missing from his life.
JoJo and Buck were close friends in high school, but life moved them in different directions. With opposing life goals and JoJo’s ever-present fear, can the magical wedding dress and the man in a purple shirt help these two realize a special holiday miracle?
For a quick novella read, this story has well developed characters, an emotional punch and a holiday HEA. Even though JoJo and Buck’s romance moves quickly, it is believable because of their previous friendship and the realistic adult discussion of feelings throughout. There are no sex scenes in this novella. The religious elements in this story are hinted at Christian values and not preachy. I normally do not give novellas more than a 4-star rating, but this one deserves all 5. I am glad I gave it a try and now I want to go back and read the full-length novels in this series.
I highly recommend this beautiful holiday romance novella!
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About the Author
Rachel Hauck is a New York Times, USA Today and Wall Street Journal Bestselling author.
She is a Christy Award Winner and a double RITA finalist. Her book The Wedding Dress was named Inspirational Novel of the Year by Romantic Times Book Club. She is the recipient of RT’s Career Achievement Award.
Her book, Once Upon A Prince, was filmed for an original Hallmark movie.
Hauck has been acclaimed for her split time novels and royal romances.
A graduate of Ohio State University with a degree in Journalism, and a former sorority girl, Rachel and her husband live in central Florida. She is a huge Buckeyes football fan.
In other news, she’s recently learned how to hard boil an egg. She’s quite proud.
Sarah McNeilly is a rare find in the tabloid industry. She won’t ignite gossip. She finds the truth. And for once, that’s what her boss wants. With her job on the line, Sarah’s latest assignment is to identify the elusive “Maximillian Smith,” unearth his connection to the billionaire Stone family, and dig up some dirt.
Yesterday Max was an ordinary workingman, concerned with little more than the price of gas. Now he suddenly has a family, jaw-dropping wealth, and an avid (if clumsy) reporter on his trail. With the press threatening to destroy his new life, he needs to release his real story strategically, and Sarah is the key—not to mention an adorable yet invaluable resource for finding his mother.
As Max and Sarah team up to peel back the ugly layers of Max’s past, they stumble heart-first into their fiery attraction. But when their research threatens their newly built trust, it’s their future that is on the line.
THE FORGOTTEN ONE (The Heirs Book #2) by Catherine Bybee is a wonderfully charming and heartwarming second book in The Heirs series. This book features the discovery of the missing brother, Maximillian, and his romance with the tabloid writer who will only print the truth. While this book is easily read as a standalone with Ms. Bybee giving enough backstory to still understand the three siblings’ dynamics, I highly recommend reading book one, All Our Tomorrows, because it is a great read also.
Maximillian Smith is a blue-collar worker who lives day-to-day and keeps to himself. Then he suddenly has wealth beyond his imagination and siblings he knew nothing about. He also has a red-headed tabloid reporter on his tail.
Sarah McNeilly has dreams of working for a national news organization, but she needs experience and ends up working for a tabloid. She is having trouble though because she refuses to lie or exaggerate in her articles. When her boss gets a tip about a big story involving a deceased billionaire hotel mogul and a Max Smith, Sarah is assigned to find the scoop before anyone else.
When she literally runs into Max outside the family mansion compound, Max decides he just may be able to use this adorable writer to not only strategically release his real-life story, but to also help him discover the location of the mother that abandoned him to the foster care system. As they investigate together, the chemical attraction builds, but trust comes hard to Max.
I loved this story so much! Max and Sarah are perfect together. I was emotionally involved from Chapter One and their romance felt realistic and it was just plain fun. The banter between them had me laughing out loud at times. There are also times that I teared up and felt pulled into the difficult emotions of the abandoned child Max was and his shutting off his emotions as a way to deal with his life, and yet he was still a caring person. It was great getting caught up with Max’s siblings and the other characters from the first book. Ms. Bybee’s books always pull me in from beginning to end and she has become an auto-buy for me. I could not put this book down and I cannot wait for the next!
