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Fortunes of Texas #1
Million Dollar Marriage
A dedicated doctor struggling to raise money for a much-needed community health clinic, Dr. Lucinda Brightwater is beginning to feel as though time is her enemy. Besides the clinic, she desperately wants a child, but how likely is that for a single thirty-four-year-old who works long hours-with no man on the horizon?
So when a man who's hard to resist makes her an offer that's hard to refuse, Lucinda agrees to marry Holden Fortune for one million dollars. The notorious bachelor needs a "respectable" wife in order to claim his inheritance. Lucinda needs her clinic. The terms? One year. In name only. No strings.
No strings, maybe, but there's a lot of heat, making it hard for cooler heads to prevail, especially since it appears Lucinda's other dream is now on its way....
So when a man who's hard to resist makes her an offer that's hard to refuse, Lucinda agrees to marry Holden Fortune for one million dollars. The notorious bachelor needs a "respectable" wife in order to claim his inheritance. Lucinda needs her clinic. The terms? One year. In name only. No strings.
No strings, maybe, but there's a lot of heat, making it hard for cooler heads to prevail, especially since it appears Lucinda's other dream is now on its way....
249 pages, Mass Market Paperback
First published January 15, 2007
24 people are currently reading
208 people want to read
About the author
Maggie Shayne
257 books2,574 followersI live in the teeny, tiny town of Taylor, NY, (Alliteration Alert!) though my mailing address is Cincinnatus, my telephone exchange is Truxton and I pay taxes and vote in Cuyler. All of these are at least in the same rural county in the southern hills of New York State; Cortland County. There are more cattle than people here. The nearest “big” cities are Syracuse and Binghamton and they are an hour away, in different directions, and not really all that big by most standards, though they both seem humongous to me. I look out my window to see rolling, green, thickly forested hills, wildflower laden meadows and wide open blue, blue skies. My road is barely paved. The nearest neighboring place is a 700 acre dairy farm.
My house is a big, century old farmhouse. I moved in here after my divorce in 2006. Just a little over a year later, the house, which I had named, SERENITY, burned. It was 99% gutted, and I lost my two dogs, Sally, an 11-year-old great Dane, and Wrinkles, my 14-year-old, blind bulldog. This was the culmination of my Dark Night of the soul, which had seemed to hit me all at once in 2006-2007. My mother died that year, after a 14 month battle with pancreatic cancer. She was only 60. The youngest of my five daughters had left home that same year, and while that’s not a tragedy at all, it felt like one to me. Then came the divorce. And finally there was the fire--it seemed my darkest night wasn’t quite finished with me after all. I had lost almost everything before that point, and as I poked through the wet ashes and soot the next day, I realized that I had now been stripped all the way to the bone.
No better time to start over. (And no, I didn’t come to that realization that day--there were a few days of wallowing in pity first, particularly the day after the fire, when I hit a deer and smashed up my car, which I was practically living in!)
That’s when I started to laugh. Just sat on the side of the road as the deer bounded, uninjured and carefree, out of sight, and laughed. It was just too ridiculous at that point, to do anything else!
And from there, I picked myself up, and brushed myself off, and said, okay, there’s only one way to go from here. Forward. And that’s what I did. There I was at the age of harrurmphemmph, living in my one, mostly undamaged remaining room, with a dorm-sized mini-fridge, a futon, a TV, my cat (nine lives!) and a laptop. And not much else. (Though thank goodness the room that survived the fire, was a room that had its own attached bathroom!)
Since then I have rebuilt my beloved home, which really has become my haven, my “Serenity.” I share it now with my fiancé, Lance, and we have accumulated quite the little family together. “Little” being a relative term. We have a pair of English Mastiffs, Dozer and Daisy, who weigh 203 pounds and 208 pounds respectively, and a little pudgy English Bulldog named Niblet, who is bigger than both of them, inside her mind. We also have the aforementioned cat, Glorificus (“Glory” for short,) who adores her canine pups and keeps them firmly in line. And we've acquired a pair of stray cats as well, a mother and son, Luna (Lulu for short) and Butters aka Buddy. Lulu showed up pregnant during a lunar eclipse, had a litter, and vanished again. We found homes for all the kittens except one. Butters. We got him fixed and kept him. A few months later, Lulu returned, again expecting. This litter was born on the "Monster Moon." Again, all the kittens were spayed and neutered and placed in homes, and this time we got Lulu to the vet in time to spay her before the cycle could repeat.
Glory is not amused.
She has a story of her own, my old Glory cat, having been with me before the Dark Times descended, she went through it all with me, moved with me, survived the fire, and remains with me still. She's tolerating the newcomers. Barely.
