Lorelei West has her hands full with managing the Chestnut Creek Cafe and looking after her mother who has dementia. She also wishes that her sister Patsy, who is out chasing cowboys, would come home, but she's come to realize that is probably not in the cards. Lorelei is happy with her life, however there are times she wishes things could be different. She wants her own family, but she's at an age that that may be out of the question. When she receives news that her sister has been killed in a car crash her whole world comes to a stop. Then she learns that her sister left behind a six-month old little girl that she had no idea existed.

Reese St. James is the co-owner of a huge ranch in Texas. He always means well, but he has a tendency to come across as arrogant, pushy and he often says things in a way that can be misconstrued. He's always lived in the shadow of his twin brother, who was much more like their father, therefore, Reese was always the one on the outside looking in. When Reese learns of his brother's death and that there is a niece he didn't know about, his first order of business is to make sure the little girl is taken care of.

When Lorelei and Reese meet, they realize they both want to parent little Sawyer, but it's going to be complicated, especially with Lorelei living in New Mexico and Reese in Texas. Lorelei makes it clear that money isn't the most important thing and so she and Reese butt heads a bit over that. As these two figure out how to co-parent the little girl, they also learn to trust one another and eventually they realize that being a family might be the best course of action. But can they make it work?

This was a sweet, small-town romance that showcased both love and loss. I enjoyed the journey that Laura Drake took us on to get to this couples HEA.

**I voluntarily read an early copy of this title courtesy of NetGalley and the publisher in exchange for an honest review**

The author has taken you or us the readers back to Unforgiven the small town in New Mexico with the café which is owned by Carly, Nevada with her toned-down heavy metal music in the back cooking and Lorelei West the manager. Now she has enough problems with her mother at home with her alchemizes and just every problem that comes up or down with their home. Her new problem is not really a problem but a huge surprise with a dose of heartache. Her sister Pasty was killed in a car accident and has left a six-month-old that she knew nothing about. Now not only grieving she is also figuring out how to take care of an infant.
Later her next trouble comes in the form of a Texas cowboy who is the bother of the father of the baby and who also was killed in the car accident. The biggest difference is that he has money and she feels threatened by him, his money, and at times just about life. She is still working on her self esteem which is way low because of a former relationship so her way of dealing is by pushing people away. This is what she does with him.
Reese St. James is also dealing with issues he has from a deceased father and a living attorney who started out as his father’s and now is only causing him trouble and grief. Wanting to get to know his niece he has to also get to know Lorelei, which is a hit and miss at times. Both of these characters say and do things to each other that they don’t mean to but it is what happens when you keep so much of your feelings and emotions bottled up. Each character is taken through a transformation through this story and the author does a wonderful job going to great lengths with each character and showing their love for the baby as the bridge that will bring them together or at least get them to grow.
Read this wonderful story about life love, family, and caring about the people that you have grown up or around with especially in a small town for they are all of your family. A really good book with good characters.

#ACowboyForKeeps#Net Galley
I did not know that this was part of a series but I will find and read the others.This is my e book by Laura Drake but it will not be my last.
The Story starts off with a tragic accident that leaves a six month old baby without parents. Lorelei West life changes with one phone call co ding out her sister is dead but she has a niece Sawyer. Lorelei drops everything to go pick up her niece. Reese St James shows up and tells Loelei that his brother who was killed in the accident was the babies father. Lorelei is fighting with to keep her niece but she fears Reese the uncle who has money will do whatever possible to get her. They both want what's best for the baby. Will they work together to keep Sawyer safe and loved? Will they become a family ? A wonderful story about love,family and friendship. Thank you Net Galley for allowing me to read and review this q

I received a free copy of A Cowboy For Keeps in Exchange for an honest review. I read one of the previous books, Home at Chestnut Creek, and really enjoyed it, so I was really excited to get started on this novel. I loved the underlying story line of a tragic death, a baby, and everything in between. This was well written, and the pace was good. Lorelei tackled a lot and in the end she persevered. Reese was a stand up guy, and I'm glad those two got their happily ever after.

This is my first time reading this series and this author but it easily stands alone. It was incredibly well written and the characters were ones I fell in love with. I absolutely adored this story and I fell in love with Reese, baby Sawyer and Lorelei.

This story stats off with a terrible tradedgy. Lorelie's sister and fiancee are dead and they had a child. L is heartbroken but she rushes off to get custody of the baby. Reese also is heartbroken as he learns his last realtive and brother has died and when he finds out there is a child, he rushes off to meet his only living relative.

This is the story about two very different people, he is a rich rancher who is very much alone. She is a poor waitress who takes care of her mother and who has lots of family and friends around her. And a baby that they both love and will do anything for.

This was an aswesome story. Its not a light and fun read but its a wonderfully rich stry about what makes life worth living, the family an friends who love us.

