cover image Once Around 24fl

Once Around 24fl

. Berkley Trade Pub, $6.99 (0pp) ISBN 978-0-425-16555-3

Molly Chamberlain thought she had the perfect marriage until she tells her husband she is pregnant and he walks out on her. Adding insult to injury, the jerk sneaks back into their home and steals all the furniture. When Rafe Garrick shows up to remodel the basement, saying he has been partially paid for the job, Molly doesn't know what to do. She can't afford to have the work done, and he can't afford to give the money back. The sympathetic Rafe agrees to make repairs to repay the advance, which gives the unlikely attraction between the pregnant socialite and the handyman time to develop. The sex is steamy, the characters interesting and the plot has promise but Bretton leaves some major holes in her rush to a happy ending. The individual problems of her various characters are glossed over, leaving readers wondering what happens to Jesse's meddling mother, Molly's divorce and Rafe's relationship with his daughter. Readable, but not Bretton's best work. (Aug.)