Series: Coldwater Texas (Book 2)Love was the last thing on this untamed cowboy's mind…until she stole his heart away.
Cleo Delaney will do anything to keep her promise and
raise her best friend's sons -- even if it means telling a little white lie to
the state to keep them. So Cleo turns to the only person she can trust to help
her -- her first love, Judd Laramie. If he fosters the three young brothers in
name only, she'll do all the heavy lifting. It's a foolproof plan…but she never
imagined that the feelings they once shared would return. With a vengeance.
Texas deputy Judd Laramie is stunned by Cleo's request.
Being a dad -- even on paper -- is the last thing this cowboy needs right now.
But no one knows better than Judd how flawed the foster system is and how much
these brothers need Cleo's protective love. What starts as a simple lie becomes
so much more, and soon it's clear Judd needs Cleo and the family they've
created as much as they need him. Now he'll do whatever it takes to win Cleo's
heart and claim the future they all deserve.
Good second chance romance that is full of love, family,
hope, and fear. Cleo's best friend passed away, leaving her three boys to Cleo
to raise. Unfortunately, the official paperwork didn't get done before Miranda
died, putting the three boys in the custody of their drunken, abusive
grandmother. Cleo wants to foster them, but has some strikes against her -
mainly that she's had some trouble with the law and owns a bar. To get around
the problem, she contacts fellow foster survivor and friend Judd to ask him to
go on the record as their foster parent while she does the actual work.
Judd is stunned by Cleo's proposal. While he is empathetic
to the boys' plight, having had a truly horrifying experience in the system,
he's not ready to take on that responsibility. His memories sent him down a
dark path, one he used alcohol to deal with. He's been sober for a year, but
every day is a struggle and he doesn't think he can handle the extra stress.
The central theme of this book is getting the boys away
from their grandmother and in a loving home. The relationship between Cleo and
Judd takes a bit of a backseat, but is bolstered by their joint involvement in
protecting the boys. Though I understood his reasons, I was disappointed in
Judd's refusal. I thought that he was a lot stronger than he and others
believed he was. I liked how oldest brother Kace stepped in to fill the breach
and how the rest of the family also became part of the solution. I did like
that Judd didn't avoid involvement. There are some heartbreaking scenes of him
with the oldest boy, Beckham. Judd sees a lot of himself in Beckham and
develops a pretty solid connection with him. The path to saving the boys does
not run smoothly. The grandmother is a piece of work. She doesn't want the boys
herself, she just wants to be sure that Cleo doesn't get them. There is also a
social worker who has an agenda of her own and is not as impartial as she ought
to be. I liked seeing the effect that the love of the whole Laramie family had
on Beckham, Isaac, and Leo. However, there were still obstacles to overcome,
including a chance that they would lose the boys completely. The scene at the end
with the social worker was a nail-biter with an ending that had an unexpected
twist to it.
I enjoyed the development of the relationship between
Judd and Cleo. The chemistry between them dates back to when they were
teenagers and both fostered with Buck. Even though they haven’t seen much of
each other in the intervening years, the pull between them is still strong.
Judd doesn't do commitment, however, as he has so many issues he doesn't want
to inflict on anyone else. As he and Cleo are thrown together more frequently,
the more difficult it is to keep their hands off each other, until they finally
give in. It's easy to see that their feelings for each other deepen, as each
one becomes more concerned with how things affect the other one than in
protecting themselves. I felt bad for Cleo, who kept apologizing to Judd for
getting him involved, and for Judd, who felt guilty because he felt like he was
letting her down. I felt like both of them needed a good shove to get them
headed in the right direction. Those shoves came about in unexpected ways,
making for a very satisfying ending.
The secondary characters added to the fun and feelings of
the story. Beckham, Isaac, and Leo were the most important of these. The misery
and pain they endured made my heart ache for them. Little Leo was adorable, and
I loved seeing Isaac and his joy at helping Rosy in the kitchen. But my
favorite brother was Beckham. He is so intent on protecting his brothers, even
though it's clear that he's just as scared as they are. I liked the way that he
connected with Judd and began to lose a little of his distrust of adults. I
hope to see more of him in the upcoming books. Buck and Rosy were fantastic
with their willingness to do whatever needed to help make a home for the boys.
I still get a little creeped out by Rosy's taxidermy efforts. Billy the
armadillo is still a presence, plus there's a funny scene involving some frogs.
I also loved Judd's sponsor. She is quite a character, and I laughed out loud
at her safe words and distraction objects. I liked seeing more of Judd's
brothers, Kace and Nico, and can't wait to read their stories.
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