Against all odds, the Sorentino sisters saved their
family's rundown New Mexico ranch, but the youngest has a dream that just may
ruin their hard-earned peace--unless a certain sexy cowboy lawyer changes her
mind...
Jenna Sorentino is as independent as they come. Despite
her wild past, she's grown up enough to keep quiet about the identity of her
baby's daddy, go to night college--and hide her plan to escape tiny Catcher
Creek. She's also stopped dreaming of happily ever after--except in the case of
gorgeous, rugged, Santa Fe native Matt Roenick. Too bad the oil rights attorney
acts like he barely knows she's alive...
Matt knows only too well that Jenna's alive--in fact,
she's driving him crazy with desire. But Matt's got his reasons for resisting
her. And when her son's father shows up, those reasons multiply. Trouble is,
Jenna's secrets are more complicated than he imagined, and forgetting her isn't
as easy as he'd hoped. Matt knows life can be messy as hell. For Jenna, maybe
it's time he got dirty...
A terrific story full of fun, family, and fire. This is
the third book in the Catcher Creek series but can easily be read as a
standalone. I haven't read the first two books, but there were enough backstory
tidbits that I never felt lost.
Jenna is the youngest of three sisters and a single mother.
A rough childhood led to Jenna's wild child high school years. At eighteen, an
unexpected pregnancy led to a rapid decision to clean up her act and give her
son the best life possible. One thing that hasn't changed is her ability to keep
a secret - like who her son's father is, that she's going to college online and
can't wait to get out of Catcher Creek. She's mostly stopped dreaming of
finding a forever man, except for her crush on Matt. She'd like to get something
started with him, but he doesn't show any return interest.
Matt is the oil rights attorney who helped Jenna and her
sisters save their ranch. He's not your typical shark-like lawyer but one who
is sincerely interested in helping people. He's as interested in Jenna, but he needs
to keep the single mother at a distance. His reasons are heartbreaking, and I hurt
for what it meant to his happiness.
I enjoyed watching the relationship between Jenna and
Matt develop. Matt has struggled to resist Jenna's advances for months, but it
becomes nearly impossible as they work together to solve a crisis involving her
sister Amy's wedding. I loved how Matt came to the rescue and the teamwork they
demonstrated to make it happen. An unexpected announcement at the wedding sent
Matt into hiding to lick his wounds, and an encounter with a stranger opened
his eyes to what he was missing by pushing Jenna away. I liked that Matt
decided to take a chance, hoping that his feelings for Jenna won't lead to
another heartbreak.
Because they've known each other for a while, Jenna's son
Tommy already knows and likes Matt. There are some charming scenes of the two
of them together, and it's easy to see that Matt is meant to be a father. But
his secret affects many parts of his life, from his relationship with his
family to his ability to trust the feelings of the women he dates. Jenna has
her own trust issues, which is why she's kept so many secrets for so long. But
when Tommy's father returns to town, those secrets begin to unravel.
I ached for all three of the people involved. Tommy's dad
is still dealing with the hurt and anger from the events that led to him
leaving Catcher Creek, some of which he blames Jenna for. There's one
confrontation where I feared for her safety, but a later one begins to clear
the air. Matt is caught in the middle when he misunderstands the circumstances,
and his hurt and pride won't let him stick around for an explanation. Thank
goodness for his new friend Jake, whose voice of reason sends them back to
check on Jenna. And then there's Jenna, whose entire world seems to be falling
apart. There's plenty of blame to go around, but it came as something of a
surprise to see Matt be the one to help make sense of it all.
The author deals with some very sensitive issues in this
book with realistic situations and emotions. Jenna's promises to Tommy's father
were at the heart of her secret-keeping, and as more information was revealed,
I understood her reasons. After her first encounter with him after his return,
I understood Jenna's need to call out some of the town's people. The scene at
the bunco party was intense, and I cheered at seeing her go off on the narrow-minded
jerks. I also liked how Matt's longing to be a father was treated as just as
normal as those of guys who feel the opposite, as was his frustration at not
being able to do anything about it. Finally, I ended up liking Tommy's dad a
lot. He had so much to deal with, both in the past and now. I liked seeing him accept
Matt's help in seeking justice and learning how to be a bio-dad to Tommy.
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