Book picks similar to
Squeeze Play by Aven Ellis


romance
chick-lit
sports
sports-romance

Cinderella-ish


Joslyn Westbrook - 2017
    Cocky McHottie who believes he can charm the panties off every woman he meets.Antonio Michaels, king of lingerie, has never had to work hard at anything. Born with a silver spoon in his mouth, he's been served up a hefty life of entitlement. He's handsome, charmingly arrogant, and seems to date a different model every month. But when he encounters a bombshell who’s unfazed by his mere existence, he finds himself captivated by her looks, her unrelenting potty mouth, and the fact he can't stop thinking about her.​A steamy fairytale-ish romantic comedy for readers who love snarky cinderella-ish heroines and the cocky prince charming-ish heroes who make hearts flutter. Cinderella-ish is book one in the Happily Ever After series and can be read as a standalone.

Perfectly Played


Holly Kerr - 2019
    No flowers, no patient groom… no perfect love story waiting for her. And so she pulled up her wedding dress and ran out of the chapel—straight into the sweetest, saddest, tallest guy she’d ever seen.Ex-ball player Dean thought a wedding was expected until an icy cold text to his best man let him know it wasn’t going to happen. Ever. Now there’s nothing to do but spend a few hours commiserating with the cute bride who ran out of her own wedding.It is Las Vegas, after all.One perfect night later, with strippers and syrup and drag queens, Flora and Dean go home alone, forgetting about last names and usernames and even old-school addresses. Maybe they can find love again, but not if they can’t find each other.But love plays its own game, and the best happily ever afters always have a bit of serendipity involved. Will Flora and Dean’s love story be perfectly played?

Heartless


Winter Renshaw - 2016
    It was raining sideways that morning, and my plan was to return it the next day; safe and dry. Only I kept it. I kept it, and I read it. A week later, overwhelmed with curiosity and feeling guilty for harboring secrets that didn’t belong to me, I tried to return it. Only I wasn’t expecting to meet him. Unapologetically heartless and enigmatically sexy, he claims he knows nothing about the journal I found outside his place, but the reticent glint in his blue-green gaze tells me otherwise. There’s something different about him; something damaged yet magical, and I’m drawn to him; pulled into his orbit. There’s just one problem. The more I get to know him, the more I’m positive the journal belonged to him... ...and the more I find myself hoping, selfishly, that I’m wrong.

Unforgettable


S.B. Alexander - 2019
    She’s the daughter of a Texas senator. Their chemistry is like oil and water. My name is Ryker James. I hate when people tell me what to do. I’m cocky, ornery, and I take things when I want them. Caring isn’t in my vocabulary unless it’s related to football or my family, and I just lost my entire family in a blink of an eye.Now all I have is football. The problem is the misery, the drinking, and the parties have more appeal to me. But Lakemont University wants that championship. Fans want to see wins on the scoreboard, and my teammates salivate to crush our opponents every game. Yet the only pass I might be throwing is at the auburn-haired girl who waltzes into my life. She’s fire. I’m ice. A combination that doesn’t work. So let the games begin.My name is Haven Hale, and I’ve been tucked away in a boarding school most of my life. Now I’m a big-time college girl, and all I see is freedom in front of me. But first, I have to agree to my father’s demands—no media attention and no sororities. If I can follow those two edicts, then college life should be a breeze. Until one close encounter with Ryker James, and Father Dearest has changed the game. Stay away from the big, bad quarterback, or face my father’s wrath. There’s only one problem. I can’t help who I’m attracted to.And Ryker James is a magnet, built to attract any female, constructed to make any girl’s heart sputter, and my heart is beating off the charts. But it’s time to choose between the devil I know and the one I don’t.

Wasted Words


Staci Hart - 2016
    Spaghetti and meatballs are best friends forever. And guys like Tyler Knight don’t go for girls like Cam Emerson.She knew from the second she met him that he didn’t belong on her bookshelf, the six-foot-six ex-tight end with a face so all-American, it could have sold apple pie. So she shelved him next to the supermodels and rock stars and took her place on her own shelf — the one with the flannel-clad, pasty-faced comic book nerds. Most of her boyfriends have existed between the pages of books, but rather than worrying over her own lacking love life, she puts all her energy into playing Cupid, using her job at the book bar, Wasted Words, as her stomping ground.Tyler Knight always looks on the bright side. His career-ending injury turned into a job as a sports agent. A horrible breakup led him to Cam, his quirky, smart roommate who is far more beautiful than she realizes. She’s made it perfectly clear she’s not interested in him — not like that at least — but if she ever changes her mind, he won’t hesitate. Because he doesn’t see the lines she’s drawn between them, as much as she insists that they’re there. Deep down he knows that despite their differences, they’re a match well made.*A romantic comedy inspired by Jane Austen’s Emma.*

