Slow Hand

Historical romance author Vane (Jewel of the East) takes a detour into contemporary settings with this red-hot cowboy tale. Wade Knowlton and Nicole Powell first meet briefly in the Denver airport, after he gallantly gives up his seat to her on an overbooked flight. When Nikki arrives in Montana to attend to her recently deceased father’s funeral, she realizes she’s lost her wallet and calls the lawyer handling her father’s affairs—who turns out to be Wade. While waiting for her replacement ID and credit cards, Nikki’s forced to stay in the small town. She starts falling for the handsome cowboy lawyer, and their sexual chemistry crackles, but Nikki’s given up cowboys after a string of awful relationships with them. How can Wade break through Nikki’s defenses and convince her that happy-ever-after actually does exist—especially after a conniving old flame of his appears on the scene? Well-paced, scorching scenes and witty banter move the story along while setting the stage for Wade’s war-hero brother to find his own true love in the next installment. Agent: Jessica Alvarez, BookEnds. (Nov.)