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Remington Family #1

Wife for a Day

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Millionaire rancher Jack Remington hadn't expected trouble when he flew to Palm Beach for his sister's engagement ball. But his girlfriend called it quits and now his sister is anxious to meet the woman who's captured his heart. Then, a beguiling, flame-haired enchantress breezes into his hotel room with a tux and a seductive smile, and Jack's sure his troubles have come to an end. All he has to do is hire the beautiful tailor to be his fiancee—for just one night. Samantha Jones is sure the sexy cowboy is out of his ever—lovin' mind. She's never been to a ball, never worn a fancy gown, and has no idea how to act like a socialite. She can't possibly pose as his wife-to-be. But trouble's been following Sam for too many months and the money Jack's offering is something she can't refuse. There's only one problem—their pretend kisses make her feel something very real—and there's the possibility that just one night will never be enough.

384 pages, Mass Market Paperback

First published January 1, 1999

17 people are currently reading
704 people want to read

About the author

Patti Berg

31 books67 followers
Always a romantic, Patti Berg spent her childhood dreaming about being whisked away by a knight in shining armor, a devil-may-care swashbuckler, s sheik on a shiny black stallion, or a broad-shouldered cowboy with a Stetson tilted low on his brow. Now she spends her days making up stories where her heroes do whatever she wants them to.
Patti lives in Northern California with her husband, Rob.

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5 stars
277 (24%)
4 stars
405 (36%)
3 stars
320 (28%)
2 stars
77 (6%)
1 star
32 (2%)
Displaying 1 - 30 of 39 reviews
Profile Image for Linda (NOT RECEIVING NOTIFICATIONS).
1,905 reviews328 followers
October 16, 2013
After reading several books recently with heavier subject lines I was ready for a light romance. WIFE FOR A DAY fit the bill. Samantha 'Sam' Jones is a sweetheart of a lady who was also homeless. She had the best of intentions but her naive judgment of people was her downfall. At the start of this romance, she owes a loan shark several thousand dollars before interest and needs to earn some money fast.

Enter Jack Remington who needs a tux altered. Sam completes the job expecting a big tip when Jack proposes an even better deal: pose as his fiancee while the two of them attend his sister's engagement party. She considers telling him 'no' until he sweetens the pot. Sam wants to pay off her loan ASAP so she agrees.

Over the next several weeks this couple will hook up again several times in between Jack returning to his ranch in Wyoming to meet his long-lost son. I am leaving out quite a bit but if you are looking for two people who need each other, it is Jack and Sam.

This romance will require you to suspend your disbelief with a few situations. And, yes, there are some minor editing issues but you can't help but like Sam. She is the 4As: attractive, appealing, agreeable (for the most part) and amiable. Jack is rich and good-looking but comes across somewhat crusty. Slow to trust, Sam manages to get under his skin. And this is in a good way.

Take this for what it is, a light and easy read. I enjoyed this book because there was no deep thinking. I was looking for something gentle with a spark, had some good sexual tension and was entertaining at the same time. WIFE FOR A DAY met my needs.
Profile Image for Robin.
1,982 reviews98 followers
October 6, 2015
Millionaire Rancher Jack Remington is in West Palm Beach to attend an engagement ball for his sister, Lauren. He was supposed to introduce his girlfriend to Lauren, but Arabella broke off their relationship two hours before the party. Knowing his sister wants to see him settle down, he asks Samantha Jones to pretend to be Arabella. Samantha was in Jack's suite to tailor his new suit, not to date him. She just lost her job, is living in her car, and really needs a good tip from Jack. When he tells Sam he will give her $1,000 to go to the ball, she jumps at the chance. She doesn't like posing as Arabella or deceiving Lauren, but her life is in jeopardy if she doesn't come up with the money soon.

