The Rebel Cowboy's Quadruplets - Tina Leonard (HAR #1505 - July 2014)

Series: Bridesmaids Creek (Book 1)

Rebel with a cause

Beautiful Mackenzie Hawthorne is looking for a ranch foreman, not a husband. Good thing, because marriage isn't in injured bull rider Justin Morant's future. Justin is happy to take up the cause of saving the Hanging H ranch -- and then there's the bonus of playing stand-in father to the sexy single mom's four angelic newborns.

Mackenzie doesn't know what miracle brought Justin to Bridesmaids Creek, Texas, but she'd be a fool to fall for the hunky cowboy who wears his rebel status like a badge of honor. Justin's a natural with her daughters and a whiz at ranching…yet one day she knows he's going to gallop off into the sunset. Unless, of course, the marriage-minded townspeople get their hands on him!

Fun book. Mackenzie is the single mother of four infant girls. She needs a ranch foreman to help get the ranch in shape for possible sale. Her childhood friend, Ty, sends Justin her way, but Ty has more than the ranch in mind. He thinks the former bull rider would be a perfect husband for her. But neither Mackenzie or Justin have marriage on their minds.

Mackenzie is in no hurry to marry again after her husband fled from the responsibilities of four babies. She feels that she is just fine on her own, with a little help from her friends. However, she can't deny that Justin's presence makes things easier. He's really sweet with her babies, and a strong support against those who want her ranch. She's attracted to him, but he's made no secret of his plans to stay single. 

Justin is in no hurry to settle down. He enjoyed his travels with the rodeo, and now that he can't do that any longer he has to figure out what to do with the rest of his life. Helping out on the Hanging H is a good start. Discovering that his buddy Ty was actually setting him up should have made him mad, but he found himself pretty content with his situation. His attraction to Mackenzie is another reason to stick around.

I enjoyed seeing the relationship develop between Justin and Mackenzie. She's cautious about risking her heart again, but Justin's way with her girls has her walls coming down pretty quickly. She's very independent, but Justin has a way of offering help without making her feel helpless. I liked how he tried to fight his feelings, but jealousy of Ty's other cowboy helpers kept him from leaving. He was also really sensitive to the way she felt about the ranch, and helped her find a way to hang on to it. Both of them fought admitting their feelings, but a showdown with the town bad girl and interference from the town matchmakers had it all coming out. The race at the end was fun, especially with the various shenanigans provided by Ty's friends and Daisy''s posse.

The secondary characters are all great additions. Ty's friends are fun with their attempts to make Justin jealous, and then their own growing involvements with the town. Bad girl Daisy is a real piece of work, and I enjoyed seeing Mackenzie's sister take her on. The matchmaking magic of Bridesmaids Creek is interesting and it's fun to see its influence on the townspeople and the newcomers.

The Cowboy SEAL's Triplets - Tina Leonard (HAR #1553 - July 2015)

Series: Bridesmaids Creek (Book 4)

HER HOMETOWN SEAL

When Daisy Donovan roars into town on the back of John "Squint" Mathison's motorcycle, the people of Bridesmaids Creek start buzzing like bees in mating season The former bad girl is finally home where she belongs, ready to win over her Texas town--"and "the hunky former SEAL who is the father of her soon-to-be baby boys.

Although he just had the most passionate time of his life with the woman he adores, John's after a prize he thought couldn't be his. He never had a real home, growing up in a family who traveled from rodeo to rodeo. But now he's determined to show Daisy that he's ready to settle down and be the new favorite son of Bridesmaids Creek--by getting Daisy to the altar before their triplets are born,

Good conclusion to the series. In previous books, Daisy has been known as the "Diva of Destruction". She's the daughter of the town's richest man and has always been a bit of a wild child. At the end of the last book she had left town to visit a friend in Montana, trying to come to terms with the trouble she had caused and what she could do to fix it. 

She was followed up there by John, who has been in love with her for several years. He's finally convinced her to come back home. He's given up trying to convince her that he loves her, in spite of the fact that they had made love in a weak moment. He plans to give up on that dream and hit the rodeo circuit, or get a job teaching ROTC somewhere. Whatever will take him away from Bridesmaids Creek and his heartbreak.

