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Hidden Love

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Nick's magnetism was overwhelming!

Infatuated, Rachel offered no resistance to Nick's seduction. Then he insisted she marry him--not because he loved her, but because of the result of his own unbridled passion. "No child of mine," he claimed, "is going to suffer for my mistakes. "

Their marriage, seeped in mistrust, was doomed from the start. Rachel refused to be a surrogate wife and fled before Nick could stop her....

And before her hungry, foolish heart told her to stay and fight for his love.

188 pages, Mass Market Paperback

First published December 10, 1982

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301 people want to read

About the author

Carole Mortimer

1,296 books907 followers
I have written almost 250 romance novels in contemporary and Regency.

I am a USA Today Bestselling Author and recipient of the 2015 RWA Lifetime Achievement Award. In 2014 I received a Pioneer of Romance Award from Romantic Times in the US and in 2012 I was recognised by Queen Elizabeth II for my 'outstanding service to literature'.

I am very happily married to Peter with six sons, and live on the Isle of Man

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5 stars
57 (15%)
4 stars
98 (26%)
3 stars
128 (35%)
2 stars
55 (15%)
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25 (6%)
Displaying 1 - 30 of 53 reviews
Profile Image for StMargarets.
3,217 reviews631 followers
March 15, 2018
Hidden Love: A play in five acts

The Players:
Heroine – TSL college student who lives with her parents and loves tennis, follows the matches at Wimbledon but doesn’t recognize the hero as a tennis player.
Hero – tennis player with anger control problems, good sportsmanship problems, drinking problems, aging out problems, communications problems.
OM – “boyfriend” who acts like he’s in junior high
OW - hero’s coach’s daughter
Sister – hero’s sister who is happily married and doesn’t seem to realize her brother is an ass with no manners.

Act I Love at First Sight?

Scene One – A London Park
Heroine – oh, look, that heavily pregnant woman looks like she’s in trouble.
OM – don’t care. Kiss me.
Heroine- what is wrong with you?
OM – can I touch your boob?
Heroine- I’m going to help her
OM- I’m going to break up with you and you’ll be sorry

Scene Two – A London Hospital
Sister – call this number. I’m going into labor
Heroine – no one answers
*Hours later*
Hero – you called?
Heroine- what kind of slimy husband doesn’t answer calls when he knows his wife is due to give birth?
Hero- I’m not the husband. I’m the brother.
Heroine- my bad.
Hero- go out to dinner with me?
Heroine- okay.

Scene Three – Heroine’s home, TV news is on.
Heroine – omg – that guy that won at Wimbeldon today is the hero! I can’t go out with him.

Scene Four – A London College
OM – *sixth grade taunts*
Hero – let’s go out.
Heroine – I can’t go out because you’re famous and I’m not
Hero – let’s drink, but I have to go to bed early since I’m in Wimbledon tomorrow.
Heroine – I’m underage
Hero – let’s make out in your parent’s living room
Heroine – Hi, mom!
Hero – come to Wimbledon tomorrow.
Heroine – okay.

Act Two – The Trap is Set

Scene One - Wimbledon
OW – I’m the OW and I’m going to take him from you
Heroine – okay. *runs away*

Scene Two – that night. Hero’s apartment.
Hero – F*ck! I lost. And you left because you think I’m a loser.
Heroine – no, but I can’t explain because I can’t say anything bad about the OW.
Hero - let’s drink.
Heroine – I want white wine.
Hero – I’ll drink half a bottle of whisky. Let’s go to bed.
Heroine – no - oh! My body is betraying me.
Hero – you were a virgin. You tried to trap me.
Heroine – what?
Hero – we have to get married because you might be pregnant.
Heroine – what?
Hero – I hate you for trapping me.

Act Three – The Trap

Scene One - wedding day.
OW – he hates you for trapping him.
Heroine – I know.

Scene Two - Hero's Apartment
Hero – I hate your for trapping me. *looks at watch* we have two days to have sex before I go to Boston and forget I know you.
Heroine – no – oh! My body is betraying me.
Hero –
Heroine – I can’t believe he left without telling me or that he didn’t leave me any money. I’ll just sit here and starve even though my parents live a taxi ride away.

Act Four – It’s All Over But the Crying
Profile Image for Naksed.
2,220 reviews
June 23, 2024
She is one of those TSTL-martyr heroines who protect the rude, scheming OW so they can go on with their rude, evil scheming some more. And hero is of course firmly on the side of his OW. Nope, not going down that route again.
Profile Image for Leona.
1,772 reviews18 followers
September 11, 2016
Giving it 2 stars for intensity, but the overall story just didn't work very well. Mostly due to the heroes logic.