This is a cute, light contemporary romance. Jack and Sam are immediately attracted to each other. The sexual tension is substantial. This book is full of great characters, including Lauren, Jack's neurotic sister, and Beau, his estranged son. My rating: 4 Stars.
Profile Image for Adrienne.
156 reviews44 followers
March 11, 2014
I really enjoyed this book. i enjoyed the depth and back story for each character.
Profile Image for Mancho283.
443 reviews
August 21, 2014
สนุก น่ารักดี เนื้อเรื่องอ่านเบาๆ สบายๆ เดาทางได้ แต่เราก็ว่าน่ารักดี สงสัยไม่ได้อ่านแนวนี้มานานพอหยิบมาอ่านแล้วรู้สึกชอบจัง
765 reviews2 followers
August 19, 2017
I would give this 3.5 stars if I could. This book was charming and realistic in the way that the characters communicated with each other. It was especially endearing that the main characters just decided to talk like adults all be it with some rope involved and speak plainly rather then ignoring or dancing around their feelings like many other books. Even the supporting characters were realistic in that they didn't immediately fall in love with Sam when they met her but acted like prickly old men that learn to respect good person.
488 reviews
August 5, 2018
Two things. One, can I just say that it drives me crazy when a book's title has nothing to do with what happens in the book? And two, I know there's something to be said for the build up that leads to the two protags finally becoming intimate & consummating their attraction/love, but why would a writer wait until page 311 (in a book that's 376 pages long) to write the first sex scene? Even though this book was written in 1999, there should be no excuse for keeping the reader in suspense that long!
1,146 reviews5 followers
September 27, 2018
I liked Jack and Samantha's back story. Both had issues with regard to loss. Samantha's mom had some serious issues (she was prostitute). Jack lost his teenage sweetheart (who was pregnant) after an auto accident. They were 16. The girlfriends grandparents felt he could not raise his and ended up with custody of the child. I like this book and will seek out other Patti Berg books.
Profile Image for Kelly.
1,655 reviews47 followers
May 12, 2020
I have read so many crime novels recently that I wanted something light and airy to break up the death, murder and all round doom. 'Wife for a Day' was the epitome of light and airy with a simple plot, well-written characters and some genuinely funny banter. It was obvious and so cheesy that you could smell Parmesan if you wafted the pages but I read the whole thing in 2 hours.
Profile Image for Amana Shahid  Ullah.
299 reviews5 followers
August 21, 2021
I actually read this a long time ago so my memory's a little hazy in the details. All I remember is that I loved it, but I'm willing to read it again and refresh my memory.
Profile Image for Olena.
84 reviews36 followers
May 28, 2014
http://mycosyreads.blogspot.com/2014/...

I'm not a big fan of such books. They are too predictable and boring for me. But from time to time I can pick one - to get my brain some rest and to refresh my English knowledge (I usually read these books in English, not with translation). But this one I liked.
Basically, it is a story of a Cinderella. In our time. There are lots of books and movies like that, but there were something charmingly realistic about this book that I fell for it. Or maybe that's writing that caught me. Anyways here I am sipping my tea and writing this review instead of reading something else.
It's quite interesting how you like the main characters. I mean, there's a great chance you'll fall for them, they aren't that stereptypical. They are more like an average people with their problems. Of course the romance and everything was very predictable, but not so boring as I expected. But somehow I turned the pages really quickly, I was totally hooked and read it in one breath.
Whilst having a man handling her problems Sam manages staying really feministic which I like. She tries her best to manage all by herself and depends only on her own power, that's good model for modern fairy tales. And Jack, he is totally got it. He treats women as they deserve that. Not so protective and not indifferent. Unrealistic type of a man, I guess. Then there are a bunch of different characters you'd not manage to even distinguish - they all are rather flat. But hey, that's chic lit. It's not supposed to be very Ulysses-like at all.
If you like romantic stories - go for it. If you like nice romantic stories - go for it. If you want to spend your time with a pleasant book - totally go for it.
In general, the book is good and light.
Profile Image for Dianne.
1,850 reviews158 followers
June 22, 2012

This may seem like one of those books that takes a snobby millionaire and puts him in an almost impossible situation with a blue-collar (or lower)woman. But of course the situation is of his own doing. And you would expect that what would drive the story would be his inability to understand the woman's way of life or the woman's inability to meld with the snobs friends and such. But as far as this book goes you would be wonderfully wrong!

What this is, is a story in which the man Jack, needs a woman to impersonate his fiance for one night, since his real one just broke up with him. Of course some feelings come of that one night but go no farther. Yet Jack can't seem to get Samantha out of his mind. Even more so when his sister meets up with Samantha, forcing Sam to keep up pretenses much to Jacks chagrin.

A side story is one of Jack's son whom he gave up 16 years ago hitchhiking his way across the country to see if Jack is the SOB he thinks his Dad is.

This is a truly sweet love story, low (not non-existent!)on the explicit sexual escapades and high on a relationship driven plot. The characters a fairly well drawn and might be ones that I would count as my friends were they real. Well except for Jacks sister Lauren, but I think she is drawn this way to give more of a contrast to Jack. the setting is brought to life by Ms Bergs fun style of writing.
Profile Image for Jade.
71 reviews36 followers
June 22, 2016
The first time I read this book, I have a vague recollection that I really liked it. It didn't stand up as well to a re-reading. I didn't hate it the second time around, but I was a bit at a loss as to why I remembered liking it so much.