I highly recommend this emotionally satisfying and heartwarming contemporary romance!
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About the Author
Catherine is a #1 Wall Street Journal, Amazon, and Indie Reader bestselling author. In addition, her books have also graced The New York Times and USA Today bestsellers lists. In total she has written thirty-six beloved books that have collectively sold more than 10 million copies and have been translated into more than twenty languages.
Raised in Washington State, Bybee moved to Southern California in the hope of becoming a movie star. After growing bored with waiting tables, she returned to school and became a registered nurse, spending most of her career in urban emergency rooms. She now writes full time and has penned the Not Quite series, The Weekday Brides series, the Most Likely To series, and the First Wives series. Learn more about Catherine and her books at www.catherinebybee.com
Today I am sharing my Feature Post and Book Review for NEVER FINISHED (Pine Crest Mountain Book #1) by Ana Rhodes on this AME Blog Tour.
Below you will find an author Q&A, a book synopsis, my book review, an excerpt from the book, and the author’s bio and social media links. Enjoy!
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Author Q&A
Where do you get inspiration for your stories?
From everywhere! The places I’ve been, the people I’ve met. I’m inspired by everyday things. My mind is always capturing moments that will inspire me down the road.
Your book is set in Colorado. Have you ever been there?
I lived there for four years and it holds a special place in my heart. I still travel there at least once a year to visit friends and get my rocky mountain high. 🙂
What is a favorite compliment you have received on your writing?
I have had several people say they can feel all the emotions between my main characters. A story can feel flat without it, so I’m so happy to hear it comes across in my writing. That is the goal after all!
What are your favorite tropes to read?
I love a good forbidden love story because it creates beautiful tension between the main characters. Add a little brother’s best friend or age gap and I’m all in!
Any hobbies? or Name a quirky thing you like to do.
I make homemade wine. While I love the finished product, there is a lot of cleaning and sanitation involved that makes it less romantic than it sounds.
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Book Synopsis
She’s an heiress bound by obligation, determined to protect her mother’s legacy. He’s a bartender from the wrong side of the tracks who’s always loved her.
Twelve years ago, I chose my family and the future they laid out for me. And walked away from Jaime, my best friend and forbidden fantasy. We said goodbye with a soul searing kiss I can still feel on my lips.
Now I’m back in Silverpine for the first time since my mother died. I’m brokering a merger for the family business—only I don’t realize my freedom is on the line. My father wants to expand at any cost, including offering his only daughter as part of the deal.
But Jaime is back too, and his effortless charm and smile disarm my every defense. He stands for everything my world isn’t—warm, passionate, and unpredictably beautiful.
I’m trapped between the life I’ve always known and the taste of freedom I’ve longed for. But with my father plotting my future, and my mother’s legacy weighing heavy, can I dare to rewrite my story for love?
NEVER FINISHED (Pine Crest Mountain Book #1) by Ana Rhodes is an enchanting and sexy contemporary second chance romance. This romance genre read pulled me in with relatable characters, introduced me to a small mountain town and resort in Colorado, and hit all the right romantic notes with just a touch of suspense all the way to HEA.
Emma and Jaime were pulled apart twelve years ago by her father’s machinations and family obligations to her dying mother. Both moved on with their lives, but never forgot their special bond.
Emma is back at their family’s resort to broker a deal for her father. What she does not know is that Jaime is working as The Lounge manager and head mixologist. They run into each other after an event and pick up as if no time has passed at all. Their chemistry is intense, and they are determined to not let anything pull them apart again, but once again Emma’s father, who only cares about money, is determined to run Emma’s life and not only make her part of a business deal but steal the virgin mountain land her mother left her.
