REVIEW BY: Christie

TITLE: The Cattle Baron’s Bogus Boyfriend

SERIES: Dreamspun Desires #10

AUTHOR: Nicki Bennett

PUBLISHER: Dreamspinner Press

LENGTH: 216 pages

RELEASE DATE: May 15, 2016

BLURB:

It might be a sham to his boss, but it’s all too real to him.

Administrative assistant Jonah Hollis has nurtured a hopeless crush on his boss, millionaire cattle rancher Lincoln Courtwright, ever since he started working for him.

But hope is kindled when Linc and beautiful rodeo star Melissa Cutler break up just weeks before the biggest event

of the Dallas social season, the Cattle Baron’s Ball, and Linc asks Jonah to accompany him in her place.

Is it all a ploy to make Melissa jealous? Can Jonah fit into Linc’s world? It takes some encouragement from his roommates and his best friend, Caylee, for Jonah to agree.

Before long, Jonah dares to believe Linc might just feel something for him… until interfering family and a series of misunderstandings threaten his fragile dream of happiness.

REVIEW:

The Cattle Baron’s Bogus Boyfriend is a very sweet, quick read that I found hard to put down. It had just the right amount of drama, spiced with some lovely chemistry between Jonah and Linc.

Also, it was fairly relateable; for me, at least. Honestly, who hasn’t had at least one job where they had a crush on their boss? I’m totally alone on this, aren’t I? Oh boy… Well then, moving on!

Jonah is a small town Oklahoma farm boy who moved to Dallas, TX after coming out to his parents, in order to spread his wings and avoid narrowminded townies. Shortly after his move, he meets Wes, who turns out to be in need of a roommate. Things definitely start looking up for Jonah as he makes fast friends with Wes and their neighbors Aidan and Sammy.

Then, he lands a job as administrative assistant to Lincoln Courtwright. The very sexy, environmentally conscious, millionaire cattle rancher, who is completely out of his league, Lincoln Courtwright, might I say. And, if Linc’s girlfriend Melissa is any indicator: straight. *queue long lovelorn sigh of unrequited love* We all know that sigh, don’t we?

Linc ends up breaking things off with Melissa, after a mini tantrum she throws (right in front of Jonah, no less) when a surprise visit to the office doesn’t go as she expected. Which gives Linc more free time to do what he does, including spend more time with Jonah. Linc starts taking Jonah on business lunches and dinners between the two of them, to the great delight and encouragement of Wes, Aidan, and Sammy. Then, Jonah accepts an invitation to visit Linc’s ranch (apparently this invitation has been frequently made, but always turned down), and he gets to really spend some one on one time with his delicious boss. While there, Jonah meets Ford, the ranch foreman and Linc’s best friend, along with the rest of the ranch hands and ends up receiving a standing invitation to come back any time he’d like. Good deal, right? Anyway, Jonah ends up being invited to the Cattle Rancher’s Ball (think prom, but for the illustrious elite) by Linc, a couple weeks after his visit to the ranch; and after some encouragement from his friends agrees to go.

The problem is that Jonah’s not sure whether he was invited to the ball in order to punish Melissa for being such a witch and to make her jealous, or if there’s real feeling behind it (tho he sure does hope it’s the latter). Throw in a dose of conniving dowageresque stepmother in the form of Linc’s deceased father’s wife, Jonah’s mom who has been bemoaning his homosexuality and keeps telling him that he should be with his best friend Caylee instead of men, and said best friend with a host of complications that have such a profound impact on them both, that they can change the course of Jonah’s life, forever dooming him to a world of empty contentment and without the man he has fallen head over heels in love with.

I recommend picking up this book and finding out for yourself. This was my first Nicki Bennett book, and it certainly won’t be the last. Jonah’s naivete was cute, and Linc’s stealth dating was pretty suave, if you ask me.

RATING:

BUY LINKS:

Dreamspinner Press

Amazon