Roxann Delaney

Very emotional story. Erin is back home while she trains a new horse and tries to earn enough money to go back on the rodeo circuit. She's surprised, and not very happy, to see Jake. He had left Desperation seventeen years earlier, swearing he'd never be back, and breaking her heart. She never told him that she was pregnant. She's surprised when he offers her a job on his ranch, but she needs the work, so she takes it.

Jake still feels bad about the way he ended things all those years ago, but he'd had his reasons. His attraction to her is as strong as ever, and he'd like to see if they can pick back up again. He loves having her working with him on the ranch. She gets along really well with the other hands and she's taken over training his newest hire, Jonah. Jonah is very inexperienced, but determined to learn everything he can about ranching.

I loved seeing the way that Jake and Erin came back together. The chemistry is still there, as though they'd never been apart. They had a lot of great shared memories, since Jake had been at his uncle's ranch every summer since he was nine, until he left at eighteen. I really enjoyed their back and forth as neither had any trouble speaking their mind. There was a new closeness developing between them that took a severe hit when Jonah revealed who he was. Jake was angry that he hadn't been told and had some harsh words for Erin, who had some right back at him. They had to work hard to overcome those feelings if they were going to get back to where they had been. There is also a fair amount of stubbornness on both their parts when it comes to their futures. Erin is still focused on going back to the rodeo, and refusing to think about a future with Jake. Meanwhile, Jake hates that Erin is going to leave, but refuses to stand in the way of her dreams. I enjoyed the way that Jake opened up to Erin and they finally confronted their issues.

I loved the character of Jonah. I enjoy seeing the older children in stories like this because they can have a more complicated storyline. I loved his determination to discover the truth, but also to pursue his desire to work on a ranch. His enthusiasm was fun to watch. I was impressed by the way he found out where to go to find Erin. He also seemed pretty mature, and I loved seeing him interact with Jake and Erin, both before and after the great reveal. One of the things I enjoyed most about this book was getting some of his point of view. Also loved his clear sight when it came to Jake and Erin's relationship and what he said to them toward the end. It was fun seeing the epilogue through his eyes.… (mehr)

Very good book. Dylan has kept to himself since the accident that killed his parents. The house they lived in is showing the wear of time and Dylan's resistance to any change. His sister has had enough and hired Glory to come in and fix things up, telling Dylan he can either deal with it or leave. This is Glory's first job as an interior designer and she is determined to make it wonderful. Dylan resists the changes at first. Both Dylan and Glory have things from their pasts that they have to overcome to get their happy ending.

Dylan has been in so much pain since his parents' deaths that he refuses to get close to anyone else. He feels guilty about their deaths, blaming himself, and has sworn that keeping the ranch going is his only desire for his future. When his sister tells him she's tired of the way he's let things go and has hired someone to fix the place up he is not happy. When he finds out that it's Glory, the one he'd had a crush on in high school he's even less happy. All he can remember is how far out of her league he had felt. Now he is attracted to her but determined nothing will come of it. I loved the way that he tried so hard to stay away from her but that she kept drawing him back like a moth to a flame. He learned that there was more to her than the empty headed cheerleader he had remembered. I loved the way that he was so impressed with the work she did even as he was fighting the changes. He also found that the more time he spent with her the more she had him remembering the good times with his parents rather than his guilty feelings. His pain at the end when she challenged him to let go of the past was intense.

Glory had come back to Desperation to start her business. She was recovering from her divorce and determined to make a go of her new venture and not get involved with another man. She was also still trying to find the real Glory after being forced to play a part by her abusive father. She was excited to be working on the Walker house as her first job. She remembered Dylan from school when she had also had a bit of a crush on him though she wasn't able to do anything about it. She is disturbed by how withdrawn he is and his apparent lack of interest in what she does with the house. I loved the way that she just kept chipping away at his walls by keeping him informed about what she was doing. She also found herself opening up to him about her father and ex-husband, something she hadn't done with anyone else. I loved the way that she had the strength to let Dylan know how she felt and to help him face his feelings.… (mehr)

Very good book. I liked both Luke and Hayley. Luke has a lot going on in his life right now. He is trying to run the ranch he owns with his brother. He is also dealing with being a single father of a two year old boy since his wife left them. He tries very hard to be a good father and I love how his love is so obvious. He has finally admitted needing help so his sister sends Hayley to him. He doesn't expect someone so beautiful and he's not sure he wants her living in the same house. But he's desperate and soon Hayley has become an important part of their lives. He has also developed an intense attraction to her that is growing into something stronger. This isn't good news to him as he never wants to put himself in the position of being walked out on again. He appreciates all she does for him and his son, and she impresses him with the way she is calm in a crisis, but the idea of risking his heart again scares him.

Hayley is studying hard to be a physician's assistant. Her plans got temporarily derailed when she got engaged, then her father had a stroke. She ended her engagement when she realized that her fiance had no intention of being supportive of her goals. Now she needs this live in job in order to be able to finish her studies. She feels an attraction to Luke from the start but doesn't intend to let anything interfere with her plans again. She is a little bit over-sensitive about what she thinks is his attitude toward her plans. I thought she suffered from a bit of tunnel vision about what her plans for the future should be. I loved seeing her with little Brayden and how obvious it was that she really cared for him. She also finally admitted to herself that she had fallen for him, but she still wasn't seeing that he was different than her ex.

I loved the way that they each finally let go of their old baggage at the end. Luke did a great job with his big moment at the end. It was fun seeing some of the previous characters as they all got involved in helping both Luke and Hayley.… (mehr)