Overall: ⭐️⭐️⭐️
Readability: 📖📖📖📖
Feels: 🦋🦋🦋
Emotional Depth: 💔💔💔💔
Sexual Tension: ⚡⚡⚡
Romance: 💞💞💞
Sensuality: 💋💋💋
Sex Scene Length: 🍑🍑🍑
Steam Scale (Number of Sex Scenes): 🔥🔥🔥 (I think? My notes aren’t good)
Humor: A bit
Perspective: third person from both hero and heroine, and a little bit from a side character
More character focused or plot focused? character
How did the speed of the story feel? slow to medium
When mains are first on page together: Not too far in – 8% (chapter 2 of 22)
Cliffhanger: No, this has a happily ever for the mains
Epilogue: Yes
Format: listened to audiobook from library (Hoopla)
Why I chose this book: I saw it on Hoopla and liked book 1 so decided to continue the series.
Mains: This is a M/F relationship between a cishet hero and heroine

Should I read in order?
Ideally yes because Dallas has a decent character in that book and this is his book.

Basic plot:
All Dallas wants is a son – and he bargains for a wife when the opportunity arises.

Give this a try if you want:
- late 1800s, America - 1881
- Texas, USA setting
- arranged marriage – the hero makes a deal with the heroine’s brother – a wife in exchange for water access
- hero wants a wife and a son
- rancher hero
- bit of rival families feel – the heroine’s family feels they are owed the hero’s land
- taller heroine – she’s up to his nose
- pets – heroine rescues a prairie dog
- lack of communication is a big factor here
- medium steam – this one was actually way steamier than I expected after reading book 1. The scenes were a touch longer and there was multiple of them throughout the book – I didn’t keep the best track but think there’s at least 3? They ARE on the shorter side still

Ages:
- I think the hero is 35 and heroine is 26? My memory might be faulty – I was listening and not taking notes

First line:
Dreams.

My thoughts:
I honestly didn’t know how I’d like this one after reading book 1. I guess I didn’t love Dallas after reading that story? I just was kind of leery. And I was so surprised how much I started out loving this story. The first third or so was soooo good to me. Dallas was so sweet and gentle and understanding with Dee. And I loved the arranged marriage.

But it was soon after they were married I just started getting annoyed and it never got better. They both start to love each other. But neither will say it. And both are hinting around that they want to believe each other will love them. But neither will reassure the other. And they will say little hints and the other will walk away morosely because alas, the love will never happen. It was so annoying to me – it was like the whole book was a giant miscommunication/lack of communication and it got old for me.

Then the ending just went bonkers with every plot thing you could think of. I really dislike books that stuff all this drama at the very end of a book especially after such a slog and I just want them to talk to each other. (view spoiler) It was A LOT and the romance and couple just got lost for me. I was just ready for this one to be over sadly.

Few random reading stats for this author
# of books read: 13 4444533244334
Average rating from me: 3.62
Favorite book: Lord of Wicked Intentions

Content warnings: These should be taken as a minimum of what to expect. It’s very possible I have missed some.

- parental loss
- remembrances of domestic abuse resulting in extreme disability of heroine’s mother
- attempted sexual assault of a side character (from their point of view)
- miscarriage on page
- physical assault of heroine resulting in miscarriage
- kidnapping and torture of hero
Author content warnings? Nothing mentioned on audio

Locations of kisses/intimate scenes, safe sex aspects, consent, pregnancy/child in the story: My note taking was bad and I definitely missed some

 
Safe sex: 

  No 

 
How’s the consent? 

  It’s pretty good – the heroine might not have wanted the marriage but the acts are consensual 

 
Pregnancy/children in story? 

  Pregnancy is a focus of this story – the hero really wants a son. There children that have page time (nieces, orphaned children). Heroine does fall pregnant and have a miscarriage on page and then goes on to have a miracle baby in the epilogue after the doctor told her she wouldn’t have any more kids

 

Chapter 3 (? I think? I didn’t take notes at this point) – kiss
Chapter 12 – kisses, missionary (v loss for her)
Chapter 14 – kisses, missionary (it’s pretty light)
I think there’s there’s another at the hotel bridal suite
Total chapters: 21 and an epilogue