Wanting What She Can't Have

The Master Vintners #5

by Yvonne Lindsay

Craving the Forbidden… 

Billionaire Raoul Benoit lets Alexis Fabrini, his late wife's best friend, become his daughter's nanny for one reason only: the baby deserves love and attention. Raoul doesn't—he has to pay for his sins, which means steering clear of Alexis no matter how much he wants her. 

The least Alexis can do is help out with this child. But she can't let herself fall into bed with Raoul. She's lived with her unrequited feelings for a long time—what's a little while longer? The problem is, the feelings are more than requited, and can no longer be denied….

Genres: Romance, Harlequin, Contemporary Romance, Harlequin Desire

191 pages, Kindle Edition

First published January 1, 2014

About the author

A typical Piscean, USA Today! Best-selling author, Yvonne Lindsay, has always preferred the stories in her head to the real world. Yvonne is a five-time Romance Writers of Australia R*BY nominee and three-time nominee and 2015 winner of the Romance Writers of New Zealand Koru Award of Excellence. She spends her days crafting the stories of her heart and in her spare time she can be found with her nose firmly in someone else’s book.

Reviews

[Jo · Rating 1 out of 5]

ODIO ESTA HISTORIA.
Comenzando con que es una historia muy absurda con demasiadas increpancias y personajes tan carentes de "personalidad" que me dan ganas de vomitar. Una novela muy mal llevada, pese a que está escrita correctamente #GraciasEditoresDeHQÑ. #HacenQueMiVidaSeaMejor. Lo que realmente me sorprende es que este tipo de libros hayan pasado el filtro de calidad de una de las editoriales más grandes en el género del romance. Porque sinceramente, de romance, NADA.
Es el juego del gato y el ratón, pero llevado al extremo, porque la protagonista es más una antagonista, y se transforma en ello, en el mismo momento en que deja ver que ella amaba al héroe de su mejor amiga, al esposo, y que envidia la relación y el matrimonio entre ellos, así que para NO HACER DAÑO, -ni hacerselo ella misma- se larga y corta toda relación con la amiga. Hasta allí diríamos que está bien porque la protagonista tiene sus cinco minutos de moral y hace lo correcto. Pero cuando el gato (la amiga) muere al dar a luz a la hija, el ratón prácticamente salta sobre el gatito viudo y le clava las uñas para no dejarle escapar. Es decir, se le pone en bandeja y lo único que le falta es decirle: "Sírvete". Hablando de moral...
Y el héroe es un viudo con un ojo alegre, porque la mujer A LA QUE DICE QUE AMA está muerta, enterrada y pudriéndose y el señor se culpa de su muerte por la hija de ambos. Repudia a la niña y él... doble moral, sin vergüenza, intenta excusarse de follarse a la protagonista, diciendo que desde el momento en que la conoció la deseó, pero que NO TUVO LOS PANTALONES, para acabar con el compromiso con la amiga. Y ahora, como la tiene a tiro, pues va a proceder y cumplir con la fantasía que tuvo cuando la conoció. Lo más HORRIBLE, es que el tipo dice que él esperaba verla en SU MATRIMONIO #SoWhat?... Exacto.
Dicen que siempre hay algo que salvar, o de lo qué aprender.Y es cierto, porque si algo tengo que rescatar de este libro, es la idea de juntar a padre e hija de la "doblemoral" de la protagonista.
Pero, definitivamente ODIE con todas mis fuerzas este libro. Si Goodreads tuviera puntuaciones negativas no hubiera dudado en colocarla.


