Cattleman's Bride-to-Be (Silhouette Special Edition Series #1457)

Cattleman's Bride-To-Be - Lois Faye Dyer Four years after they breakup, heroine asks Hero to be tested for bone marrow compatibility with her sickly half-sister. Confirmation that heroine’s half-sister is also his blood relation serves to bring them closer to each other since Hero insists on being a continual presence in his newly-found half-sister’s life. Their past r/s is dredged up which makes Hero account for how he treated heroine 4 years ago. Will the truth be enough to make her trust him with her heart again?

The Hero in this book is 1 of those false martyrs. He sacrificed his own freedom & happiness by marrying his brother’s pregnant on-off lover because he wanted his brother to have a stress-free marriage to his then-fiancee/now-wife. The problems with this are that:
1. it shows that Hero loved his brother much more than heroine who he’s been dating for a month & who gave her virginity to him.
2. Hero callously dropped heroine a couple days after the only time they had sex & didn’t think he owed her the truth about why he was marrying the OW (Other Woman).
3. his brother didn’t ask Hero to help him re: his ex-lover. In fact, his brother had no clue that he got his ex-lover pregnant & that she bore his son. Hero never gave his brother a chance to solve his own dilemma. And he never gave him a chance to get to know his own son.
4. it makes Hero look disloyal to his brother. It must’ve disturbed his brother to find out that Hero must’ve cheated with his ex-girlfriend(OW) due to the baby’s due date.
He also was going to forego his 2nd chance with willing heroine because he didn’t think he’d be a good husband & father. This “sacrifice” would’ve made sense if he actually had a real 1st marriage but he didn’t so this insecurity was pretty unfounded to me.

Heroine was TSTL(too stupid to live). She was more upset that Hero dumped her after their 1 night together than finding out that Hero had another woman on the side while they were dating & who he got pregnant & was now marrying. Heroine stayed away from other men for 4 years after Hero dumping her so cruelly. Yet she didn’t put up much resistance to Hero’s seduction. In fact, it was Hero who limited their intimacy the 1st few times b/c of his guilty conscience. Heroine would’ve had sex with him right away if it wasn’t for Hero stopping their foreplay. I don't like heroines like her who don't have much respect for themselves & who will let Hero set the pace for their r/s.

Aside from their sexual chemistry, there’s not much health with this couple. But I could see an HEA(happily ever after) but it’s one with lots of sacrificing, insecurities, & constantly reassuring each other that they're still ok. Ugh.

Minimally recommended.