His
Secretary's Surprise Fiancé
Bayou Billionaires #2
By: Joanne Rock
Releasing
March 1st (Digital), March 8th (Print)
Harlequin Desire
Her boss wants her in his office—and as his
bride!
Adelaide Thibodeaux grew up with Dempsey Reynaud, and
she's worked for him for years. But when the billionaire football coach springs
a surprise engagement to keep her from resigning, it's a low blow. Just as
she's ready to strike out on her own, she's stuck in a fake relationship with
her boss, biding her time…
But soon Adelaide faces a second blow: she's actually
falling for the man! Can a relationship founded on a lie become the real deal?
Or will they fumble before the end zone—and stay in the friend zone?
What would you do if your best friend who was also your secretary is quitting to start out on her own…where you wouldn't have day to day contact…where you couldn't protect her from failure…where you couldn't see that see was ok? Well, you would propose a fake engagement in the middle of your teams pre-season's press conference of course! Well That's what Dempsey Reynaud did.
When Adelaide Thibodeaux re-affirmed that she finally wanted to branch out and set up her own company, Adelaide was put into a no-way-out situation, she would never want to humiliate Dempsey by calling out at the press conference, so she leaves only to be followed by Dempsey and some how he manages to talk her in to agreeing.
But now her heart is on the line and Dempsey is treating their relationship like a business deal! And you are left wondering if Dempsey will wake up and realize he loves Adelaide before she walks away from him.
Well this is an enjoyable little romance that is thankfully not intense or requires me to go through the emotional ringer. I did find the writing and plot a little bumpy in the beginning, but by the 3rd chapter that had settled down into a nice story with some really great characters. Now even though this book is apart of a series (one that I haven't read!), it is the perfect stand alone book, with relatable characters and a great storyline.
I give His Secretary's Secret Fiancé 4 stars!
“You can’t leave now.” He didn’t
have time to hash this out. And he would damn well have his way.
“I’m going after the press
conference. I told you I would come back for the pre-season, and now it’s
done.” Frowning, she twisted the bracelet round and round on her wrist. “I
shouldn’t have returned this year at all, especially if this ends up causing
hard feelings between us. But I can send your next assistant all my files.”
How kind. He clamped his mouth shut
against the scathing responses that simmered, close to boiling over. He
deserved better from her and she knew it.
But if she was going to see him
through the press conference, he still had forty minutes to change her mind.
Forty minutes to figure out a way to force her hand. A way to make her stay by
his side through the season.
All he needed was the right play
call.
“In that case, I appreciate the
heads-up,” he said, planting his hands on her waist and shuffling her away from
the door. “But I’d better get this press conference started now.”
Her eyes widened as he touched her,
but she stepped aside, hectic color rising in her cheeks even though they’d
always been just friends. He’d protected that friendship because it was
special. She was special. He’d never wanted to sacrifice that relationship to
something as fickle as attraction even though there’d definitely been moments
over the years when he’d been tempted. But logic and reason—and respect for
Adelaide—had always won out in the past. Then again, he’d never touched her the
way he had today and it was messing with his head. Seeing that awareness on her
face now, feeling the answering kick of it in his blood, made him wonder if—
“Of course we need to get to the
conference.” She grabbed her earpiece and shoved it into place as she bit her
lip. “Let’s go.”
He held the door for her, watching
as she hurried up the hallway ahead of him, the subtle sway of her hips making
his hands itch for a better feel of her. No doubt about it, she was going to be
angry with him. In time, she would see he had her best interests at heart.
But he had the perfect plan to keep
her close and the ideal venue—a captive audience full of media members—to
execute it. As much as he regretted hurting a friend, he also knew she would
understand at a gut level if she knew him half as well as he thought she did.
His game was on the line. And this
was for the win.
Three-time RITA
nominee Joanne Rock has never met a romance sub-genre she
didn't like. The author of over seventy novels enjoys writing contemporary
romance and medieval historicals alike, recently exploring Young Adult romance
under a pseudonym. An optimist by nature and perpetual seeker of silver
linings, Joanne finds romance–in all its forms-- fits her life outlook
perfectly. When she's not writing, Joanne enjoys travel, especially to see her
favorite sports teams play with her former sports editor husband and three
athletic-minded sons.
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(Grand prize of Heart of Cooking recipes from authors, Vera Bradley pen,
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Runaway Bride stories by Catherine Mann & Joanne Rock)
