Book picks similar to
Against the Ropes by Carly Fall


cheating
contemporary-romance
second-chance
cheating-hero

Tiny Threads


Jami Denise - 2016
    That was until the heels on her glass slippers snapped and left her tumbling down to reality.But knights in shining armor tend to tarnish after twenty years, and she’s far from the wide-eyed princess she’d once been. Four kids, money problems and a crumbling marriage tend to wipe away all the shiny and bright and bring on the reality of broken dreams. Royal Grainger knows he’s a lucky man—in theory. His wife is caring and beautiful, he has four amazing kids and his own business, and yet, he’s miserable. He’s detached, tired, and dissatisfied. No matter what he does, it’s not enough—for anyone. The Grainger’s know they’re treading in the deep end, and they have to work together to push through the pain, the hurt, and the monotony of a long stale marriage to reconnect again. A marriage once full of passion and consideration, becomes one full of bitterness and resentment. The past comes back to haunt them in a way they never imagined and their happily ever after becomes a battle. Whatever it takes. The stakes are too high to let go, and for each other, they’ll walk through fire.

Save Her


Flora Burgos - 2017
     Katherine thought they had forever, but Sean was looking for a way out. The day of his high school graduation Sean left the girl he loved and the ranch he resented in his rearview mirror. Katherine was left to put the pieces of her shattered heart back together and figure out a new future. After making his mark on the world Sean has come back to the girl he left behind over a decade ago, and is looking for a way to make her his again. When tragedy rocks the very foundation of Katherine’s life, leaving her with a target on her back, Sean will do anything to keep her safe. But rebuilding the trust he once shared with Katherine isn’t easy, and he doesn’t realize he may have waited too long to come home to the only girl he’s ever loved. If he’s not careful, it may be too late to Save Her.

Reining Her In


Katie Ashley - 2019
    James was at our rehearsal dinner. That was shortly before he jilted me at the altar. To avoid the swarm of whispers and finger pointing every time I dared to show my face in public, I fled two hours south to Atlanta and never looked back. Over the last decade, I’d planned hundreds of scenarios about how our next meeting would go down. The expletives I’d hurl at him. Which knee I might use to annihilate his balls. Which dimpled cheek on his ridiculously handsome face I would send a stinging slap across. But being elbow deep in a cow’s ass was not one of them. Normally, I didn’t get up close and personal to a bovine’s rectum. At least not since veterinarian school. But desperate times found me back home to attend my grandfather’s funeral, who happened to be the town’s large animal vet. Those two facts had left me wading through manure in Roy Wallace’s pasture to care for a distressed heifer. While time and maturity seemed to have changed him from the boy I knew, I still wasn’t falling for his charm. Or his hard, chiseled body. Or ass you could eat dinner off of. No, I wasn’t going back down that street again. Unfortunately, Declan didn’t seem to get the message. Instead, he seemed as stubborn as he ever was and ready for a fight. It’ll be the fight of his life for me to let him back in my heart.

SEAL's Bride


Vivian Wood - 2016
    Settle down? Hell, the ripped, fierce bad boy doesn't even bed the same woman twice.When he winds up back in his hometown, he's got no intention of changing his ways. F*ck the comforts of small-town life, there's a world full of pussy out there to conquer.That is, until he sees her. Remy River, the gorgeous blonde knockout who slams the door in his face -- apparently, she hasn't forgiven him for his past sins.Time to conquer the unconquerable.I had his baby, and he doesn't know.Four years ago, Remy made a huge mistake. Lovesick and impulsive, she slept with Sawyer Roman.And while he was off shooting bad guys, she had his baby.He doesn't know Shiloh is his son, and if she ever tells him, his family's threatened to ruin her life. But now he's back, damaged but hotter than ever, and he still wants her.If only she could turn away. If only she could resist his kisses, but Remy melts when he looks at her like that. But this secret's weighing on her soul, the guilt getting heavier and heavier every day.Remy has to tell Sawyer that Shiloh is his, but can they start fresh? Or will it be the tragic end to their love story?

Picking up the Pieces


Jessica Prince - 2013
    It’s taken years, but Emmy is finally starting to pick up the pieces of her broken life. Until the man who destroyed her heart returns, bringing with him the pain of the past. Running from Emmy was the only way Lucas Allen knew he could protect her from the demons he carried with him. After spending one perfect night together, Luke took off, certain he couldn’t possibly give Emmy everything she deserved. Eight long years later, he’s returned to Cloverleaf to try and make up for his mistakes. He can only hope it isn’t too late. Loving Luke has always been easy. It’s forgiving him that seems impossible. Now it’s up to Emmy to decide whether to give him a second chance or let him go for good.

