It was supposed to be a sure thing.

Ronin Gutherie, the dark brooding hero of the international Olympic trial thought talking Devon Cooper into a one night stand would be easy.

At the end of a long day of competition, Devon runs into the hunky Olympic gold medalist. After a major win on the Olympic qualifying circuit, Ronin propositions her and ends up nursing a painful injury as well as his pride.

When the next major Olympic trial is in Ronin’s homeland, he uses the time on the plane to apologize for his behavior and convince Devon that not only is he not the player she believes him to be, but they have a future together.

Can he persuade her to give him a second chance and claim her heart or will she walk away again?

This book was previously published under a different title/author name. It has been re-edited, updated and expanded slightly.

The Reviews

Redrabbitt
VINE VOICE
5.0 out of 5 stars KIWI MEN KNOW HOW TO TREAT THEIR LADIES
Reviewed in the United States 🇺🇸 on February 28, 2023
I enjoyed this second book in the Wild Hearts series which will begin in America but move to New Zealand where the majority of the story takes place. The main story will comprise of Devon Cooper from Texas and Ronin Gutherie, from New Zealand and this will be their hot and heavy, loaded with angst and passionate romance. They both have known each other for years because of the equestrian competitions they both compete in.

Devon Cooper is part of the American team, but not part of the Olympics. She will do a show during the competitions with her horse, Dreamer. She had at one time been romantically involved with one of the assistant coaches on the American team until she caught him cheating. There is an undercurrent of hostility between them still with his snide remarks.

Ronin Gutherie is a favorite contender for the Kiwi eventing team with his horse Dax. While he has a reputation for being a playboy, he has set his sights on Devon, and once he does, he is determined she is going to be his. When her ex-boyfriend, Jake, harasses her, he will set him straight. Ronin’s paternal grandmother is of Māori descent, and her heritage will play a role in his character in this tale.

The plot of the story will include the alpha dominance of Ronin pursuing and eventually dominating Devon. He will stay with her on the flight to New Zealand, and his possessiveness won’t allow her to put up barriers between them. He will help her get her horse in the stable and instead of taking her to her hotel, he will take her to his home. Once he has determined that she is his soulmate, he takes control.

“You keep sassing me Ms. Cooper, and I’ll introduce you to another Kiwi alpha male tradition. The judicious application of a firm hand to your glorious backside. I think we both know you’ll never truly be submissive. I think you’ll submit and follow my lead most of the time, but there will be times I need to remind you which one of us is alpha and that it isn’t you.”

While the story does cover part of the event and competition, it is only a very small part of the story. The chemistry and interaction between the two main characters have this sassy Texan and dominant Kiwi butting heads one minute and intense sex the next. There is plenty of action between the two of them, including multiple spanking scenes, and intense sex scenes.

“I spoke nothing but truth last night. I’ve always known I had a soul mate and when I realized it was you, I started making plans to persuade you of the same. So, you can be the stubborn, Texas cowgirl or you can be my good girl and just give in. As I said, I’ll lead, you’ll follow, and it’ll be easy. But I have no problem making you follow if that’s what it takes.”

“No, sweetheart, it makes me a Kiwi Neanderthal alpha male with a sassy mate who needs to have her bottom spanked to be at her best.”

Note: I previously read the story by this author when it was previously released with a former publisher and under a different pen name. I have been a fan of her books from the beginning—and her writing has astounded me—no matter the name, this is one of my favorite authors. I did not re-read it, but it has been re-edited, updated, and expanded slightly.

Donna L
4.0 out of 5 stars A SPECTACULAR RIDE
Reviewed in the United States 🇺🇸 on February 28, 2023
What a wild ride this book was. I enjoyed learning about the different horse events.
I enjoyed Ronin and Devon’s journey with it's highs and lows. The characters were likable and believable.

Devon and Ronin had a dramatic start to their relationship leaving Ronin in no doubt as to what Devon thought of his boorish behavior. He was lucky she gave him a second chance and the game of cat and mouse ended quickly. The building of their relationship then progressed rapidly. Ronin had his sight set on Devon and was determined to have
 his soul mate by his side even if it took more than one spanking and keeping her happy
 in his bed. He strived for a relationship like his parents who were still going strong after
forty years.

I loved how feisty and sassy Devon was. She proved that she was capable of taking care of
 herself and found peace in submitting to Ronin. Initially, she did not believe in soul mates
 or fairytales but could not deny her body's reaction to Ronin and his hum. She tried to fight
 his hold over her but it ended badly every time.

Combine a spectacular show of dominance by an Alpha male with a unique knack of
 calming his strong-willed feisty mate and sit back and watch the fireworks.

JigsawGirl
4.0 out of 5 stars Was Ronin's Hum Magical?
Reviewed in the United States 🇺🇸 on March 1, 2023
This book turned out to be a surprise for me. Definitely not in a bad way. I was happy to see that Devon was strong, independent, and talented. Her connection with Ronin seemed pretty immediate, but they seemed to have been checking each other out for a while.

Ronin was completely overbearing, but Devon seemed to appreciate his Alphaness. I thought the hum was interesting. I read somewhere that this was one of the author's first books. I could see it as the prelude to a long journey of success.

It did take some effort for me to keep up with all of the horse related information. It turned out to be a teachable moment, lol.

I did finally figure out why I was surprised. There were a couple of reasons. I realized I had gotten used to varying degrees of some type of danger in the later books. This one didn't have that. It was still an entertaining read. It didn't seem like it was softer, or like I was missing that element of danger.

The connection, the romance, the heat level was equally as intense as later books. One thing I was expecting was for Gage to have his own book. The other surprise for me was the epilogue. That content, I was not expecting. All in all, a good fast paced read.
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