I enjoyed this first book in the Pine Crest Mountain series and Emma and Jaime’s romance. Emma is a strong, intelligent, sweet and loving heroine who is having a hard time since her mother’s death. The treatment of her by her father was horrible and I was happy with the author’s resolution. Jaime was swoon worthy and protective. The sex scenes are smokin’ hot and explicit, but not gratuitous. All the secondary characters are believable, and I look forward to following them in further romances in the series. The dialogue is realistic, and the touch of suspense was a nice twist.
This is an easy-to-read, heartfelt contemporary romance that you just want to curl up with and let it take you away for a few hours. Gratifying start to this new series.
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Excerpt
Me: Hey, I need an SOS call to get out of this dinner. Call me in five minutes?
I breathed a sigh of relief when she answered almost immediately.
Caroline: On it. Five minutes starting now.
Thank God for Caroline. I smoothed a hand over my hair and made my way back to the table. Andrew was busy chatting away on his phone, glancing at me as I sat back down and mouthing “Sorry.”
As he wrapped up his conversation, I pushed the food around on my plate with my fork, not bothering to eat any of it.
“I’m sorry about that. Sometimes all this networking can be downright exhausting. Now, where were we? Ah, yes, we were talking about merging,” he said, drawing out the last word, and I smiled tightly, trying to hide my disgust.
I opened my mouth to speak, but before I could get a word out, my phone rang.
Thank you, Caroline.
“Excuse me … You know how it is. I have to take this,” I said, slipping my phone from my clutch and stepping into the lobby. “Hello?”
“Hello, Ms. Carter, an emergency requires your attention. Now before you say anything, I need to know … Are you okay getting rid of this guy on your own, or do I need to come down there with a crowbar? Be honest.”
I bit back a laugh. “That won’t be necessary, but I appreciate the concern.”
“Of course. What are friends for? I expect a full report when you get back, though.”
“You got it,” I promised before I hung up. I glanced up, and my eyes landed on the bar where Jaime was helping a guest. He looked up at that exact moment, and our eyes caught and held. After all this time, he could still make me weak in the knees.
A slow smile stretched across Jaime’s lips, and he winked. I smiled back like a teenager with a crush. He turned his attention back to his customer, and I immediately felt the loss of connection.
I walked back to the table, looking apologetic. “Andrew, I am so sorry, but there’s an emergency and …”
“And you need to go,” he finished.
I nodded, forcing a sheepish expression, and Andrew nodded in understanding. “I get it—I always have a lot of fires to put out. I assume I’ll hear from you tomorrow to set up another time to meet?”
“Of course,” I promised, already dreading it. Andrew opened his arms for a hug, but I stuck out my hand. He laughed awkwardly and shook my hand before telling me goodnight and slinking out of the restaurant.
I hovered near the table until I was sure Andrew was out of sight, then escaped into the bar, relief pouring over me at the idea of being in Jaime’s presence.
I headed straight toward Jaime, who was grinning at me.
“What happened to your fancy business dinner?” he asked as I slipped my butt onto a stool.
I shrugged. “It was a bust, which is why I could use a Gin Fizz right about now.”
“Coming up,” he replied as he grabbed a shaker. “I would feel bad your dinner didn’t go well, but selfishly, I’m glad because you’re here earlier than I expected.”
I felt myself blush. “Well, those dinners are boring, and I’d rather spend my time talking to someone interesting.”
His eyebrows shot up. “And you think I’m interesting?”
I huffed out a laugh. “So modest. You know you’re usually the most interesting man in the room.”
He barked a laugh. “Isn’t that the guy in the Dos Equis commercial?”
“I’m just saying you could give him a run for his money.”
Jaime leaned closer—close enough I could smell his cologne. He smelled like cedar with a hint of bergamot and something uniquely Jaime.
That was when my stomach growled. Loud. I felt my face heat with embarrassment.
“Was that …” he started.
I nodded. “Yes … and that was totally embarrassing,” I lamented.
“Did you not eat at that fancy dinner tonight?” he asked with a raised eyebrow.
