This is the first book of her <i>Westmoreland Legacy: The Outlaws</i> series. I have read two of her other books, and this is similarly a book of grand gestures, high heat, and big emotions. It is a showy book that is not in my style. I love that Regan is the corporate pilot. She is tasked with getting the billionaire head honcho, Garth, on a two-week getaway to Spain with his date. The date is a no-show. But the trip still stands. Regan is the stand-in. Despite ten years having passed since his first wife died, Garth remains unconvinced that he can fall in love again. But his kids need a mother. What was to be a marriage of convenience is now getting mixed up with a lot of angst, heat, and feelings. She, on the other hand, has always had a soft spot for him, and their affair only convinces her the rightness of him being in her life. The twist in the tail is expected but well done. This is a fast-paced story like Jackson's other books.

Review will be published on http://keirasoleore.blogspot.com

Rating 4.5

Quick unedited thoughts

I'm quickly falling in love with the Outlaw brothers. I read the fist two books out of sequence. I read Cashen's story first before his big brother Garth.

Garth thought he could never love again, but realized it was time for him to marry and start a family. He planned a two week trip with a woman from an exclusive dating agency, but things didn't go as planned or did they?

Regan isn't just Garth's pilot and occasional driver she is also a family friend. Unbeknownst to Garth, Regan has been in love with him for years. A year ago Garth and Regan went to a Westmoreland event together and everyone noticed what Garth did not. Garth didn't want to love another woman. He thought he couldn't, but boy was he wrong.

Catching up with the Westmoreland clan is always great fun

This is an African American Romance Fiction, and this is the first book in the Westmoreland Legacy: The Outlaws series. The two main characters are Garth and Regan, and they both really like each other. Regan works for Garth, and Garth as lost his love of his life not to long ago. I love the characters in this book, and at times it got really hot and sexy. I think the storyline was good. Once I started reading this book I could not put it down, and I love when a book does that to me. I was kindly provided an e-copy of this book by the publisher (Harlequin Desire) or author (Brenda Jackson) via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review about how I feel about this book, and I want to send a big Thank you to them for that.

Unfortunately this was pretty disappointing - Garth was an unsatisfying protagonist, which is too bad since there was a lot to like in his history and the setting. In general the book felt unfinished, like it needed some additional work. The dialogue is flat and the extensive explanation of the family at the beginning (to tie it to the other books, one assumes) is extremely clunky. It does pick up and move fast once it gets going, but on the whole this is a miss for me.

I always will love a Westmoreland novel. Thank you to both Harlequin and Netgalley for the arc of this book. I really enjoyed reading it and seeing other character from previous novels mentioned. This one was short and to the point which is something I definitely needed right now. I cant wait to see what their outlaw brothers are up too. This books was an enjoyable read, wish it was longer with a bit more details and build up.

Again thank you for the arc of this book.

Garth Outlaw isn't looking to get married, but he may need to in order to keep up appearances with his family. He decides to find a wife online and invite her away for a trip. When she is unable to make it, he ends up staying in Spain with his friend and pilot Regan. Regan has had a crush on Garth most of her life, but she works for him and that makes him off limits. But with this stay in Spain, all of that could change.

I fell in love with these characters and this story held my interest from the start to the very end.

This book wasn't bad but it wasn't great. I liked the plot and characters but something was missing.

I couldn't get into the dialog between any of the characters. It felt choppy and that lead to a disconnect.

Same trope different characters.....

Now we get the Outlaws (another line of Westmorelands). Nice start to a new line of the Westmorelands, but with it being a Harlequin romance there is only so far the author can take it. Reagan and Garth were not the couple that fell in love over night, but they were an employee/employer relationship. I don't want my words to be misunderstood. I love Brenda Jackson and the Westmoreland series and world, but it does feel like the basics are all repetitive. There are some unique elements. There was the glimpses if the extended family. There was the feel of family. And there was that two weeks in Santa Cruz Spain. The sightseeing. The opera. The plan that Regan put in place to win the man she love, but was willing to have love come later for herself. Watching Garth realize that he was in love with Regan and the figuring out how to tell her. The story trope maybe recycled and the outcome of love and marriage in the end. It was the journey for this couple.

