Wicked
(Whispering Cove, #3)
By: Nikki Duncan
Publisher: Samhain Publishing
Published: Jan. 22, 2011
Genre: Romance
Rating:
He’s sailed the seas for adventure…and found the sexiest one back at home.
Danica Kent, MD, has settled into her new role as a small-town doctor. She caters to her Whispering Cove patients, especially the rum-drinking, poker-playing, town grandfathers who have their hands in a bit of everything. But when one of those patients brings her face-to-face with her high school crush, the work she’s done to reinvent herself falters.
Braydon Mitchell sails around the world writing freelance magazine articles. With no desire to settle down, he’s successfully avoided his grandfather’s pleas to come home…until now. Returning out of worry for the old man’s health, Braydon finds old friends in town for their high school reunion. And something he hadn’t expected. Danica, the awkward teenage geek who’s all grown up—and filled out in all the right places.
From their first touch, erotic sparks make Braydon want everything he isn’t built for—small-town stability, a strong woman’s love, family. And Danica wonders if Braydon has dropped anchor for good…or if her lover will be gone with the next tide.
This is a cute story about high school crushes coming to life. Dani was infatuated with Braydon when they were in high school. She spied on him through her bedroom window, obsessed over him and was a total klutz whenever he approached her. Now, 10 years after graduation Braydon is back for the reunion and she finds herself falling back into her old role. However, she knows that he’s not one to stick around and unfortunately Whispering Cove is not a place she ever plans to leave. So there is no way that anything between them would work out.
I really liked the idea behind the story. The fact that Dani’s had a crush on Braydon for so long and now 10 years later he shows up and is interested in her, was a pretty nice twist on the second chances theme. Braydon didn’t really give the creeper girl who tripped over herself anytime he came around a second glance, but the woman that she is today has his full attention. He’s not looking for anything serious but he’s totally down for a little fun while he’s in town. So the romance revolves around a cat and mouse game. He wants to play while he’s there and Dani doesn’t want to get hurt by falling for a guy who she knows is leaving.
However, I found some parts a bit too fast for me. I understand that this is a novella and under 100 pages but I felt like things moved a bit too fast in the time frame of the story. I didn’t feel like the characters had enough time to fully get to know each other as adults. I also thought the story was a bit choppy at parts. It would either switch between POV’s or jump forward in time with no warning. So I found myself trying to get my bearings a handful of times.
I understand that Whispering Cove is a compilation of short stories by multiple authors all taking on a short story in turn but I felt like this one could have been amazing if the author was able to turn it into a full length novel.
Regardless, this was a sweet (and at times steamy) romance story that can be read as part of a series or as a stand alone. I didn’t feel like I was missing out on anything by jumping in with this story. The epilogue made me believe that that is what sets the stage for the next author’s short story. Otherwise, I didn’t find any missing links that left me wondering what was going on. Even though I wished this was longer, I think that if I were to read the series as a whole, I may find myself dismissing my aversion towards novellas with this one.
“I’m not interested in a life mate, Dr. Kent. But I’ll take the advertised physical.”
