You did it! We figured this one out! It is a truth universally acknowledged (by me for certain) that the Bitchery pretty much knows everything, and really, it's true. Scroll down to see the solution for this HaBO - and many thanks!
This HaBO comes from Claire, who is hoping to find this older contemporary romance:
I am looking for a book that I read as a teenager around 2003. I am pretty sure the book was older than that.
The book starts with the heroine getting away from work on an overdue vacation, maybe in Hawaii? She gets on a boat that goes way out to sea, and something happens to the boat: fire or explosion. The hero who has been watching her gets her off the boat just in time. They then swim two miles (weird thing to remember!) to a deserted island and of course, immediately have sex on the beach. Because who doesn’t want to get busy after jumping of the boat and swimming so far, right?
Anyway, turns out he is some sort of spy and someone is after them, but they are safe on the island for awhile. He builds her a treehouse, and everything is fine until (I think) bad guys land on the island and hero and heroine steal their boat and get back to Hawaii. She ends up pregnant, but he doesn’t know and goes back to being a spy. She visits the marina everyday hoping to see him again, and he finally does, leading to HEA.
Secret baby catnip alert!
I edited a Harlequin Temptation CHANCE IT by Joanna Gilpin that sounds like this. He was some kind of adventurer/spy (the plot didn’t make tons of sense) and I think they end up stranded somewhere. It was a long time ago. There is definitely a boat explosion. Published 1991
back cover copy
Ira Nicholson was the perfect lover–and Diane Roberts wanted him. She was starting a new life, away from the demands of running a multimillion-dollar business. She had tried love once and failed miserably. Now she was looking only for fun and adventure–no long-term commitments.
A modern-day swashbuckler, Ira didn’t follow any rules–except his own against marriage. But as they sailed the Bahamas and their sun-filled days of pleasure dissolved into nights of wild passion, he had to rethink his solitary existence. This vulnerable woman was a treasure greater than any pirate booty. Now he had to convince her to gamble on love.
commenting so I can follow; is it weird if treehouses are my thing?
Could it be Monday’s Child by Janice Kaiser? It’s been forever since I’ve read it, but I remember loving it. The two main characters are attacked by pirates while on a ship near Bangkok.They have to evade being captured by pirates and I’m pretty certain that the heroine gets pregnant at the end.
Thanks for your suggestions, I found copies of both suggestions on Amazon, so I’ll let you know if I find it! Sam, I love treehouses too! My favorite part of the Swiss Family Robinson movie is the elaborate treehouse!
It was Monday’s Child by Janice Kaiser! No treehouse though, so I definitely had some details wrong. Thanks everyone for your help, I am so glad to have this mystery solved!