I featured The Wife He Needs as Book of the Day on all my social media platforms, included it in a weekly roundup and will include it in a monthly roundup of new releases.

Garth Outlaw has just about everything he wants and needs in life - everything but a wife. So he joins a site and finds what he thinks is the perfect woman. He plans on making her his wife and, along the way, remove love as a factor. He arranges for a two-week getaway to get to know her. His pilot Regan is prepared to fly him to his destination, but Garth learns that his plans have fallen through.

As he is a workaholic, one of his friends suggests keeping his plans and asking Regan to join him. This could work, right? The only hang up? Regan Fairchild has been in love with Garth for years. Friends since childhood, her feelings for him have indeed morphed. Should she accept his offer to spend the time with him on his vacation, will she be able to hide her feelings? Better yet, will this be the time for Regan to tell Garth how she feels? Will Garth be able to see beyond their friendship and business relationship and move things to another level?

Garth and Regan begin their vacation together just fine as friends. However, the transition to more proves to be something that both of them want, not just Regan. Garth begins to notice more and more about Regan and this most definitely changes the course of their relationship. This story is filled with an even balance of emotion and heat, making this book by Brenda Jackson a delightful story.

Many thanks to Harlequin Desire and to NetGalley for this ARC for review. This is my honest opinion.

I was super excited for this extension of the Westmorlands yet I was truly disappointed with this story. I was intrigued by Garth and wanted to know so much more about him. reading this story didn't make me like him at all. Garth was very confusing and stubborn. His indecisive behavior was very frustrating to read

After the combat death of his fiancée, Garth can't open himself to love again. Regan has loved him forever, but all he can offer is passion. Will she take a chance and prove to him that she's the wife he needs?

This steamy, emotional, well-crafted story from the great Brenda Jackson will touch your heart.

Thanks, NetGalley, for the ARC I received.

The Wife He Needs by Brenda Jackson is Westmoreland Legacy: The Outlaws Book 1. This is a Mills & Boon Romantic Suspense: Heart-racing suspense, adventure and romance under extraordinary circumstances.

The six Outlaw siblings are cousins to Brenda Jackson’s famed Westmoreland characters. This first book is, eldest son, thirty-eight-year-old Garth’s story.

Garth Outlaw, former Marine and oldest son of Bartram “Bart” Outlaw, is planning to enter into a loveless marriage. He’s resigned himself to the idea of a marriage of convenience. Unfortunately, or fortunately, his plans are altered, and he’s spending two weeks with Regan Fairchild and not the woman he was expecting to marry. He’s attracted to Regan but that’s all it is: attraction.

Regan Fairchild, corporate pilot for Outlaw Freight Lines, knows that she’s the woman for Garth, whether he realizes it or not. Now they’re unexpectedly vacationing together. Should she continue to hide her feelings or risk it all with a man reluctant to open himself to love?

The Wife He Needs is a nice start to a new romance series. It perfectly preps for the series with a great introduction to the Outlaw siblings. The characters are likable with integrity. It’s a quick, entertaining read, the perfect length and pace. Beautiful scenery: Spain and Alaska. Brenda Jackson has crafted a successful formula for an engaging romance: beautiful people, beautiful locales, and most importantly, passion. My mind was fully engaged and entertained but not blown, thus a 4 out of 5 star rating. I thoroughly enjoyed this novel and recommend it to all readers who enjoy contemporary romance.

Third-born Cash and his story are next: The Marriage He Demands. I look forward to its release.

My thanks to HARLEQUIN – Romance (US & Canada) and NetGalley for the opportunity to read an advance copy of this book. However, the opinions expressed in this review are 100% mine and mine alone.

Garth Outlaw doesn't believe he will ever find love again, so he signs up for a dating service to find a woman who can marry him and not expect love. Reagan Fairchild has loved Garth since she was a teenager, but all he sees her as is his sister's friend and the company pilot. When Garth's dating service plan goes bust, he invites Reagan to spend two weeks in Santa Cruz with him. Despite fighting his attraction, he offers Reagan a proposal, two weeks of no expectations sex. She believes she can show him his heart can open up again after the tragic loss he suffered ten years ago, but they both might get more than they bargained for.

