Jared Kendrick knows in his cowboy gut that Leigh is the one for him. All he has to do is convince her. Ha! She wants to celebrate her singleness and not get hog-tied to a relationship. Though Jared has her older, loving yet revenge-seeking, matchmaking brothers on his side, he's still going to have to dodge a lot of barrels to catch this Barrett!
Fun book. The story opens at the wedding of Leigh's final unmarried brother. With all three of her overprotective, interfering brothers busy with women of their own, Leigh looks forward to cutting loose and having a little fun. The last thing she wants to do is deal with Jared, the man who turned down her advances the previous summer. But there he is, suddenly buddy-buddy with her brothers and showing up wherever she goes.
Jared was the local bad boy when they were in high school. After graduation, he joined the rodeo for a few years and then returned to start his own rodeo school. It's tough going because most people remember his past and don't see that he's changed. One of the ways he has changed is that he is ready to settle down - and Leigh is the woman he wants. The problem is convincing her.
I liked Jared. He has a plan for his life, he brought his business to his hometown, and he pitches in to help where he's needed. Jared knows he's in love with Leigh, which means he wants more than the fling she wanted from him. I liked how he stuck to his principles.
Leigh was a bit frustrating. I understood her desire to date without the interference she suffered under her brothers, but I thought she went about it the wrong way. Leigh didn't care anything about the guys; she just wanted a good time. She was also one of those who repeatedly brought up Jared's past.
I enjoyed watching Jared's pursuit of Leigh. He wasn't overt in what he wanted; instead, he found ways to put himself in her path. Leigh's dismay was palpable when the high school principal paired her with Jared to work on the homecoming parade. I wanted to shake her for harping on his past, especially after he stepped up to protect her from embarrassment. The way he showed up at her date locations was funny as he exuded innocence in denying doing it on purpose.
The sparks between Jared and Leigh were intense, but they disagreed on what to do about them. Jared doesn't want a temporary hook-up, and Leigh resists the idea of a relationship with all her might. I ached for them both when they clashed over Jared's declaration of his feelings. Both had some soul-searching to do over what they wanted from each other. I loved the scene at the homecoming dance, especially Leigh's reaction to Jared's "award." The epilogue was great. I loved the throwback to the first scene in the book.
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