Series: Whitehorse MT: McGraw Kidnapping (Book 2)
Can a stubborn cowboy recapture the one who got away?
Ledger McGraw may know all about horses, but he doesn't know anything about the lie that broke up his first romance with waitress Abby Pierce. Abby, tricked into marrying the wrong man, is at the end of her tether in her abusive relationship. When she learns the truth about her terrible marriage, she becomes desperate to escape it -- before her jealous husband kills her.
Though Ledger's heart was wounded by Abby, he'll still do anything to protect her and free her from her violent spouse. He's determined to win her back and reignite their passion…
Good second book to the series. I somehow managed to read books one and three, and missed this one. I liked getting the gaps filled in. The overarching theme of the series is that the two youngest McGraw children, twins Oakley and Jesse Rose, were kidnapped as babies, twenty-five years earlier. Their father, Travers, has never given up hope of finding them. In the first book, Dark Horse, a true crime writer with a personal stake in the story, uncovered some new information. There are plenty of twists and turns, leading into this book.
In the first book, Abby was introduced as Ledger's former girlfriend and the woman he still loves. Unfortunately, she is married to someone else, an abusive man with a jealous streak. This book opens with Abby in the hospital, supposedly having fallen from a ladder. She can't remember what happened, but she knows that the story Wade tells the doctor is wrong. He's beaten her before, but this is the first time she's ended up in the hospital. Abby's gut feeling is right, as we also get the point of view of Wade and his father, Huck. Abby is in deep trouble, and the sooner she remembers the better chance she'll have of protecting herself.
I really liked Ledger. He is a good man who has never stopped loving Abby. He wants to protect her, but he can't do anything until she asks for help. The best he can do is to remain a presence in her life so that she knows she can count on him if she wants to. Ledger is also very protective of his family. The newest information on the kidnapping has him worried about the effect on his father if it isn't true. I liked the way that he was supportive of his dad, but still wary of blindly trusting.
I was frustrated by Abby at the beginning. She knew she was being abused, but she kept going back to Wade and trusting that he would change. She also knew that Ledger's attention was like waving a red flag at a bull when it came to her husband. I was relieved when she finally made a decision, though she very nearly left it too late. I also liked that she was very careful of her actions around Ledger while she was still married to Wade.
I liked the development of the relationship between Abby and Ledger. He was the one to come to her rescue and gave her a safe place to stay while she recovered. He was also protective of her, especially as her memories began to return. It was terrific to see that he controlled his temper over what had been done to her, and followed her wishes when it came to dealing with Wade. There was no doubt about the love that still existed between them, they just had to be patient before they could do anything about it.
There were multiple story threads going on during the book. First was whatever was going on with Wade and his father, that put Wade even more on edge. Abby's certainty that she had overheard something that put her in danger was borne out early in the book. There is also something going on between Huck and Abby's mother, something that had been their motivation for breaking up Abby and Ledger, and pushing her and Wade together. The McGraw family lawyer is also up to his eyeballs in something that has to do with Travers McGraw's second wife (see book 1). Then there is the appearance of a young man who claims to be Oakley McGraw. The evidence points to it being true, but there are also some things that raise questions.
The suspense of trying to figure out what it was that Abby couldn't remember, tied up with the threats made by Wade and Huck, kept me glued to the pages. Things got even more interesting as the McGraws got to know the man claiming to be Oakley. There were good things and bad things about him, and I couldn't decide if I wanted it to be true or not. A new player came through with some unexpected information as all the threads began to unravel. The final confrontation was very intense, with a satisfactory ending.
Having already read the third book, Rough Rider, I already knew the conclusion, but I liked getting the rest of the story. I highly recommend reading them in order, though!
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