Power Play


Maria Luis - 2017
    She's a (struggling) sports journalist looking for her big break. Charlie Denton has been handed the most impossible assignment from her stick-in-the-mud boss: get an exclusive interview with the NHL's golden boy, Duke Harrison. The catch? She's got eight days or she’ll be demoted. Fired. Kicked to the curb - No way is she letting her future rest on the broad shoulders of a goalie who is at least three seasons past his prime. She has eight days to convince Duke that the loyal fans of The Cambridge Tribune (annual circulation: 1,000) are dying to know about his life, on and off the ice. Eight days to stand toe to toe with a man who is pure sex on a stick. Eight days to remember that every mind-blowing kiss is nothing but a power play. What could go wrong?

I Temporarily Do


Ellie Cahill - 2017
    A little white wedding. A pair of roommates in over their heads. Days before she's set to move across the country and start a prestigious graduate program, a con artist leaves Emmy with no where to live and less than zero dollars in her bank account. But her day doesn't seem quite so bad compared to Beckett's--his fiancée called off their wedding just days before they tie the knot. Now he's single and ineligible for his place in married student housing. So what are a girl without a home and a guy without a wife supposed to do? A quickie wedding in Vegas will solve both their problems. It's a business arrangement, and no one even needs to know. They'll just get an annulment in a few months. What could go wrong? Only Beckett forgot to mention his new apartment is a one-bedroom. And neither of them counted on their new friends at Middlesex University thinking they're a great couple. The platonic newlywed game might be harder to play than Emmy thought. Especially when it starts to feel less than platonic. I Temporarily Do is a Stand-Alone Romantic Comedy.

Just Say Yes


Samantha Lind - 2017
    He gets to fulfill his dream playing professional hockey, has a loving family, and a tight group of friends. But the one thing missing in his life is a partner to come home to. He knows exactly who he wants to fill that position– the only woman he has ever loved. The one who got away, who constantly consumes his every thought. What it would take to get her to Just Say Yes to a second chance? Becca Phillips is an independent woman who has made her career as an ER nurse a priority in her life. She has a loving family and a best friend by her side, but she can’t seem to get over her first love, Scott. Insecurities led her to break up with him years ago when he started climbing the ranks in professional hockey and, for eight years, Becca has avoided Scott when he returns home each summer. Can she overcome her fears and allow love back into her life? All she has to do is Just Say Yes to the one and only man she has ever loved.

Winter Interlude


Sandy Loyd - 2012
    Right if you were spending all your time and energy with Mr. Wrong? And what about the book out a few years ago that created such a hoopla with the single crowd – He’s Just Not That Into You? The two main characters in Winter Interlude either didn’t heed their mother’s advice or haven’t read the book. Now, add into the plot that the two in question are enemies who regularly run into each other, given their current relationships. Paul Morrison, a hunky, blond, financial planner, has been putting time and energy into winning the heart of Kate Winter’s best friend for almost as long as Kate, a strong willed antiques dealer, has been dating James Morrison, Paul’s brother.The sparks start to fly when the two get stuck together for a three-hour drive to the mountains and years of misconceptions about each other are slowly being wiped out. It is in the confines of the BMW that the two begin their journey, taking them from being mortal enemies to lovers.Winter Interlude tells the story of their adventure – of how they finally find love. Kate and Paul’s story is the first one in a series of four friends caught in a time warp. They can’t move on because they are stuck on their idea of their perfect dreams. But sometimes life works in mysterious ways and they are all forced by circumstances to change.

In the Grasp: A Second Chance Sports Romance


Cadence Keys - 2021
    I thought I’d have more accomplished by now - like a wife and family - but for nine years I’ve held onto the memory of the girl who got away. Now she’s back and I’m more determined than ever to make her mine. For good this time.PaigeAfter years of working tirelessly, I just landed my dream job at the largest newspaper on the west coast. Unfortunately, that lands me in the same city as the man who broke my heart nearly a decade ago - the same one I’ve never really been able to let go of. When my editor assigns me to write an exposé on Jack, I’m forced to decide where my loyalties lie - with the career of a lifetime, or the love of my life.In the Grasp is the first steamy standalone contemporary sports romance in the LA Wolves series.

