A Cadence Creek Christmas - Donna Alward (HR #4401 - Nov 2013)

Series:  Cadence Creek Cowboys (Book 5)

Taylor Shepard has come to Cadence Creek to organize her brother's Christmas wedding. Organizing such a special event might be a little bit stressful -- but she can't deny she's swept away by the town's holiday charm…and by brooding rancher Rhys Bullock.

Loner Rhys has been burned far too many times in the past. He's sure he has city girl Taylor all figured out -- she'll be hightailing it straight back to the city in a few days! But as the snow starts to fall, Rhys and Taylor embark on a tentative winter romance. Could Taylor be the Christmas present Rhys never even knew he wanted?

Very good book.  Taylor has come to town to plan her brother's wedding and she's a bit stressed over it.  Dealing with one of the groomsmen adds stress of a different type.  Rhys seems to know just what buttons to push to rile her up.  But there is also an attraction there that she can't deny.

I liked Taylor.  She is very good at event planning and she really wants to do a good job on her brother's wedding.  When some minor glitches occur and she starts to stress it's Rhys who tells her what to do to fix them.  Taylor is used to being independent and only counting on herself and isn't terribly appreciative at first.  Her attraction to him is also throwing her off kilter.  Besides just trying to avoid the distraction, she sees no future in it since she's headed back to the city right after Christmas.  Once the wedding is over and she can relax a little she finds that spending time with him is changing her priorities.  Taylor had also been feeling a bit burnt out from her business and was hoping to get her enthusiasm back. She also feels somewhat unappreciated by her family.  Being in Cadence Creek gives her a different perspective.  The interactions between Taylor and Rhys were good.  I loved the way that she would react to something he'd say and he'd just smile because he knew he'd gotten to her.  The more time she spent with him the more she fell for him, but she couldn't figure out how to make it work with her responsibility to her business.  I loved the way she figured it out.

Rhys had come back to Cadence Creek after the death of his father to help his mom.  After having to close his business he is now working as a hired hand and helped his mom buy the diner where she works.  When he meets Taylor he thinks she a bit of a big city snob but he can't resist getting closer to her.  He sees her intensity when it comes to her job and it reminds him of himself.  He understands what she is going through.  His attraction to her is strong and he tries hard to ignore it.  I loved the way that he ends up being with her, willing to take whatever time he can get with her.  I liked the way that  he opened up to her about his past and the effect it had on him.  Rhys's own insecurities had him settling for just a short time with Taylor when he really wanted her to stay.  I really loved the ending and seeing how ready he was to support Taylor in whatever she wanted to do.

A Cowboy to Come Home To - Donna Alward (HR #4383 - July 2013)

Series: Cadence Creek Cowboys (Book 4)

"Friendship?"
Melissa Stone has done a fine job of avoiding her "former" best friend Cooper Ford. She was devastated when she discovered her husband was cheating on her, and felt doubly betrayed that Cooper had known all along....

"Forgiveness..."
But she can't ignore him forever--especially now that they're working together on a charity project And as she and Cooper get closer again, she confides in him her plans to start a family--alone.

"Fatherhood "
Cooper wants to be there for her this time--but would he really consider being "the father of her baby...?"

Good book.  Melissa has worked hard to move past her divorce and the betrayal of her ex-husband.  Harder than that has been accepting the loss of her best friend Cooper.  They had been friends for a long time and when she found out that he knew about Scott's cheating she was devastated.  She has managed to avoid him for three years, but now they're working together on a project and he's had enough.

I liked both Melissa and Cooper.  Mel had been blindsided by her husband's actions and is now finding it very hard to trust any men.  Part of her devastation at the end of her marriage was the loss of her dream of having children, so she decided to have a baby on her own.  She was also hurt by what she saw as a betrayal by her friend Cooper, who had known of Scott's actions but didn't tell her.  She had had a crush on him when she was in school, but when he showed no signs of returning the feelings she had moved on.  She doesn't know if she can forgive him for his actions but she is willing to try.  She doesn't expect to find that her attraction to him has returned and is growing stronger.  She is amazed when he tells her that he has loved her for years but wouldn't say anything while she was married.  His declaration has scared her because she doesn't trust that anyone will stick with her for any length of time.  She has to learn that she's worth staying around for.

Cooper had been friends with Mel for a long time.  By the time he figured out that he wanted more than friendship she was already with Scott.  Because he was friends with both of them, finding out about Scott's affair caused him major heartache.  He wanted to tell Mel, but Scott threatened to tell Mel about Cooper's feelings and make it look like he was trying to break them up.  Staying away from her after the divorce was incredibly hard for him.  When he finally talked her into giving their friendship another chance he was also hoping to show her his love also.  He also had problems with the intensity of his feelings, knowing that losing her again would destroy him.  He also wasn't sure that any developing feelings from her were for him or just because she wanted a baby.

Little Cowgirl on His Doorstep - Donna Alward (HR #4368 - Mar 2013)

Series: Cadence Creek Cowboys (Book 3)

Little cowgirl makes three

For Avery Spencer, the sight of rugged, sullen and dangerously sexy Callum Shepard is enough to set her pulse racing. Too bad she's only on his ranch to tell him that her adorable baby niece is his daughter!

Reclusive rancher Callum is shocked to discover he's a father. But now Callum must learn to believe he does have what it takes to become a dad, and convince Avery that both she and baby Nell belong on the ranch-with him!

Very good book.  Avery has come to Cadence Creek to tell Callum he is a father.  Her sister had a one night stand with him at a wedding a year earlier, but never told him she was pregnant.  Her sister left her as guardian but Avery doesn't feel right keeping Nell's existence from him.  She is shocked to see how much he has changed from the man she met at the wedding.  She wants nothing more than to take Nell back home with her but having grown up without a father herself she doesn't want that to happen to Nell.  But Callum's initial reaction isn't promising so she prepares to take Nell back home with her.  Then Callum has a change of heart and asks her to stay a couple weeks so he can get to know Nell.  When she and the baby move in with him she starts to see signs of the man she first met and her feelings for him start to grow even though she fights it knowing that she'll be going home soon.  She also doesn't believe he could care for her as she has always been overlooked because of her sister's more flamboyant looks and personality.  She is also very cautious and likes to plan and know what will happen before she takes an action.  Although she has a very sweet and shy personality she is also a lot stronger than she thinks she is.  I loved the way that she stood up to him at the beginning to make sure that he understood that Nell was his.  I also loved the way that she took to life in Cadence Creek during her visit and how she made friends so easily.  I also loved the way that she had the strength to take charge of her feelings and her future at the end.

Callum had returned to Cadence Creek after getting out of the military.  He was carrying a lot of guilt over the loss of several of his friends and was pretty much hiding out on his dairy farm.  When Avery arrived to tell him about Nell he didn't believe her at first.  He had been deceived and badly hurt by another woman which made him very slow to trust Avery.  Once he accepted that she was telling the truth he invited her to stay a couple weeks so he could get to know Nell.  He still didn't feel that he would be the right person to raise her because of the way he felt about his actions.  But the longer that they stayed with him the closer he got to Nell.  He also was more and more drawn to Avery's quiet beauty though he had a hard time convincing her.  I liked the way that being around them started to overcome his need to hide out and how he started to open himself up to the more positive feelings.  I loved watching him grow closer to Nell and become the father that Avery knew he could be.  He wanted to ask Avery to stay but he was afraid to open himself up to more hurt.