Thursday, August 13, 2015

The Maverick Millionaire - Alison Roberts (HR #4432 - July 2014)

Series: Logan Twins (Book 2)

The man she has been waiting for…

Jake Logan may be ex-military, but recently he'd been more at home among the glitterati of Hollywood's finest. So different from where he is right now: seeking shelter from a powerful storm with the most beautiful woman he's ever met. She's a breath of fresh air!

Ellie Sutton doesn't trust easily; she's discovered that the hard way. With nowhere to run, for some reason she feels safe with the handsome enigmatic stranger. But as rescue draws closer, they realize they don't want their time together to end….

This is Jake's story and takes place at the same time as Ben's story (Nine Months to Change His Life). Both books begin with the sinking of the yacht and Jake's rescue by helicopter, this one told from the perspective of Jake and Ellie. Jake is furious and horrified that he's the one rescued and his brother Ben left behind on the life raft in the middle of the raging storm. He has no choice but to accept Ellie's assurances that the rescuers will do everything possible to save Ben. In the meantime, the two of them are stuck together on a deserted island to wait out the storm.

Jake is a famous actor who is due to start filming a movie. He has grown a beard and long hair for the part, so he doesn't look like his usual self. He's surprised that Ellie hasn't recognized him, but doesn't enlighten her, happy for a chance to just be himself. He's attracted to the beautiful, capable woman and doesn't want her to look at him differently because of who he is. 

Ellie had been determined to save at least one of the two men that they found floating in the life raft. Knowing the the chopper couldn't carry them for long, she had it drop them off on the island that her family owns to wait out the storm. She's not sure what it is about him, but she feels safe with Jake. There's a spark of attraction between them, but they are rescued before anything comes of it. It isn't until they are back in civilization that she finds out who Jake is, and she feels betrayed that he hadn't told her the truth.

Ellie had been betrayed by another man who hadn't been truthful with her, and she feels that history is repeating itself. Finding out that Jake is someone who basically lies for a living devastates her, because she had already begun to care for him. Once they are back, she doesn't plan to see him again. Jake, on the other hand, really wants to see her again. He felt that they had had the beginnings of something special. He finds a way to get her to the movie set, which gives him the chance to try to win her over.

But Jake's problem is that he has spent so much of his life playing one part or another, in both his professional and personal lives, that sometimes the lines between real life and fantasy get blurred. He tries very hard to be himself with Ellie, but sometimes he doesn't know who that is. I loved seeing how hard he worked at it, and ached for him each time a lifetime of habit ended up coming between them. He had several really sweet and romantic moments that should have won her over, but something always seemed to happen to tarnish them. 

Ellie also allows her fears to get the better of her on several occasions. There were times when I wanted to shake her and tell her to just give the man a chance, especially that last time when he tried to explain how he felt. I loved her "a ha" moment, when she finally saw the truth and what she had almost thrown away.

There was another section of overlap, when Jake and Ben met to try to deal with Ben's revelations about their mother. Both of them said some rather harsh things to each other, and both left the meeting with something to think about. I liked seeing Jake face up to his mistakes and try to find a way to overcome them. I loved the way he got Ellie's friend involved in executing his big moment. It was really sweet to see what he came up with for their future and how perfect it was for both of them. The epilogue was a great wrap up for both brothers.

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