The Bachelor Takes a Wife

Keith Owens is the last of a group of five guys in the Cattleman's club in Royal, Texas to have fallen to marriage and his four friends are joking with him about that as the book opens, because Keith has been selected as the member who picks the charity that will be benefit of a large check at the Cattleman's Club Ball and Keith has picked the New Hope Battered Women's Shelter, run by Andrea O'Rourke. Keith and Andrea were an item many years ago and the boys think Keith wants to pick up where they left off.Joking aside, the boys begin to muse about who killed Eric Chambers (See "Her Lone Star Protector by Peggy Moreland). They believe Dorian Brady is the guilty party, but he has a solid alibi in Laura Edwards, who swears she'd been with Brady on that fateful day that Chambers was murdered.The women at New Hope are delighted about the award from the Cattleman's Club, but Andrea has reservations. She believes Keith is setting her up. She's right. Keith relentlessly pursues her, ignoring all the attempts she makes at rebuffing him and in a moment of weakness she succumbs in his car and not to long after discovers she's going to have a baby. In another moment of weakness, Andrea tells Keith about the baby and now he doubles his efforts to win her hand.Meanwhile, Laura comes into the shelter. She tells Laura she's afraid of Brady, that she'd lied, that Brady is actually the murderer. And now Brady is after them both.This is an excellent addition to the Texas Cattleman's Club series of romances in the Silhouette Desire series of Harlequin books. Wow, that was a mouthful or should I say, a sentenceful, but no matter how you say it, this was a very pleasant read.

Texas Millionaire Keith Owens loved his bachelor ways- until elegant and sophisticated Andrea O'Rourke came back to town. Years ago the sparks between them had nearly seared them both- but Andrea had left, swearing to forget the power of Keith's touch.... Now she'd returned, cool, calm and collected- until she caught Keith's possessive, passionate eye once more. This time, he swore she wouldn't escape him before he had his fill- but then he would release her. Only, Keith forgot to let Andrea in on his plan...

This was a nice story about love gone wrong and righted.

Texas millionaire Keith Owens remains the last bachelor in the Texas Cattleman's Club. All five men had all been bachelors five months ago until each discovered the power of love. Keith scoffs at other's taunts that he is next, but does not deny that he has placed himself on a collision course with his old flame, Andrea O'Rourke. Eighteen years, earning millions in the computer business, and a divorce did not erased his fascination with Andrea.Andrea feels incredible frustration that she must accept a large donation from Keith on behalf of New Hope Charity for battered women. Her carefully cultivated life, preference for quiet entertainment, and cool demeanor conceal a heart that never recovered from Keith's rejection. Eighteen years ago she expected a marriage proposal, and received a business proposal instead. Now she finds that her elegant demeanor is not enough to protect her from Keith's passion and her own desire.Author Jackie Merritt breaks with the age convention I have come to associate with the Desire product line by giving both hero and heroine thirty-eight mature years. I find such a choice refreshing, and suspect such a choice greatly broadens the appeal to her mature audience. One's perspective of the past radically changes as do priorities as the age of forty approaches, and Merritt broaches those changes well, forcing her characters to both confront the past and reconcile it with a future neither feels certain of. They also realize that approaching forty does not give all the answers when love and desire become involved. These strong characterizations combined with an unexpected conclusion to the Texas Cattleman's Club make THE BACHELOR TAKES A WIFE come highly recommended.