Cute baby, hot but clueless uncle, absolute adorableness!

*****

Must Love Babies

Must Love Babies #1

by Lynnette Austin

Blurb:

This baby’s not the only one in need of a cuddle…

Brant Wylder is a bachelor and loving it! He’s in Misty Bottoms, Georgia, property-hunting for his vintage car repair shop when he gets the call. His sister’s been in an accident, and Brant has to drop everything and take care of his five-month-old nephew. That’s the end of the bachelor lifestyle.

Bridal boutique owner Molly Stiles is all business all the time, until she sees that Brant’s in trouble. In this Southern town, nobody ever has to go it alone. And besides, how can she resist that beautiful baby in the arms of a beautiful man…?

Amazon:              https://amzn.to/2s7qHqK

B&N:                     http://bit.ly/2IFBK5u

iBooks:                 https://apple.co/2s41VaI

*****

Excerpt:

Molly stood beneath a magnolia tree, her face tipped to catch the moonlight. The breath caught in his throat, and for one fanciful second, Brant imagined a mythical princess or fairy.

He shook his head. The woman was real, and he wanted a dance, wanted to hold her in his arms. A little flirting? Harmless.

Stepping out of the shadows, he made his way to her.

“Beautiful night, huh?”

“Perfect.” Slowly, she turned, a smile on her face.

“How about a dance?”

She hesitated.

“I’m not asking for a lifelong commitment, sugar. Just a single dance under the stars. The night’s made for dancing.”

“It is, isn’t it?”

He caught her hand in his, amazed at its softness against his work-roughened one. “In the interest of full disclosure, I’m not the world’s greatest dancer, but you shouldn’t lose any toes.” He glanced at her sequined stilettos, showcased by her cocktail-length dress. “Don’t know how you even walk in those, let alone put on the miles you do, but I have to say that all mankind is grateful.”

Smiling, Molly peeked at her shoes. “They’re awesome, aren’t they?”

He nodded. “You can dance in them?”

“I could run a marathon in these.”

“Okay, then.” The moon shone through Spanish moss that dripped from the live oaks, forming a lacy pattern on the dewy grass.

Kelly Clarkson’s “A Moment Like This” played over the sound system. Reaching the dance floor, Brant slid an arm around her waist and drew her in, breathed in her scent. He swung her out and brought her back in one smooth motion, felt her quick laugh in the pit of his stomach. The music slowed when the band segued into John Legend’s “All of Me,” and he drew her close.

Molly fit perfectly in his arms. She lived in Georgia and he in Tennessee, and that made her safe. And if the plans he and his brothers were working on panned out? Still nothing to worry about since she lived in Savannah. When she rested her head against his chest, he wondered if she could hear the rapid thump of his heart. Ms. Molly was hot, hot, hot.

His hand slid a little lower, and without missing a beat, she relocated it to her waist.

Molly smelled of a midnight garden with just a touch of naughty. His body responded, and he willed himself to think about something else. “How’s the city?”

“Savannah?” She shrugged. “I live in Misty Bottoms now. I opened a bridal boutique. Today’s bride was my first.” She grinned, dimples creasing her cheeks.

The dance ended, and he reluctantly released Molly. “I’m driving back to Tennessee tomorrow.”

“Speaking of driving, thanks for taxiing the last of the rehearsal dinner’s partiers home last night. I heard they celebrated pretty hard at Duffy’s.”

“No problem.”

“I need to stop at my car before I go back inside. I left the little silver heart I attach to the bridal gown’s garment bag in my glove box.”

Brant walked beside her in the soft night air, a hand at her elbow, while the band played Blake Shelton’s “God Gave Me You.”

He lowered his head. “Before we call it a night, I’d love to see the rose garden our friend Cole salvaged.”

“What a mess, but after a lot of hard work it’s incredible again.”

The scent of roses surrounding them, they strolled through the yard. In the silver light of the moon, the flowers glowed and took on an almost magical, fairy-tale illusion. The house shimmered and welcomed, like the true Southern lady she was. Interlacing his fingers with Molly’s, peace enveloped Brant.

They wandered across the expanse of lawn and through the blooms in comfortable silence.

From the parking area, he heard the sound of engines starting, of tires crunching on the long drive. “Looks like it’s about time for lights-out. We’d better head back so you can finish up.”

A slight breeze caused Molly to shiver, and happy for the excuse, Brant wrapped an arm around her and pulled her a little closer, surprised when she didn’t pull away.

Reaching her yellow-and-white Mini Countryman, he made to open her door, then changed his mind, leaned in and gave her a quick kiss, one that should have been impersonal. Friendly. Instead, fire shot through him.

He pulled back, unsure whether he should be relieved or horrified that the expression on her face mirrored his own stampeding feelings. Clearing his throat, he said, “I’m taking care of a few loose ends in the morning, then heading back to Tennessee. And I already said that, didn’t I?”

“Yes, you did. The kiss was nice, thanks, but you don’t need to worry. I won’t show up naked at your hotel door.”

His breath caught.

She grinned, and he understood she knew exactly the effect she was having on him.

“I—” His phone vibrated. “Whoops. Sorry, but I’d better take this. My brothers probably forgot something. Organization isn’t their strong suit. If you’ll excuse me.”

“Sure.”

“Hello? Dad?” As he spoke, he made his way to a gnarly old oak. His father’s voice was gruff, almost as if he’d been crying. Panic grabbed Brant by the throat. “What’s wrong?

*****

Review:

While this is a new series, it technically is a continuation of the Magnolia Brides series and will likely make some readers frustrated.  I’m kinda used to joining these kinds of things in the middle and I’ve figured out how to push through it but there are a lot of references to Brant and Molly’s friends & their romances/connection to one another.  I’m sure that returning readers will be thrilled but newbies will need to be willing to wait it out – eventually you do get a pretty good feel for context.

Brant and little Jax are by far the highlight of the book.  As the family fixer, Brant takes on caring for his sister’s baby while she’s in the hospital and later rehab.  Unfortunately (and adorably) he’s clueless about babies but he does figure it out, leading to quite a few “awww” moments along the way.  As if that isn’t enough, the family is also looking at moving their business to a new state and there’s his attraction to a pretty boutique owner that is proving a bit hard to resist.  All of it adding up to complications that he didn’t necessarily plan on.

Molly has her own plans and they don’t include a guy for another couple of years.  A light flirtation at a wedding isn’t really going to change that … until the guy ends up staying in town – charmingly clueless but determined to be a good uncle.  With baby in tow and all his appeal on display, Brant is making it hard to remember why she isn’t getting involved.

There’s also some daddy issues on Molly’s side that only exacerbates her attachment to her timeline.  The list she’s pretty set to live by does create a push/pull between her and Brant that put quite a few reviewers off, but I found that he’s appealing enough to help me through those moments.  While not my favorite type of plotline, Austin does a pretty good job of giving readers good characters and engaging interactions that help move past some of the more difficult bits.

*****

Giveaway:

5 copies of Picture Perfect Wedding

https://www.rafflecopter.com/rafl/display/54ca7af7654/

*****