I was a bit challenged to get into this book at first but then it picked up and I wanted to finish reading it. I have read other stories by this author about the town of Unforgiven the setting for the story. I did not care for the main character of Lorelei very much at all but liked Reese. Sorry to say this was just kind of boring to me and Lorelei more often than not just irritated me with all her hangups. I would not bother to recommend this story to anyone.

Lorelei West likes her job, manager of the Chestnut Creek Café. She looks after her momma, who had dementia and has her friends. What more can she want, other than having her sister Patsy come home and a family of her own. Then she gets a call that changes her life, her sister is not coming home, but she gets to bring home the baby she did not know her sister had, 6-month-old Sawyer. Lorelei drops everything and goes and get her sister’s baby. Things are going along ok, when a smooth-talking cowboy Reese St. James turns up and tells Lorelei that he is the baby’s Uncle and that his brother was the baby's father.

Not only was he a smooth-talking cowboy, but he was a rich one too. And Lorelei was an independent woman who could look after her niece and her momma and was having no part of Reese or his money. She would let him see Sawyer, but no way was she having him take control of her life and finances. Reese did not know, when he came to get his niece that he was going to up against her strong independent aunt, who he felt a growing passion for each time they were together. Can he show Lorelei that what he wants to give her most is what they both need a family and the love of a good man.

The more Lorelei and Reese spend together the more they see that they have a lot more in common that they think and as they explore the relationship of raising Sawyer, what is there hearts both want, a family, there passion for one another grows too.

I really loved this book and liked how Laura Drake gives us feisty independent women who can be strong and at the same time has a heart that needs to be loved and hero just as strong and wants to be the guy who can give his family everything. This book made me feel so many emotions and was cheering on these two to find their HEA.

Thank you Netgalley for allowing me to read and give my honest opinion for this book.

I couldn't put this book down! Lorelei has been in her sister's shadow all of her life and had her first and only romance go down in flames. She finds it very hard to trust.
Reese grew up in his own dysfunctional family after the death of his mother. The two are drawn together by the death of their siblings who leave behind a six month old daughter.
The characters are very well written and you keep hoping they can work thru their separate issues.
It was great to see Carly and Nevada again as well!

I enjoyed this book. I really liked the characters, except for the lawyer, and the story. I've read a couple books from Laura and they are very enjoyable. Besides, cowboy romances are pretty hot. Pretty good book.

Thank you Netgalley, the author and publisher for the ARC in exchange for an honest review.

3.5 stars

This is my first book by Laura Drake and overall, I enjoyed it. However, there were issues with the book that kept me from giving it a 4 star rating.

This is a cute story about a working family in New Mexico, a rancher in Texas and a tragedy that brought them together.

The first half of the book really sucked me in - the descriptions of Lorelei, her sister Patsy, Momma, Sarah and Reese were fantastic. And all the events happening at the beginning were so interesting and fast paced that I couldn't put the book down.

But then it almost became monotonous. Lorelei's attitude began to irritate me. And don't get me started about the lawyer - I mean, WTH? I feel like the middle of the book dragged. But it picked back up towards the end and overall, I was happy with the story.

I received an ARC in exchange for an honest review. The opinions stated above are mine without biases.

I loved this story. Lorelei got everything, including the kitchen sink, thrown at her in this installment. Such a strong woman.

Laura has set up the characters in a way that makes them so likable. I would live in this small town in a heartbeat. I want to retire there.....

I hope this is not the end of the Chestnut Creek series. I want to see how things work out for everyone.

This book was gifted to me by NetGalley in return for an honest review. 👍👍👍👍👍

Lorelei's life changes instant,y wth one phone call. Her sister died but she has a niece. Reese's last relative died in a car crash. Or so he thought. Turns out his brother had a daughter. Reese and Lorelei clash on most things, but the attraction between them is evident. One of the set scenes is their dancing at the 4th of July celebration. I felt sorry for Reese, who was very lonely, but he also sticks his foot in his mouth many times. It was an easy read and it made time disappear.

A Cowboy for Keeps by Laura Drake This is the third book and I really enjoyed it. It is sad, happy, funny, touching, has misunderstandings, some drama and steamy stuff. Not to give anything away ...but what Nana does with a cigarette reminds of a high school friend of mines mother...loved it.

This book had a lot of potential - if I had just liked Lorelei and Reese a little more. A cute baby - a handsome, rich rancher, small town - this had all the potential in the world. Unfortunately, I alternated between being super super annoyed at Lorelei's attitude and behavior and Reese's really thoughtless comments. At one point even Lorelei mentions that she doesn't like who she becomes when she is around Reese - well neither did I. She describes herself as a golden retriever at the beginning of the book - which really did not actually seem to fit her at all. I also thought the comments Reese made edged into unbelievable. Like really, really ridiculous. Who tells a woman they are interested in that <spoiler> because she is older, she probably won't mind that he can't have kids.</spoiler> Like really?

