He was there the night her father was murdered, though Caroline McGuire never knew it. And he watched her grow into womanhood, her silent, secret protector. But bodyguard David Wolfe was forced out of hiding when he discovered a killer on Caroline's trail. Now, as he stood by her side, he was helpless to shield her from his passion.For sweet Caroline was no longer an orphaned child in need of safekeeping, but a vulnerable, beautiful woman aching for love. A love the rugged loner longed to give her -- if only he could. For claiming Caroline would mean revealing his secret role in her sheltered life. But would the truth tear them apart forever?
Beverly Marie Inman was born on 23 December 1946 in Tuscumbia, Alabama, USA. Daughter of Doris Marie and Walter D. Inman Jr. A born romantic, she fell in love with The Beauty and the Beast epic at an early age, when her grandfather bought her an illustrated copy of the famous fairy tale. Even before she learned to read and write, her vivid imagination created magical words and fabulous characters inside her mind. Movies fascinated her, and by the time she was seven she was rewriting the movies she saw on television and at the local theater to give them all happy endings. By the age of nine she'd penned her first novel. She wrote short stories, TV scripts, poetry, and novels throughout high school and into college.
After her marriage to Billy Ray Beaver, the "love of her life", and the births of her two children, Beverly continued to be a voracious reader and a devoted moviegoer, but she put her writing aspirations on hold until her children were teenagers. At every age of their lives, from infancy to adulthood, the children had been a true joy to her. She devoted herself to her husband and children and considered herself one of the many selfless "supermoms" who put their family's needs first. She believed she had had it all, just not all at the same time.
In her mid-30s, Beverly returned to her former passion — writing — as a hobby, but before 40, she decided that she wanted to make writing a full-time career. And when she rediscovered an old dream — of becoming a published writer — no one was more supportive of her aspirations than her family. Her children were her greatest cheerleaders and her husband was her biggest supporter. After writing over 40 books and receiving numerous awards and nominations, as well as having books on the USA Today list and consistently on the Waldenbooks bestseller list, her career was indeed a dream come true. Having a fantastic family and fabulous friends, as well as making a living doing the one thing she had loved doing since childhood, she considered herself truly blessed. Beverly died suddenly of heart failure on 21 April 2011.
Synopsis: As a child, heroine sees step-dad's killer. Over the years, a mysterious benefactor - reportedly an friend of her step-dad takes care of the child, anonymously providing money and gifts and encouragement as she grows up. Heroine's life is threatened, so the mysterious benefactor comes out of hiding and is hired on incognito as her bodyguard. As she's grown up, he's fallen in love with her. He protects her as she solves the mystery of who killed her beloved step-dad. You can see why he would be a little conflicted about helping her solve this particular mystery right?
SPOILER: The killer is the mysterious benefactor. Turns out, step-dad was a bad guy, was involved with traitors and was executed by his own employers. The killer felt so bad about the child being the one to find the body, that his conscience insisted that he `pay' for it by watching over the child throughout her life.
Synopsis Cont. There is a wonderful cast of characters and friends who surround the heroine. She has this awesome business of being like an Anne Geddes - a world famous photographer. The mystery doesn't have a lot of room to maneuver, BUT you don't know who the traitors are until the end. It literally could be any of her close friends. You aren't even sure it's a guy until almost the end of the book.
I LOVED the interplay of romance between the sub-characters, the heroine's cousin - the minister and her assistant/friend the chick that sleeps around. It was so nice to see someone sticking up for what they believe. When the minister refused to take what was offered and sleep with the assistant I was soooo relieved. SPOILER: At the end, minister and the assistant were married, with a set of twin girls and very happy and in love. That sub-plot helped me push this book into the 5 star area.
I LOVED LOVED the scene where the heroine seduced the hero/bodyguard with her.... camera. No, not with nuddie pics, but with the pure art and joy of photography. The photography scene was flawless and affirming.
This is far better than your average Silhouette book. Give it whirl.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
I really enjoyed this book. The set up was pretty different. The book starts when she is 12 and they meet under less than auspicious circumstances, then picks up 15 years later when she is in danger and he is brought in as her bodyguard. Minor spoiler, happens in the first 20 pages or so but I'll hide it if you don't want to know
He is a very very closed off man, tortured by his past. The only thing he cares about is her but he knows they can't be together. It's quite angsty. She is nicely written as a woman who has overcome a lot and has herself together. She is not a wimp but neither is she one of those super strong bitchy types. Very lady like but determined to live her life as close to normal as possible even with someone out to get her as she tries to solve her stepfather's murder.
The romance is the major factor here although the mystery is not neglected. It was a teeny tiny bit hokey but the romance was so strong that that was easily forgiven.