What’s a guy to do when the girl of his dreams makes a pass at him?

Saying no to Hope Hansen was the hardest thing Ben Sinclaire has ever done. Despite the fact that he’s loved her since grade school, between their age difference and a family feud, a romance between them was forbidden. But now she’s back and the girl he loved has become all woman. He’s finally ready to make his move, but he’ll have to get around her brothers and a field of admirers to do it.

What’s a girl to do when faced with the worst mistake from her past?

Eight years ago, Hope took a chance on Ben and got shot down. Heart broken and mortified, she left town. A fiasco at veterinary school foils her plan to avoid him forever by forcing her to come home to Prairie. When her brothers meddle in her love life by placing a Cowboy Wanted ad for her in the back of Rancher’s Monthly, Ben becomes her unlikely ally. As all her feelings come crashing back, Hope isn’t sure if she can trust him… or herself.

Cowboy Wanted: True Love Awaits

Ben comes up with a daring plan to win Hope, but when ice storms, weddings, and babies interfere, will it backfire? Or will Hope realize that true love has been waiting right under her nose the whole time?

Ben and Hope have big secret, they have been friends for years but never said a word to anyone because of the feud between their families.

As children they built a treehouse together, just out of sight of either family. When he hears she’s coming home, Ben visits it he finds it destroyed. In that moment he decides to rebuilt it.

There was more there though, Ben had rejected Hope when she asked him to be her first lover. After reconsidering, he returned to hear her with someone else in their space and once again left.

This is a favorite scene when Hope visits the newly built treehouse.

A look of pure anguish twisted the softness in her face. “Our business finished the night you told me I was crazy and just a kid.”

He cringed as his conscience pricked at him. That pain was all because of him. “About that…”

Her mouth pinched closed, and she shook her head firmly, hugging her arms. “Oh no. You don’t get to throw away a friendship then waltz back in eight years later a-an-and build me the tree house of my dreams. What were you thinking?”

She was good. Throwing his words back at him like that. At least she’d noticed he’d included every detail she’d ever dreamed about in the new structure. He’d take a small victory. But it irked him she was accusing him of throwing away their friendship when she was the one who’d broken their rule and brought someone to the tree house. “Who exactly threw away our friendship?”

She shifted her weight, arms still crossed defensively. A move that, if she hadn’t been wearing a leather jacket, would have accentuated her curves. God, he ached to run his hands under her coat and familiarize himself with the sweep of her breast, the dip of her waist. His fingers twitched at the thought. He’d replayed that night countless times, always taking things further than they’d gone.

“Considering you were the one who said I ruined everything, you did.”

He stood, bracing his hands against the large crossbeam, and leaned toward her. “You broke the kissing rule.”

Her eyes widened at the accusation. “What do you mean? I didn’t kiss anyone. Well, except you, and like you said, that ruined everything.”

“What about the next night? I came back. You were here with a boy.”

She sucked in a breath, face registering shock. “You came back?” Disbelief colored her voice.

He gave her a crooked smile. Might as well throw all the cards on the table. “It’s possible I had a change of heart.”

The look she leveled at him was weighted with suspicion. “You had a change of heart.”

“I came back.” He sighed heavily, insides roiling in discomfort. Nothing about this conversation was easy. “I wanted to set things right. And, yes, I wanted to kiss you.” He let that sink in. “But you were… occupied.”

Her mouth dropped open, and just as quickly, she snapped it shut and pinched her nose at the crease between her eyebrows. Dropping her hand, she glared at him, shaking her head. “Oh no. You don’t get to do this.”

“Do what? Clear the air?” The tree house suddenly felt confining. Like the two of them were too much for the walls. This conversation was too intense for the small space.

“You do not get to put the demise of our friendship on me. You left. You bailed out.”

Maybe coming here had been a mistake. Maybe he should have let sleeping dragons lie. He let years of pent up emotion get the better of him as his voice rose. “I came back.”

“Did you think after you humiliated me, I would wait around for one second?” Her voice trembled with barely contained outrage.

“I thought you wouldn’t run out and drag the first piece of ass you could find into our tree house.”

Hope’s eyes flashed fire. He knew he was pushing her buttons. He couldn’t help it. He’d been sucker punched that night, hearing her laugh with someone else.

“Our tree house? If it was ours, how come you stayed away? This has always been my sanctuary, my retreat.”

“Bullshit. Now you’re being melodramatic. It’s been ours since day one, and you know it.”

He’d stayed away more than he should have those last few summers before everything blew up, but he couldn’t watch her turn into a woman, knowing she was off-limits. Jesus. He was only human.
Layne, Tessa. Prairie Desire: Cowboys of the Flint Hills (pp. 29-31). Shady Layne Media. Kindle Edition.

Now it’s going to take a lot to mend this but her brothers inadvertently help her when they do the unspeakable. They take out a personal ad for her in Ranchers Monthly.

Paybacks are a bitch and revenge is best served cold. I loved Hope’s revenge.

She also is hiding something and that could ruin her relationship with Ben.

I laughed a lot, sniffled a little and enjoyed every page of this book!

5 Contented Purrs for Tessa!

Tessa Layne

Tessa Layne writes smokin’ hot contemporary cowboy and military romances filled with tenderhearted tough guys and sassy strong women who capture their hearts.She grew up in Colorado in the mountains at the edge of the Great Plains. There, she met her own smokin’ hot Cowboy and they had a whirlwind romance to rival any novel. She believes in Happily Ever Afters, loves fireflies, horses, and breathing clean country air. Her favorite thing to do is to sit on the porch swing with a glass of Rose, listening to her Cowboy pluck his guitar!

Feel free to drop her a line (links below) – She loves to hear from her readers!

