THE SURROGATE HUSBAND by Wynter Daniels employs one of my favorite romance tropes -- the pretend relationship. Due to a little lie by her well-meaning mother, Lucy is in need of a fake fiance fast. What makes this an unusual spin on this story, for me, is how the rest of Lucy's family participates in the increasingly elaborate charade. THE SURROGATE HUSBAND is a nice mix of humor, romance, and poignant moments.
There is a lot going on in this story. Wynter Daniels does a wonderful job of making Lucy and Dex complex and sympathetic characters. While they might seem like total opposites -- Lucy being a little more wild and the owner of a lingerie shop, and Dex being a mild-mannered accountant -- I found that they have a lot of similarities. Both are haunted by past relationships that influence any current ones they have, and family is something that is deeply important to both as well. After I finished reading THE SURROGATE HUSBAND, I feel as though I know the two main characters intimately. I like that the story is told from both points of view.
The deception involved with pretending, for the sake of Lucy's elderly Aunt Bev, and the subplot involving Dex's business deal never distract too greatly from the romance. However, there were several times I wanted to tell Aunt Bev and Dex's business partner to stop meddling in people's personal lives. The romance between Lucy and Dex is fun and a whole lot of sexy. Dex is such a good sport about playing along for the sake of Lucy's family, and is such a sweet and caring guy. He's definitely fantasy material.
THE SURROGATE HUSBAND is lots of fun, as well as extremely hot and has a lot of emotional pull. The main characters are well-defined and interesting. I look forward to reading more books by Wynter Daniels in the future and hope she writes a story for Lucy's sister.
A satisfying category romance from Entangled's Lovestruck
imprint...
To have and to hoax...
Wild child lingerie store owner Lucy Hamilton is a
happily
confirmed bachelorette. As far as she's concerned, men
are
something best enjoyed in small doses, never to be
allowed
too close. Then Lucy's mother tells her Aunt Bev that
Lucy
has eloped and is married--a tiny lie only meant to
appease
the dying woman...until Aunt Bev miraculously recovers.
Now
Lucy needs to find a "husband" for an upcoming family
wedding, and fast.
Fortunately, Lucy's ridiculously hot, ridiculously
straitlaced new accountant Dex Levian is willing to be
her
stand-in spouse for the weekend. And that's when the
trouble
really begins. For starters, Dex's "involvement" with a
client―no matter how irresistible―might ruin
a
merger he
hopes will make his career. Worse still, the chemistry
between Dex and Lucy is more than convincing―it's
sizzling.
But for Lucy, falling for her fake new husband is the
most
dangerous thing she can do...
EXCERPT
Lucy folded her arms over her chest. โWe canโt ask him to be my fake
husband. First of all, I havenโt agreed to play this game. Secondly,
Dex is my accountant, not my boyfriend. I hardly know him outside our
professional dealings. And I just met him in person for the first time
five minutes ago!โ
โLetโs just ask him,โ her mom said. โSee if heโd even consider it.โ
Through the door, Dex coughed loudly, as if to remind them he was
still waiting.
Lucy motioned toward the sound. โCome on. We canโt leave him out
there. Heโs an important, busy man. Iโm sure he has numbers to crunch
or something.โ Swallowing hard, she pulled the door back open and
headed to the sales floor. And found Dex examining a pair of red lacy
crotch-less panties. He didnโt look in the least confused by them,
which sometimes happened to the more clueless men who came in to buy
something for their girlfriends or wives.
His gaze skimmed over her body so fast she wasnโt really sure sheโd
seen it. Was he imagining her in those panties?
A warm flush started at her ears and worked its way down to her throat
and neck.
With a barely concealed amused expression on his face, he returned the
underwear to the display table. โEverything okay?โ
Mom went over to him. โIโฆweโฆLucy has a question for you.โ Placing a
palm in the middle of Lucyโs back, she shoved her forward. Lucy
stumbled, righting herself just before she slammed into Dexโs broad
chest.
Coward.
A slow, sexy grin settled on his lips. โSomething you want to ask me?โ
Oh, God. Did he think she was going to ask him out? He did, she could
see it in his eyes. No one looked like he did and didnโt get regularly
propositioned by clients. Worst of all, the idea her mother wanted her
to propose was even more unprofessional than that.
Last thing she wanted was a man who was as orderly and mathematically
minded as Dex the accountant.
As her father. May his hyper-organized, abusive self remain far away
from her and her mom.
It didnโt matter that Dex was built like a linebacker and had a cleft
in his chin like Ben Affleck, or that he smelled like a redwood
forest. None of those things changed the fact that she went for
leather jackets, not leather briefcases.
He didnโt have a single tattoo or piercing, although who could really
be sure under his suit? But it sure would be fun to rumple him up in
the sack. In truth, the thought had crossed her mind more than once in
the last six weeks during their phone conversations. But then heโd
start talking about how her piles of receipts could be โmore
organizedโ and her penmanship on invoices โless messy,โ and that had
always been more than enough to bring her back to reality.
But the very thought of being in his bed heated her cheeks.
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