The Secret Affair - Brenda Jackson (HD #2341 - Dec 2014)

Read December 12, 2016

Series: Westmorelands (Book 29)

It has been a year since Jillian Novak ended their affair -- a year that left Dr. Aidan Westmoreland determined to win back his lover. He knows they shouldn't have to keep their relationship a secret and he'll follow her around the world to prove it. Fourteen days on a cruise ship -- just Aidan, Jillian and the deep blue sea…and a passion that won't be denied.

In previous Westmoreland books there were hints that there was something going on between Aidan Westmoreland and Jillian Novak. Jillian is a younger sister to Pamela, who is married to Dillon Westmoreland. Jillian had had a crush on Aidan, who is five years older, since she was seventeen. At her twenty-first birthday party they discovered that there was something deeper going on.

Aidan is a typical Westmorland man. He is good looking, successful, charming, and has quite a reputation with the ladies. At this time he is finished with medical school and going on to his residency. He has no intention of getting married anytime soon. However, he can't deny the strength of the attraction he feels for Jillian, and goes after her.

Jillian is preparing to enter medical school. She's had a crush on Aidan for years, and having him being a doctor is icing on the cake. She does her best to keep her fascination with him under control, but when a kiss between them burns hot and out of control she's not sure what to do. She wants him, but she doesn't need the distraction. She also believes that if anyone were to suspect something was going on, it would create problems within the family. So she agrees to a relationship with Aidan, on condition that they keep it a secret.

Aidan isn't particularly happy to do that, but he goes along with her. Over the next three years they get together when they can. Aidan spent a week with Jillian, helping her study for her MCAT, where they got to know each other better along the way. But carrying on a relationship over long distances isn't easy, especially when each of them has their own professional stresses to go along with it. There is also the strain of trying to hide their feelings when around the family.

After three years, the stress has reached the breaking point. Aidan has begun to resent her insistence on secrecy. He cares for her and wants their relationship out in the open. He also frequently feels that he's the one making all the sacrifices. He's angry when she refuses to come spend his birthday with him. Jillian is feeling the stress also. She changes her mind about his birthday and plans to surprise him. Unfortunately, she's the one that gets the surprise when she finds him in the middle of a big party, attending by scantily clad women. When she sees one of them all over Aidan, she leaves without seeing him, and later breaks things off with him.

I was a bit angry with her at this point. She ended the relationship without talking to him about what she had seen. She'd always been a bit insecure about their relationship, thanks to his reputation. But they had been together for three years and she should have trusted him by now. I was also a bit disappointed in Aidan's actions, feeling that he made some bad decisions the night of his birthday.

This was all followed by a year of them being apart and miserable about it. I loved how Aidan decided it was time to resolve the issues between them. I really enjoyed seeing the help he got from friends and family, who hadn't been as clueless as he and Jillian had thought. It was fun to see her shock when he showed up on the cruise ship where she was celebrating her med school graduation. Their attraction hadn't decreased over the year, it had only burned hotter. I loved seeing them straighten everything out, with both admitting to some responsibility in their breakup. I loved Aidan's big moment at the end, which was really romantic. The epilogue with Dillon and Pamela was a fun wrapup.

Bane - Brenda Jackson (HD #2413 - Dec 2015)

Series: Westmorelands (Book 31)

The last Westmoreland bachelor is a navy SEAL on a mission to protect the woman who got away…

After five years, navy SEAL Brisbane Westmoreland is back home on his ranch and ready to reclaim the woman he left behind. But when he tracks her to Dallas, he's in for a shock.

Crystal Newsome isn't ready to forgive Bane for saying he loved her then vanishing from her life. Only now the beautiful chemist needs his protection. As their own irresistible chemistry takes over once again, can Bane keep Crystal safe and convince her they can have the second chance they both deserve?

Fantastic book. Bane is the last of the Denver Westmorelands to remain unmarried - or so everyone thinks. But during a visit home at the end of the previous book, Breaking Bailey's Rules, Bane drops the bombshell that he and high school girlfriend have been married for the last five years, and that he's ready to win her back.

Five years earlier Bane and Crystal had been deeply in love and determined to be together. But thanks to an old family feud, Crystal's parents were against the relationship. It didn't help that Bane was one of the family troublemakers. So they eloped, and no one knew that they had actually gotten married before they were caught and brought back home. With Crystal sent away, Bane realized that if he wants to give her the life she deserves, he's going to have to make something of himself. So he joined the navy, eventually becoming a SEAL. Now it's time to reclaim her.

You know that after five years of absolutely no contact, the reunion isn't going to go smoothly. Crystal is stunned to see Bane, and almost certain that he's just there to put an end to their marriage. She's still mad at him for disappearing for so long. But she has bigger things on her mind right now. The work she's been doing as a chemist has put her in danger, and she's about to go on the run.

This is where things get more complicated. Crystal is in danger and Bane's protective instincts are aroused. No longer the impulsive hothead he used to be, his trained mind immediately takes steps to get Crystal to safety. She's not sure what to make of the new Bane, but she's grateful to have him on her side. Bane's cool head, along with help from his fellow SEALs and his family, have them neatly avoiding the bad guys sent after them. The final confrontation was intense, and I loved how it all went down.

At the same time all of this is going on, Bane and Crystal are attempting to rebuild their relationship. I loved the realism of Crystal's hurt and anger over how long it took Bane to come back for her. It was easy to see that the attraction is still strong, and their feelings are still there. But both have changed a lot from their teenaged selves and they have to get to know each other again. I loved Bane's patience and how he showed her how he felt without pushing. There is also a deep vein of romanticism in him that is demonstrated by the letters he wrote and saved during the time he was gone. As they shared their feelings from the years they were apart, their love for each other became even stronger. I loved the ending and seeing Crystal confident enough in their love to handle his work as a SEAL. The Christmas Eve scene was great.

As always, the Westmoreland books have the theme of the importance of family. Though sometimes resentful of their interference when he was younger, Bane could always count on his family to be there for him. I loved seeing characters from the other branches of the family, as they came together to help. There was also more contact with the newly discovered branch, the Outlaws of Alaska. I'm really looking forward to reading their stories.

I only had a few minor quibbles with the book, which did not affect my enjoyment of the story too much. First, in the many mentions of Bane attending the Naval Academy, it was not properly capitalized. It is a proper name and should be. Second, the author also gave the impression that it was almost a training school for SEALs, as she said that when his shooting ability was discovered, strings were pulled to get him into the Academy. The Naval Academy is a four year college that educates men and women to be officers in the Navy and Marine Corps. SEAL training is done in Coronado, California. If Bane was nineteen at the time he joined the Navy, even if they sent him to the Academy immediately, it would have been four years until he graduated. Even if he was sent immediately to SEAL school, SEAL training takes another year. That takes care of the five years they were apart, without Bane ever going on a mission. It would have been better to leave the Academy out of the story entirely, and have him sent to SEAL school out of boot camp. Most people wouldn't know these details, so it wouldn't bother them, but it is an irritation to those that do.