I HATE THIS STORY.
Starting with that is a very absurd story with too increpancias and so lacking in 'personality' that makes me want to vomit characters. A novel very mismanaged, although it is correctly written #Gracias Editors. #Hacen Make my life better. What really surprises me is that these books have passed the filter quality of one of the largest publishers in the genre of romance. Because honestly, romance, NOTHING.
It is the game of cat and mouse, but taken to the extreme, because the protagonist is more antagonistic, and transformed it, at the same time reveals that she loved the hero of his best friend, spouse, and who envies the relationship and marriage between them, so as not to harm, nor let them herself-all relations with the friend is long and short. There would say that's okay because the protagonist has his five minutes of morality and doing the right thing. But when the cat (the friend) dies giving birth to her daughter, the mouse almost jumps on the widower kitten and thrusts nails to not let him escape. That is, it puts you on a platter and the only thing missing is say, "Help yourself." Speaking of moral ...
And the hero is a widower with a cheerful eye, because the woman who says she loves is dead, buried and rotting and Mr. blamed for his death by their daughter. Repudiates the child and he ... double standards, without shame, tries to excuse to fuck the protagonist, saying that from the moment he met her he wanted, but he did not have the pants, to end the commitment to friend . And now, as does a shot, because it will come and fulfill the fantasy he had when he first met her. The most horrible thing is that the guy says he expected to see her in her marriage #SoWhat? ... Exactly.
They say something always save, or what aprender.Y is true because if something have to take from this book is the idea of ​​bringing together father and daughter of "double standards" of the protagonist.
But definitely my hardest HATE this book. Goodreads had negative scores if he had not hesitated to place it.

[Kathy B. (NE) · Rating 4 out of 5]

Yvonne Lindsay is one of my favorite authors and I have recently become a member of her review team. When her newest installment of The Master Vintners mini-series arrived, a quick look at the back cover revealed that a baby was one of the essential characters in this book. I do not like babies in my romance novels, and I routinely pass over books such as these. However, I promised Yvonne an honest review, so here it is.

Our heroine, Alexis Fabrini, becomes the nanny for the baby of her late friend, Bree, and Raoul Beniot. Bree died during childbirth, so needless to say, Raoul blames himself for the situation he is in now, i.e., he cannot connect in any way with his daughter because his beloved wife is now gone.

In the few baby-in-romance-novels that I have read, the baby is such a formidable character, that the romance almost becomes secondary. However, in this novel, I did not find that to be the case. Ms. Lindsay deftly used this infant and her relationship with our heroine, Alexis, to assuage Raoul’s grief, allow him become connected to his daughter and to be open to another love match.

I’m giving this novel 4 stars, simply because of my own prejudice about babies in romance novels. That being said, I can honestly say, that if I had followed my self-imposed rule of passing up baby/romance novels, I would have missed a great read. So I guess you cannot really judge a book by its cover or the back blurb!! I will say that my paradigm has been shifted a bit, and I’ll be more likely to give the next baby/romance novel a fair shot.

(I was given a complimentary copy of this book by the author in exchange for my honest review.)

[Lauren · Rating 4 out of 5]

Wanting What She Can't Have
3.5 Stars

"Tis better to have loved and lost than never to have loved at all" - Unfortunately, Raoul Benoit has lost sight of this maxim in his anger and hurt following the death of his wife in childbirth. Unable to bond with his infant daughter, Raoul agrees to allow his wife's best friend, Alexis Fabrini, to care for the baby even as he struggles with his attraction to her. Alexis is determined to put aside her unrequited feelings for Raoul, but their close proximity makes it impossible to deny their chemistry. Can Alexis help Raoul become the loving father and man she knows he can be?

Series note: Alexis is introduced in the previous book, and Tamsyn and Finn, the couple therein, appear here as well. While it is not necessary to read the two books in order, it does help to grasp the continuity of the series.

The problematic hero trope characterizing this series continues with Raoul, who is cold and uncommunicative for much of the book. While it is clear that his unyielding attitude stems from his fear of losing another person that he loves, it is difficult to empathize with such a taciturn and unfeeling man. His harsh treatment of Alexis is one thing, but his rejection of his daughter is close to unforgivable. That said, he does eventually come to his senses and manages to redeem himself with a good grovel.

Alexis is a sweet and loving heroine. Her willingness to put aside her own life to help Raoul and his daughter is commendable. Unfortunately, the romance is undermined by the fact that Raoul is obviously still in love with his dead wife. While he and Alexis have intense physical chemistry, his feelings for her are primarily due to lust rather than love.

Overall, the title of this installment is quite apt as Alexis wants Raoul but it is unclear, despite his admission of love, that she actually has him.

