Yuletide Baby Surprise - Catherine Mann (HD #2257 - Oct 2013)

Series: Alpha Brotherhood (Book 4), Billionaires and Babies

'Tis the season to be jolly? It isn't for Dr. Rowan Boothe when a princess on the run from the photo-hungry press invades his hotel room. He and Mariama Mandara had their professional clashes in the past, and Rowan has no desire to become involved in her latest predicament--until they discover an abandoned baby. Now he needs Mari's help and soon discovers she's no pampered royal but a desirable woman. Yet how long can their Christmas escape really last?

Loved it.  Catherine Mann is an auto-read for me and once again she's written a great story.  Rowan and Mari are both doctors, in Cape Verde for a medical conference.  The have been medical adversaries for years, with Princess Mari claiming his diagnostic software cuts too many corners to be accurate and Rowan telling her she's too insulated in her lab to know about practical medicine.  When an attempt to escape from pursuing paparazzi sends Mari bursting into his hotel room it also leads to the discovery of an abandoned baby.  Rowan uses his contacts to have the baby left in their care and convinces Mari to help him care for the baby and use her princess status to publicize the search for the baby's family.  Being in constant company with each other two things become obvious.  First, they are incredibly attracted to each other.  Second, there is more to the other one than either had suspected.

Mari is an only child whose parents divorced when she was young.  She spent a lot of time being shuttled back and forth between the two parents.  She is highly intelligent and has always felt socially awkward, making her feel even more out of place as a princess.  She is happiest in her research lab where she feels in control of her life.  When Rowan talks her into helping with the baby she feels out of her depth.  In spite of her intelligence she is not confident in her abilities to relate to other people.  She is surprised by the desire she feels for Rowan but very interested in pursuing it when she discovers that he is just as attracted to her.  Over the course of the book she finds herself sharing things with him she's never told anyone.  She also wants to know more about him and while he shares some things she senses that he's holding back even more.  I loved the way that being temporary parents brought them so close together.  I also loved the way that Rowan's attention to her and her feelings opened her eyes to everything that she had been hiding from in her life.  She had a wonderful conversation with her mother at the end of the book that really opened her eyes.

Like the others in the Alpha Brotherhood, Rowan feels that he has a debt to society that he needs to pay.  He runs a small clinic in West Africa and tries to help as many people as he can.  He's had a contentious relationship with Mari for many years thanks to their differing views.  But those views have not stopped his fascination with her.  The combination of her arrival in his room and the appearance of an abandoned baby gives him just the excuse he needs to get to know her better.  By convincing her to help him care for the baby he gets her to share his suite at the hotel putting them in constant contact with each other.  He quickly discovers that she's not the spoiled princess he had thought she was.  He sees a beautiful and caring woman who can't see what she has to offer the world.  The attraction he feels starts to deepen, but he has spent a long time keeping his heart closed off.  The guilty feelings he has over the event that sent him to the reform school have convinced him that he does not deserve a family of his own.  Add his undercover work with Interpol and he has a lot he feels he has to keep secret.  I like the way that he that he opens up to her with a little bit of his past but he makes the mistake of keeping too much back.  This made Mari feel that he did not care for her as much as she deserved.  I loved the phone conversation that he had with Elliot at the end of the book and the boot in the butt that he needed.  The conclusion of the book was great with Marin and Rowan finally getting what they needed.

Playing for Keeps - Catherine Mann (HD #2221 - Apr 2013)

Series: Alpha Brotherhood (Book 3)

It's been eighteen years...and he still wants her

In high school, Malcolm Douglas was a bad boy who stole the heart of small-town girl Celia Patel-as well as her virginity. But life pulled them apart...and just as well, for he'd already broken her heart.

Now Malcolm is a world-famous billionaire dedicated to atoning for his sins. When he swoops back into Celia's life, he tells himself he only wants to protect her from recent threats. But the desire between them leaves them as breathless as teenagers. Will Celia ever forgive him? Maybe. If he can make today's pleasure erase yesterday's pain.

Very good book.  I liked both Celia and Malcolm.  When they were teenagers Celia was the daughter of a local judge and Malcolm was the boy from the wrong side of the tracks.  But they were in love and that was all that mattered to them.  When Celia got pregnant Malcolm started working any job he could find to earn enough money so they could get married.  He ended up getting caught in a drug raid and even though he was innocent he was sent to a reform school.  He and Celia ended up giving up the baby for adoption and they drifted apart.  When she became the target of a stalker Malcolm used his connections and swooped in to protect her.  They have a lot to overcome and none of it is easy.

Celia has been trying for eighteen years to get over Malcolm.  After the birth of the baby she suffered from depression and panic attacks and has mostly recovered though she still has the occasional panic attack.  When she is threatened she blows it off especially when Malcolm appears.  She really doesn't want to risk her heart again.  But he convinces her that coming along on his European tour is the perfect way to be protected.  I really liked the way that she had gotten her life back together after making the incredibly hard decision to give up her baby.  Her reaction to Malcolm's appearance showed her that she was still attracted to him and probably always would be.  I really enjoyed seeing her get to know Malcolm the man and how he had changed from the boy she used to know.  She discovered that she mostly liked him and really enjoyed meeting his friends. She didn't like his cynicism about the existence of love but she kind of understood his feelings.  Her decision to give in to the physical wasn't easy but she didn't regret it.  She was also finally able to let go of the guilt she felt over what she saw as her part in Malcolm being sent away.

Malcolm has spent his adult life performing his music and doing the occasional work for Colonel Salvatore and Interpol.  He sees it as a way to make up for all the stupid things he did when he was younger.  He has kept an eye on Celia from afar, wanting to make sure she is safe in a way he couldn't do when they were younger.  He saw taking her on tour with him as a way to get her back in his bed and maybe get her out of his system, but it didn't work out that way.  It seemed that everything he did just made him want her more and forever.  I loved seeing the other members of the brotherhood come to help him and also the way they tried to make him see the truth about his feelings.  I loved seeing the difference it made to his music when he did.  The ending to the London concert was beautiful.

The resolution to Celia's stalker mystery was quite a surprise.  I liked seeing the other brotherhood members and the wives from the first two books.  It was fun seeing how their changes have continued after the end of those books.  I'm looking forward to getting to know the other members and seeing how they meet their matches.