Stephany:He didn’t even want a wife, now he could be stuck with a baby.I thought an arranged marriage would let me skip the drama and the heartache of picking through dead end relationships. When I meet my new fiance, he couldn’t be less interested in me. It turns out that this wasn’t even Devon’s idea, he has to get married before can take over the family business. He’s looking for a marriage of … business. He’s looking for a marriage of convenience, not a permanent relationship, so why would the match maker insist he’s a smart choice for my husband?
Not that I can deny our chemistry. When Devon lights my body on fire with his unexpected kiss I forget all the reasons I can’t go through with marrying him.
Devon:
That kiss was supposed to scare her off, now I have to make sure she doesn’t get away.
I have big ideas of turning the family business around, but I don’t get control until I find a wife. That’s the only reason I let my family sign me up with some crazy match maker.
I don’t want a wife, I need one– just long enough to take over the company, then whatever poor girl gets conned into marrying me can go find herself a real husband.
Stephany’s too good for me. She doesn’t deserve to get pulled into my messed up situation but I’m already committed to the plan. I need Stephany to back out and call this marriage off but I can’t resist taking what I want first.
One taste and I’ll never let her go.
***
This is a stand alone novella with NO cheating, a happy ending, and plenty of steam along the way.
more
If he wants to take over the family business he has one thing he is expected to do. This is a stipulation put into place from his Uncle and his dad and mom agree….this is by no means what Devon wants. So to appease the family, and so that the company is left to him, he had put in an application on Raven’s website, you know the one, the matchmaker with a 99% satisfaction guarantee. That was years ago he filled out the application, and he really didn’t completely fill it out. This is again nothing he really wants. Raven must be smarter than she seems because multiple times she has come out in person to make sure that Devon is speaking the truth of being matched up with a forever spouse. He puts on his best show and now, all these years later he gets that call from Raven saying she has matched me with someone. What?!?! Oh well, time to get this over with.
Her friends are fantastic and she is really nervous, but being tired of being played the fool and not taken seriously enough, her application went in on Raven’s matchmaking website. When Stephany calls and speaks to Raven about this guy (seeing as how when she looks him up to check things out about him, there is really nothing at all filled out on his application) it was stated that this is “a smart choice” for her. What is that even supposed to mean? Oh well, I am unsure of this but seeing as how her rating is the 99% satisfaction guaranteed Stephany trusts her. Well the way things are supposed to happen for the meeting up with your match seems to be a bit different for her match. Unnerving to say the least. So what is she supposed to do, being a grown up she gets dressed, has her hair done and moves forward.
The table is occupied, but not just by the matches….nope his mom, dad, aunt and uncle are there, who isn’t at the table when she is seated is her match. Well, that is definitely a step in the right direction….not. Now here is the late comer to the table. There is to be no alcohol at this meeting, so they order water. He won’t even look at her. She is telling herself to just get through this and tomorrow she will call Raven and tell her this is not a match. Maybe she will find someone else for her. Then he up and disappears half way through dinner. Definitely not a good match at all. As Stephany is leaving he calls out to her. She stops and turns, seeing him sitting on the ground and drinking from a flask. That is it, since he isn’t taking this seriously, she walks over to him and speaks her mind. He is suddenly caught unaware of his attraction to her.
Devon doesn’t want to get married, as stated before he is doing it because he has to. His plan is get matched up, marry and then once the ownership of the company is handed to him, the wife will be out the door with a nice “divorce severance pay” situation. Not even Devon feels the match will want to stick around him after that time anyways. He doesn’t want a mousey girl who agrees with him just because….no he wants a woman who can stand on her own two feet and can stand up to him if and when needed. Stephany is surprising him, she speaks her mind and does it in such a way that turns him on…ok so she is smart, has had schooling, and a bit snarky when needed….this is good, no wait this is bad….why is he so turned on?
