#BookReview: An Officer and a Rebel by Cindi Madsen - 4 Wine Glasses

Title: An Officer and a Rebel 
Series: Accidentally in Love)
Author: Cindi Madsen
Expected publication: July 28th 2014
Links: Goodreads | Amazon | B&N | ARe
Source: NetGalley
Reviewer: Linda
Rating: 4/5

Doing the wrong thing has never felt so right...

The last person police officer Nate Walsh expected to discover stranded in a snowstorm is his brother's ex—and former town rebel—Kelsey Cooper. His complete opposite in every way, Kelsey’s the girl he never allowed himself to want. But when she agrees to stay with him until the storm passes, he definitely finds himself wanting the gorgeous, tattooed woman. Too bad Nate’s sure his brother is still in love with her…

Kelsey had only meant to drive through her tiny hometown, not end up spending time there. With a cop. But despite her issues with authority figures, even she can admit Mr. Serious looks pretty hot in his uniform. Unfortunately, she’s sworn off relationships—and she’ll never be the girl for a nice guy.

Thoughts:

Every second around this girl was asking for trouble and he'd never wanted to be in trouble so bad in his life. 

AN OFFICER AND A REBEL by Cindi Madsen is a sweet and sultry Christmas-in-July  romance.  I do love reading about snow in our summer heat :-).  This novella is part of Cindi's Accidentally in Love series with interconnected characters, but this story can be easily read as a standalone.  It was a quick read at only 90 pages and was previously released as part of the Stranded with a Hero anthology.  

The book's small-town setting is lovely...

“Marion's town slogan was "Where Main Street Meets Mountain."  That was one of the reasons she'd loved the town, with the nearby woods, its colorful shops, and the feeling that time hadn't touched it the way it had the cities.” 

As the story opens, Kelsey Cooper, our wild-child heroine with purple-streaked hair, is planning to spend the holidays with her Mom to bake Christmas cookies.  She's driving from Charlotte and has routed her trip over the mountains through her old hometown so she could get a few glimpses of the town for old time's sake.  Fate intervenes in the form of a blizzard and a deer who runs right in front of her car.  She swerves to miss the deer and runs off the road.  With the roads near impassable due to the storm, she is lucky that a car happens upon her wrecked car so quickly.

Nate Walsh, our hero, is beyond surprised when he finds Kelsey in the wrecked car.  She's his younger brother's ex-girlfriend and was formerly known as the town's rebel.   She had always intrigued him and he'd meant to look her up when he took his cop training in Charlotte... but never had.  Now... here she was.  With the nearest motel on the other side of town and the roads so dangerous, he offers her safe and warm refuge at his home until the storm passes.  

“She'd gotten even prettier over the years.

And now she was in his house.

And he had no idea if this was the best thing to happen to him or the stupidest thing he'd ever done.

Kelsey watched Nate go, thinking this might've been the worst decision she'd ever made. Okay, so it wasn't nearly as bad as that time she'd decided to go on the Sky Screamer at the amusement park when she was drunk.” 

Nate had secretly crushed on Kelsey forever, but he was a true gentleman at heart.  His brother had shared just a month ago that Kelsey was the love of his life and he had expressed regret that he'd let her go.  Nate's and Kelsey's sexual chemistry sizzled but they tap-danced around their intense set-your-sheets-on-fire attraction because Nate was such a stand-up guy.  He was a sweetheart.   Nate could build me a fire anytime.  Would their second chance at love go down for the count before it got started?  Following please find a couple of quotes illustrating the humor and the preciousness of 

Kelsey's and Nate's relationship:

“Kelsey flopped next to him, propping her elbow on the back of the couch so she was facing him. "Do you have something against happiness?"

"Yes. Don't tell anyone, but I moonlight as the Grinch.” 

---

“She leaned closer and he caught the sweet scent of her mixed with a tinge of alcohol. "Then why'd you never talk to me? Why did you leave a room whenever I entered it?" ...

"Because you were the prettiest thing I'd ever laid eyes on, and I was afraid everyone would notice I was staring.” 

Cindi's writing is first rate.  The characters are completely endearing.  I laughed and swooned.   You know when you sit down with one of Cindi's books, you will be entertained.   You will want to read this in one sitting as you won't be able to put it down.  If you are looking for a snowy escape with lots of laughs and romance, then look no further than AN OFFICER AND A REBEL.