Series: Cupid, Texas #5
Published by Avon Publication Date: March 28th 2017
Pages: 432
Also in this series: Bound To Them, Unbroken
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New York Times Bestselling Author Lori Wilde returns to Cupid, Texas with a heartwarming story of a cowboy who comes home to the family ranch for a wedding filled with surprisesβ¦
The illegitimate son of a Texas ranching dynasty, Ridge Lockhart left home ten years ago with one goal: to become more successful than the father who never accepted him.
Mission accomplished, but now heβs back at the Silver Feather Ranch for a weddingβthree days of best man duty until he can hightail it out. Then he spies Kaia Alzate, and suddenly leaving isnβt quite so appealing.
Kaia Alzate grew up the daughter of the ranch foreman, servants to the mighty Lockharts in the mansion. Back then, she followed Ridge around like a puppy. Now, sheβs fighting the attraction she feels for this sexy CEO. Sheβs determined not to make a big mistakeβbut when Ridge takes her in his arms sheβs stunnedβ¦could he be the man sheβs waited for all along?
Cocktails and Books received this book for free from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. This does not affect our opinion of the book or the content of our review.
Need a dose of the warm and fuzzies with a side of sexy? Then Ridge and Kaia’s story in Million Dollar Cowboy will fit the bill.
This is a well written story that focuses on Ridge’s emotional growth as he returns home for the first time after 10 years away. He has to face past demons and deal with a lifetime of emotional baggage to fully open his heart to the woman he’s known forever, but is finally seeing differently.
Both Ridge and Kaia are easy characters to like and I appreciated that she was a strong female lead. The supporting cast isn’t huge, but I they are impactful – especially Kaia’s Granny Blue.
The romance in the story develops quickly, but has a natural feel to it when you consider that the main characters have known each other forever and are reconnecting at a wedding.
Overall, this is well written and enjoyable. It’s a fun stand-alone addition to an existing series – one that gives us several new books to look forward to since Ridge has 3 brothers and Kaia had several sisters all needed to find their soul mate.
He cocked his head. Who was she?
The woman hopped from the tall truck with the fluid grace of a playful water sprite more at home underneath a cascading waterfall than smack in the middle of the Chihuahuan Desert.
She wore faded blue skinny jeans that fit like spray paint, cupping rounded hips and a firm lush fanny. A neon-pink, V-neck T-shirt showed off a hint of sweet cleavage. Her flat-heeled cowboy boots were scuffed and dusty. From this distance, it appeared as if she didnβt have on a lick of makeup, and her thick dark hair was pulled into twin braids. A gust of hot, lazy June air blew across the sand, and her nimble fingers reached up to tuck a tendril of loosened hair behind one ear.
Ridge had a startling vision of easing the elastic bands from her hair, undoing the braids, and watching that tumble of hair fall over his hand soft and smooth as liquid silk.
What the hell? Why the instant lust? Normally, he went for tall willowy blondes like Vivi. Not petite, shapely brunettes.
Why?
That was easy enough to answer. A) The brunette was smoking hot. B) There was something familiar about her, something warm and cozy and inviting. C) He hadnβt had sex in so long heβd almost forgotten what it felt like.
Hope cut into him, gutted him open, leaving him raw and hungry. Hey, who knew? There was a wedding this weekendβalcohol, food, music, slow dancing. Maybe theyβd hook up.
Easy Lockhart, getting ahead of yourself.
He didnβt even know her name, or if she was involved with someone, or if sheβd even been invited to the wedding.
No, but that didnβt stop steamy sexual fantasies from unspooling inside his head. Nor could he shake an odd feeling that heβd gone fishing for shad and managed to hook a mermaid instead.
The woman opened the extended cabβs passenger side door and bent over, butt wiggling as she ducked her head inside to retrieve something from the backseat. That round wriggly rump robbed the air from his lungs, highjacked his brain as effectively as a gun-toting bandit.
As the owner and CEO of Lock Ridge Drilling, he made snap decisions on a daily basis and heβd honed the skill of sizing up people at a glance.
From the click-quick snapshot trapped in that breathless time of his mind, Ridge knew she was the spunky girl-next-door type. Able to climb trees, make chicken soup for a sick neighbor, organize a charity drive, spike a witty barb at smart-ass-know-it-alls, passionately root for her favorite sports team complete with face paint and logo jerseys, park her butt in the church pew every Sunday morning, and cheerfully answer three a.m. phone calls from friends in need.
She was, in fact, everything Ridge was notβperky, happy-go-lucky, laid-back, a rule-following, people-pleasing team player.
Not his type. Not in the least.
Which probably explained the pounding lust. He had a knack for picking women who were all wrong for him.
Lori Wilde is the New York Times and USA Today bestselling author of over 70 works of romantic fiction. She is a two-time RITA award nominee, a four time Romantic Times Reviewersβ Choice nominee and has won numerous other awards. She earned a bachelorβs degree in nursing from Texas Christian University and holds a certificate in nursing forensics. An animal lover, Lori is owned by several pets, and lives in Texas with her husband, Bill.
Elizabeth
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Thank so much for reviewing!
If I wasn’t already a fan of Lori’s, this cover would have sold me! I will be reading this shortly.