Title: Worth It All
Series: The McKinney Brothers #3
Author: Claudia Connor
Publisher: Loveswept
Genre: Contemporary Romance
Release Date: April 19, 2016
“Read Claudia Connor for a consistently raw and emotional love story,” recommends Carly Phillips. Now the swoon-worthy McKinney Brothers series from this bestselling author continues as JT, the youngest of the trio, discovers that only love can make him whole.
She’s fighting for control. . . . Paige Roberts learned to fend for herself growing up. Now she’s doing everything possible to give her daughter, Casey, the stability she never had. But when the vivacious five-year-old decides she’s done wearing her prosthesis, Paige faces her toughest challenge yet: trusting a handsome, brooding stranger who simply wants to help.
He’s struggling to connect. . . . JT McKinney lost more than his leg in a car accident that stole his dreams of pro football. Eight years later, he’s made a new life for himself far away from his old one. His business is developing cutting-edge prosthetics and he’s more than happy to turn his attention to machines instead of people. Still, he can’t shake the feeling that something’s missing.
Will they take a chance on love? . . . When JT gets the chance to help Paige’s daughter, he takes it. He never planned on the two of them tearing down his walls or teaching him to believe in himself again. Paige might not believe in happily ever afters, but JT wants more than anything to be her prince. They’ll both have to let go of the past if they want a future.
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I received an advanced copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.
I try to read my books in the order that they will be released/review date, but when I get an advanced copy of a McKinney Brothers book I just can't help myself. I LOVE THIS SERIES SO MUCH! It doesn't matter what I am reading, it gets moved to the side (sorry other authors!) and the McKinney Brothers take center stage. And like the books before this one, once I picked it up, I had a hard time putting it down and I didn't want it to end.
I was hooked from Chapter 1. Paige works at a diner that JT frequents with his friend and coworker Simon. He has definitely noticed her, but is too chicken (as Simon likes to remind him quite often) to do anything about it. Just when he gets up the nerve to ask her out, he discovers she has a daughter. And that scene where JT meets Casey....OH MY GOD. Talk about adorable. Then to make the scene even more important, he discovers that Casey is also part of one of her legs. Just like him. And just like that JT finds himself drawn to Paige and Casey in way he has never experienced before. He lost part of his leg in an accident when he was only 19 years old. Since then, he has worked to make his cutting edge prosthetic company one of the best in the world. He does not hesitate to help Casey when he notices that her prosthetic may need some adjusting. He invites Casey and Paige to his office and for me, that is where the story begins. Paige learns a lot about JT while she is there and sees a side to him that she did not expect.
I absolutely LOVED the bond that JT formed with Casey. Thanks to a past relationship, he doesn't think that he will ever have his own family, but he becomes so attached to Casey (and Paige) in such a short time,. I think the fact that they had something in common helped, but Casey was also a smart, hilarious, and adorable kid. One of the things I like best about these books is how well Claudia writes the children. JT gave Matt a serious run for his money in this book. (And don't worry, if you need a Matt fix or maybe a Stephen fix, you will get it in this book.)
Paige and JT as a couple was just the BEST. With the help of her cousin Jenny, Paige has been raising Casey, but she is also working two jobs and taking online classes towards her associates degree. Paige hasn't had a man in her life since before Casey, so while she is wary of getting involved with JT, he is the perfect man for her. He sees how hard she is working and makes a point of telling her that she is not only a wonderful mom, but an amazing person. He wants to take care of her and Casey. He NEEDS to be the man in their lives.
I cried a lot while reading this book. Not because it was sad, but because so much of it was so darn sweet and emotional. I highlighted the bejesus out of this book, but while looking over what I did highlight, the following excerpt stood out for me:
Could these two BE any cuter?? I think not. Scenes like this reminded me of Matt's story and there ain't nothing wrong with that!
I could on and on about this book (I kind of already have...oops) so I will end by saying this: You know when you are tucked into bed all warm and cozy? You get that warm and fuzzy feeling that makes you not want to get out of bed? That's how I felt when I read this book.
“Jake?”
“Hmm?”
“Can I ask you a question?”
“Sure.” He smiled, thinking she’d never asked permission before. “It must be a big one.”
“It is.”
He prepared himself for some kind of birds-and-bees question or something otherwise out of his zone.
She lifted her head from his arm and peered up at him with those summer-sky baby blues. “Do you think . . .” She paused, glancing at the ground in front of her. “Do you think you could ever want a little girl with one leg?”
The bottom dropped out of his stomach and the world from under his feet. His chest squeezed so tightly he couldn’t get a breath. The answer was he could, he did.
He lifted her into his lap. “I most definitely could,” he said, cradling her against his chest. “But mostly , more than anything, I’d want a little girl that was you.”
She tilted her head back further. “But there’s only one of those.”
“That’s right. Only one.”
She leaned against him, seeming to think about that, and so did he.
Only one Casey. Only one Paige. Only one woman who’d ever made him want to change the person he’d always thought he was. The only one who could make him want what he hadn’t wanted and then make him feel good enough about himself to have it.
“You’re smart and you’re beautiful, just like your mother with your mother’s eyes.”
“Not exactly like Mommy’s.”
He rubbed his hand lightly over her back. “No, not exactly. Your eyes are the color of the sky. Hers are the color of the sea.”
Casey straightened, her bright smile back in place like the sun after a storm. “And yours are the color of dirt! So we make the sky and the water and the land.”
He shook his head and smiled at her, figuring that was the weirdest, sweetest compliment he’d ever received. And perhaps the best way to explain it.
Could these two BE any cuter?? I think not. Scenes like this reminded me of Matt's story and there ain't nothing wrong with that!
I could on and on about this book (I kind of already have...oops) so I will end by saying this: You know when you are tucked into bed all warm and cozy? You get that warm and fuzzy feeling that makes you not want to get out of bed? That's how I felt when I read this book.
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Author Bio
New York Times bestselling author Claudia Connor attended Auburn University, where she received her undergraduate and masters degrees in early childhood education, and completed her studies in Sawbridgeworth, England. Always a lover of happy endings, she enjoys movies, reading, and spending her days putting on paper the stories in her head. She lives near Memphis, Tennessee, with her husband and three daughters.
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