THE COWGIRL ROPES A BILLIONAIRE
by Cora Seton
Bella Chatham will lose
everything – her veterinary practice, her animal shelter, and even her home –
if she can’t find another source of income, fast. So when her best friend signs
her up for the hot new reality television show, Can You Beat a Billionaire,
Bella accepts the challenge and hopes against hope she can win the ten million
dollar prize. If she doesn’t, it’s bye-bye pet clinic and shelter, bye-bye
Chance Creek, Montana, and hello to marriage to the billionaire for a year!
Evan Mortimer, billionaire,
can’t believe he’s reduced to competing in a television contest to win a wife.
Unfortunately, it’s the only foolproof way to secure his position as head of
Mortimer Innovations. At least he’ll be able to dump his “spouse” at the end of
the year. He has no intention of getting hitched for life.
Bella doesn’t expect her
adversary to be handsome – or funny, or compassionate – but Evan’s all three,
and he’s proving a tough competitor, too. When they end up sharing a tent – and
a sleeping-bag – her body betrays her with a longing so deep it cuts her to the
core. Still, this cowgirl must stay strong. If Evan uncovers her secret fears,
he’ll use them to win the contest – and then he’ll own her for a year. She’ll
be out of luck, out of cash, and stuck being Mrs. Mortimer until he kicks her
to the curb. Too bad she can’t decide which is worse – winning the show and
losing Evan forever, or losing the show and only being his temporary wife.
Evan can’t believe he’s falling
for the one woman who doesn’t want him. This cowgirl’s not impressed by his
money, his name, or his inability to sleep in a tent with her for an entire
night, but every look and touch she gives him sends his desire through the
roof. With a director determined to use his claustrophobia to make him look
like a fool, and an adversary so sexy he can hardly see straight, he’ll need
all his savvy to come out on top. Too bad he’s going to lose no matter how this
show turns out. If he beats Bella, he’ll destroy the first woman he’s ever
loved. If he doesn’t beat her, it’s bye-bye Mortimer Innovations.
Will either of them remember in
time that it’s not who wins or who loses – it’s how they play the game that
really counts?
What an interesting concept,
the idea of a game show and falling in love in the middle of all these cameras
and the wilderness. I really loved both Bella and Evan, they’re both great
characters and I loved watching them fall for each other. I also enjoyed
watching the way they changed a bit to suit each other.
I’ve come to enjoy Chance Creek
and Ms. Sutton’s stories, she writes three dimensional characters that are
easily people I want to get to know. I really enjoyed the ending of the game
show, mostly because it shows that when love is involved, it’s easy to
sacrifice for the ones you love.
I highly recommend this story
and I couldn’t put it down.
I received a copy in exchange
for my honest review. I was not compensated for my review.
A golden-haired beauty stared
back at him. Well, maybe beauty was too strong a word. She was fresh,
wholesome, wore little makeup that he could see. She stood in a yard filled
with large enclosures, surrounded by dogs, cats, rabbits and other animals. She
held a puppy in her arms that was obviously squirming and she was laughing—all
bright eyes, thick, wavy hair, legs that went on for a mile, and a cowboy hat
perched atop her head. She could be the poster child for middle-America—a
healthy, happy, well-adjusted country girl.
His total opposite.
He’d never dated anyone like
her, not that he’d dated much. When your family was worth billions a certain
amount of suspicion crept into your personality. His mother, especially,
thought they were surrounded by vultures ready to rip them apart at the
slightest sign of weakness. She’d practically hand-picked Nate’s wife from the
children of her small circle of friends. While Nate and Brenda seemed happy
enough, Evan had no interest in marriage to a woman like that.
His own attempts at dating had
been disastrous. A few girls back in college who made it clear they expected a
steady stream of expensive gifts, and called him cheap when they weren’t
forthcoming. Several more women in his twenties who didn’t mention money at
all, but talked frequently of their friends’ impending weddings, all the while
shooting him furtive looks from gleaming eyes that he swore held the reflection
of dollar signs.
He never got past a few weeks
of dinners, dancing and trips to museums or concerts before he broke it off. A
constricting feeling would build in his chest until the idea of seeing them
again made him physically ill. He was ashamed to admit he broke up with most of
those women over the phone, several by texting, but that feeling of being
caught—of being trussed up with no way to escape… He couldn’t bear it, and
couldn’t take the risk that if he met with them in person, he’d end up running
away.
That had happened once—only
once—but he’d never forget it, and he’d never put himself in that position
again.
He shook his head and dragged
his thoughts back to the present. His money was a blessing. No way Evan would
feel sorry for himself because it hampered normal relationships.
Bella was nothing like the
sophisticated, calculating women who’d given him so much trouble in the past.
He’d have no problem keeping her at arm’s length and controlling the outcome of
the show.
She’d do fine for his wife.
Just fine.
Cora Seton loves cowboys,
country life, gardening, bike-riding, and lazing around with a good book.
Mother of four, wife to a computer programmer/eco-farmer, she ditched her
California lifestyle nine years ago and moved to a remote logging town in
northwestern British Columbia.
Like the characters in her
novels, Cora enjoys old-fashioned pursuits and modern technology, spending
mornings transforming a neglected one-acre lot into a paradise of orchards,
berry bushes and market gardens, and afternoons writing the latest Chance Creek
romance novel on her iPad mini. Visit www.coraseton.com to read about new
releases, contests and other cool events!
Blog: www.coraseton.com
Facebook:
www.facebook.com/coraseton
Twitter:
www.twitter.com/coraseton
Barnes and Noble: http://www.barnesandnoble.com/c/cora-seton
Smashwords: http://www.smashwords.com/profile/view/coraseton
Cora will award a $100 Amazon
GC to a randomly drawn commenter during the tour.
