This book has the extremely silly title, Prognosis: A Baby? Maybe. This practically screams "interchangeable, fluffy series romance." Since that is precisely what this book is, no one can accuse Harlequin of false advertising.

Dr. Heather Rourke made a couple of mistakes in her life that led to major challenges. The first was when she got pregnant at age 15, and put her baby up for adoption. The second was at a recent medical convention in Atlanta, where she came thisclose to having sex with Dr. Jason Carmichael. His rude behavior the next morning convinced her that she should never have even thought of having a fling.

About nine months later, Jason is set to move to California and become chief of staff at the infertility clinic where Heather works. She knows he's a top-notch doctor, but isn't thrilled about being supervised by a man with whom she shares a history. Jason remembers their encounter a little differently, so he is more excited to see Heather. He forgot his rudeness to her the morning after and can't quite remember whether or not they really slept together. He'd had a lot to drink, so he's haunted by hazy details he can hardly remember.

The conflicts begin almost immediately. Jason wants to know the true story, and he also would love to score with Heather. He's not really a "roots" kind of guy: he'd rather be open to move wherever his high-powered career might take him next, so he doesn't see a long-term relationship as a possibility. But he sure wouldn't mind enjoying himself temporarily. Heather, on the other hand, has no desire for a temporary relationship. She wants the new fertility clinic to be her long-term home base. She plants roses in her backyard. She dreams of one day having a baby she can keep. She also has recently regained contact with the daughter she put up for adoption, and discovered she's a grandma. She loves and adores her granddaughter, and even took time off work when her daughter gave birth.

The mysterious nature of Heather's time off leads Jason to the erroneous conclusion that the baby is his. The vacation time happened to take place about nine months after he met Heather at the convention, and baby Ginger looks a lot like Heather - except for her eyes, which are the same color as Jason's. Jason goes about trying to set up time with Heather and Ginger, hoping they can share a relationship. But it's unclear how his feelings for Heather figure in, and how he'll react to the news that Ginger really isn't his baby.

My favorite thing about this book was the whole "secret baby who isn't really a secret baby" plotline. Though secret babies books are a widely known cliché in series romance, I've read very few of them. The only one that comes to mind offhand is Suzanne Brockmann's Everyday, Average Jones. I really liked that this cliché was turned on its ear. I found it cute that the hero only thinks he has a secret baby, but is quite quick to step up to plate and even gets excited about the idea of being a dad.

The rest of the book didn't work nearly so well. The sexual tension felt both forced and rushed, and the same can be said for the love relationship. Developing a convincing love relationship in 250 pages tends to be a tall order, and in this case the book really didn't come through. I couldn't really buy that these two had any feelings beyond sexual attraction.

I was also troubled by Heather and Jason's work relationship. It was nice to see a heroine who had a real career, and I liked that both were doctors as well. The question of how to integrate and prioritze work and family is one that a lot of people face. However, Jason's domineering, heavy-handed treatment of Heather smacked of sexual harassment. In real life, she could easily have hauled his butt into court - and won.

This is definitely not a terrible book; its problem is mostly that it suffers from the inanity and mediocrity too common in series romances. Unless you are practically dying to read about a secret-baby-that-isn't, I wouldn't go out of my way to pick it up.