Series:
Coltons of Colorado (Book 8)
From one amazing night
To a family in danger
Jet-setting entrepreneur Oliver Colton has never invested
in a long-term relationship -- until he learns that Hilary Weston is pregnant
and he's the father. The dizzying attraction that brought them together for one
incredible night hasn't changed, but she doesn't trust that he's ready to commit
to settling down. When Hilary's brother goes missing, Oliver risks everything
to bring him home…and guard his growing family.
Good story but relatively light on the suspense. The
story was more relationship driven. Oliver is a venture capitalist who spends
most of his time traveling the world helping small businesses and countries set
up "green" technology. He doesn't do long-term relationships, only
short flings with like-minded women. On his infrequent visits home, he has
gotten to know Hilary, a waitress at his favorite restaurant. Something about
her keeps him coming back.
Hilary has worked at her family's restaurant all her life
and continues to do so while working on her degree in International Marketing. She's
intrigued by Oliver and interested in hearing about his work. She's also attracted
to him but feels he's out of her league.
On one of his trips home, Oliver and Hilary get together
after she gets off work. One thing leads to another, and they spend a
passionate night together. He leaves on another trip the next day and, over the
next few months, thinks of her often but never contacts her. Unsurprisingly,
she's not exactly thrilled to see him the next time he shows up at the
restaurant. Determined to apologize for his actions, Oliver arrives at the
restaurant at closing time to find Hilary injured and unconscious on the floor
and her brother missing. His protective instincts aroused, Oliver immediately
takes control of the situation. But he and Hilary are surprised when she gets
checked out at the hospital - she's pregnant with his baby.
Two things are going on in this book - the development of
Oliver and Hilary's relationship and her brother Jeff's disappearance. Most of
the page time was spent on the relationship. Oliver initially was a bit of a
jerk by not bothering to contact Hilary after their night together. He redeemed
himself somewhat by his immediate acceptance of his impending fatherhood. He
doesn't jump into a marriage proposal but does make it clear that he intends to
be involved in his child's life. Hilary is wary of believing him because of his
travel history and how he ghosted her, but she is willing to give him a chance.
One of the things I liked about both characters is that
they talked to each other about their expectations. They admitted that their
attraction was still strong, and their friendship was too. Both expressed a
willingness to see where their relationship might go if they give it a chance.
Hilary has one simple request - if they are going to be partners, he can't hold
back when something affects them both. Unfortunately, Oliver has been used to making
the decisions he feels best for a long time. When he takes action after explicitly
promising Hilary he wouldn't, she calls him out on it. I liked that she was
strong enough to stand up for herself and her needs. It was satisfying to see
Oliver consider her accusations and realize that she was right. I liked seeing
him go to her and apologize. Their make-up scene was realistic, especially with
Oliver admitting that he's sure to make other mistakes, but they can get
through anything together. The epilogue had a fun little twist, though it
wasn't much of a surprise.
The suspense of the story was mild. Hilary's brother goes
missing during the attack that injures her, and Oliver uses his contacts and
family to find out what happened. His two primary cohorts are his brothers Ezra
and Dom, the soldier and the FBI agent. They've always been close as triplets,
and he naturally turns to them for help. However, once again, he does things
his way instead of listening to the advice of those with more experience. That mistake
comes home to roost at the end when his overconfidence puts him in mortal
danger. He was fortunate to have come out of it as well as he did and hopefully
learned his lesson.
I did like Oliver's willingness to help with Jeff's
disappearance. I thought he handled the situation's delicacy well and
understood Hilary's dad's feelings. I also liked the realism of how Jeff ended
up in the position he did. Oliver's conversation with Jeff was well done. There
was also an interesting twist that linked Jeff's situation with the issue that
has plagued the Coltons throughout the series.
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