FOR THEIR SON
Texas veterinarian Delaney Blair will do anything to find
a bone marrow donor for her four-year-old son, Nickolas. The only likely match
is his Argentinean father, Dario. But Dario and Delaney didn't part on good
terms. In fact, he doesn't even know he has a son!
Delaney travels to Argentina to find him, and Dario,
shocked, returns to Texas. It's not long before Nick and Dario become close.
Not only that, Dario can't hide the feelings he has for Delaney -- feelings
that have been there since they met. Dario's family doesn't want him to be with
her. But now they have to see if the love between them is strong enough to keep
them together.
Good book with some definite heart tugging going on. Delaney is the single mother of a little boy who is very ill. He needs a bone marrow transplant and they have been unable to find a match. Desperate, she heads for Argentina, to talk to her son's father and get his help. Unfortunately, she never told him she was pregnant and she isn't sure what his reaction will be. Dario is shocked by her arrival, and initially quite hostile. He and his family hold her father responsible for their business troubles and he doesn't even want to listen to her.
I felt for Delaney. She probably should't have kept her pregnancy secret, but her reasoning was understandable. She and Dario were separated by actions her father took that she was unaware of, and were made worse by her father's death shortly afterward. Dario also had family troubles that contributed to the problem. I liked the fact that she gathered her courage and went to face him with the news. After his reaction, she didn't expect his help and was surprised when he and his sister arrived in San Antonio. Delaney worried that he would make custody demands and was not very welcoming. She began to see how determined Dario was to be a father, and was moved by how good he was with Nickolas. She also realized that her feelings for Dario had never died, but she was afraid to believe that he would feel the same and stay in Texas.
Dario was stunned to see Delaney. All he can think of are the threats that her father made against him and his family and what came to pass. He had loved her and thought that she was a participant in what had happened. At first he doesn't believe what she tells him, but feels compelled to investigate. When he first meets Nickolas he can't deny that he's the father and is determined to be a part of his life. I really loved seeing him bond with Nickolas. Dario also had to stand strong against his family's attitude against Delaney. It doesn't take too long before he admits that he still has feelings for her.
Both of them had to deal with their feelings for each other and worries about the future at the same time they were dealing with Nickolas's health crisis. Though they had a rough start, I liked the way that they tried to put his needs first. Working together for Nick gave them a chance to get to know each other again. Because of the circumstances, there wasn't much of a chance for romancing between them, but the connection was there from the beginning and they were able to build on it. The ending was quite intense with an interesting twist to the bone marrow donation. I really liked Dario's solution to their future, and the epilogue was a satisfying followup.
I loved the character of Dario's sister Maria Sofia. She may have been only nineteen, but she knows what she wants and isn't afraid to go after it. I loved the way she helped Delaney at the beginning, and then came to Texas with Dario. It was so much fun to see her stand up against his and his father's old fashioned attitudes. I really liked her determination and what she did with it. I'd love to see a book with her when she gets a little older. I can see her running some guy ragged.
