The Bachelor Contract

Van Dyken weaves a rich tapestry of love, loss, and redemption in her tear-jerking third Bachelors of Arizona contemporary (after The Bachelor Auction and The Playboy Bachelor), the best installment yet. Brooding widower Brant Wellington uses whiskey and willing women to quiet his grief over the deaths of his second wife and their son. He’s jolted out of that pattern when he comes face to face with his ex-wife, Nikki, who carries her own pain from the death of a child and a fire that left Nikki nearly blind. She’s trying to rebuild her life while working as a massage therapist at a posh resort. When Brant shows up on her massage table, they can’t deny that the old spark is still there, but it seems impossible that they could let go of the past and forge a future. Van Dyken surrounds her superbly drawn couple with a cast of lovable supporting characters, especially Nikki’s protective best friend, Cole, and the outrageous elderly Nadine. The characters’ raw emotions will leave readers awash in heartbreak and hope. (Dec.)