Book picks similar to
Behind the Gate by Renee Adams


dark
contemporary-romance
romance
ebook

The Fixer


Jessica Gadziala - 2017
    Like santa. An honest politician. And gut instincts. That was, of course, until I woke up with one.And I knew.This was the day I was going to die. The cops, thus far, have proven useless and uninterested in my issues. When you couldn’t get help from legal channels, what other choice did you have but to look elsewhere?That was how I came across Quinton Baird. A “fixer.” Whatever the hell that was.All I knew was, I had a problem that needed fixing.Hopefully, before it killed me.QUIN-There were a few things I could put my faith to rest in. My team. People f*cking up, and needing my help. And my gut. So when my receptionist informed me that the woman in a case I decided wasn’t my kind of job was having a ‘gut feeling’ about being in desperate need of help, yeah, I dragged my a** across town to check things out.Not only did I not bank on the fact that she was in trouble beyond what I could have anticipated, but she was not what I was expecting either. Beautiful, resilient, and one hell of a distraction I didn’t need.As the pieces of her case start falling together, I was left wondering if maybe this new, unfamiliar sensation in my gut was telling me that Aven was much more than just another name on a case file…

Psychopath's Prey


V.F. Mason - 2018
    Mine to hunt. A criminal psychologist and a serial killer.The love between them shouldn’t exist.Or so the world thinks.Her mission is to find him.His single obsession is to catch her.The hunter and the prey.Let the games begin, and may the stronger one win.Warning: Dark Romance. 18+ due to sexual content, profanity, abuse, graphic violence, and adult subject matter.

The Affair


Giana Darling - 2016
    But before beginning her new life, she travels to Cabo San Lucas, Mexico searching for a week of relaxation and reprieve before barreling into her turbulent future.She never expected to meet the handsome and enigmatic Frenchman Sinclair on the plane and she certainly never would have imagined herself accepting his proposal for a week long, no-strings-attached affair. Giselle has never experienced anything as heady as Sinclair’s controlled seduction and cool yet devastatingly erotic commands and she finds herself powerless to stop the ferocity of their passions, even when she discovers he has a partner back home. The last thing she needs in her life is another complication, yet as the week wears on, she finds it surprisingly easy to relinquish control to Sinclair, a man she knows nearly nothing about. And to her horror, the one thing she promised never to submit, her battered heart, is just as easily captured in the business mogul’s unyielding hands.

Caballo Security: Complete 6-Part Series


Camilla Blake - 2019
    She dreams of beaches and martinis, of good books and sunbathing. Instead, she finds herself coaxed by her charming brother into a working vacation, two weeks in a remote Mexican city where his nonprofit has just opened a free clinic. Something goes wrong almost immediately, and Valerie finds herself locked in a dingy trailer in the middle of nowhere with a dangerously handsome stranger. AKKER Eva is a famous model turned actress in town to do a series of photoshoots and local appearances. A stalker has her frightened, and she hires Caballo to protect her. Akker is assigned her case, and he finds himself drawn to her, but is torn by his loyalty to his brother. Will he have to choose between romance and loyalty to his brother for the second time in his life? Will he make the right choice this time? BROCK A jewelry designer is headed to Fashion Week in Paris, but she’s received an unusual threat that leaves her concerned for her life. This woman is part of a pot of trouble brewing for Ox and he needs someone he can trust on it, and Brock is the only one available. PRESCOTT Ox Winn’s personal assistant, Skylar George, is married to one of his best operatives, Prescott Armstrong. However, no one knows it’s a green card marriage, due to end as soon as the INS closes their file on Prescott’s immigrant status. Skylar has done this without asking for anything in return, but when her great-grandmother begins acting odd, Skylar calls in a favor, asking Prescott to go home with her. MAX Tomboy James Duncan is a decorated war hero with a reputation. No one in San Antonio would touch her with a ten foot pole until Ox Winn hired her. Now, four years later, she’ll do anything for him, even put on a dress. Teamed up with Max Lucas, the one operative at Caballo she hates the most, James is tasked with infiltrating a human trafficking ring running raves in abandoned buildings all over the city. OXLEY Ox Winn took over his father’s security firm, Caballo, four years ago. Taking the reins meant carrying on the legacy his father left him. But when Ox discovers that legacy isn’t quite as honorable as he’d always assumed, he takes steps to protect the ones he loves even though it could mean sacrificing something more precious than his father’s memory: his life. Detective Kinsley Salazar is a woman haunted by a dark past who has only recently opened a teeny corner of her heart to Ox. When an arrest warrant crosses her desk with his name on it, Kinsley is determined to do her duty no matter how hard it might be. But when it becomes clear that by doing so she could be putting Ox in harm’s way, she makes a choice that will alter the course of both their lives. Will Kinsley be able to save both herself and Ox? Or has she doomed them both to disaster?