Both Lorelei and Reese meet when they are both grieving and struggling to adapt to the changes in their lives. But neither handles the situation well. The only thing they seem to do well is love their niece - but even that Lorelei turns into a battle and control fest.

Overall, this just wasn't the read I wanted it to be. I think a little less pride and a little more tact and learning from their mistakes would have gone a long way to improving the read - instead of trying to wrap it all up in a neat bow in the last 25 pages.

I received this book as an ARC from NetGalley, but these opinions (obviously) are all my own.

A sweet contemporary western romance with a little steam
Lorelei West has lived in the shadow of her younger sister Patsy her whole life, always being the responsible while Patsy follows her heart. Working at the diner and taking care of her mother, after the woman had a stroke is difficult because of all the home repairs needed due to the lack of cash.
Grumbling to herself about her situation comes to a screeching halt when she receives a call on the way to work...Patsy died in a crash and left a baby that neither her or her mother knew about.
Reese St. James receives a call from the same police department informing him his brother Carson has died in a crash, but does not mention a baby. He finds out later and is desperate to get her.
Both are reasonable individuals and despite each wanting sole custody try to work out a fair arrangement.
Since both carry baggage from their pasts that makes it hard to trust, it takes a while to reach a place that not only they trust, but also come to love each other.
Ms. Drake tells the story with bits of mystery, before the reveal of their pasts explains the whys, humor in the characters in Lorelei's life, love in her friends and family. Reese's background made it hard for him to understand her point of view.
I requested and received a NetGalley ARC to peruse and recommend this book to anyone who loves a good contemporary romance with a hawt cowboy.

My favorite book in this series and I have liked them all. Returning to Unforgiven and the wonderful characters that inhabit the small town is always a treat. Reese and Lorelei are brought together with they both discover they have a newly orphaned niece. Lorelei is strong and overflowing with pride. Reese cannot tell you what he is thinking without putting his foot it. They may not seem to have much in common except for adoring their niece and wanting what is best for her. That means surrounding her with people who love her and it seems that creating a family for the baby might mean creating one for each other as well. This is a layered story where two flawed characters who think they are reconciled to living their lives they way it already is find out that the world has so much more in store in for them.

I received a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

Wow - what a read! This book drew me right in and kept me turning pages just as quickly as possible. The characters have a depth that made them feel real and made me feel invested in their story.

The story is the classic of a girl who has nothing , yet has what's really important, and a guy who has everything, but nothing that matters. When their niece is orphaned, they both step in, with all of the drama and angst that follows. What's different, however, is the author's voice. She has created compelling characters and made them come alive on the page. I was completely immersed in their story and wanting them to get their HEA ending.

Put this one at the top of your TBR list. While this is the first book I've read by this author, it won't be the last. I'm looking forward to reading more by her.

A Cowboy for Keeps is a sweet story about two people who felt second in their birth families that learn to be first when the death of their siblings bring them together to raise the child left behind. Laura Drake has created characters that will grab readers’ hearts and keep them turning pages. Neither Lorelei nor Reese has had romantic relationships that fostered trust, but as this story unfolds they cannot help but lean on each other to keep baby Sawyer enfolded in love and safety. The writing is first class and this reader will be looking for more by Ms. Drake. I voluntarily reviewed an advance copy of this book from NetGalley. Most highly recommend.

My thoughts

Would I recommended it? Yes

Would I read more by this author? Yes,in fact I have The Last True Cowboy to read.

This is the second book by this author and she never lets me down , the first one I read was Home at Chestnut Creek which is book 2 in the Chestnut Creek series and the first time I ever picked anything up by this author, one thing I loved about it as well as this one is that it takes place in a small town where its about family and friends,and her stories always a sweet romance that is full of quirky characters with that said I want to say thank you to Forever as well as NetGalley for letting me read and review it .

This read sort of like The Last Chance Cafe by Linda Lael Miller. Lorelei is stuck in a rut. She likes her life but always had a secret wish for more. Then her sister dies and leaves behind a six month old daughter and Lorelei suddenly has more than she’d ever imagined, including the broody brother of the baby’s father to contend with. Reese and Lorelei have a slowish burn, lots of misunderstandings, love that they’re afraid to accept from each other, and pride getting in their way. Of course, once they think they’ve got it all together, an angry man bent on revenge tries to tear them apart with a cruel act. Reese and Lorelei both have to set their pride aside to make things right after that, and Reese especially works hard to show that he’s more than just a shadow of his past.

This story was an enjoyable read about stubbornness and how it can make, break, and heal relationships. I didn’t read the book (or books?) before it in the series, but I didn’t feel lost among the side characters at all.