Daisy had been trying to use the town's matchmaking magic to win herself a husband, but she'd had her eye on the wrong man, ignoring the one that was in love with her. By the time she realized that he was the one she loved, he was gone and she needs to find a way to get him back. She wants to show him that she's come to her senses at last. But the whole reunion thing didn't go quite as she expected, and between his new reluctance to restart their relationship and a wild trip to Vegas with their friend Sam, Daisy is left really confused. She takes off to try to figure things out.

Things start to get pretty wild. John realizes that he really is still in love with Daisy. Her pregnancy is just extra motivation to get her to marry him. He's never really believed in the whole magic thing that the town claims, but those that do try to convince him. When Daisy comes back, John immediately proposes to her, but now she is the one who is holding back. First, she doesn't want John to feel that he's been trapped into marrying her. Second, he's always been a rolling stone, and she has trouble believing that he would be happy settling down.

There is also Daisy's belief that her actions have ruined the matchmaking magic for the town. She won't marry John until she finds a way to fix it. She deeply believes in that magic and wants it for herself and her marriage to John, worried that without it their marriage won't last. When she ends up on bed rest waiting for the triplets to be born, she finds the perfect solution, one that was a bit of a surprise but turned out to be just right for her.

All John really wants is to get Daisy married to him any way he can manage it. He knows that the Bridesmaids Creek legends are important to her, so he takes some steps to do something about it. He is determined on this course, even though she tries to convince him that it isn't needed. It was pretty funny to see him ignore everything people tried to tell him, certain that he was doing the right thing. Of course, it all works out in the end. There was also a neat twist for the guy who pooh-poohed the whole Bridesmaids Creek legend and ends up being a part of it himself.

The Twins' Rodeo Rider - Tina Leonard (HAR #1533 - Feb 2015)

Series: Bridesmaids Creek (Book 3)

BREAKING ALL THE RULES

Suz Hawthorne was always a rebel. But falling for Navy SEAL Cisco Grant -- when Bridesmaids Creek legend already chose him as destined for another woman -- borders on sedition. For a small Texas town that depends on its romantic reputation, flouting local lore is disastrous. Now, Suz's renegade heart could cost her the family ranch, and the town its livelihood.

Cisco knows he and Suz are meant for each other, and the twin babies they're expecting are the only kind of magic he cares about. No one ever tried to cheat the Bridesmaids Creek charm before, but Cisco believes in doing things the old-fashioned way…his way. Can he preserve the town's fabled tradition and still win the woman he loves?

Okay book. I liked the general premise of the story. Local legend has paired Cisco up with one woman, but his heart is set on another. Suz also wants him, but going against town tradition is likely to stir up trouble, and does. They have to figure out how to have what they want without ruining the lives of others.

I mostly liked Cisco. He loves Suz and no matter what the silly local legend says, Suz is the only one he will marry. He is determined to have her, and makes it plain to Daisy (the other woman) that he's not interested. Daisy is more than a bit spoiled and headstrong, and threatens to make life miserable for others if he doesn't fall into line. One of his friends is in love with Daisy, so Cisco does his best to throw things his way, but Daisy isn't cooperating. He goes ahead and secretly marries Suz, hoping that will be the end of it.

Unfortunately, it just makes Daisy angrier, and she gets her father to help her get revenge. He has been buying up land all over town, and with Daisy's encouragement starts foreclosure proceedings on Suz's family ranch. He also ruins the businesses of others in town, and threatens to sell land to the government for a toxic waste dump. Suz feels that it is all her and Cisco's fault and tells him to leave town until things quiet down.

This is where she really made me mad. Suz was far more concerned with Daisy's feelings and what she was doing than in making her marriage to Cisco work. She sends him off, telling him not to come back until she tells him to. When she discovers she's pregnant, she doesn't tell him, feeling it's more important to keep the peace in town. Cisco just wants to take care of her and the babies and she keeps shutting him down.

Cisco had kept one secret from her, and when he finally tells her about his family background she freaks out. He doesn't have much to do with them, so feels that it shouldn't affect their lives. Suz doesn't agree. Suddenly all she can think about is that she isn't good enough for him, even though he's made it clear over and over that he loves her. He offers to help out with the ranch troubles, and she won't even accept that. 

I liked the way that everything turned out, and was happy to see Suz's attitude change, Even Daisy does some growing up and I am now looking forward to her story.