* She's a virgin. He's drunk as a skunk and seduces her, but he makes her out to be a conniving bi#$ who wants to trap him into marriage?

* She goes ahead with the marriage, instead of finding a good lawyer to sue his sorry ass for harassment.

* She hides his child from him for two years, and he just sweeps it all under the rug without any regrets?

* The only interaction they have during their marriage is sexual. He treats her like a high paid call girl and she loves him?

Not my idea of romance.
Profile Image for Jasbell76.
286 reviews179 followers
May 23, 2015
Updated:
May/19/2015
There were sort of things I didn't like from the book. I wanted to give 2 stars because of hero's behaviour towards the heroine, but I rounded up in 3 stars.
It took me almost a month to finish this book. It was not because it was bad or any other reason, it was since I started it, I started to read other books, so I was postponing to finish this one ñ_ñ
Things I liked:
* Heroine left the hero for two years (he reserved it).
* Both main characters remained celibates during the separation.
* I felt/believe hero loved the heroine at the end.
Things I didn't like:
*Hero kissed in the mouth his couch's daughter three times in the whole book, and heroine saw him do that. I felt her pain :'(
Kiss #1 and #2 during hero and heroine's wedding, the evil other woman thought it was "her right" to congratulated him in front of the heroine u_u*
Kiss #3 the evil other woman kiss the hero when he won the finals of a tennis match and was receiving the throphy. Heroine saw that scene while she was watching him on TV.
What bothered me is that he never said sorry to her about those episodes, he hurt her! :/ At least he explained her Suzy was evil and manipulative, but I can't forgive him for that :S
I gave it 3 stars because the book was not boring, it was OK. Besides, the virgin heroine and the celibacy was a plus for me ;)
XX
Profile Image for Jenny.
3,160 reviews558 followers
July 11, 2013
Rachel meets and falls in lust with Nick. She likes him a lot but when she finds out he is a famous tennis player she is reluctant to date him. But the attraction is too strong. She has a one night stand with him and he insists she marries him not because he loves her but because she might be pregnant.

Their marriage is so full of mistrust that it becomes very easy for the evil other woman to tear them apart. Nick is often away with OW, being a busy tennis player and all and the evil OW calls Rachel and convinces her she and Nick are lovers. Nick asks Rachel to join him in his trips but she refuses thinking he is a cheater. Angry and confused she sells their story to the press. When Nick finds out he is bitter and hurt and Rachel flees without telling him she is pregnant.

Fantastic story! I even loved all the secondary characters, the heroine's parents and best friend and the hero's sister were all amazing. Their baby boy Matthew was cute and adorable. The evil other woman was a malicious bitch so I was glad to know the hero never slept with her. The tension between Rachel and Nick is delicious and the chemistry sizzling. Both are stubborn and feisty, but both are equally insecure with valid reasons and I couldn't help but care for them. I wanted to slap these two and yell at them to stop speculating and just talk to each other but I loved them all the same!
Profile Image for Chantal ❤️.
1,361 reviews912 followers
December 9, 2015
Wow really she was a virgin and because she slept with him she was plotting to trap him? How exactly? I did not really understand how after getting his own he thought she was like his mother??? Really and the whole having a baby in secret thing although he deserved to be miserable she was a strong character eventually. Good for her leaving his sorry ass. She was worth more ten of him. I did however enjoye the story.
Profile Image for Jacqueline J.
3,565 reviews371 followers
September 6, 2018
I loved it for the crazy. The story hung together just enough to keep my disbelief at bay. He was pretty whackadoodle so he worked for me. She was a poor innocent who just couldn’t resist him. The ending though, now that was different. That’s why I’m putting it on my good grovel shelf.

