His Son, Her Secret - Sarah M. Anderson (HD #2398 - Sept 2015)

Series: Beaumont Heirs (Book 4)

Their families tore them apart. Can their baby bring them back together?

For more than a year, Byron Beaumont has tried to get over Leona Harper. Not even living overseas could erase the memory of their affair…or her betrayal. Her family has been out to destroy his for decades, and despite Byron trusting her, making love to her, Leona kept her identity hidden. Now that Byron is back -- as her new employer -- he wants answers.

But what he gets is another surprise. Leona has given birth to his son. He'll do what it takes to care for his family, even if it means spending days -- and nights -- wanting the one woman he can't have…

Good book. Byron was always a little out of step with the rest of his family. He didn't want anything to do with the brewery business, he wanted to be a chef. He finally got his wish and was working at a Denver restaurant when he met Leona. They hit it off immediately, and spent a lot of time sharing their dreams for the future. Then Byron discovered that Leona was the daughter of his family's worse enemy and felt betrayed. Rather than sticking around, he left to work in Europe and has been gone for a year. His brothers called him back and asked him to build  restaurant to go with the brewery, one that he will have full control of. He has decided to hire Leona to design it - as a way to show her that he is over her, and to get answers about why she did it.

Leona had been in love with Byron and disgusted with her father. She was trying to get away from him, which is why she was working in the restaurant. Her father's actions the day she discovered she was pregnant were the last straw. But before she was even able to tell Byron about the baby, he was gone, with no contact. She knows she should have told him about the baby, but she was afraid of the Beaumont reputation with children, so she didn't. Now that he is back, she knows she has to tell him.

Though Byron is angry about it, he doesn't immediately threaten to take the baby away. I liked the way that he was determined to protect Leona and Percy. When he finds out the threats that her father has made against her, Byron decides that marriage is the best way to stop him. All he has to do is convince Leona. 

I loved seeing the relationship rekindle between them. Even though they had been apart a year, the chemistry was still strong. They also still had their dreams in common. I loved seeing how the plans for the restaurant went so smoothly. The problem that they had was one of being able to trust each other again. Byron couldn't be certain that Leona wasn't going to side with her father, and that made him hold part of himself back from her. Leona was constantly afraid that Byron would abandon her again, and this time take Percy with him. It took another run in with her father for them to actually talk to each other and share their fears. Once they had done that, they could finally look to the future.

I did feel that their confrontation with her father was left slightly unresolved. They have their intentions to stand against him, but I'd have liked to see how they do it. There's another book in the series, so maybe there will be a bit more included there.