I shook my head. “Kind of lost my appetite having to deal with that blowhard …” I began before stopping myself as Jaime listened with amusement. “I mean, having to deal with that promising investor,” I amended, slapping an exaggerated smile on my face.
He chuckled. “Well, I’ll tell you what. Why don’t you work on getting a little less gin and a little more water into your system, and I’ll go make you something to eat.”
I shook my head. “Oh no, Jaime, I couldn’t ask you to do that.”
“You didn’t, I’m offering,” he said with a grin before something caught his eye over my shoulder. I turned to find Caroline with a feline smile on her lips as she glanced between the two of us.
“Well, hello there,” she practically sang as she slipped onto the stool beside me, reaching her hand out to Jaime. “I’m Caroline, Emma’s best friend. You must be Jaime.”
Jaime shook her hand, his grin widening. “Hello, Caroline, it’s nice to meet you. I was just going to rustle up something to eat for my starving soldier here. You wouldn’t happen to be hungry, would you?”
Caroline’s eyes lit with amusement as she rested her chin on a fist. “Oh Jaime, that’s my eternal state of being.”
Jaime laughed, and the rich sound sent shivers down my spine. “Okay—two Jaime specials coming up,” he said, throwing a towel over his shoulder. “You two sit tight, and I’ll be back before you know it.”
As soon as he was out of sight, Caroline looked at me in wonder. “Oh. My. God,” she marveled. “He’s cooking for you already. I see why you’ve been pining after him for so long.”
“Caroline,” I hissed. “Keep your voice down. You have the subtly of a freight train.”
She made a face. “Uh, I hate to break it to you, Emma, but there’s nothing subtle about this whole situation. I mean, when I walked in here, that man looked like he was two seconds away from devouring you.”
A happy warmth spread through me at her observation, but I didn’t say anything.
“Besides, you had to know I was going to come check on you after that SOS call. I’m assuming your associate had to have been behaving like a total creep to make you call me.”
I sighed. “Well, maybe not a total creep, but he was fast approaching,” I paused, turning to face Caroline. “It’s weird. Before I would have breezed through that dinner no matter how uncomfortable I was in order to get the deal done. But there’s something about being here … I don’t know. I just didn’t have it in me to put up with it tonight.”
Caroline nodded sympathetically. “Maybe Mama Carter’s spirit is reminding you it’s not your job to take everybody’s shit.”
I laughed. “I can’t imagine my mother putting it like that, but maybe you’re right … and based on our recent experiences, it would seem we both need to embrace that sentiment.”
Caroline grimaced. “Amen to that.”
It was then that Jaime returned with a tray in his arms. “Ladies, dinner is served,” he said, presenting us with two plates that each held a burger with all the fixings, a side of fries, and little cups filled with ketchup.
My eyes widened as the smell hit my nostrils and my empty stomach. “Is that …” I started.
“Oh, it is, Mabel’s secret recipe,” Jaime announced with relish. “It’s been a long time, but I know that recipe like the back of my hand. I only wish I could get my hands on a couple of chocolate milkshakes, and then you could have the full experience.”
I couldn’t stop the grin that took over my mouth. “I can’t believe you went to all this trouble.”
Jaime shook his head. “Anything for you, Bella,” he said in a low voice, and prickles of pleasure raced down my spine at the mention of the nickname he’d given me when we were younger. I still remember the first time he’d called me that, explaining it meant beautiful.
Our eyes held for a long moment before Caroline’s moan interrupted. “Wow, you were not lying about this burger, Emma,” she mumbled around a mouthful of burger.
“Well, tell me if it still holds up,” Jaime said, gesturing toward my plate.
I picked up the hefty burger, my mouth watering from the smell, and when I took that first bite, a flood of memories assaulted my senses from the taste.
My eyes shut in rapture. It tasted heavenly, but knowing Jaime’s hands created it made it all the better.
I opened my eyes and met Jaime’s gaze as he watched me hungrily. I swallowed hard around the bite of food as a different appetite was awakened.