My partner is an artist, a mechanic, a welder and an inventor, and the rumors are true, he is much younger than I
My house is a big, century old farmhouse. I moved in here after my divorce in 2006. Just a little over a year later, the house, which I had named, SERENITY, burned. It was 99% gutted, and I lost my two dogs, Sally, an 11-year-old great Dane, and Wrinkles, my 14-year-old, blind bulldog. This was the culmination of my Dark Night of the soul, which had seemed to hit me all at once in 2006-2007. My mother died that year, after a 14 month battle with pancreatic cancer. She was only 60. The youngest of my five daughters had left home that same year, and while that’s not a tragedy at all, it felt like one to me. Then came the divorce. And finally there was the fire--it seemed my darkest night wasn’t quite finished with me after all. I had lost almost everything before that point, and as I poked through the wet ashes and soot the next day, I realized that I had now been stripped all the way to the bone.
No better time to start over. (And no, I didn’t come to that realization that day--there were a few days of wallowing in pity first, particularly the day after the fire, when I hit a deer and smashed up my car, which I was practically living in!)
That’s when I started to laugh. Just sat on the side of the road as the deer bounded, uninjured and carefree, out of sight, and laughed. It was just too ridiculous at that point, to do anything else!
And from there, I picked myself up, and brushed myself off, and said, okay, there’s only one way to go from here. Forward. And that’s what I did. There I was at the age of harrurmphemmph, living in my one, mostly undamaged remaining room, with a dorm-sized mini-fridge, a futon, a TV, my cat (nine lives!) and a laptop. And not much else. (Though thank goodness the room that survived the fire, was a room that had its own attached bathroom!)
Since then I have rebuilt my beloved home, which really has become my haven, my “Serenity.” I share it now with my fiancé, Lance, and we have accumulated quite the little family together. “Little” being a relative term. We have a pair of English Mastiffs, Dozer and Daisy, who weigh 203 pounds and 208 pounds respectively, and a little pudgy English Bulldog named Niblet, who is bigger than both of them, inside her mind. We also have the aforementioned cat, Glorificus (“Glory” for short,) who adores her canine pups and keeps them firmly in line. And we've acquired a pair of stray cats as well, a mother and son, Luna (Lulu for short) and Butters aka Buddy. Lulu showed up pregnant during a lunar eclipse, had a litter, and vanished again. We found homes for all the kittens except one. Butters. We got him fixed and kept him. A few months later, Lulu returned, again expecting. This litter was born on the "Monster Moon." Again, all the kittens were spayed and neutered and placed in homes, and this time we got Lulu to the vet in time to spay her before the cycle could repeat.
Glory is not amused.
She has a story of her own, my old Glory cat, having been with me before the Dark Times descended, she went through it all with me, moved with me, survived the fire, and remains with me still. She's tolerating the newcomers. Barely.
My partner is an artist, a mechanic, a welder and an inventor, and the rumors are true, he is much younger than I
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Displaying 1 - 16 of 16 reviews
March 20, 2010
Título em português: Um Casamento Milionário
Tradução: Cíntia Braga
Sinopse: Assim como seu pai, Holden Fortune nunca se comprometeu com coisa alguma. Até que um dia descobre que, para receber sua herança, tem de se casar. E somente a Dra. Lucinda Brightwater seria capaz de aceitar a proposta de Holden: um milhão de dólares e um casamento de fachada. Mas Lucinda logo engravida dele. Seria essa surpresa o fim de um grande negócio ou o início de uma nova vida com a qual ambos nunca sonharam?
Tradução: Cíntia Braga
Sinopse: Assim como seu pai, Holden Fortune nunca se comprometeu com coisa alguma. Até que um dia descobre que, para receber sua herança, tem de se casar. E somente a Dra. Lucinda Brightwater seria capaz de aceitar a proposta de Holden: um milhão de dólares e um casamento de fachada. Mas Lucinda logo engravida dele. Seria essa surpresa o fim de um grande negócio ou o início de uma nova vida com a qual ambos nunca sonharam?
March 21, 2020
Ok read, but what happened to the kidnapped babies?!
February 26, 2021
Lucinda and Holder knew each other in school now he doesn't appear to recognize her now that she is all grown up. Lucinda finds out that she will need her one remaining ovary removed but she longs to have a child first, but her time is running out. She wants to hate Holden for something that happened in their past.
Holder finds out that in order for him to inherit his fortune he needs to marry a respectable woman.
I laughed and cried in parts of this book. Check it out and see what you think. I think it will be worth the read.
Holder finds out that in order for him to inherit his fortune he needs to marry a respectable woman.
I laughed and cried in parts of this book. Check it out and see what you think. I think it will be worth the read.
December 17, 2023
Primeiro volume da série Fortunes of Texas.