Brenda Jackson is a great writer. The book took me no time to read, and it was a great way to spend a snowy day. Garth is your typical billionaire boyfriend who doesn't want to open his heart, and Reagan is a strong female love interest who is more than her good looks. As expected with a romance, there is a complication at the end that makes it appear that all is lost in this romantic pairing.

This is a tried and true trope from an author who has a solid fan base. There is no new ground in this installment, but romance fans will want to add this series to their bookshelf if they are looking to add more diversity to their books.

Another hot romance from the author of the Outlaw/Westmoreland saga. or

Thinking you can only have true love once in your lifetime, Garth is attracted to his personal pilot and family friend , Regan. He decided to invite her to join him for a 2 week vacation. He offers an affair only for the two weeks they're on vacation, and she accepts. Sparks fly and feelings change but is Garth able to admit his true feelings to Regan?

I received a free ARC eBook from Net Galley and the publisher in exchange for my honest opinions.

THE WIFE HE NEEDS: A BOSS EMPLOYEE VACATION ROMANCE is the first book in the WESTMORELAND LEGACY: THE OUTLAWS series. Don’t let the title fool you. Outlaw is the last name of Bart and his six offspring— all by different women! This is Garth’s (the eldest’s) story, though the rest of his siblings are woven throughout. The Outlaws are a tight-knit group who work together in the family business and still live in Alaska where they grew up.

Most of the story takes place in Santa Cruz, Spain, in the span of two weeks. Garth is to meet someone there, but when that falls through, he asks his pilot and family friend, Regan, to stay and vacation with him. They both have feelings for each other, but a romance has never taken root. Until this time.

The story has a real depth to the characters, who feel real. The scenic descriptions of Santa Cruz and Alaska made me feel like I was there. But the story is a little choppy at times, as the plot shifts in places without warning.

THE WIFE HE NEEDS has a lot of steamy moments to build the romance which has its foundations on friendship and family. The ending is wonderful, and the epilogue is the icing on the cake! I can’t wait to read the stories for the remaining Outlaw siblings!

Ms. Jackson is an author who’s been on my radar, but I’ve previously only read one of her books many years ago, which is the first book in the WESTMORELAND LEGACY series.

The Wife He Needs is another great in book in the Westmoreland series. Learning more about the Outlaws, the newest additions to the Westmoreland family is fabulous. This book will take you through many different stages of love including recovering from a lost love. I enjoyed seeing Garth Outlaw really get to know his pilot Regan. The premise for how they get to spend alone time together is something very contemporary and novel. Garth tries to fight his feelings for Regan but their time together keeps making that harder and harder since Regan has decided to finally go after what she wants. The help and/or interference of Garth's family adds to the plot and the amazing outcome of the story. There is a surprise near the end when more than one character in the book finds The Wife He Needs. This is a great book to read and it will leave you smiling and happy whenever you think of it.

Good start to the new series about the recently discovered Outlaw branch of the Westmoreland family. The various members are introduced in <I>Breaking Bailey's Rules</i>, including the fact that family patriarch Bartram Outlaw wants nothing to do with the Westmorelands. His kids, however, are happy to meet their cousins, some of whom make brief appearances in this book.

Garth is the oldest of the Outlaws and in charge of running the company. He decided it is time to get married, but there's a catch. Years earlier, while in the Marines, Garth fell in love with a woman who was killed in action. He believes he can't (or is it <I><b>won't</i></b>) fall in love again, so he plans a marriage of convenience. He has a two-week getaway scheduled with a woman he met through a dating service to see if they would suit. But when he arrives at his destination, the woman is a no-show, leaving him at loose ends. So he asks Regan, his pilot and longtime friend, to stick around.

Regan has known Garth all of her life. Her father was the Outlaws' pilot before her, and she grew up with the Outlaw kids as friends. However, her feelings for Garth are decidedly not friendly. She had a crush on him from the time she was sixteen, and in recent years that crush turned to love. Regan knows he only sees her as a friend. Even though she's been a fill-in date a few times, she longs for more. When he invites her to stay with him for those two weeks, she sees her chance to show him she can be what he needs.

