After news of his mother's weak heart summons him home, globetrotting journalist Roman Chandler loses a coin toss with his brothers that determines who will relinquish his bachelor status to give their mother a grandchild. Roman decides to “settle down" without giving up his travel-intensive job, and as one of the most handsome men in town, he can have his pick of the local women — except for Charlotte Bronson, his high school crush. Thoughts of her parents' miserable long-distance marriage keep Charlotte from accepting Roman's proposal, despite the sexual sparks that fly at their every encounter. Mutual attraction eventually proves too powerful to resist, but first Roman must win her trust.

The award-winning author of more than 15 novels, Carly Phillips gave up a career as an attorney to pursue her dream of writing romance. The Bachelor, the third selection of the "Reading with Ripa" book club, hit #5 on the New York Times bestseller list and sold nearly 500,000 copies. Carly Phillips lives in Purchase, New York.