[maddy · Rating 2 out of 5]

2.5 stars for real
the plot line was LACKING. like where was it?? ugh do not read cuz the end also sucked

[Susan · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was a very emotional story. Alexis has come to Raoul to offer her services as his daughter's nanny. His wife had been her best friend and she had received a letter from her written before Bree's death, asking her to watch over Raoul and Ruby if anything happened to her. It took a year for the letter to catch up with her, but she's determined to fulfill her friend's request. She doesn't expect Raoul's antagonism or the way he avoids any contact with his daughter.

There was so much emotional turmoil going on with both Alexis and Raoul. Alexis and Bree had been best friends since kindergarten. Alexis met Raoul after he and Bree were already engaged. She was immediately attracted to him but refused to do anything to come between them. It was hard to see them together and she became more and more envious, so in order to protect her heart she started pulling away from her friendship with Bree. Eventually she broke ties completely, so the letter from Bree came as a surprise. It was more of a shock when she discovered that Bree had died shortly after sending that letter. Alexis's guilty feelings for not being there for her friend were intense, and added to the guilt she felt about her feelings for Raoul she was determined to fulfill her friend's wishes. She was shocked to discover that Raoul had cut himself off from everyone, including his baby girl. I really loved seeing the way that she orchestrated taking over Ruby's care, forcing Raoul to have them staying at his house. She was heartsick over his withdrawal and determined to find a way to get past the walls he had built up. She was also determined to do all this without giving him any idea of her own feelings. Unfortunately, she discovered that the attraction was mutual, even if the feelings weren't.

Raoul has buried himself in his work, using it to avoid dealing with his wife's death and his daughter's care. He feels completely responsible for Bree's death, as she died of an aneurysm during childbirth. That he didn't know she had this health issue gives him no relief, as he felt she went through the pregnancy because she knew how much he wanted children. Now he's afraid to love anyone else, including his daughter, for fear that he would lose them too. Ruby had been very sick when she was first born and that only reinforced his fears. Now he has to deal with Alexis wanting him to change the way he feels. It doesn't help that he's attracted to her and that is causing cracks in the walls around his heart. Admitting his attraction to her he insists that anything between them will be physical only, that there is no chance that he will ever get emotionally involved or married again.

You just know with a statement like that, that Raoul is setting himself up for a massive fall. I loved seeing the way that Alexis managed to slowly get Raoul more involved in Ruby's care. Some of the methods were blatant, others were very subtle, but all worked on him a little bit at a time. She also worked hard at getting Raoul out of his isolation and back into interacting with other people. She felt she owed it to Bree to help him as best she could. What she didn't count on was having her feelings of attraction grow into a deep love for him. When that love had unintended consequences that brought all his fears back to the surface, his reaction devastated Alexis. The scenes where he pushed her away and her reaction to everything he said and did had me going through multiple tissues. With all that unhappiness, seeing Raoul finally let go of his anger and fear and go after Alexis made for a wonderful HEA.

I loved seeing Tamsyn and Finn from The High Price of Secrets and their parts in helping Alexis. I loved Alexis's father and his support and protectiveness, and what he said to Raoul at the end. The only thing that might have improved the book would have been an epilogue. I would like to know more about how he ended up handling everything that was happening to him.

[Jos · Rating 1 out of 5]