I could totally see this redone as a modern contemporary or even new adult.
Profile Image for Margo.
2,114 reviews130 followers
May 29, 2020
I am somewhat flabbergasted by this one. The H is cold and cruel and the h is miserable with him. They have zero communication and the OW and the H's idiocy combine to destroy things. Nothing new there, really. Then a 2-year separation, a secret baby, and the H figures she has finally maybe forgiven him for his cruelty, so he approaches her, gets the impression that the secret baby is actually her boyfriend, leaves in a huff, then returns, hat in hand, to say humbly that she can keep her boyfriend if he'll just take her back -- they were separated and she is young, and he was no saint before they hooked up. (He hasn't been with anyone else since he met her, even during the separation.) I think the "letting her keep her boyfriend as a side piece" is a new one for me.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
Profile Image for *CJ*.
5,105 reviews626 followers
July 9, 2017
"Hidden Love" is an old Harlequin romance between Rachel and Nick.
When Rachel rescues a pregnant woman on a day in her college park, she never expects that she'd end up meeting her adopted brother Nick, who she later finds out is a tennis superstar, enter in a whirlwind romance and end up married to him.
This book has all the classic elements including an alpha jealous hero, a bitchy other woman, loads of misunderstandings, time leap and a secret baby- but this time the parents are supportive and the characters are non vindictive (except the ow).
Really enjoyed this one.
Safe
4/5
Profile Image for Diya✨.
246 reviews12 followers
July 28, 2019
The guy was pretty desperate and on his knees we when he was begging to have her back and he was willing to share her with another man! As grovels go it was good for the way he treated her deserved to be in agony.

Seriously it didn’t make sense hiding the child while still being married. Gripping read non the less.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
105 reviews3 followers
April 13, 2018
I guess the title is appropriate because the love between the hero and heroine is hidden so deep that you can't find it even when you get to the end of the book.

I didn't like the hero or the heroine. It started off fine with the heroine saving the hero's sister at a difficult time and the hero pursuing her for a date.

Then it turned weird when the hero decided he HAD TO marry the heroine because they had unprotected sex, as if morning after pills and pregnancy tests aren't available.

There is another woman who causes trouble. The hero and heroine both know she's a troublemaker but they let her run wild even still.

Then it goes horrible in the last quarter of the book with the heroine deciding she will leave the hero without telling him she's pregnant. For a guy who was obsessed with making sure his kid has a father for the majority of the book, the hero takes the final reveal very calmly.

All in all, the story wasn't great and nor were the characters. The writing was good. Skip it if you want a good story.
Profile Image for Missy.
918 reviews20 followers
August 10, 2017
A good older HP.

Rachel is one of those nice people that see someone in distress and offers her help. Not realizing that the lady about to give birth is super star tennis stud Nick's sister. She is overwhelmed by his looks and experience in seduction, soon finds herself enamored by him and then maybe pregnant. Nick not wanting any child of his born out of wedlock forces her into marriage. He can't forget that he was caught by the oldest trick in the book and makes her life miserable. Poor young Rachel has no idea how to handle him to makes their lives happy. So she lies and leaves him.

Very moving read.
Profile Image for Tia.
Author 10 books141 followers
November 29, 2012
Definitely another great novel. I love that this was an older pregnancy type novel. I thought Nick was an asshole for most of the novel but he obviously really loved Rachel in the long run, he was just a fool.
Profile Image for Roub.
1,112 reviews63 followers
November 21, 2012
the hero was a total jerk !! he took advantage of the heroine not the other way around !! she was only 18 yrs old. yet i enjoyed the read
Profile Image for May.
95 reviews
September 30, 2020
Congratulations, I read a book that somehow furthered my depression, it was so bad I had to finish it.

I love wasting my time 😀.
Profile Image for Tatiana Stefan.
263 reviews22 followers
May 18, 2016
3.75 stars, August 30, 2008

MY THOUGHTS: I took out 1.25 stars because the hero, Nick, was a bit of a bastard! SPOILERS ALERT. The story is Rachel, 18, helps a pregnant woman who is giving birth early. The woman turns out to be the hero's sister. I kinda missed how old Nick was but earlier in the book Rachel think he looks late 20's/early 30's. Of course, they are attracted to each other and if I'm not mistaken after 3 days they sleep together. And its after the deed that Nick turns into a bastard. I know bastard is a harsh word but he was just so mean to her! Supposedly, Nick is pissed off because he thought Rachel was experienced (she was a virgin) and he thinks that she is trying to trap him in to marriage with a possible child. Ok, so Nick does have a reason for being a bastard - he was an adopted child and supposedly his evil mother tried to trap his rich biological father when she got pregnant with Nick. It didn't work and at three years old, Nick's mother gives him up for adoption since she had no use for him anymore. Oh by the way, Nick is a world renowned, rich, famous tennis player. Of course we also have our villain, Suzy and man she was SUCH a bitch and caused a lot of trouble between them! Thankfully, Nick never slept with her yay! So throughout the marriage Nick would keep throwing accusations at Rachel, etc. etc. just basically mentally, emotionally hurting her. Of course, they both couldn't deny their bodies desires, so that wasn't a problem 0_0 I guess if I tried to look closely I could sorta see that Nick needs/loves Rachel, but you gotta REALLY pay close attention, sheesh.. And for the life of me, I don't know why Rachel discovered that she loved him while Nick was treating her so cruelly. As for Rachel, I applaud her. Even though she was young, she was a bit feisty and in some instances, held her own with Nick. Unfortunately, she didnt hold her own with that evil villain, Suzy. Rachel was even to strong enough to walk out on her marriage (yep, she did!) Since Harlequin Presents have a designated 188 pages, they skipped the two years were they were separated. Yeah, Rachel and Nick got separated for two years, and Rachel had Nick's child - of course, Nick doesn't know. But during this time, Nick finally grows up, and realizes he truly loves and misses Rachel and asks her back. Thankfully, Nick does a bit of groveling and even throws away all his pride and says he is willing to share Rachel with her other man, Matthew, wink wink. I'm sure you can guess who Matthew is. Anyway, thats good cause I dislike those romance novels where the hero is such a super bastard and the heroine just takes him back immediately or the hero doesn't even bother super duper trying to ask for her forgiveness, etc. etc. Anyway, I obviously liked the book since this is such a long review, but took of a few points because of the mean hero. =P
Profile Image for Azet.
1,095 reviews284 followers
October 31, 2017
I have re-read this book several ten times this last year.
"Hidden Love" was my first book by Carole,and one that truly stole my heart.

