Diamond Heart

After catching her no good cheat'n rat bastard ex-fiancé in bed with her best friend, Rowan Belmont leaves the mills and factories of the Midwest to move nearer her sister in San Francisco. After being robbed in Kansas City, she loses the money to complete her journey and she tries to pawn her engagement ring, only to find out that it‘s fake. Alone, broke, and on the edge of giving up, Rowan hopes for a miracle.

Marcel Champlain can't get the beautiful woman he met at the Kansas City hotel out of his mind. When she turns up at his family’s jewelry he knows that God has brought them together. He makes Rowan a job offer: Go with him to Freewill, Wyoming to open a new jewelry store and pose as his wife.

With only three months to convince Rowan that she should become his wife in truth, Marcel intends to show Rowan that no other man on earth will ever love her as much as he does. Their time together may be cut short by when it seems like fate will take Marcel from Rowan all too soon and leave her once again alone in the world.

I've been so excited about Decadent Publishing's new Western Escapes line-a mix of historical and contemporary series set in Freewill, WY, since I first heard about it a few months ago, so I was thrilled to receive an ARC of the first book in the line, an historical (YAY!!!) by Ann Mayburn.

I loved watching Rowan and Marcel's pretend marriage blossom into the real thing. Rowan is an incredibly strong western woman, and Marcel-oh Marcel. It's appropriate this was released on Valentine's Day because Marcel will just make you melt into a puddle-strong, sensitive, patient, and oh so sexy.

Ann's historical research made me feel like I was walking the boardwalks of Freewill. I enjoyed the setting of the jewelry store, and the cultural diversity of the characters. I can't wait for subsequent books in this series, because this one is a pure delight.