He responds to her letter with an email, which leads to texts, FaceTime, and a full-blown emotional affair-and finally an airline ticket to Alaska for Sara to spend time with Gabriel at the end of his deployment.

Then, when she hears a radio story about sending letters to troops serving abroad, Maj. Sara's widowed mother depends on her, too, and now that Sara has spent years taking care of her family, they've become dependent and entitled while continually chipping away at her self-esteem. She loves her niece, Kaylee, but being the girl's nanny for the past three years has made it too easy for her brother and sister-in-law to duck their parenting responsibilities while taking advantage of her time and kindness.

However, it takes a little more than suspension of disbelief to accept that Cade’s brother, a former war spy, is so slow to discover his secret identity.Ī downtrodden nanny sends off a quick note of appreciation to a soldier when it lands on a major’s desk, it sparks an unexpected romance, but things get complicated once he's back on U.S. Is Cade the infamous pirate and jewel thief known as the Black Fox? While their conversation sometimes drags, most of the time their banter is entertaining. Danielle reveals a snippet of her mysterious past in Paris and Cade suggests that his late nights out are more than just tavern visits. Both Cade and Danielle find it hard to trust other people, so when they share a bottle of wine one night in the viscount’s parlor, they’re shocked and intrigued to find themselves sharing a few secrets, too.

Doubling the pleasure, the tale of Cade Cavendish (an alleged pirate and spy) and Danielle LaCrosse (a rogue investigator disguised as a lady’s maid) also explores a mystery: why has Cade returned to London after 10 years, and why has Danielle been paid to spy on him? Bowman increases the tension of the story, and the future romance, by placing the protagonists in different social classes-Cade is the brother of a viscount, and Danielle serves as lady’s maid to the viscount’s wife. In what reads like a sexy version of Les Misérables, Bowman's ( The Legendary Lord, 2016, etc.) latest opens with a scene that will keep readers on the edges of their seats-and never relents for a page. Two rogues in disguise are bested at their own game after meeting-and falling in love.

Never Trust a Pirate by Valerie Bowman