A VERY PRIVATE MERGER – Day Leclaire
Dynasties: The Kincaids , Book 6
Harlequin Desire #2162
ISBN: 978-0-373-73175-6
June 2012
Series Romance

Charleston, South Carolina – Present Day

As the months have passed since Reginald Kincaid was found murdered, his family has gone through their ups and downs. The low point was when his widow, Elizabeth, was arrested on suspicion of murder but then exonerated; the high point is when the Kincaid children start to find love and happiness. But the killer remains on the loose, and illegitimate son (and primary stockholder) Jack Sinclair is the prime suspect. Corporate investigator Nikki Thomas was secretly hired by the Kincaid siblings to investigate not only the murder, but as to who owns the ten percent of the company not held by the family. All signs point to Jack as the one who murdered his father, yet Nikki has an intimate reason why she thinks he's innocent: Nikki is sleeping with Jack.

Jack has fallen for Nikki and is on the verge of proposing marriage when he's stunned by the news that Nikki was hired by his half siblings to investigate him. Was she hoping to gain the upper hand with a little pillow talk? Jack shared his feelings about his father with Nikki, and now she may use his confessions against him to pin the murder on him. But Nikki soon makes it clear that she feels Jack is innocent, even if she doesn't have the evidence. Who really killed Reginald Kincaid? Then there is the matter of the missing stock shares…does Nikki know more about who owns them than what she's letting on?

A VERY PRIVATE MERGER focuses on finding the killer, and Nikki is on the job even as she sleeps with the prime suspect. She'd spotted Jack months ago, before she realized who he was, and the sparks flew instantly between them. They've managed to keep their affair hush-hush, which is how Nikki wants it since she has her own secrets that she is keeping from Jack. Yet now that he discovers who her employer is (the Kincaid siblings), she wonders how she can repair their relationship. Jack is stubborn and determined to bring down the Kincaid family empire as a way to pay back the sins of Reginald Kincaid in not acknowledging him as his son. Nikki would prefer that Jack look at a way to work with his siblings, but Jack won't listen to her, especially after her betrayal is revealed. Yet as much as Jack pushes Nikki away, the harder he finds it to resist the attraction still simmering between them. Knowing Nikki feels the same way about him, can Jack use her as a way to get back at his siblings?

As the Dynasties: The Kincaids series has unfolded, there have only been a handful of suspects. Jack has always remained on the top of everyone's list, especially since his car was seen at the company headquarters near the time of the murder. Yet Nikki instinctually knows Jack is not a killer. He might be coldhearted when it comes to business and how he feels about his half-siblings, but murder? Not Jack. Slowly, and layer by layer, Nikki, with help from Jack, unpeels the time frame and possible suspects. Readers may be a little surprised by who the real killer is, but in A VERY PRIVATE MERGER the truth finally comes out. And by the end, everyone will have their happily-ever-after. Except for the murderer, who is locked behind bars.

A fascinating and sensual tale penned by Day Leclaire, A VERY PRIVATE MERGER brings to a satisfactory close this family saga. Readers had caught glimpses of Jack and Nikki in the prior books, and it is helpful to have read them to fully understand what is going on. Check out www.eharlequin.com for a complete list in the series. A VERY PRIVATE MERGER is a sexy, quick, and enjoyable tale I highly recommend.

Patti Fischer