The Substitute


Denise Grover Swank - 2014
    Megan Vandemeer meant to tell her parents about her broken engagement, but a month and a half later she finds herself boarding a plane home to her wedding. Having stretched avoidance to its limits, it's time to come clean--a terrifying prospect since her mother is sure to blame her rather than her cheating, emotionally frigid ex. A couple of drinks and two Dramamine later, Megan finds herself spilling her sob story to the tall, dark, and handsome stranger in the seat next to her. With only one week left to save his business, Josh McMillan boards a plane to Kansas City in a last-ditch effort, leaving the details to chance. An unexpected answer is delivered in the form of the beautiful brunette beside him. Though she’s completely loopy, her honesty, openness, and humor charm him. So when she passes out before landing, he helps her off the plane--a good deed that leads to a colossal misunderstanding. Her parents assume he’s her fiancé. In a twist of fate, the mix-up might help Josh save his business, so he plays along, figuring he can help Megan too. All he has to do is stage a public break up convincing enough to appease her mother. Josh is only supposed to be a substitute groom, but the more time he and Megan spend together, the more their pretend engagement starts to feel real…and the less they want to break it off. Can a relationship that began as a farce turn into happily ever after?

Hot as Puck


Lili Valente - 2017
    We're talking my last date went home with our waitress kind of failure.But I have an ace in the back pocket of my mom jeans--my sexy-as-sin best friend, NHL superstar forward, Justin Cruise.Justin owes me favors dating back to seventh grade, long before he became a hotshot with a world famous...stick. So in return for my undying platonic loyalty, all I want is an easy-peasy crash course on how to be a sex goddess.How hard can it be?***I have never been so hard in my life.The things I want to do to my sweet, kindergarten-teaching, mitten-crocheting best friend Libby Collins are ten different kinds of wrong. Maybe twenty.But I'm a firm believer in teaching by example, and by the end of our first lesson, we've graduated to a hands on approach to her education: my hands all over her, her hands all over me, and her hot mouth melting beneath mine as I prove to her there isn't a damned thing wrong with the way she kisses.Give me a month, and I'll transform Libby from wall flower to wall banger, and ensure she's confident enough to seduce any guy she wants.Problem is... the only guy I want her seducing is me.Hot as Puck is a sexy, flirty, friends-to-lovers Standalone romantic comedy from USA Today Bestseller Lili Valente.

Petal Plucker


Iris Morland - 2019
    No man has hosed my hyacinth. Fondled my freesia. Diddled my daffodil.You get the point.My excuse?I was too busy running my family’s flower shop and winning floral design competitions.Suddenly that whole pesky virginity thing becomes a big deal when Jacob West walks back into my life. The boy I once loved. The same boy who humiliated me when he stood me up for prom.This Jacob is no boy, though: he’s all man now—confident, charming, and so sexy my metaphorical blossoms are getting scorched. I can almost forget I’m supposed to hate him forever. Almost.To make things worse, he’s my main competition now, since he took over his parents’ flower shop. If I give into this sizzling attraction between us, it could jeopardize everything I’ve worked so hard to achieve.But if I’m not careful, he might not just be the first man to pluck my petals—he might also be the only man to capture my heart.

My [Mostly] Secret Baby


Penelope Bloom - 2020
    I apparently missed out on that one.Because Damon Rose came, and instead of running, I got pregnant.DamonYes. I remember Chelsea Cross.I remember five years ago when she thought she could handle me.Proving her wrong was… enjoyable.With hair I wanted to fist. A mouth that only stopped when I kissed it. A body that I needed to press against the nearest wall and claim.And now she wants a job.A smart man would say “no”.Or, I could teach her the same lesson I taught her five years ago.She can’t even begin to handle me.Author’s Note: Buckle up for the ultimate bosshole in this steamy, workplace romantic comedy with a sassy heroine and a stubborn grump who wants to ruin her day.

The Misadventures of Catie Bloom


Brooke Stanton - 2016
    He's a player ready to settle down. Can they fake it till they make it into each other's arms? Catie Bloom dreads being found out as a hot mess. So when the high-profile domestic goddess’s supposedly perfect life is scheduled for a TV special, she’s desperate to hide the slovenly reality while she scrambles to learn to cook and find a studly pretend hubby. And with her future on the line, she reluctantly accepts the office playboy’s lifeline to help her cover up the cracks and look the part… Sportswriter Sam Harding buries authenticity behind his breezy charm. And though he knows Catie’s less-than-tidy secret, he’s frustrated when his lady’s man reputation gets in the way of intriguing the one woman who holds his heart. So when he discovers her goose could be cooked, he jumps at the chance to stand in as her handsome prince. As Catie struggles with burned offerings, her growing attraction to Sam is a grease fire waiting to happen. While Sam worries if he keeps his desires hidden for much longer, he’ll lose his opportunity to move from bogus husband to the real deal. Is their passion about to be roasted, or can they whip up a gourmet romance?The Misadventures of Catie Bloom is the hilarious first book in the Bloom Sisters romantic comedy series. It’s a dash of Sophie Kinsella’s Can You Keep a Secret, with a helping of Christmas in Connecticut, and a recipe all its own, mixed into a delicious and romantic romp. Buy The Misadventures of Catie Bloom to set a table for two today!