"The Reluctant Warrior" by Mary Connealy

Former cavalry officer Cameron Scott came to fetch his daughter and nephew from the people who rescued them from a wagon train massacre, but since arriving, nothing has gone right. First, he has been snowed in with them for the entire winter; second, the children are still terrified of him, even months later; and third, he's pretty sure that pretty Gwen Harkness is trying to keep them. Which is not far from the truth--Gwen is definitely reluctant to give up these children she loves as her own. But when a murdering dry-gulcher descends on the ranch and Cam gets injured, he ends up in Gwen's care, where he learns just why children love her so much. But will she love him back?

This book picks up shortly after the first book leaves off--a couple months later, but everyone is still solidly snowed in for the winter, and the situation from the end of book one hasn't really changed. Thus I highly recommend starting with book 1, as they are quite interconnected.

Some days one just needs a lighthearted story where the good guys are good (though definitely not perfect), the bad guys are bad (and through some soul-searching, this villain determines that yes, he just really likes being bad [I rather liked that about him]), and there's just enough romance to sweeten the story.

I rather liked Cameron and wanted to defend him, even when he wasn't right. He might be a bossy grouch, but there's no denying his love and heartbreak for his children, and that absolutely tilted the scales in his favor. I can understand Gwen's reluctance to give them to him; he really has no concept of how to deal with kids. But as they begin to work together to connect him and the kids, there are some really sweet moments.

This book clearly sets up the next, and I look forward to Penny and John's story! It was fun getting to know them a bit in this book, and should be even more fun seeing what trouble they get into!

Thank you Bethany House and NetGalley for the complimentary e-book. I was not required to write a positive review, and all opinions are my own.

High Sierra Sweethearts
1. The Accidental Guardian
2. The Reluctant Warrior
3. The Unexpected Champion