Five Stars
I have to admit that there were just two reasons why I bought this book. I wanted to see if Melissa’s and Jed’s baby was a boy or a girl (see book one of the series) and Mark Furnish was such a great guy that I wanted him to get his happily ever after.
He was still a great guy in this book. He’s kind, generous, handsome, smart—everything a hero should be, but he’s got a problem. His ranch has seen some hard times and now he needs money. The bank has turned him down and now his only resource is his grandfather whom he hasn’t seen in years and doesn’t have much of a relationship with him.
His grandfather is old school and thinks Mark should be married and have a family. This is the premise of the deception. Mark needs the money, his grandfather is coming for a visit and there is no wife. What to do?
Belinda is working in the saloon and refuses to do anything illicit with the patrons and after a scuffle that involved Mark Furnish, he is banned and she is fired with zero prospects of finding another job.
Mark strikes a deal with her. He will pay her to play the part of his bride until his grandfather leaves. It was a ton of money, even by today’s standards. She reluctantly agrees.
I understand that Belinda was a preacher’s kid, came from nothing, had nothing, and was isolated for the duration of her childhood, but that didn’t stop her from getting greedy—too much for my liking, considering the vast amount of money that he was already paying her. That took away some of her allure.
There were a few feels, but zero heat or steam and only one quick kiss. It was still a good read and worth five stars.
Hanging out with Kristi 