Simply Love Book

Luke Taggart was raised in a brothel by a mother who abused and neglected him. In his early 20's, Luke unearthed a fortune in a Colorado gold mine and became one of the richest men in the state. Drowning in a constant parade of women, liquor, and gambling, Luke denied himself nothing. If it felt good, he did it. If he wanted it, he took it. After one look at Cassandra Zerek, Luke decided that what he needed to cure the boredom and loneliness in his life was this innocent young woman he couldn't get off his mind. There was only one problem, Cassandra's father stood squarely between them.

Because Luke was used to buying whatever he wanted, he went to Cassandra's dad and made him an offer for his daughter. Luke wanted her to be his mistress for a year in exchange for what amounted to a fortune to her poor family. Her dad told Luke what he could do with is "generous" offer. Undeterred, Luke arranged to have Cassandra's dad and brother arrested on bogus charges so that she would be at his mercy. She would be his mistress or see herself and her little brother turned out onto the streets.

Being naive and sheltered, Cassandra couldn't imagine why Luke would pay so much money to have her as his "paid companion", but she took the job because she needed the money...and she felt so sorry for the man who needed friends so desperately that he needed to pay them to spend time with him. The contract that she signed also stipulated that he would have custody of any "issue" that would arise from their agreement, but she decided that as friends, no issues would be too big for them to overcome.

After a night spent doing nothing more than playing chess, Luke was extremely frustrated with her complete misunderstanding of what he expected of her. He tried to explain that she had agreed to perform "wifely duties" for him...so she stripped and waxed the floor. Cassandra was so innocent that she often came across in the book as simpleminded. She knew that her reputation could be tarnished by living in his house, but she had no idea why. How she made it to 19 years old even in the late 1800's with the innocence of a 5 year old is a complete mystery.

Although Cassandra's naivety was a bit much to take after a while, I did like this book. Luke came off as a jerk in the beginning, but as it progressed, he began to change and turn into the hero that I have come to expect from Catherine Anderson. He loved her desperately and would do anything to fix the mess he made of the situation by lying to her. By the end of the book, my heart was breaking for him. He did do some shady things to Cassandra and her family, but he was so desperate to hold onto her that he was willing to do anything. Luke learned that love, not money, was the path to his heart's greatest desire.