Colton Christmas Protector - Beth Cornelison (HRS #1923 - Dec 2016)

Series: Coltons of Texas (Book 12)
            Coltons (Book 61)

Ex-cop Reid Colton is working double-time to help beautiful widow Penelope Barrington Clark. While investigating her dad, his family lawyer, the two are also trying to uncover who murdered Pen's husband…all while keeping their relationship professional! But when a bullet and their forbidden attraction change everything, it's Reid to the rescue, determined to guard Pen and her son with his life.

The last thing Penelope wants is to fall for a sexy Colton who's not looking for forever. Yet as Christmas approaches and their investigation heats up, the three start to feel like a family. And the best present of all? Solving the Colton clan's biggest mystery!

Excellent conclusion to the Coltons of Texas series, with all the questions finally answered. Besides finally learning what happened to Eldridge, Reid, the last of the Colton siblings finally found his soulmate. The story opened at the funeral of Penelope's husband, who was also Reid's partner. Reid and Andrew had also been good friends, which made it all the more painful when Reid was accused of Andrew's murder. His presence at the funeral did not go over well with Penelope, who was still dealing with her devastating grief. Meanwhile, Reid was disgusted with his treatment by his fellow officers and quit the force. Eighteen months later, Pen discovered some hidden information that Andrew had been investigating; information about her father, who was also the Colton's lawyer. The only person Pen felt she could turn to was Reid, but she wasn't sure if she could put aside her feelings of anger and betrayal. I ached for Reid, who has felt somewhat lost since walking away from his work as a cop.

Reid and Pen have a long history, having known each other since they were children. Reid was even the one who introduced his partner to Pen at a charity event. He enjoyed being a part of their lives, and frequently found himself envying their happiness. He ruthlessly squashed what he saw as his inappropriate feelings for his friend's wife. To work together, they would have to find a way past the hurt, anger, and guilt. After an attempt to kill them both, Reid took Pen and her son Nicholas to hide out at his lake house. Over the several weeks that they worked together to finish the investigation that Andrew started, Reid and Pen grew closer. The attraction between them grew steadily. I loved watching the changes that they both went through. Reid realized that the playboy womanizer was no longer the life he wanted. I loved his protectiveness with Pen, and his gentleness and understanding as she worked through all the things that came to light. Pen needed to decide to move on with her life. Andrew's death and her father's betrayal had flattened her, and she wasn't sure she was ready to risk her heart again. But she couldn't deny the effect he had on her or his heart-melting care of her son. She is also well aware of Reid's reputation and the differences in their ways of life (there were some great scenes where she called him on those differences), and she found it hard to believe that he would want her. I liked how they both let go of their fears at the end and embraced their future together. I loved Reid's pride and happiness as he announced their news to the rest of the family.

The suspense of the story was terrific and wrapped everything up quite well. There were several things going on. First was the overarching series mystery of what happened to Eldridge Colton. I wasn't too surprised by that resolution, though I thought the reasons behind it were mean and manipulative. The real intensity of the story had to do with the investigation that Reid and Pen were working on. There was a hint of what was going on in the previous book, Runaway Colton. The attack on Reid and Pen upped the intensity and their realization that this trouble went deeper than they had expected. I was surprised by one of the people Reid recruited to help, but he did better than I expected. I was glued to the pages when Pen and Nicholas were taken and loved how she had such a big part in her rescue. Her strength and calmness in the crisis were great. Reid's final confrontation with the bad guy had me on the edge of my seat until it was over.

I loved the epilogue and seeing all of the previous couples all gathered together. There was even a small nod to the previous Colton series. I enjoyed Reid's overt happiness and the bombshell of his announcement. There was a nice surprise for the whole family at the end of it.

Runaway Colton - Karen Whiddon (HRS #1919 - Nov 2016)

Series: Coltons of Texas (Book 11)
            Coltons (Book 60)

Wrongfully accused of masterminding her adoptive father's disappearance, Piper Colton needs answers. So she leaves the family ranch behind to embark on a dangerous mission…but she's not alone for long. Her brother enlists the help of Cord Maxwell -- a local bounty hunter -- to ensure his sister's safe return. But Cord has an agenda of his own, and it's not just to avoid falling for the Colton beauty! He promises to help her in exchange if she'll help him track down his runaway niece -- and stay with him. It's an offer she cannot resist and a powerful attraction she cannot deny…

This was a good entry into the series as we moved closer to discovering the truth about the missing Eldridge Colton. In the opening to this book, the youngest of the Colton family was accused of murdering her adoptive father. Out on bail provided by a few of her siblings, Piper was confronted by her two oldest siblings, Fowler and Marceline. They made it very clear that they were convinced of her guilt. Hurt by the realization that they believed that she was capable of such a thing, Piper decided to take matters into her own hands and try to find the truth herself. Knowing that she needed help, Piper contacted Cord Maxwell, a childhood friend and currently a bounty hunter and private investigator.

Cord had been struggling for the past couple of years. When his older sister died, Cord became the guardian of his teenage niece, Renee. About the same time, his business partner died, leaving Cord as the sole owner of the business. Between working long hours and having no clue how to handle a grieving and angry teen, it was no surprise that Cord felt overwhelmed. To make things worse, when Renee turned eighteen, she left. Worried sick, Cord has spent all his time trying to find her, and the business (and his finances) have suffered because of it. When Fowler Colton came to Cord, offering to pay triple the fee for Cord to find Piper, he could not turn it down. He did not expect Piper to come to him. Cord was caught between a rock and a hard place. He took Fowler's money to find Piper and take her home. But he also believed her to be innocent of the charges against her. He worked out a deal with Piper. If she helped him find Renee, he would help her clear her name while at the same time returning her to her home before it was time for her court date.

I liked the development of the relationship between Piper and Cord. They had known each other for a long time, as Cord's father had been a Colton ranch hand. Cord had a crush on her when they were kids, and was attracted to her as an adult. Piper was equally attracted to him. Cord had one basic rule and that was you don't get involved with a client, and that rule became harder and harder to stick to. I liked how Cord and Piper connected with each other so well from the beginning. Their relationship grew quickly but naturally, thanks to the ability to be open and honest with each other. Cord does have some insecurities, mainly about the differences in their financial situations. Just as things looked promising between them, Fowler stirred up doubts in his mind. Cord had his boneheaded moment when he pushed her away and suffered because of it. I ached for Piper, who was blindsided by what he said. Help came from an unexpected source, and I loved seeing Cord come to his senses. He did a pretty good job of groveling before Piper put him out of his misery.

The suspense of the story was very mild. Eldridge is still missing, and there hasn't been any progress made in finding him. Piper's arrest was made on some pretty flimsy evidence, including a supposed eyewitness. Tracking down the identity of that witness wasn't hard once Piper put her mind to it. Even the confrontation with said witness wasn't as intense as it could have been. Meanwhile, Fowler seemed to be in a rush to have Eldridge declared dead, and the will read, moving him to the top of my suspect list. There was a bit of twist and turn near the end, involving a possible sighting of Eldridge, and a reason to move the family lawyer up the list of suspects as well.

I'm looking forward to the final book in the series and finding out what really happened to Eldridge.