Caroline cleared her throat loudly. “You know, as fun as this has been and as much as I would like to get to know the legendary Jaime, I think it might be better to take this in a doggy bag.”
I looked sharply at Caroline, feeling the need to tell her, “You don’t need to do that.”
She winked at me before saying, “I assure you, no one needs to witness me consuming this burger—it’s about to get wild. So if you’ll excuse me, I think my burger and I need to be alone.”
Jaime had already pulled out a cardboard box and was helping Caroline pack up her food along with a complimentary cocktail for the road.
“Well, Jaime, it was lovely meeting you, and I hope we can talk more later, but right now, I have a date with this burger,” Caroline declared.
“Totally understand. It was nice to meet a friend of Emma’s.”
Caroline beamed at Jaime—my normally suspicious friend had been charmed. She rose from her stool and hugged me. “I’ll catch up with you later.”
“Enjoy that burger,” Jaime said, his sexy smile further crumbling my resolve. God, that smile used to make me feel all the things, and it had only magnified in power in the years we’d been apart.
It was then Joey rushed to the bar. “Jaime, I’m sorry to interrupt, but we have a situation with a guest.”
Jaime shot us both an apologetic look. “I’ll be right back,” he said before stepping around the bar and following Joey.
Caroline looked at me, eyebrows drawn up. “Emma,” she exclaimed, “I thought you were being a little dramatic all these years, but girl, you definitely undersold him. And for the record, that man has plans for you.”
I shook my head. “Would you calm down? We’re old friends catching up on lost time. That’s all,” I said, unsure who I was trying to convince, Caroline or myself.
She huffed out a laugh. “You can tell yourself that all you want, but from my vantage point, you are two seconds away from doing it on this bar.” She stopped cold, and a wicked grin stole over her mouth. “Now wouldn’t that be a picture for old Daddy Moneybags?” she asked, using the nickname she’d given my father, a man she wasn’t particularly fond of given how he’d been acting lately. “And as a token of my love and admiration,” she continued, “I’m delaying the consumption of this burger to stop by the front desk and get my own room.”
I felt a weird combination of panic and excitement threading through me at her suggestion. “Caroline, that’s really not necessary. I seriously doubt …”
She put up a hand to stop me. “Save your breath, Emma. All I’m asking is for you to keep an open mind, and this way, you can’t use me crashing in your suite as an excuse. I refuse to be a cockblock.”
I opened my mouth to protest, but Caroline just grinned, snatching up her to-go cocktail and box and giving me a wink before floating out of the bar and into the lobby.
***
Author Bio
Hello! I’m Ana and I love writing swoony, small town romances with sweet, protective heroes who love their strong and sassy leading ladies. When I’m not writing, I’m reading… romances, of course! I’m a sucker for a good love story, and I hope you enjoy mine.
When Chase Stone’s estranged father dies, leaving his multibillion-dollar business to his children, no one is more surprised than Chase. Growing up outside of the high-stakes world filled with human vultures, Chase and his sister, Alex, are less than enthusiastic about stepping into their father’s shoes. That is until they learn of a half brother they didn’t know existed and must find to share their inheritance with.
Piper Maddox was the elder Mr. Stone’s übercapable assistant—abruptly fired two weeks before his death. She knows everything about Stone Enterprises and the man who built it. But Piper has no desire to work for another member of the Stone family. Even one as down-to-earth as Chase.
Desperately needing financial security, Piper agrees to return so long as kissing up to Chase and accepting unwanted advances are not part of her job description. A promise that becomes a serious hurdle for both of them. Piper and Chase scramble to find the third Stone sibling before the media does, sharing secrets along the way. Secrets that can bring them together or tear them irrevocably apart.
ALL OUR TOMORROWS (The Heirs Book #1) by Catherine Bybee is the start of a contemporary billionaire romance series. I normally do not read this subgenre, but I love Ms. Bybee’s style of writing, and these reluctant billionaires receive their financial windfall when their estranged father dies, so I gave it a try and I am very glad I did.
