Marrying a Delacort

Readers of the October release, MARRYING A DELACOURT, were tantalized by allusions to the youngest Delacourt brother Tray. While Tray refused to reveal the cause of his preoccupation, several family members commented upon his withdrawal from the family and the pain he attempted to conceal. In THE DELACOURT SCANDAL, Sherryl Woods reveals both the causes of Tray's pain and the possible solutions to regaining happiness.Determined to undercover Delacourt secrets in retribution for the damage done to her family, Maddie Kent establishes a relationship with the dynasty's youngest son Tray. Convincing Griffin Carpenter to hire her to unearth Delacourt secrets be published in the Dallas-based tabloid, Hard Truths. Never mind that she had attended one of the nations' best journalism schools, meaning that she had taken her fair share of courses in media ethics and responsibility. All she wanted was one this one expose, even if meant she'd never work as a reporter again. Then she met Tray Delacourt.Tray Delacourt doesn't fit the Delacourt mold, preferring fieldwork to the home office and desk job. No matter how loving his family has been, Tray's always felt a bit on the outside, and persued his own direction. The most tight lipped of the Delacourts, Tray displayed a lot of flash and dazzle to the world while keeping his inner self private. Maddie certainly wasn't prepared to find herself attracted to Tray, and finds her resolve to bring the Delacourt family to their knees wavering. Maddie's innocence-sin attraction proves irresistible to Tray. Her sweet face and kissable mouth combined with her shapely legs are impossible to ignore. For the first time since he lost the woman and child he loved, Tray feels stirrings of attraction for the saucy, sassy Maddie, even when he suspects that she's been less than honest.THE DELACOURT SCANDAL is a sparkling, sexy romance with a hearty blend of secrets and sensuality. The author's light tone and delightful spunky energy will captivate lovers of romance. While freshness and originality are difficult qualities to accomplish in genre romance, Woods pulls it off with flair! I highly recommend THE DELACOURT SCANDAL.

Part of the ongoing miniseries "And Baby Makes Three, The Delacourts of Texas," Woods gives Michael Delacourt one more chance for love, as well as laying the path for the next release, THE DELACOURT SCANDAL, due in December 2000 from Silhouette Special Edition.Six years of meeting only on opposite sides of the courtroom haven't completely erased the memories of a shared history for either Michael or Grace Foster. When she left him, Grace thought her heart had been ripped to shreds, but the alternative of spending life virtually alone while Michael ran the family business wouldn't satisfy her need for love and family. Grace thought she had carefully put her feelings aside, but she didn't hesitate when Michael called asking for help.Michael's siblings frequently complain that he spends too much time in the office and little time on himself. Family legend tells of the first time they fooled him into a vacation. Much against his better judgment, Michael finds himself again falling victim to his well-meaning siblings' plans. Shortly after arriving at his sister's ranch, everyone mysteriously disappears, leaving Michael with empty days and nothing to fill his time. That is, until an unexpected discovery in the barn leads to an adventure he's little prepared for.Runaway boys, ages eight and thirteen, quickly send Michael scurrying to the phone asking for Grace's help. Dropping everything, she responds, despite her decided lack of skill in following maps and directions. When she arrives, not only does Grace find her heart quickly engaged regarding the boys, she also finds her heart still involved with Michael.Battling bureaucracy and their own hearts, Grace and Michael struggle to find a way to keep social services from reclaiming the runaways. Having treaded this way once before, neither Grace nor Michael are prepared for the fires to be rekindled. Overcoming the past and long standing priorities is only a start for these two headstrong ex-lovers.A veteran of over sixty romances, Sherryl Woods once again delivers with her characteristic flair for the unexpected. Readers who enjoy the combination of romance and children will certainly enjoy MARRYING A DELACOURT. Woods' narrative will carry the reader's imagination into an isolated Texas ranch, capturing both the heart and imagination with a rich cast of unforgettable characters. Recommended.

When his family gangs up on him and makes him feel guilty for not spending time with them, Michael Delacourt, agrees to take a break from work and visit his sister in Texas. Finding himself home alone, when the purpose of the vacation was to be with family, Michael is not a happy man. While exploring, Michael finds two boys, who could only be runaways, in the barn. Knowing he needs advice and help, Michael calls Grace Foster, a lawyer and once his lover. Getting a call from workaholic Michael, Grace takes some convincing to get her to agree to leave Houston and travel to Los Pinos, Texas for a few days. She agrees mainly because Michael has made her curious; he never asks for help when he can get the job done himself. At the ranch she meets the boys, Josh and Jaime, who are brothers and have been statistics of the legal system. When their mother was unable to care for them, they were separated and placed in foster homes, but each time they ran away to be with each other.Spending days alone with the boys and Michael, Grace realizes Josh and Jaime have found their way into her heart. With Michael also claiming a piece of her heart, Grace is leery of believing business won't always come first with him. Grace is sure there will come a time when they will go in different directions again.MARRYING A DELACOURT is a wonderful story of a man who finds out what's really important in life...family. Sherryl Woods is able to bring all the characters to life, with such intensity, that they will stay in your mind long after you've read the book. Meeting a few of the family and friends from previous books adds to this special ambiance of a series within a series. Make sure you bring home the latest installment of the Delacourts. You won't be sorry you did.

For Michael Delacourt, helping to run his father's oil company is his reason for being. But when he is lured away from his office by his siblings to the small community of Los Pinos, he finds himself drawn to two runaway boys who are on his sister's property where he is vacationing. Though he could call the local police or his extended family, Michael decides to call Grace Foster, a family law advocate and the woman who broke things off with him six years ago. Grace is a tough lawyer but she has a soft heart. When she agrees to help Michael, she is determined to keep it completely professional. But Michael's presence and the two boys trigger in her the yearning for a family which she has kept at bay for the past six years. Sherryl Woods has written a strong story about two people who have become workaholics by default. When Michael and Grace separated, they found an immense amount of comfort and drive in their respective occupations. But just when Michael's family is warning him about following in the steps of his workaholic father, Grace steps into his life again reminding him of better times. Michael is a strongly drawn character who does change when he agrees to help shield the boys. Grace's love for the boys stirs his protective instincts when it comes to knowing her heart. And he comes to want to embrace the possibility of the four of them creating a family. But if Michael is the tempered embodiment of reason, Grace is clearly all heart. The author paints Grace as a woman who is smart, alone, and disillusioned when it comes to love. What Grace finds with the two boys, and eventually Michael, is the family she has been searching for.