Luke's Runaway Bride
Cheyenne, a late 19th-century frontier town, serves as the  backdrop for Bridges's galloping romantic suspense. Shortly  after leaving a party celebrating her engagement to Daniel  Kincaid, one of Denver's finest citizens, Jenny Eriksen and her  companion, Olivia Gibson, are kidnapped by a "hotheaded cowboy"  who claims he needs them to accompany him for just 36 hours.  Still in their ball gowns, Jenny and Olivia endure a grueling  boxcar ride to Cheyenne, where Jenny gradually learns the truth  about her abductor, Luke McLintock, and her fianc . Luke and  Daniel grew up together, and now Luke is on a mission to force  Daniel to acknowledge Adam, the son he fathered with a Mexican  woman. Although the five-year-old is now an orphan, Daniel  refuses to acknowledge his moral lapse and instead sends his  henchman to eliminate Luke and re-abduct Jenny. Sternly closing  her heart against her feelings for Luke, a perpetual loner,  Jenny nevertheless embraces Adam. It's a natural step, albeit  one filled with spirited conflicts, for Luke and Jenny to  realize that they can provide a loving home for Adam. Bridges  (The Doctor's Homecoming) is comfortable in her western setting,  and her characters' humorous sparring make this boisterous mix  of romance and skullduggery an engrossing read.Copyright 2002 Reed Business Information, Inc.