The characters - main and supporting - are all okay. I can't say I fell in love with them (or can even remember their names at this point). But I didn't dislike them, and that isn't always the case. The plot is, okay, a little contrived, but a lot of plots in this genre are, so I'm generally fairly forgiving of that.

It was a little strange that the loan shark plot was such a huge part of the first half or so, but then it seemed to kind of fizzle out. I thought that either needed a more satisfactory resolution, or she should have just told him about her predicament a lot sooner.

It's a fairly light read. If you want something to pass the time that you'll probably forget a couple hours later, this book isn't a bad one to grab. That said, I don't think I would bother reading it a third time.
Profile Image for Kiki.
95 reviews
August 29, 2014
I hated the heroine. She was all over the place, and I couldn't make any sense of her.

The book starts with her stealing a sewing/borrowing machine from her old boss so she could do a tailoring job because she is desperate for a tip to pay off a loan shark. Then when Jack opens the door and is in a bit of a mood for very understandable reasons, which she over hears, she decides for reasons that I never understood the job wasn't going to end in a tip anyway and blasts him with unneccessary verbal nonsense, which was crazy since she desperately needs the money.

Most of her responses to things just felt off and weird.

And dont get me started on the nickname 'Whiskey'. It never rang true and was not cute, no matter what his sister thought. It sounded forced like so much of this book.
Profile Image for Abi.
38 reviews18 followers
August 30, 2016
I bought this at a library sale when I was in 7th grade because I thought the title sounded interesting. I didn't read it until I was in 8th grade. I did enjoy the premise of this book and the plot was very interesting, but I felt that the relationship between the Jack and Samantha was insta-love. When I bought this book, I didn't know that it was an adult book. It was very unfortunate that I came across some sex scenes as a 13-year-old, but nonetheless, I did enjoy the book. This was probably the first adult books I ever read and I can say that I will try to read more adult because this book was interesting to read. But I definitely recommend this book for people who is new or already loves adult romance. This book has a very original plot and story.


2.5*
Profile Image for Jen.
289 reviews34 followers
July 28, 2011
First of all, who has an engagement ball? Haha, I think I’m a little like Samantha and would have no idea how to be a socialite! Although Samantha is full of spice and sass and she can definitely hold her own in any situation! She is a great character and I easily grew to love her.

Jack is used to getting his own way and in walks Samantha who challenges him at every turn. Can she put up with his stubborn ways and can he handle her strong will? You’ll have to read the book to find out ;-)
Profile Image for Bunga.
678 reviews13 followers
September 20, 2015
Agak koboi-koboian ini, soalnya si Hero pengusaha ranch yang kaya raya. Dan temanya Cinderella-story like, dengan Heroine yg miskin dan hidupnya terlunta-lunta lalu disulap jadi tunangan pengusaha kaya. Saya suka sama keteguhan hati si Heroine yang kuat banget hidup sendirian dan berjuang keras bisa bertahan.
Profile Image for Caro.
1,776 reviews42 followers
November 28, 2011
I really liked this book. It has humor, tragedy, love, anger and all of them where brought across well. I would definitely read this book again. It's staying on my bookshelf and out of my boxes. Enjoy
Profile Image for Di.
115 reviews3 followers
May 3, 2008
I started this book at 9pm and finished it the same night. I was cute. It read like a movie. Cute
Profile Image for Betsy.
45 reviews
August 9, 2008
Horrible. Probably not Berg's fault though; I blame the entire genre.
Profile Image for marissa.
9 reviews
November 1, 2012
Nice happy romance. Just what I was expecting and wanted. Perfect salve for blackout related mental wounds. I have a great endorsement for this book,"IT HELPED ME SURVIVE HURRICANE SANDY!!!"
Profile Image for Natalia.
146 reviews
June 21, 2010
It was a nice light read for a summer's day relaxing on my back deck.
Profile Image for Evelyn.
14 reviews3 followers
April 22, 2011
A little slow at the beginning but it pulled me in - great book!
Profile Image for Gina.
80 reviews
June 16, 2013
This was an easy, mildly smutty, summer read. I enjoyed the main and side stories. While the end was tied up nicely with a bow, it still left me wondering what will happen next.
Profile Image for Nicole.
8 reviews7 followers
July 9, 2013
was very good and funny I loved it.
Displaying 1 - 30 of 39 reviews

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