Chase and Alex Stone are shocked at the reading of their estranged father’s will. Both are successful, but the inheritance of their father’s business and money are at a completely different level. They also discover they have a half-brother out there somewhere that they never knew anything about and to complete the conditions of the will and share a third of their father’s wealth, they must find him.
Chase Stone has to learn all about his father’s business in a hurry to keep the vultures at bay. He learns his assistant has only been in the position for two weeks and his father’s previous assistant was fired abruptly. Chase digs into the situation and finds out the injustice of the firing and wants the straight shooting and intelligent Piper back to assist him.
Piper Maddox has no desire to work for another member of the Stone family, but when she meets Chase, she learns he is nothing like his father. She needs the financial security of the position, but she has a few rules. As they work together with Chase’s sister to stabilize the company and find the missing Stone heir before the press, they discover a chemistry that both fight, but neither can resist.
I really enjoyed this introduction to the Stone siblings and Chase and Piper’s romance. All the characters are fully developed and realistic. Chase is an endearing hero of strength and integrity, and Piper is an intelligent heroine who can smoothly handle the politics of a multi-billion-dollar company but has a very big secret in her personal life. The two together are perfect. All the secondary characters round out a varied cast of good and bad players with secrets that will be answered over the future books in the series. The search for the missing heir and the treachery in their father’s corporation and boardroom have the plot moving at a fast pace, while the romance is intertwined and moves along at a believable pace. The corporate intrigue and the discovery of the missing heir are slight cliffhangers at the end of the story.
I highly recommend this first book in this new billionaire contemporary romance series.
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About the Author
Catherine is a #1 Wall Street Journal, Amazon, and Indie Reader bestselling author. In addition, her books have also graced The New York Times and USA Today bestsellers lists. In total she has written thirty-six beloved books that have collectively sold more than 10 million copies and have been translated into more than twenty languages.
Raised in Washington State, Bybee moved to Southern California in the hope of becoming a movie star. After growing bored with waiting tables, she returned to school and became a registered nurse, spending most of her career in urban emergency rooms. She now writes full time and has penned the Not Quite series, The Weekday Brides series, the Most Likely To series, and the First Wives series. Learn more about Catherine and her books at www.catherinebybee.com
When Chase Stone’s estranged father dies, leaving his multibillion-dollar business to his children, no one is more surprised than Chase. Growing up outside of the high-stakes world filled with human vultures, Chase and his sister, Alex, are less than enthusiastic about stepping into their father’s shoes. That is until they learn of a half brother they didn’t know existed and must find to share their inheritance with.
Piper Maddox was the elder Mr. Stone’s übercapable assistant—abruptly fired two weeks before his death. She knows everything about Stone Enterprises and the man who built it. But Piper has no desire to work for another member of the Stone family. Even one as down-to-earth as Chase.
Desperately needing financial security, Piper agrees to return so long as kissing up to Chase and accepting unwanted advances are not part of her job description. A promise that becomes a serious hurdle for both of them. Piper and Chase scramble to find the third Stone sibling before the media does, sharing secrets along the way. Secrets that can bring them together or tear them irrevocably apart.
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Elise’s Thoughts
All Our Tomorrows intermingles the romance genre with family fiction. Readers will not be disappointed in this first book of the series. Per usual, Catherine Bybee provides poignant and bittersweet moments where readers will have a roller coast of emotions: laughing, crying, and worrying right along with the characters. This one has emphasis on relationships: family, corporate business, and personal.
The book opens with the funeral of Aaron Stone who has been estranged from his children, Chase and Alexandra (Alex) all their lives. They are shocked to find out that he has left his multibillionaire business to them, but also that they have a half-brother who shares the inheritance.
