Taking the Reins by Kat Murray

 

This was a romance with two imperfect people that made a perfectly enjoyable story. When Peyton & Red first have an interaction at the opening of the story, Peyton overhears what she thinks is Red badmouthing her to a potential client. Needless to say, that does not endear him to her. What Red was actually doing was discouraging somebody he knew to be a problem from doing business with Peyton & saving her a potential headache. It’s not that long after that encounter that Peyton goes to Red for help. She has a struggling stud ranch & he works magic with horses and brings good business because of his good name in the industry. Red happens to be free because he just ended his last business arrangement. Due to his reputation, he could pretty much have his pick of situations but Peyton’s setup appeals to him because he’s attracted to her but he also respects her reputation for caring about her horses and her business. Some people just hire him for the prestige that comes with his name but don’t always follow through with taking his direction and advice. It’s at this meeting that I knew I would like both characters. Even though Peyton is a proud woman, I didn’t feel like she was pouting or acting immature. Likewise, I felt that Red was gracious while listening to her offer, and didn’t act smug. I really liked both main characters. Peyton was a strong, independent, smart businesswoman who cares about family and others. Red was a sexy, strong, man with a great deal of patience and an ability to understand both horses and people. I liked the fact that the romance was a slow, sexy build up. I loved Peyton’s brother Trace and cannot wait to read his book. The way he was with his baby son Seth was just too sweet. I was worried at first that the conflict with the two “bad guys” – Red’s loser dad, and Peyton’s loser ex-horse trainer - would overshadow the romance through the whole story. I was happy that was not the case. The focus of the story was the main characters and their relationships with each other. The conflict involving the baddies did not overwhelm that and was nicely resolved at the end. This was the first book I’ve read by this author and I look forward to reading the next book in the series.