Series: Bourbon Brothers (Book 1)
Falling for the boss, or taking him down?
Savannah Carlisle had the perfect plan. By infiltrating
the Abbott family's Tennessee bourbon empire as their events manager, she'd be
one step closer to claiming half of the business they stole from her
grandfather. Now she's not so sure. Because sexy Blake Abbott, heir to it all,
is simply intoxicating. He's supposed to be the enemy. But after one long,
stormy weekend, she's pregnant with his child…
Their grandfather raised Savannah and her sister after
their parents died in a tragic fire. Finances were tight and Savannah grew up
listening to her grandfather talk about how his moonshine partner cheated him.
Joe Abbott went on to found the wildly successful King's Finest Bourbon
Distillery, while Martin McDowell was poor and bitter.
Savannah is determined to find the proof necessary for
her grandfather to claim half the business. The perfect opportunity arises when
she is hired as the new event planner for the distillery. All she needs to do
is keep under the radar until she discovers the truth. Having grown up hearing
about how terrible the Abbotts are, Savannah doesn't expect the intense
attraction she feels for Blake Abbott.
Blake has buried himself in his work since the end of his
last relationship. He doesn't typically interview new employees, but with key
members of the family out of town, it fell to him to interview the possible new
event planner. To say that he was stunned by her beauty would be putting it
mildly. He had a hard time concentrating on the interview, but it wasn't difficult
for him to realize that her qualifications were excellent. The only downside
was the unwritten rule that Abbotts don't get involved with employees.
I enjoyed the development of the relationship between
Blake and Savannah. Both feel the intense attraction, but both have good
reasons to resist it. Blake because of the prohibition against dating
employees, and Savannah because of her secret agenda. That resistance becomes
more difficult by the day, as Savannah discovers that Blake is not the
heartless scum her grandfather described. Instead, he is sweet, thoughtful, and
easy to work with. Blake is more impressed with Savannah's abilities every day,
as well as more attracted to her.
They did well with their resistance until a storm trapped
them together for a weekend. The combination of the sparks between them and
Blake's kindness during a rough part of the storm blew their resistance to
pieces. The immediate connection that went deeper than just the physical
attraction surprised them both, making each of them wary of getting too close. Over
the next weeks, they spent as much time together as they could while at the
same time trying to keep it to themselves.
I ached for Savannah, who knew she was falling for Blake
and was eaten up by guilt over her deception. She has a harder and harder time
seeing how the situation will end well. The more time he spends with her, the
harder Blake falls for Savannah, but he also feels that there is something more
going on. I kept waiting for it to blow up in Savannah's face, and sure enough,
it did. I hurt for both Savannah and Blake when it happened. Blake's feelings
of betrayal were heartbreaking. Savannah knew she had earned his anger, but she
also felt that her reasons were justified. An unexpected complication arose
when Savannah discovered she was pregnant, and Blake had some choice words and
accusations when he found out.
It was hard to see how any of this was going to have a positive
outcome. This is where the strength of family and love came into play. There
were some interesting twists and revelations on both the Abbott and McDowell
sides. I liked seeing the support that both Savannah and Blake received, which
included some tough love from their family members. The ultimate resolution was
realistic and satisfying, making it possible for Blake and Savannah to find
their happy ending.
I'm looking forward to the rest of the series and seeing Blake's
siblings find love, too. Parker looks like he will be an especially tough nut
to crack.
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