Desperately needing help in understanding and digging into their father’s business and personal accounts, Chase reaches out to his father’s recently terminated (without cause) executive assistant, Piper, who he rehires with a raise. They spend a lot of time together to research the company and to find hints on where to locate the brother. As the attraction grows, Piper is trying very hard to keep her distance since she is pregnant with another man’s child. Until she blurts out to him the secret. The relationship takes off from there.
Bybee fans will also enjoy finding some old characters in the story. Jack, Jessie, and the father Gaylord play a somewhat prominent role. They come in to help Chase and Alex with the business and embrace them into their family, including helping to find their lost brother, Max.
This book has witty banter. It is a heartfelt story that has sexual tension and tension regarding the business. It is one of those books’ readers will not want to put down.
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Author Interview
Elise Cooper: How did you get the idea for this series?
Catherine Bybee: Right now, there will be three books, all about the siblings. I knew I wanted to write about rich people again since I did not do that for a while, plus do possible global play. Other pieces I wanted to put in is a grumpy boss, and a pregnancy. I keep looking for someone to put me on a private plane so I can do some personal research. I did a lot of research into the corporate world. Often the controlling interest is not 50% or higher.
EC: Is Piper an executive secretary with power?
CB: Yes. I wrote her to be the right hand and, in some ways, having more detailed knowledge than the actual CEO. She wears two faces, seeing the executive side but also knows the office gossip.
EC: How would you describe Piper?
CB: She speaks her mind, fierce, confident, honest, and a powerhouse. She is also loyal, has a sense of humor, and sarcastic. She can be insecure and vulnerable. Her soft side is on the inside. She tries to hide it in the corporate world. She is sassy, a departure from when she was the executive assistant of the father, because she knows she is needed.
EC: What is the role of the dog Kit?
CB: I got the name of the dog, Kitty, after I met someone who literally had a dog of that name. I used it because it is so funny. He is an anchor at her side that protects her. Kit is an angry looking rottweiler, like my neighbor’s dog, but the dog would not hurt a flea.
EC: What about the pregnancy?
CB: I intentionally made it so that the baby was not the hero’s child. It affected all the characters’ lives, depending on the decision about the baby. I wanted her to struggle with the decision of keeping the baby or giving it up for adoption. I also did not want this to be a child of incest or rape. She was not in love with the guy who was the father. I hoped I showed how the decision is never easy, that she was faced with the judgement of others. I wanted to have it come across that the decision about the baby should be solely hers. As I put in my notes at the end of the book, my experience helped me write this part of the story. I saw decisions made because someone else wants it. How young women ignored the pregnancy until they were five months along without any natal care.
EC: How would you describe Chase?
CB: He has a sense of humor. He is honorable, protective, skating around having wealth. Based on his experience he knows how wealth can affect people. He is family oriented.
EC: What about the relationship between Chase and Piper?
CB: I wanted to show how Chase stepped into the role of wanting to be the baby’s father. She walks into the office for the first time, dressed as a powerhouse, has him spellbound. They are guarded and have mistrust. She fears his judgement. They like to tease and flirt with each other. He made her off balance. He gives her the reprieve of thinking about the baby.
EC: What is the relationship between the siblings, Alex and Chase Stone?
CB: They respect each other, loyal, and equal partners. They can be honest with each other. There is a difference in that Chase came to terms about his absentee dad, while Alex still has daddy issues. She has this overwhelming need to overcompensate. The two of them have kept each other grounded. They have family values they got from their mother. They have each other’s back.
EC: Why bring in Gaylord?
CB: He is the counter to Chase and Alex’s father, Aaron. He is the father everyone would want. He, Jack, and Jesse were featured in the book written over a decade ago, Not Quite Dating. Since I brought back the hotel world of corporate business I decided, why not bring back these from a previous book. This is an update for those readers who have read it. He is someone the Stone children could ask questions. I wanted to show there could be some good fathers in this book. There is a secondary relationship between Gaylord and the Stone children’s mom, Vivian.