A editora resolveu resetar a série da família Fortune e agora a transferiu para o Texas, deixando um monte de subtramas e pontas soltas para trás. Contudo, a autora Maggie Shayne honrou a tradição e fez a sua própria ponta-solta aqui com bebês roubados.
Dispensável.
A editora resolveu resetar a série da família Fortune e agora a transferiu para o Texas, deixando um monte de subtramas e pontas soltas para trás. Contudo, a autora Maggie Shayne honrou a tradição e fez a sua própria ponta-solta aqui com bebês roubados.
Dispensável.
June 9, 2022
This book barely held my attention, but I did finish it. I couldn't get into the romance, it is part of an on-going series by more than one author, so there is no resolution of all the situations raised in the book, and the characters are not all that interesting.
November 29, 2016
I enjoyed the main storyline, however what was the point of the stolen baby storyline? Will it continue in the next book? Should probably check it out....
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
June 22, 2018
Loved it
I really liked it.
I came across this wile looking for more of Maggie’s books
So I took the sample and read some bought the book and it was really good.
I really liked it.
I really liked it.
I came across this wile looking for more of Maggie’s books
So I took the sample and read some bought the book and it was really good.
I really liked it.
December 31, 2018
Great read
A very good read. I read all of the fortune books and have started the Texas series. I thoroughly enjoy them.
A very good read. I read all of the fortune books and have started the Texas series. I thoroughly enjoy them.
August 10, 2021
I only skimmed and didn't finish because the writing style was so undemanding and the blurb and book didn't match at all.
January 3, 2022
If you have to read a bodice ripper classic that has been turned into a Manga, this is a good one.
It was fun!
It was fun!
October 30, 2022
This book was one I read when it first came out! I was reminded of it recently and had to re-read it. It did not disappoint! It was a great read, very easy and quick. Storyline was pretty good too
April 14, 2012
Dr. Lucinda Brightwater has had a good life, but up until now, definitely not a great one. She has never found love nor been given any since the death of her mother when she was 13 years old. All through high school she was in love with a popular rich jock, Cam Fortune. She finally gets a chance to get to know him better at one of her senior dances but that goes terribly wrong and then only gets worse a few weeks later. Now we skip ahead 15 years and she is a great doctor and Cam is still the same heart-breaker ladies' man and he has no idea of what happened that fateful night of the dance with Lucy.
This is a marriage of convenience scenario but with heavy second changes flavor mixed into this sexy stew of a story.
I liked it and bought the first 6 novels in the Fortunes of Texas series. So far this is my favorite because it has my favorite two romance scenarios. I liked that Lucinda is a mixed race local girl and she is clearly 'too good' for he rich white Fortune son. I like that race is never an issue in these stories and it is the character and personalities that people are judged on.
2 and half stars!
This is a marriage of convenience scenario but with heavy second changes flavor mixed into this sexy stew of a story.
I liked it and bought the first 6 novels in the Fortunes of Texas series. So far this is my favorite because it has my favorite two romance scenarios. I liked that Lucinda is a mixed race local girl and she is clearly 'too good' for he rich white Fortune son. I like that race is never an issue in these stories and it is the character and personalities that people are judged on.
2 and half stars!
August 8, 2008
It has been a long time since I've read this book, so I don't remember many details. I just remember that it seemed a little confusing, like there were other characters who had other stories that were hinted at, but no details were given. And there was no clear cut ending, I think the Fortunes of Texas series seem to continue on by different authors. Since, I was only reading it because it was one of Ms. Shayne's books, I did not continue with that series. Just didn't feel like a stand alone book should.
February 24, 2016
Loved this book!
I enjoy everything that I have read by Maggie Shayne and this book is no different. A really sweet romance story about a Texan by the name of Holden Fortune. Lucinda Blackwater has been in love with him since high school. He needs a marriage so that he can inherit his share of the family fortune. Lucinda needs money for a special project. Can they work out a deal that is beneficial to them both or will someone be left heartbroken and unhappy? Read it to see!
I enjoy everything that I have read by Maggie Shayne and this book is no different. A really sweet romance story about a Texan by the name of Holden Fortune. Lucinda Blackwater has been in love with him since high school. He needs a marriage so that he can inherit his share of the family fortune. Lucinda needs money for a special project. Can they work out a deal that is beneficial to them both or will someone be left heartbroken and unhappy? Read it to see!
May 11, 2016
I enjoyed this story and the book after it but I refuse to read the rest of the series because I hate Clift hangers. You have a kidnapped baby but they want you you to buy the whole series to get the resolution. I took stars away because of this.
June 17, 2016
I really felt for Lucy and everything she went through - I'm glad she got her man in the end.
Displaying 1 - 16 of 16 reviews