A Royal Baby Surprise - Cat Schield (HD #2393 - Aug 2015)

Series: Sherdana Royals (Book 2)

An heir to the throne gets an heir of his own…

Chasing the man who broke her heart halfway around the world to tell him she's pregnant is the hardest thing Brooke Davis has ever had to do. But when she catches up with him, he's got a surprise for her, too: he's been hiding his royal roots. Nic Alessandro is a prince, and Brooke's an unsuitable match -- but their attraction is hotter than ever!

What will happen when royal duty and desire collide? Maybe Nic will have to take Brooke home to Sherdana and find out…

Very good book about what happens when desire clashes with duty. For the last ten years Nic has been living in the United States, the first five at school and the last five working in California. When the rocket he was working on exploded, killing a teammate, he felt responsible. Leaving his dreams of private space travel behind, he headed for his Greek island retreat to decide what to do next. 

Brooke is the sister of Nic's partner on the rocket project. She has been in love with Nic for five years, but until six months ago he had seemed uninterested. Then he confessed that he'd been attracted to her all along and they began a relationship. When the explosion happened, Nic broke things off with Brooke and disappeared. After she discovered she was pregnant, she tracked him to his island and showed up to tell him the news. Before she could, he told her the secret that he had been keeping from her: he's a prince and heir to the throne after his brother.

Now Brooke has a dilemma. Does she tell Nic about the baby, or just go home to California? At the same time, the attraction between she and Nic is just as hot as ever. Nic is also caught between desire and duty. He loves Brooke and doesn't want to let her go. But his older brother Gabriel (Royal Heirs Required), the crown prince and his wife can't have children, so it is up to Nic to marry and provide those heirs for his country. The law requires that he marry a Sherdanian or European aristocracy, and Brooke doesn't qualify. His mother already has a list of women for him to choose from.

Nic talks Brooke into going back to Sherdana with him. He's not ready to say goodbye to her yet, even though he knows it isn't fair to her. Brooke still hasn't told him about the baby, so she goes with him, still trying to decide what to do. I loved the reception she got from Nic's sister and sister-in-law. There was an immediate liking among them, and the two of them loaned Brooke clothes suitable to wear at the palace. They could see how much in love Nic and Brooke were. Nic's mother, the queen, wasn't quite so accepting, and sees Brooke as a threat to the plans already in place.

I really ached for Nic and Brooke because it looked to them that there was no way they could be together. Once Nic found out about the baby he was even more conflicted because he didn't want to miss out on seeing his child grow up. He's ready to sacrifice his happiness for his country and let her go. I loved the confrontation he had with Gabriel at the end and what Gabriel told him. The reunion between Nic and Brooke was sweet. 

I'm looking forward to the rest of the series. There is some secret involving Gabriel and Olivia that I'm interested in seeing, as I have a suspicion what it is. I'm also looking forward to meeting Christian and seeing what's in store for Ariana. I believe there was a hint of her destiny in this book and I can't wait to see if I'm right.

Royal Heirs Required - Cat Schield (HD #2359 - Mar 2015)

Series: Billionaires and Babies (Book 55)
           Sherdana Royals (Book 1)

A prince's surprise twins may turn his royal marriage into something more…

Prince Gabriel Alessandro's top priority is continuing the family line, and he's found the perfect bride-to-be in Lady Olivia Darcy. While their royal marriage is not based on love, he desires her. Making a baby together will be pure pleasure. Then Gabriel learns he is already a father…to twins.

Olivia surprises Gabriel with her acceptance of his motherless girls, making him believe their loveless union could blossom into something more. But Olivia's agreement conceals a devastating secret. In danger of losing the dynasty he so desires, will he risk choosing love over duty?

Very good book. As crown prince, it was time for Gabriel to marry and provide some heirs for the royal family. He selected Lady Olivia for two reasons. First, she has the pedigree, the sophistication, and also the kindness of heart to be the next queen. Second, her father is willing to open one of his factories in Sherdana, providing badly needed jobs. He's a little bitter about having to marry a stranger, but accepts it as necessary. Thanks to a failed relationship in his past, he isn't willing to fall in love, but the zing of attraction he feels for her gives him hope that there will be some pleasure to be found. 

Then Gabriel is hit with a surprise. His ex-girlfriend has died and left him with custody of twin daughters he knew nothing about. He is somewhat concerned about the scandal, but more worried about how Olivia will react. He's amazed at how quickly and completely she accepts the little girls, which adds fuel to his hope for a successful marriage.

As a child Olivia had dreams of growing up to be a princess, but as a teen gave them up for the more realistic ones of simply having a husband and children of her own, and working with the children's charities that she loved. Marrying Gabriel is a combination of those dreams, but they haven't really spent any time together to get to know each other. I loved seeing her confront him and more or less force him to see her as the woman she was. It was great to see him start to realize that there was more to her than he had expected.

When she accidentally stumbles on the little girls, she takes to them immediately. I loved her first encounter with them and the protectiveness that she felt for them. I really liked the way that she supported Gabriel's intent to make their existence public. I really enjoyed the way the girls brought them closer together. 

As they spent more time together, the attraction that they felt for each other grew stronger. Gabriel continued to try to convince himself that what he felt was only physical, but it was getting harder to do so. Olivia was also falling in love with him, but she has a health crisis that could end her dreams completely. A confrontation with Gabriel has them both exchanging harsh words, and their future looks impossible. I loved seeing both of them face their issues and decide what was more important to them. Gabriel's big moment was sweet and romantic and just what Olivia needed. 

I liked the realism of the way Olivia's problem was portrayed and dealt with. I am looking forward to the other books in this series and hope that they will include updates on how she and Gabriel are doing. I also liked the two little girls, who were quite adorable. Their behavior was also pretty true to their age.