Raven calls Devon and asks him to come into the office she needs to talk to him, when he arrives he sees Stephany and Raven talking outside the office. It looks like things are finishing up, so when Raven sees Devon over Stephany’s shoulder she locks up the office and quickly darts, leaving the two of them standing with each other. Well things are about to change. Devon sees things about Stephany he didn’t want to notice before, and Stephany has the same thing happening. Now they take a drive and things really heat up. Devon realizes he wants her, all of her, and he WANTS to marry her. Words get in the way, there are hurt feelings, there is the “I need to make this right” event that happens, and then their happy ending does happen. What happens from the start to the finish of the book and everything in between is so fun/angering/miscommunications and a roller coaster of emotions and twists. Too good to put down.
Loved it
Loved Devon and Stephy. Stephy wants her happily ever after and is done with the frog kissing to get their. Devon is the CEO of his families charitable foundation, he needs a wife before his uncle will let him take over. While he wants a wife and family some day, he needs a temporary wife now. One that has a thick skin to put up with his family and the fall out that will rein down when he shakes things up.
Raven Swann does something unprecedented. She bypasses the friend and family interview process and pairs Stephy with Devon. Stephy leaves their first date ready to call it off. Their second, she is done, with men. Devon knows Stephy is perfect for him. He enlist the aid of Strphy’s BFFs to convince her.
A Smart Choice is fun, fast paced and a steamy love story, with a sweet and steamy bonus epilogue to tie things up nicely.
Arc review for honest review. This is a story of two characters Stephanie and Devon that want to be married for different reasons ,but find out that there the right match. that the marriage match service helped them find each other. Awesome great writing.
This was another great story by this author. This is part of an ongoing series of arranged marriages by the insightful Raven Swan. Each book is a standalone so there is no worry if one has not read the other books. The premise of Raven’s idea (the matchmaker) is that each participant fills out a detailed form and had three friends/family members who act as the jury to hear out the potential match. There is supposed to be a few dates (with a few rules) and then the marriage is to take place.
This story takes an interesting turn as the two people who are to be matched (Devon and Stephany) are anything but similar and they seem to have no connection. Their first meeting is horrid, to say the least, and it leaves Stephany wanting to negate their marriage contract and the entire idea of arranged marriage. Devon on the other had, did not want to be married to beginning with (it was his family’s idea) therefore he is willing to sleep with Stephany and treat her like what he believe she is, a means to an end. Raven and Stephany have a meeting about Devon and some truths are revealed that might change Stephany’s mind. The story unfolds from there and the romance develops. The story is sweet and heartwarming. I really enjoyed reading about Devon and his transformation when he realized his feelings for Stephany. The story is a fast read with a fun plot and interesting characters. I really enjoyed reading it and found that I was completely satisfied with the outcome. The secondary characters, mostly Devon’s family were interesting and really added to the feeling and development of the primary characters. I would recommend this story and hope that other readers enjoy the characters as much as I did.
Stephany has done the calculation. She wants the loving husband, home family and using the services of expensive and exclusive Ravine Swann, matchmaker extraordinaire, is just as expensive as signing up for all the dating website services, but with guaranteed results. Ravine reminds me of Susan Mallory’s Fool’s Gold’s Mayor Marsha, seemingly knowing all. The usual process is for each client to have a team of friends and/or family to help “vent” the candidate. But in Stephany’s case, which matched more quickly than she expected, she was told to leave the team behind and Devon is “a smart choice”. But when they meet, it does not appear so. Devon’s “team” came along for the meeting, and it is clear that Devon had no interest in marriage. Devon is to take over the running of the family foundation, but his uncle insists Devon must be married first. He agreed to going through the matchmaker, but his plan is to marry, take control of the business and then give his “bride” a large divorce settlement. His application has been sitting on Raven’s desk so long, that he thought she had forgotten about him. Their first meet is a disaster, but as each comes to tell Raven they are not a good match, she has arranged for them to meet alone.. They discover that they really are a good match.