Ayer terminé este libro, y no sé exactamente qué sentir con él. Como historia tiene demasiadas discrepancias dentro de la trama como para que la considere bien estructurada. Me ha sorprendido bastante encontrarla con sello Harlequín, pero bueno.
Si tuviera que Reseñarla, diría que la historia de juntar a padre e hija, es muy buena, pero no las tramas anexas. Ella, nuestra protagonista, es una mujer que ama al esposo de la mejor amiga y que corta toda relación con ella por ese motivo. Nunca, antes que se casaran, le dice lo que siente. Por un lado bien, la chica respeta, pero una vez la amiga está muerta, prácticamente se lanza encima del viudo.
¡Oh, Sorpresa! El viudo la desea como un niño un caramelo en una tienda. Es decir, amaba a su esposa, pero deseó a la amiga en cuanto la conoció, pero tampoco dijo nada. Se recrimina por desearla. Bueno. La justificación que le dio la autora, no me pareció interesante, ni siquiera era una justificación real.
Se vuelven amantes pero sin ser pareja. El tipo llora a la mujer, pero se acuesta con la mejor amiga y ella le hace de madre de la hija ¿gran chico,eh? De acuerdo, dándole crédito, él se cierra al amor, no solo femenino, sino también fraternal. La prota tiene que luchar contra un hombre testarudo que se esconde por miedo.
Mmmmm luego, utiliza un recurso para reparar/juntarlos. No sé, me pareció que ese "recurso" estaba demasiado cantado en la historia como para que realmente sea una sorpresa cuando salió.
No hay palabras bonitas de él cuando va a por ella. No es el tipico galán que en ese instante saca su lado poeta, no. Sigue siendo un idiota con las palabras y eso se agradece jajajaja...
Otra cosa que me resultó interesante es el uso de cierto lenguaje gráfico más detallado para colocar la parte erótica de la historia. Si se preguntan si ha tensión sexual... pues no demasiada. No tiene ese plus que, al menos a mí, me haga desear que terminan en una cama.

No sé... he leído mejores historias de harlequín como para darle mucha bola a esta. Se veía interesante por la sinopsis, pero luego de algunos capis... pierde el brillo.

[Nightwitch · Rating 2 out of 5]

It’s not quite a secret baby - he has the baby; she’s his late wife’s best friend - but it’s pretty close. That said the largest problem I had with the book is that the hero’s an asshole. A grieving asshole, absolutely, but still an asshole. His wife died a year and a half ago, and he can’t stand to so much as look at their baby. His mother-in-law, who’s been raising the kid, urgently needs surgery, so the heroine shows up to be nanny. The hero and heroine had a thing for each other while the hero was married to his wife, which is why they’ve been avoiding each other ever since, but the hero genuinely loved his wife… so when he starts sleeping with the heroine, it’s just kind of gross: he feels guilty and angry and tells her, repeatedly, it’s just sex, and she’s like “no, it’s fine, you need to come back to life.” (This is the point in a brunch date where I look at my friend across the table and say, “Honey, he’s telling you who he is. He is literally saying it out loud. Believe him.”) So the heroine is in love with the dude, taking care of (and loving) his child, not doing well with the birth control… and he’s swearing up and down that they’re having no-strings-attached sex, which she’s promised she’s on board with. Bad idea. BAD IDEA. (“… falling deeper in love with Raoul was starting to take a toll on her… She just had to do what she did every day, and every night, and hope that the strength of her love could mend what was broken at Raoul’s core.” IT CAN’T.) At its heart, this is such a familiar toxic relationship pattern in Real Life that it doesn’t feel romantic to me at all, and the tragedy level of the hero’s backstory makes it hard to believe that he’s really not just rebounding.

Then there’s the twist, which contains something that drives me nuts: the heroine gets knocked up from their first night together, despite the fact that she took a morning-after pill. (“[S]he’d been counseled that they were not always 100 percent effective,” the author carols.) This drives me crazy: the author doesn’t want to commit to having Alexis kind of suck (by promising to handle birth control but not handling it), so she gives her heroine not one, but two birth control failures (birth control pill + morning-after pill) and then has her not even think the a-word (abortion). Come on. The hero and heroine were already irresponsible by not using a condom, but to pile on the list of things the heroine does to prevent pregnancy, have them both fail, and then have her not even contemplate abortion or adoption or telling the baby daddy while it’s early enough that he can have an opinion - this is just obnoxious.

Anyway, the hero is no great prize, since the heroine basically has to educate him into expressing normal human emotions, and I have seen so many friends date guys like this and - spoiler alert! - it never actually works, that I just can’t swallow a romance where the heroine’s sheer perky persistence in trying to convince the hero to treat her and his own daughter as actual human beings triumphs. When a dude tells you he’s a selfish asshole, time to move on. Seriously, 80% of the way through the novel he’s refusing to attend his daughter’s first birthday party, he’s firing the heroine after telling everyone else that he’s firing her, he’s kicking the heroine out of the house literally as soon as she has helped hire her replacement, he’s declaring that the baby is going back to his long-suffering mother-in-law as soon as the mother-in-law is healed enough from her surgery to perform childcare… like, at a certain point, it’s just not worth it, you know? If a dude is this determined to be an asshole, nobody else can fix him. We never get an adequate explanation as to why he changes his mind and is suddenly “ready to move on,” either. He just decides he is, and then he grovels, and she decides that she's cool with that. Also, there is basically no winemaking in this book, in case you were hoping for that.

