Series:
Duke's Guard (Book 6)
“Lass, ye need to trust someone in yer hour of
darkness…let it be me.”
Aiden Garahan is tasked with protecting the duke’s new
ward. He promises to protect her with his life. The lovely young woman, with
auburn hair and quiet gray eyes is no child, but a petite, curvaceous beauty.
His reaction to her is unexpected and unwanted.
Miss Emily Montrose may be small in stature, but she is
no shrinking violet! When a runaway carriage tragically cuts her father’s life
short, she is thrust into chaos as the duke’s ward. Her life is turned upside
down when rumors and a wager challenges all comers to win her hand. Emily’s
life is threatened as the wager increases and unscrupulous men see her as a
prize.
Aiden must cut through the lies to the truth. He guards
her valiantly and vows to protect her to the last beat of his heart, while she
steals it away, one glance at a time…one caress at a time. Aiden faces a battle
he never imagined…one that pits his heart against his honor!
Danger stalks in the night, but it will have to challenge
The Duke’s Defender before he will let harm come to those he has sworn to
protect with his strength, his honor, and his heart.
Book six in the
Duke's Guard series and another Irishman
gets bitten by the love bug. It's always fun to see these tough guys get felled
by an emotion they think they can control.
In this book, Aiden Garahan's assignment is to protect
the Duke's new ward, Miss Emily Montrose. Her father's death has left her a
wealthy woman, and the fortune hunters are coming out of the woodwork, egged on
by rumors and unscrupulous wagers. Emily doesn't understand why her father
insisted on asking the Duke of Wyndmere to be her guardian if anything happened
to him. She's a grown woman and fully capable of taking care of herself.
Aiden and Emily clash immediately upon his arrival when she
attempts to refuse him entry. As a
member of the Duke's Guard, Aiden expects immediate cooperation and isn't happy
with Emily's resistance. I laughed at their back and forth over the use of
"lass" and "gentleman," neither inclined to give way to the
other. But beneath the antagonism are sparks of attraction that neither want to
admit.
Aiden doesn't take long to realize that things are not as
they seem. There is suspicion that Emily's father's death was no accident. The
arrival of the first suitors is dealt with by Aiden, who then returns to the
Montrose home to discover three more men who have managed to gain access to
Emily. That scene made me laugh out loud as Aiden and his two fellow guards put
the fear of God (or Bow Street and the Duke of Wyndmere) into them.
That isn't the end, and Aiden and the others are kept
busy protecting Emily. The intensity of the attacks steadily increases, from
more intruders to attempts at abduction. Aiden and the others stay busy investigating who is responsible for the trouble and their attempts to catch him. Their determination
is unmatched, and I enjoyed seeing them close the net on their quarry. The
final confrontation was intense but short-lived, as Aiden followed through on
his promise to keep Emily safe.
I enjoyed the development of the relationship between
Aiden and Emily. The sparks between them are undeniable and obvious to those
around them. Their conversations were fun to witness, whether debating word
choices or arguing over her protection. Emily is a stubborn woman whose
disagreements with Aiden do nothing to lessen her fascination with him. The
scene in the stable was entertaining, as was the conversation between Emily and
the housekeeper afterward.
The feelings between Aiden and Emily continue to grow,
but neither gives any indication to the other, believing that a relationship is
impossible. I loved their arrival at the duke's home and watching Aiden get
into it with Patrick over his familiarity with Emily. It was great to see how
Emily takes matters into her own hands with help from the duchess. I could picture
Aiden's face at the surprise the duke had for him. The epilogue was terrific,
and I look forward to hearing about them in future books.
No comments:
Post a Comment