Amber Alert


Sara Schoen - 2014
    Is Anna's only way out to play along and become a 'loving wife'? Or will she die during the chase?Would anyone even know what happened to her?Or would she be labeled as a runaway?And where is she in the first place?Mature Content Warning. Recommended for ages 17+ due to violence and sensitive subject matter.

Crash


Drew Jordan - 2015
    Not a traditional romance, but a love story with a twist, this is book one in a three part series. The greatest love stories begin with blood… There is blood. There is pain. And there is him. These are the first things I register when I wake up, the lone survivor in an Alaskan plane crash. He carries me to safety over rough terrain and brings me to his cabin in the woods. He has no name. Or none he will tell me. As snow creeps across the harsh and isolated landscape, he is my only company. My protector, my caretaker. A fascinating enigma, with mysterious eyes, gentle hands, and a rough voice that demands more from me than I ever expected to give. I make up different stories, different names for him depending on his mood, because I know nothing about him except that he is my only connection to the real world I want to return to. So I work to please him, plotting my escape, yet all the while I start to crave him and every touch of his dominating body. He has saved me from the cold. From death. But in taking me and my body, will he destroy me?

His Banana


Penelope Bloom - 2018
    Seriously. The guy is like a potassium addict. Of course, I touched it. If you want to get technical, I actually put it in my mouth. I chewed it up, too... I even swallowed.I know. Bad, bad, girl.Then I saw him, and believe it or not, choking on a guy's banana does not make the best first impression. I should backtrack a little here. Before I ever touched a billionaire’s banana, I got my first real assignment as a business reporter. This wasn’t the same old bottom-of-the-barrel assignment I always got. I wasn’t going to interview a garbage man about his favorite routes or write a piece on how picking up dog poop from people’s yards is the next big thing. Nope. None of the above, thank you very much.This was my big break. My chance to prove I wasn’t a bumbling, clumsy, accident-prone walking disaster. I was infiltrating Galleon Enterprises to follow up on suspicions of corruption. Cue the James Bond music.I could do this. All I had to do was land the position as an intern and nail my interview with Bruce Chamberson.Forget the fact that he looked like somebody carved him out of liquid female desire, then sprinkled on some "makes men question their sexuality" for good measure. I needed to make this work. No accidents. No disasters. No clumsiness. All I needed to do was hold it together for less than an hour.Fast forward to the conference room before the interview, and that's where you would find me with a banana in my hand. A banana that literally had his name on it in big, black sharpie. It was a few seconds later when he walked in and caught me yellow-handed. A few seconds after that was when he hired me. Yeah. I know. It didn't seem like a good sign to me, either.