I enjoyed the development of the relationship between Regan and Garth. We know Regan's feelings from the beginning, but Garth's are more complicated. He's sure he will never love another and plans to enter a loveless but convenient marriage. One motivating factor for the marriage is the inconvenient attraction Garth feels for Regan. He thinks that marriage will solve that problem. For the first couple of days Regan and Garth spend together both struggle to hide their attraction though some of it leaks through their erected shields. Garth gets the bright idea that they can indulge themselves for the two weeks, as long as she realizes that love and marriage are not in the cards. Though Regan is stunned and angry at first, she decides that the best way to show Garth what he needs is to give him what he thinks he wants.

I loved watching Garth and Regan spend time together. While their physical connection was intense, the time they spent otherwise occupied deepened their emotional connection. Many scenes of shared interests, from performances to hikes to cooking, brought them closer together. They also shared some more painful memories, such as Regan's loss of her mother and Garth's loss of his fiancée. But Garth is a hard nut to crack, and their return to Alaska ends their affair.

I ached for Regan, who had such high hopes, only to have them dashed by Garth's actions. Meanwhile, Garth is deservedly miserable without Regan. By the time he sees the truth of his feelings, matters become complicated by an unexpected visitor. I ached for Regan and how, devastated, she makes a hard decision about her future. I loved the scene with Garth's siblings and the kick in the pants they provided. Garth did an excellent job of not quite groveling but finally opening up his heart to her. I loved the ending and Garth's over-the-top demonstration of his love.

I enjoyed getting to know a little bit about each of the Outlaw Westmorelands. I can't wait for the next book in the series. I would also like to find out the story behind Bartram Outlaw's attitude about his Westmoreland family.

“She loved him so much. He had no idea that she loved him. He thought all he wanted from her was sex, but she intended to make things so good between them that in the end he would think twice about letting her go build a future with another man. She was taking a gamble with her plan, but he was worth the risk.”

THE HEAT IS ON! Brenda Jackson delivers in The Wife He Needs: A Boss Employer Vacation Romance, the first book in her new Outlaws series. Here, we meet Garth Outlaw, a wealthy bachelor who has convinced himself that while it is time for him to settle down, love is not on the table. After losing Karen who proves to be the love of his life in a tragic accident, he has turned away from the possibility of opening himself in that way again. So when he begins to see his pilot, Regan Fairchild for the beautiful, amazing woman that she is, he immediately tries to push down any feelings he might develop for a simpler love affair.

One of the things I really enjoyed about Jackson’s love story (besides the hot and steamy incorporated scenes) is how commanding her main characters are. When they enter the scene and the wheels begin turning, the book becomes an instant page-turner. I’m looking forward to the next installment: The Marriage He Demands, highlighting Cash Outlaw’s story.

Thank you to NetGalley and Harlequin Romance for granting me an ARC in exchange for an honest review!

Publication date: 12/15/20

Title: The Wife He Needs
Author: Brenda Jackson
Publisher: Harlequin Desire
Reviewed By: Arlena Dean
Rating: Four
Review:

"The Wife He Needs" by Brenda Jackson

My Speculation:

A good romance story that this author does so very well. "The Wife He Needs" is the first in this series that features Garth Outlaw and Regan Fairchild. As the story starts, it seems like Garth is looking for a bride from a dating service that doesn't show, so he invites the family pilot Regan to send two weeks in Santa Cruz, and she does. How will this work out? Did these two have some hidden feelings for one another? Why was it that Garth had feelings for Regan but said he would never fall in love again? Will they have an understanding that what goes on in Santa Cruz stay there after this trip all ends? I love how plans have a way of falling apart as it was for Garth! You will have to follow this story to get all of the above questions answered and more and see how well this author will bring out this well-written story so well to the reader.

If you are looking for an entertaining and enjoyable novel, you have come to the right place for "The Wife He Needs" will give it all to you.

Thank you to NetGallery for the read.