Out of the Frying Pan

Brodie Sinclaire, the youngest and wildest of the Sinclaire brothers, has just been given an ultimatum. Settle down and run the hunting lodge his brothers have built, or find a new job – on another ranch. His first order of business is to find a cook who will last more than a week. He gets more than he bargained for when the cook he hires turns out to be his sister-in-law’s best friend, fiery redhead and Cordon Bleu trained chef, Jamey O’Neill.

And Into the Fire

In the span of a week Jamey O’Neill has lost everything. Her boyfriend, her restaurant, and her career – thanks to a devastating health diagnosis. Broke, and desperate to make a fresh start, she agrees to help the Sinclaires get their hunting lodge off the ground. The last thing she needs is a deliciously handsome cowboy getting under her skin and bossing her in the kitchen.

Can They Handle the Heat?

They can’t deny their chemistry is explosive, and Brodie sets out to prove himself to the feisty chef. But can they handle the heat when Brodie is forced to face his past and Jamey wrestles with her future?

Jamey has made a really big mistake professionally by not having a contract with her partner/boyfriend. Now with an unexpected diagnosis of celiac disease, she can’t tolerate any form of gluten and loses everything she worked so hard for.

Brodie has been put in charge of the new hunting lodge, but he’s lost quite a few chefs and his brother’s at his wits end. An ultimatum is issued and the new Chef is on the way.

A phone call from Maddie changes everything for Jamey. Now she has a job but when she hears she’s going to be working and living with Brodie she’s not so sure anymore. Can she work with Brody without giving in to her feelings for him?

This is a favorite scene, the initial confrontation between Jamey and Brodie.

“I’m serious about the kitchen, Brodie,” she shot back over her shoulder. “The state of the kitchen when I arrived violated at least a dozen health department regulations.”

“Aww come on. It wasn’t that bad.”

She spun back toward him. “Are you blind? Did you happen to notice the grease and grime on every surface? I wasted two and a half hours scrubbing this place from tip to toe. And then I wasted even more time in town paying full-price for groceries. This is a commercial kitchen, hotshot. Where are the wholesale vendors? Where are the daily deliveries?”

He shrugged. “Well it’s only me and the crew right now.”

She glowered at him, leaning over the island. “That’s still no way to run a kitchen. You set it up right from the start.”

A flush burned in his chest, spreading up his neck. What did she know about any of this? She was a city chef with no clue how things were done out here.

He threw up his hands. “Welcome to the boonies, darlin’. We don’t do things like you’re used to in the big city.”

She slapped her hands on the island. “Well get ready because there are kitchen rules to follow, big city or not, and one of them is making sure the chef has ingredients.”

He leaned forward, placing his hands on the island and putting his face inches from hers. Quite possibly a mistake, given the way his pulse ratcheted up.

“Now just a stinkin’ minute, lady. You want to talk rules? You stole my truck. Out here that’s a firing offense.”

She moved her face a fraction closer to his. “Then it’s a good thing I don’t work for you.”

“Wanna bet?”

Her eyes flashed fire. And this close, he noticed gold flecks in her irises.

“I’d never work for you. I work for Blake.”

He flexed his fingers on the stainless, every cell in his body going taut.

“My lodge. My rules.”

“My kitchen. My rules.”

She sounded breathless. Hell, was she as turned on as he was?

Only one way to find out.

Quick as a wink, he thrust a hand through her curls, tugging her head across the remaining few inches that separated their faces, bringing his mouth to hers.

Her lips were as soft and sensual as he remembered. Her mouth as hot. He flicked his tongue along her opening, demanding entry. With a soft noise in the back of her mouth that went straight to his cock, she opened, her tongue meeting his, continuing a physical battle where their verbal sparring left off.

He’d be damned if she bested him in this arena. Moving his other hand to her cheek, he caressed down her neck as his tongue slid along hers, tasting and sucking.

Goddamn.

Kissing her was so much hotter in person than in his dreams.

Like fire and lightning rolled into one. And as he deepened the kiss, she clutched his bicep, branding him with her touch. Need swirled in his groin, and if his crew wasn’t due back any second, he had half a mind to haul her up on the island and fuck her silly right here.

Before he was ready, she groaned, her lips from his, and leaned back, panting. She stood there, eyes flashing with a mixture of lust and anger, hair swirling around her head like a red demon halo.

“Get. Out. Of. My. Kitchen.”

He flashed her a crooked grin, still trying to get his dick under control. “Whatever you say, Chef.”

He spun on his heel and headed for the shower.
Layne, Tessa. Prairie Passion: Cowboys of the Flint Hills (pp. 55-57). Shady Layne Media. Kindle Edition.

Oh what a tangled web. Jamey hasn’t told anyone about her illness, and is doing a gluten free kitchen. A very successful one at that, and a little help from Dottie with biscuits.

Then there’s Brodie who has the biggest secret of all. The problem is his secret could ruin the business.

I couldn’t stop reading, these two are hysterical together. Oh and the heat between them is kindle melting. Moving on to the next book, I love the progression.

5 Contented Purrs for Tessa!

Tessa Layne

Tessa Layne writes smokin’ hot contemporary cowboy and military romances filled with tenderhearted tough guys and sassy strong women who capture their hearts.She grew up in Colorado in the mountains at the edge of the Great Plains. There, she met her own smokin’ hot Cowboy and they had a whirlwind romance to rival any novel. She believes in Happily Ever Afters, loves fireflies, horses, and breathing clean country air. Her favorite thing to do is to sit on the porch swing with a glass of Rose, listening to her Cowboy pluck his guitar!

Feel free to drop her a line (links below) – She loves to hear from her readers!