Ghost


Daphne Loveling - 2017
    Silent and in the shadows, I don't make my move until I am absolutely sure of everything.Four years ago I was sure about Jenna. My best friend's kid sister had grown up into a spitfire I couldn't resist. One night we stopped resisting...We promised we'd keep it a secret. It was a one-time mistake, but we'd put it behind us. Jenna left but I kept my word. Jenna tried to get out of our corrupt town, but it pulled her back in again. Now she needs help. She needs protection. I'll do all of that for her, if she'll just shut the hell up and let me. She can even keep all of her secrets, except for one...JENNAThe Lords of Carnage MC has haunted me from the moment I was born. No matter how much I try to get away, they are there -- waiting to pull me back into the life that stole my father, my mother and then my brother from me. The ghosts of my past keep rising from the dead. Now the past is stirring again and all I want to do is run away. I'm back in the world I fled, and the secrets and lies of my whole family are about to be laid bare. But it's not just me anymore. I've got my little boy to look out for, too. I’m his only family. And his father has no idea he exists. I swore I would never go back to the MC. I swore I would never make the same mistakes again. But making mistakes with Casper Watkins is too hard to resist…

Never Have I Ever


August Clearwing - 2013
    Between completing a Master’s degree at Caltech and beginning her fruitful career at a local observatory she has little time for socializing. Until she attends one specific party that is.There, Piper is introduced to a drinking game called Never Have I Ever, and she finds herself admitting to a secret fantasy which challenges her friends’ views of her otherwise prudish nature. Her confession piques the interest of one man in particular, Noah; a handsome stranger with a darkly boyish charm.The resulting spiral of rapture and torture that follows is threatened by the demons of both their pasts. Piper's inability to give her heart to anyone, and Noah's guilt over the death of his former lover claw to the surface to tear Piper away from not only the one man who has ever made her feel like she does not have to be in control of her desires, but also the newly collected list of Nevers they both want to turn into reality.*Contains strong BDSM themes*

Gas or Ass


Eden Connor - 2015
    Dale brought his two grown sons to help pack and move us into their house. Both were hard-bodied and handsome, but Caine didn’t speak to me. Colt, on the other hand, said crude stuff like, “Wanna ride with me? Then I’m gonna need gas or ass,” but I couldn’t take my eyes off his rippling muscles and challenging blue eyes.Some are about speed, sex, and defiance.When Colt offered me a ride to school, I thought the ‘gas or ass’ thing was a joke, but he wasn’t kidding. Though he barely touched me, he shattered the innocence I couldn’t wait to shed. Even then, I sensed I’d never be the same. He and Caine soon upped the stakes, putting me behind the wheel of cars that could reach insane speeds. They kept challenging me to find my inner wild child, pairing illegal drag races with high-octane sex games, games like 'winner gets head'.And some are about trying to break you.It wasn’t long before I was hooked, but I always planned to walk away. Then everything spun out of control and walking wasn’t an option. I had to run._____**Disclaimer: This is a tale of a young girl’s crush that turns to hatred and back to love. Gas and Ass is the crush-to-hate part of the story. There’s no HEA inside these pages, so if that’s a must, this isn’t the story for you. If you can delay gratification, however, the hatred-to-love part is the basis of the sequel, Turn and Burn.

The Billionaire's Secret


Jeannette Winters - 2015
    His friends decide to shake him up by entering him as a prize at a charity event.Accountant Lizette Burke is dressed to the nines and covering for her boss at a charity event. She’s hoping to land a donor for the struggling non-profit agency that employs her.She never expected to win a date with a billionaire.He never thought one night could turn his life upside down.One lie stands between them and their happily ever after. Too bad it’s a big one!Betting on You Series:Book One: The Billionaire’s Secret (Free!)Book Two: The Billionaire’s Masquerade (Coming April 2015!)Book Three: The Billionaire’s Longshot (Coming May 2015!)Book Four: The Billionaire’s Jackpot (Coming July 2015!)

