Tempting the Deputy

I was amazed reading Tempting the Deputy written by Heidi Rice, the first book in the Men of Marietta series. It is a heart wrenching story of lost faith in one’s supportive parents as maybe also in oneself. Logan Tate made sure to protect his younger brother from their father’s drunken behavior after the death of their mother. Now he hides those scars by being a tough, reserved, play by the rules deputy and rancher. As work on Harry’s House begins, an unexpected find is going to cost additional money the rescuers don’t have and now need to figure out a way to raise these funds before they lose the house. Charlotte Foster is a world renowned photographer, neglected by her wealthy socialite parents is in Marietta to take pictures for a book she is working on. Her unexpected meeting with Deputy “Bad-Ass” Tate had her overhearing the guys talking and planning. Charlotte pitches an idea that could raise the money, a calendar featuring the men of Marietta. As she works on the calendar shots, staying with Logan and his brother she begins to want more than she ever did before, to stay in one place and be loved. This story really resonated with me, exemplifying that hope and love does exist. I struggle, on a daily basis, to understand how someone could abuse, neglect, or mistreat another person. Ms Rice did an outstanding job exemplifying this in her writing and plot line. I really enjoyed reading this book and had trouble putting this book down, reading it in one day. I highly recommend this book to other readers. I voluntarily reviewed a complimentary copy of this book.

Charlotte and Logan are very hot characters with a ton of chemistry. I loved how they sparred with each other. They both have damage from their pasts, but they certainly worked well together. Charlotte did a great job of getting Logan out of his comfort zone and getting him to relax, instead of being the intense deputy all the time. I also loved the compassion of Charlotte with her offer of photographing the men of Marietta for a fundraising calendar. She was new to the area but jumped right in, even though her initial motivation was just to get Logan riled up.

When Logan Tate finds a woman alone miles from town he goes into protective mode by forcing her to go back to town with him one way or another. Charlie Foster does not like people in authority so when the part time deputy sheriff tells her to go into town willingly or he will arrest her she chooses the hard way. When they get to town Logan releases her only to find her in the local bar hours later. When Charlie overhears the local first responders talking about raising money for a town project she thinks of a way to help them while getting back at Logan at the same time. When she pitches a sexy calendar the men hesitate to agree especially Logan. When Logan's brother invites Charlie to move out to the ranch he shares with Logan for more room to work Logan stays away as much as possible. Eventually she gets him to agree to do the photo shoot which leads to a mutual attraction. I really liked this story. I enjoyed both of there back stories and how it brought them closer together.