He needs a temporary wife. She’s up for an adventure. Neither plans to fall in love.

Venture capitalist Telford Crow has strayed far from his cowboy roots. He runs his life with dogged efficiency. When his best friend and mentor unexpectedly dies, leaving behind a wild “before forty” bucket list—get married, buy a Montana ranch, and launch a non-profit- Telford is determined to realize Cam’s dreams. Step one: interview the aspiring mail-order bride.

Ayana Galloway has spent her life chasing freedom, not forever. After escaping a painful family past, she’s learned to depend only on herself and to never stay anywhere too long. Taking a friend’s place at a posh weekend interview for an arranged marriage sounds like an entertaining story she can later laugh about. Instead, she finds herself face-to-face with a broody billionaire cowboy offering her an outrageous proposal: marry him, help him build realistic roots on a Montana ranch, and create a legacy for his friend.

It’s a marriage of convenience with a time limit. And a fat fee. Ayana agrees. But life under the big sky has a way of changing the rules, and neither of them is prepared when make-believe begins to feel dangerously real. Because the more time they spend together, the harder it is to remember this love story was supposed to be pretend and have a predetermined ending.

Titles in The Telfords of Montana series include:  Cowboy Come Home ~ Rogue Cowboy’s Secret Bride ~ Bull Rider’s Baby Surprise ~ The Cowboy’s One-Year Bride ~

This story may contain language, violence, and/or sexual situations intended for an adult 18+ audience.

Title:  The Cowboy’s One-Year Bride
Series:  The Telfords of Montana #4
Author:  Sinclair Jayne
Published:  July 14, 2026
Publisher:  Tule Publishing
My Rating:  4.5 stars

The Cowboy’s One-Year Bride is the fourth and final story in The Telfords of Montana series.  It’s always a bittersweet moment when a series that I’ve enjoyed comes to its conclusion, but then, it also signals the time to be on the lookout for the next adventure from an author whose work has become a favorite one-click for me.  Marietta, Montana is about to welcome two new people who won’t remain strangers to the town or to each other for long.  Too bad that Telford and Ayana don’t intend to hold on to their one-year marriage of convenience and make this amazing town theirs for life… but then Marietta has a way of drawing in strangers and making them family.

Telford has never met his biological father, yet he carries the surname as his own.  Perhaps as a lifelong reminder from his mother of his roots, but then, those of us who have read the series know just what a horrible man his father truly is.  When his mother and grandfather were killed in a tragic accident, Telford went into the foster care system and found Cam through the Big Brother organization.  That was perhaps the luckiest break for both men as they soon became more than a mentor and his charge but strong friends and partners throughout their lives.  Cam has a bucket list, and Telford was helping with a major part of that list when Cam was suddenly killed.  More determined than ever to turn his friend’s “bucket list” into a way to celebrate an amazing man’s legacy, Telford will actually meet the woman who is interviewing to become Cam’s mail-order bride… even though it’s been Telford who has had all the online conversations with the woman – who is not Ayana but her friend who bailed at the last moment.  He’s asking for a year of her life, never ever expecting that soon he’d want a lifetime with a woman who easily captured his heart.

I enjoyed The Cowboy’s One-Year Bride so much.  It was a perfect way to wrap up the series (although I’ve learned to never say the absolute end), with so many familiar faces included as Ayana and Telford slowly discover that a marriage of convenience can easily turn into a lifetime adventure if they are both willing to risk their hearts.  Their story is well-written, emotional, passionate, and filled with laughter and tears, memories and future possibilities.  I loved them both individually and as a couple; they simply fit together just right.  They both have issues to be dealt with in a realistic way.  Perhaps honoring Cam’s memory, his bucket list, was the most heartwarming aspect of their story overall.  Yes, I loved the romance… but Cam was there with them every step of the way, and I enjoyed seeing him honored and included as well.  If that sounds like your kind of Modern Western Romance, then you’d love Ayana and Telford’s romantic journey.

*I received an e-ARC of this novel from the author or the author’s team via Booksprout, and I sincerely thank them for their trust. It is my choice to leave a review giving my personal opinion about this book.*

Do you love anything (any story) that’s even slightly connected to Marietta, Montana?  Yeah, me too.  Be sure to visit our Marietta, Montana pages (this link to where this series is located – there are several pages :)) to catch up on the series that you might have missed over time.  It’s quite an amazing and diverse community, with happily-ever-after endings guaranteed.

 

This title is available at Amazon