[Diedre · Rating 3 out of 5]

A little more on the drab side of the angst you would expect. It didn't really heat up to a boil until he threw her out. Not enough time was spent climbing into the emotional side of the heroine, so she came off too stiff. But maybe I've just read too many of these. It was a pleasing story.

[Sara]

You can start again and have a life y want.Lovely novel with more challange and twest to come in the end in good rood.

[Yazmin · Rating 4 out of 5]

In Wanting What She Can’t Have by Yvonne Lindsay, Alexis Fabrini is determined to fulfill her best friend’s last wish, even if the letter with the request took a year to catch up with her. Right before her death Bree wrote a letter asking Alexis to watch over her husband Raoul and her daughter Ruby. But Alexis will have a tough road ahead with Raoul’s antagonism and his avoidance of Ruby.

Not to mention that the fact that she was attracted to Raoul after she met him once Bree and him were engaged. Which led to her being jealous and envious of her best friend and she started to pull away until she broke ties with Bree. So it’s a big surprise to find out what Bree requested of her and the guilt she felt after she learned Bree died soon after writing that letter will not let her go.

Raoul Benoit has buried himself in work to forget about the death of his wife and what he considers he responsibility for it. She may have died during childbirth of an aneurysm due to a health issues she already had are not something he can get over, for he believes that she went through the pregnancy and didn’t tell him about her health since she knew how much he wanted a children. Now Raoul avoids any and all relationships since he fears loosing another person. Then knowing that Ruby was born very sick only reinforced his beliefs and even avoids his daughter.

Now Raoul has to deal with Alexis trying to change him and the way he is going about life. Being attracted to her is not helping one bit, and even though he will admit it he tells her it’s only going to be physical and that he will never again get involved emotionally.

You know that this is only going to get interesting, for there can not be as much chemistry and attraction between Raoul and Alexis without it growing into something deeper. But first Raoul will have to let go of his anger and fear before he learns what he could loose if he gives into his fear again.

Let me just say that this is a very emotional read, the twists and turns will keep you turning the pages, and the things that Raoul and Alexis go through will have you reaching for the tissues before they can get to their HEA.

[Judyrudy · Rating 5 out of 5]

Yvonne Lindsay continues The Master Vintners series with Wanting What She Can’t Have. This has been a wonderful series so far and she definitely did not disappoint with her latest addition. We are treated to Raoul who lost his wife during the birth of their daughter Ruby. He can’t get over her death nor can he understand why she’d hidden a serious medical condition from him. His wife’s best friend, Alexis, receives a letter from his wife asking that she watch over her family in the event that something happens to her. What Alexis discovers upon her visit is a man who has totally lost himself. In fact, he isn’t even raising his own daughter. Ruby is being cared for by Catherine, her grandmother, who needs surgery and can no longer continue watching her. Alexis agrees to nanny Ruby and brings her home to Raoul. Alexis shows Raoul how to care for his daughter while Ruby teaches him how to love again. Ms. Lindsay provides us with many emotionally charged scenes. She has written a heartwarming novel that takes us down a path to true love. I thoroughly enjoyed this story and read it in one sitting. I highly recommend this book and hope that Ms. Lindsay continues the Master Vintners series. I would like to disclose that I received a copy of Wanting What She Can’t Have in exchange for a fair and honest review.

[Renee Entress · Rating 5 out of 5]

My Review:

4.5 Star Review - Wanting What She Can't Have (The Master Vintners # 5)

I recommend this book.

I enjoyed this book by Yvonne. This book includes passion, laughs, and heartache.

If you have not read the below I would recommend reading those books first from “The Master Vintners” series.