Nixon's Promise


Riley Edwards - 2019
    After twelve years of service and twice as many deployments, all Nix wanted was quiet. He’d sought the solace of the land he’d grown up on and found the peace he needed to silence the noise and figure out his next move. Nixon’s stay was supposed to be temporary. He wasn’t supposed to meet a feisty, head-strong woman who made his pulse race and set his body on fire. Falling in love hadn’t been part of his plan. Taking a government contract to stop a homegrown terrorist group hadn’t been either, but when the organization threatens to attack Philadelphia, he had no choice but to accept. McKenna Wilson was living. Every day was the same. Raising her two teenage siblings didn’t leave time for much else. Most days, she was okay with that. Then she bumped into the sexy war hero and, in an instant, her world changed. She had no idea falling for Nixon would be so dangerous. Now she was going head-to-head with the small-town’s dirty sheriff who was hell-bent on ruining Nixon and avenging a fifteen-year-old grudge. She’d lost her heart, but losing her life wasn’t part of the plan. Nixon Swagger had learned a few things as a Navy SEAL—adapt, improvise, and overcome were among the many. In the middle of an inferno, so ominous even Dante wouldn’t buy a ticket, Nixon must adapt to his new surroundings and overcome multiple threats before he loses the woman he loves.

Tell Me You Need Me


Joya Ryan - 2015
    She loves the sexy, sweaty, and intensely hot hours of the night that come before the sun rises, though. Especially when those nights are spent with Search-and-Rescuer Gage McGraw...Gage loves his job, but there is one thing he’s starting to like more than the rush of a mission—a stacked blonde with a mouth that haunts his dreams. Every time he steps foot in the sleepy town of Beaufort, he hooks up with Chloe. But he’s tired of hooks-ups. He wants more.Just the sight of Gage gets Chloe's blood going. Hot, bothered, and finally naked, she’s ready for their night to start. But before he takes her, he whispers what his intentions really are…and then the games really begin.

Chasing Love


Kat T. Masen - 2020
    So when the ever-so-perfect Julian Baker proposes marriage, I'm ready to forget the past and move on with my new love.In a cruel twist of fate, my past and future collide. I'm forced to face the man who destroyed my heart back in high school.Lex Edwards, turned billionaire tycoon, is ruthless, cunning, and will not stop until I'm his.A complicated love triangle was never something I imagined when Julian proposed to me. Especially not involving Lex.Hearts and egos are bound to be broken.But whose heart will capture mine when the darkness fades? **This title was previously published as Into the Darkness. It has been extensively rewritten, re-edited, and has a steamy new cover**

Corrupted


Alexis Noelle - 2016
    Prey left defenseless. She needs to hide. They cannot find her. They will kill her if they do. When Lucy decided to run, she didn’t know where to go. They were coming for her. She needed protection, but she had no one to help her. Until she came across the warehouse of the Deathstalkers MC and begged them for protection. Now she owes them her life and her loyalty. Her family will never end their search for her; she is a piece of property that needs to be recovered at any cost necessary. For Lucy, there are worse things than needing to hide for the rest of her life, being found is one of those things. Sometimes the obvious evils aren’t the ones you need to fear. *Disclaimer - The book is not recommended to readers sensitive to graphic depictions of violence. This book is not suitable for persons under 18 years of age.* Alexis Noelle's Corrupted stole my heart, twisted it inside out, cut it wide open and then ripped it to shreds before putting it back together. There were so many emotions that they're impossible to describe. Kudos to her for a wonderful book.- JA Hensley, Author Alexis Noelle has written a brutal and beautifully raw no holds bar MC book. - Glenna Maynard, Author "Corrupted is not your average MC book. It's beauty and pain, heartbreak and triumph womven onto the pages expertly. It's a masterful combination of raw emotion, love and the hard-fought happily ever after. "Dark and sexy, emotional and suspenseful, Noelle corrupted me in the best way..." - Casey Bond, Author An emotional roller coaster of a story. Alexis Noelle weaves an enthralling tale of family, lust and danger, drawing you into a love story with twists and betrayal. This is a "can't put down read", and will leave you with the best kind of book hangovers. A must read. - Melissa Huie, Author "Corrupted is Alexis’s best work yet to come. She dug deep into the nitty gritty, making my heart bleed for the main character and all she’d been through. Corrupted is a must read if you want raw and real love." - Brooke Page, Author