The engagement is phony, but the diamonds are real….
Devastatingly handsome Jack Payton, the black sheep of his well-bred family, isn’t exactly marriage material, but for a fake fiancé, he’ll do just fine. Not that Eleanor Coggins has a choice. If she’s going to prove that Jack’s wealthy half brother Banner Westfield murdered her best friend, she needs total access to the family estate.
Once Jack and Eleanor blow Banner’s cover, they can go their separate ways…or so she thinks. In order to win custody of his twelve-year-old daughter, Jack seriously needs to improve his reputation. An engagement should do the trick, but with Eleanor’s vivacious wit and irresistible curves, it’s the pretend part that’s getting harder….
With a little help from an ex-con turned home security expert, a police chief with a scandalous secret, and an unexpected visitor, they must expose Banner’s dangerous tricks before they become his victims. But can Jack convince Eleanor to turn their own seductive little lie into the truth?
Some readers don’t like trying new authors. I used to be one of those readers. It was a comfort-zone thing for me. I have found so many amazing authors by taking a chance. Starr Ambrose definitely has potential to be one of those amazing authors. This book really grabs you and doesn’t let go. I was hooked from the first page, which we find our heroine breaking and entering. From the moment the h/h meet, the sparks fly.
Eleanor Coggins knows that Banner Westfield is responsible for the death of her best friend. Determined to prove it, Eleanor plans to break in to the Westfield mansion to try to find what got Janet killed. Things don’t go according to plan when she’s caught by Jack Payton, Banner’s brother. Not knowing if he’s friend or foe, Eleanor tries to play it cool, but Jack quickly sees through her.
Jack Payton can’t believe his eyes when he sees a beautiful woman breaking into Banner’s library. Before he can get a full explanation from her, they’re interrupted by his mother, cornering Jack into making a rash announcement. Though he never intended to introduce the gun-toting thief as his fiance, Jack realizes that he has hit upon the perfect solution to both their problems. Eleanor needs access to Banner that only a family member can provide and Jack needs to get custody of his daughter. The only way he can do that is by showing that he can be a responsible parent. What better way to show he is responsible and respectable?
While Jack knows that his brother is far from the perfect man everyone thinks he is, he has a hard time believing that he would murder his own wife as Ellie is claiming. Still, he promised to help her in any way that he could. Jack is beyond surprised when they start digging and find that Banner is far worse than even Ellie imagined. Not only does he seem to be responsible for Janet’s death, but he also may be responsible for Jack going to prison for vehicular manslaughter.
Through all the sleuthing and snooping, Jack and Ellie try to fight the attraction between them. Both realize that the attraction can be put down to circumstance. As the weeks pass, Ellie realizes things about herself that she would have never realized without Jack. Jack is also forced to look at himself from Ellie’s eyes and he has to admit that he’s not black sheep that he’s always thought he was. While their physical attraction is instant, the feelings they develop for each other happen over the course of the book. That makes it all the more believable.
Though this isn’t a straight contemporary, it’s not really a romantic suspense, either. It’s sort of a humorous suspense. There are many laugh out loud moments in this book. If you’re looking for a contemporary romance with a bit of suspense and humor thrown in, this is the book for you.
4.25 out of 5.
This book is available from Pocket Books. You can buy it here. No e-format.