The Wayward Son

A Forbidden Affair

One Secret Night

The High Price of Secrets

Get your tissues ready you will need them!!!

Raoul Beniot lost his wife Bree in childbirth. Now he can't connect with the baby.

Alexis Fabrini was friends with Bree but when she discovered she has feelings for Raoul she broke away from her fiend. A year after her friend passes she receives a letter that her friend Bree wanted her to watch over her daughter and Raoul.

Alexis offers her services as a nanny. She is not expecting the non-existent relationship between father and daughter.

Can she heal Raoul and help him connect with his daughter? Will she also be able to get him to open his heart and learn to love again?

Very good read.

Look forward to the next book by Yvonne.

[Lyn · Rating 4 out of 5]

I really liked this instalment of Yvonne Lindsay's The Master Vintners mini-series. I was fantastic being able to read Alexis Fabrini's HEA.
The way this story unfolded made me feel like I was a part of the story. The only two issues I had with this story were that for most of the first half of the story, the hero's name felt like it didn't fit him, and secondly while Raoul and Alexis got their HEA, I felt like I was left hanging at the end of the story - as if it would have benefited from an epilogue.

[Mary · Rating 2 out of 5]

Una historia corta que se lee rapidamente. El argumento esta bien aunque todo pasa demasiado rápido para mi gusto, a los personajes los conocemos poco y la razón por la cual Alexis entra en la vida de Raoul me parece un poco estúpida. No se, supongo que si Bree (la ex mujer fallecida de Raoul) quería dejar a su hija a cargo de alguien, debería ser de una amiga intima y no de una amiga la cual tiene siglos sin ver porque le gustaba su marido.

En fin, no es mi novela favorita, no me ha gustado demasiado, pero esta bien para pasar el rato.

[Tammy Yenalavitch · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was a very emotional story. Raoul's wife Bree passed away giving birth to their daughter, Ruby. Alexis is Bree's best friend. She comes home to be Ruby's nanny. which fires up her attraction to Raoul. Raoul is fighting his attraction to Alexis too. I liked how this story unfolded and how both characters grew because of each other. I liked the secondary characters too including Raoul's mother-in-law and his friends.

[Zuzana · Rating 2 out of 5]

I read it for a challenge and plotwise I hated it. So why two stars and not one? Because this is a Harlequin romance and it doesn't pretend to be "a literature".

Recommended to those who believe that it's excusable for a man treat a woman like rubbish and abuse his infant child (yeah, emotional neglect qualifies as abuse, too) as long as he's a tortured soul and has been through a lot (and don't forget he is so sexy).

[Harlequin Books]

"The newest Master Vintner installment is a moving love story. Readers will feel the pain and guilt the hero carries as they go through the emotional wringer with him. The dilemmas faced by the main characters feel legit, and the heat is off the charts! (RT Book Reviews) 4 1/2 stars

Miniseries: The Master Vintners

[L.M. Gonzalez · Rating 5 out of 5]

WANTING WHAT SHE CAN'T HAVE by Yvonne Lindsay is a heart-wrenching love story between billionaire Raoul Benoit and Alexis Fabrini, his late wife's best friend. She becomes his daughter's nanny. Both try to deny their mutual attraction because both are grieving and feeling guilty. However, "the feelings... can no longer be denied."

[Joy Strother · Rating 5 out of 5]

I really love this book.It is very romantic and so well written.I had tears in my eyes when Raoul sent Alexis away.I really wanted hem to be together and I was happy that in the end they found their way back to each other.I highly recommend this book to everybody.It is a very good read.

[Sandra Gonzalez · Rating 3 out of 5]

caught my interest and kept it. i almost rated it a 4 but i had a couple moments where i asked, 'why did you say that? that makes no sense.' I may read the whole vintner series because of this book.

[Ker ᥫ᭡ · Rating 3 out of 5]

Tenía potencial para más. Lo sentí flojo y la debilidad de Alexis me tenía desesperada.

[Colorina · Rating 5 out of 5]

woow, so real, romantic and I wanted to keep reading more..

[Terewee · Rating 2 out of 5]

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