EC: Does Melissa and Floyd represent the not so nice people?
CB: They will be in play in the next books. They continue to have their issues.
EC: Next books?
CB: I wanted to be fresh when I approached Mari’s story, from the D’Angelo series. I wanted this series to be finished before I tackle silver-haired romance.
The next book will feature the half-brother Max who they found at the end of this book. There is a lot to his story. There are some dangling plot points that will be wrapped up at the end of the series. The title The Forgotten One comes out in November. All the Stones will be back in book two with Max realizing he now has a family.
THANK YOU!!
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BIO: Elise Cooper has written book reviews and interviewed best-selling authors since 2009. Her reviews have covered several different genres, including thrillers, mysteries, women’s fiction, romance and cozy mysteries. An avid reader, she engages authors to discuss their works, and to focus on the descriptions of their characters and the plot. While not writing reviews, Elise loves to watch baseball and visit the ocean in Southern California, with her dog and husband.
Cowboy Max Romero is a married man—even if he hasn’t seen his bride since their impulsive Reno wedding. When the seriously sexy Brit Phoebe Creighton-Smith suddenly shows up in his life again, the last thing he expects is a request to play man-and-wife in front of her family. But it sounds like a challenge to the mischievous Max, who offers Phoebe one in return—give up proper English etiquette for riding the range like a real rancher’s woman.
Phoebe is willing to rope a stallion, if it means she can convince her grandmother to release the trust fund she’s entitled to after marriage. She’ll just have to pretend that her deliciously brawny “husband” isn’t tempting her to total abandon every minute of every day—and night. But just when the heat between them crackles into a blaze, Phoebe’s snobby clan forces Max to make a choice, he knows he’ll risk everything to convince her that with them, true love is a sure thing . . .
THREE COWBOYS AND A BRIDE (Three Cowboys Book #3) by Kate Pearce is the third book in the Three Cowboys trilogy of cowboy contemporary romances and Max’s story which I have been waiting for and I believe my favorite of the three. While this book can be read as a standalone, I read them in order to follow all three of the cowboys’ romances because the main characters live together, and all appear in each book.
Cowboy Max Romero has never felt he deserved a permanent home, and he has an unfiltered mouth which gets him in trouble often, even with his friends. When he takes off a without notice from the ranch after a disagreement with Luke and Noah, they are surprised when he returns a few months later with a bride in tow that no one knew anything about.
Phoebe Creighton-Smith has tracked down the man she married in Reno. Four years ago, she conceived a marriage of convenience to Max to solve a problem with her inheritance back in England and then they parted ways. Now she is back requesting Max to play her husband at her sister’s wedding. Max agrees, but only if Phoebe will play a real rancher’s wife until they need to leave.
While playing husband and wife, Max and Phoebe discover an explosive chemistry between them, but these two have a few secrets to clear up. When Phoebe’s brother manipulates them to part, will Max risk it all for the woman he loves?
I loved Max and Phoebe. I really had no idea how Max would find the one for him after his problems in the first two books of the trilogy, but they were perfect for each other. There was a large communication gap between them, and it was slowly settled throughout the story and ended with the HEA I wished for. The sex scenes were smokin’ hot and steamy, but not gratuitous. I also always enjoy catching up on the lives of the other main couples and secondary characters. This is an entertaining and sexy romance with a great cast of characters.
I highly recommend this entire trilogy and I will definitely be checking out more of this author’s books.
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Author Bio
New York Times and USA Today bestselling author Kate Pearce was born in England in the middle of a large family of girls and quickly found that her imagination was far more interesting than real life. After acquiring a degree in history and barely escaping from the British Civil Service alive, she moved to California and then to Hawaii with her kids and her husband and set about reinventing herself as a romance writer.
She is known for both her unconventional heroes and her joy at subverting romance clichés. In her spare time she self publishes science fiction erotic romance, historical romance, and whatever else she can imagine.