Nicholas St Clair is a rich lawyer and famous tennisplayer who falls in love with the beautiful college student Rachel James and in a great misunderstanding,he also forces her to marry.

I love how their journey together starts,i knew that Nick loves her very much and i was happy for her to fight for her husbands love.But when he hurt her too much she had to give up,and she left him.
They separate for two years...and Nick comes back.

Nick Nick Nick...God how i just hated to LOVE him.He loved her too much and he hurt her too much.He has changed to a better man when he comes back for her and my heart nearly broke when he thought that she already has a lover she loves,and when he said that he would be willing to share her,if it is the only way to be with her...OH He simply couldn`t live without her!
Profile Image for Lovemesomelove.
57 reviews5 followers
September 11, 2016
The Hero was an ass. The only thing that redeemed him in the end was when he put his pride on hold when he thought she loved another man and said "if the only way he could have her was to share her then he would." For a prideful man to get to that point yep he can get a second chance.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
Profile Image for Debby.
1,389 reviews25 followers
January 30, 2022
This is a nice romantic story with some funny bits in it as well. Well written and enjoyable to read.

What I especially like, is that Carole Mortimer has put some variety in this romance. This H is not only blonde (which is unusual for a H), he is also a famous tennis player, so something else than the usual business man or lawyer. And the h has long dark brown hair which is different from the stereotype blonde h with shoulder length hair.

I take one star off the rating though. A 30-year old experienced man blaming an 18-year old virgin girl that she didn’t use birth control, while he himself hasn’t taken any precautionary measures either, is just too silly.

And the second reason for one star off: I don’t understand why she agreed to marry him. He wasn’t blackmailing her with anything, he didn’t threaten her with anything. He was only bullying her that she might be pregnant.

She felt embarrassed in front of her parents, but she had been thinking that morning that her parents loved her and would support her if she were pregnant. So there was no real motive for the h to give in to his demand.

Many things she did, I find unexplainable, like talking to a reporter, like telling him lies, like protecting the OW.

Still 4 stars.
527 reviews
February 15, 2012
This was quite good for most of the story, then the ending lost a star for me. The two years of no contact was unjustifiable -- 2 weeks or months would have been believable, but 2 years with absolutely no contact given how they'd left things was not. Their separation was just too quick and casual for there to be no further discussion for two years. I also found the hero's concession at the end -- -- over the top -- I'm all for a totally smitten hero and lots of groveling, but that was a level of abasement that even doormat-heroines of this genre wouldn't stoop to. Still, most of this book was compelling emotionally, so I still gave it 4 stars.
Profile Image for RomLibrary.
5,789 reviews
April 13, 2019
A ring to claim his heir. Completely infatuated with successful pro-tennis player Nick St. Clare, Rachel offers no resistance to his sinful seduction. But when their unbridled passion results in a pregnancy, Nick insists that Rachel marry him—no heir of his will be without a father!
Rachel knows their marriage is one of convenience, yet the incendiary heat between them still burns bright! But with Nick off traveling the world, how can she convince her husband that there's more to their marriage than just a baby?
604 reviews6 followers
September 13, 2016
Miscommunication, misunderstandings between them and the way the ploys of other woman works so easily is unbelievable as well as very frustrating. Still not bad reading.
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