On The Rebound


L.A. Cotton - 2020
    For Calliope James it didn't only leave a mark, it tore out her heart and left it bleeding on the ground. He was her best friend.Her first kiss.Her everything. Until one day, he wasn't. Zachary Messiah will never forget the girl with eyes the color of whiskey. But he's not that boy anymore. Cold.Cruel.He's devoid of emotion. Their paths were never supposed to cross again. But love doesn't always play by the rules. Now he's the King of Steinbeck University and she's the new girl on campus ... and the pasts they have fought so hard to bury are about to collide. Only this time, they might not survive the fallout.

Fighting For a Second Chance


Nikki Ash - 2016
    I’m starting college and can’t be distracted. Besides, he has his own life to get back to.  CooperThe moment I saw her I knew she was the one, but what my heart wants it doesn’t get. I know how life works. I’ve been fighting most of my life. My dad was a fighter, and so was his dad. I watched my mom cheat on him, and in return, he destroyed her. I will never do that to a woman. I get thirty hours with Liz and then we’re both walking away. At the end of the day, all we’ll have are the memories we have created here in Miami. ***Five years later, Liz runs into Cooper, only he has no idea that memories weren’t the only thing they created in Miami. He broke her heart once the day he left and now she’s guarded. Will he succeed in winning her heart over a second time? The only thing he knows for sure is that he’s fighting for a second chance, and this time, he won’t let her go that easily.

A Perfect Marriage


Laurey Bright - 1995
    Only the Archers knew they'd never been in love, and that nights of passion were few and far between. Still, both thought the other happy with the dry-eyed deal they'd made instead of vows.Until Max broke the bargain—by wanting more. And suddenly, after twelve peaceful years, the perfect marriage was over.But when Celine realized how much she loved her husband, was it too late to get him back? For unbeknownst to Max, they'd been blessed with a new beginning….

Rhythm & Blu


S.L. Jennings - 2018
    And I played it on repeat until life’s streetlights flickered on and stole him away. Riot Blu. Top 40 f*ckboi. Paparazzi player. Trashy reality TV trainwreck. But once upon a time, he was the boy next door. Once upon a time, he was every note in every song on every mixtape he had ever made for me.Now he’s back. A lot more arrogant. A little more tortured. And more gorgeous than any memory I held dear could do justice. I know no good can come from being anywhere near him. But Seattle is only so big, and if I’m going to get the exclusive of my career, I have to swallow my pride, take that dreaded walk down memory lane and agree to his terms. Move in with him. Immerse myself in his life—the life he left me to build. And try not to fall back in love with the man who ripped my world in two.

Kissed by Reality


Carrie Aarons - 2016
    Falling in love on national television is impossible. Right?Leighton Aldridge did not sign up to meet her soulmate; she signed up for the lights, camera and action. So when the Hollywood-native ends up with the wounded war veteran and a ring on her finger, it's a surprise to everyone.What isn't a surprise is the way she breaks Finn Wyatt's heart, or the massively public breakup that follows.But a year later she's back, ready for another round on the reality TV show that brought them together. Her ex-fiance has no idea why she left, and the dark secrets she’s bringing as baggage might make him change his mind about her.She knows what they had was the real thing, and she's ready to fight for him, even if it means ultimate embarrassment and heartbreak.Finn is the new Mr. Right, the country's favorite single guy, and the object of 25 women's affections. But when his ex-fiance steps onto set and back into the limelight, he wishes he never agreed to another season.Leighton shattered his heart for the world to see, and he's not ready to face that reality. Or the fact that he can’t focus on anyone else when she’s in the room.Can Leighton convince him, and America, that she's the one? Or will her future with Finn only consist of fifteen more minutes of fame?

First Came Us


Rachel Cullen - 2020
    Jack is an economics professor at Yale and Ellie owns a thriving yoga studio. Although day-to-day life isn’t always carefree, they exist in a world where carpools, soccer games, and bedtimes are their biggest concerns. However, all good things must come to an end. The Millers’ picture-perfect life gets turned upside down when Jack gets an unwelcome visit from a ghost from his past, their sixteen-year-old daughter Sydney decides to let down her hair and trade her backpack for a six-pack, and Ellie gets shocking news that requires immediate action. Jack and Ellie can barely pull themselves away from these unexpected challenges long enough to notice that Sydney is careening downward in her own dangerous spiral; but they need to find a way to overcome their issues if they want to save their daughter and their marriage.

Locked In


Anna Chastain - 2017
    They are in love, with each other, and their two children. They’ve spent their entire adult life together, happy in the small southern California beach town they call home; until one day Ben comes home and tells Grace he’s leaving. Now Grace is left wondering what happened to her life, to her home, and when exactly did things start to go so wrong. To find out, she turns to the place she didn’t even realize she was missing, the place she grew up, and the place she still considers home. With the help of her family and friends and the ocean, Grace begins to rebuild her life and remind herself where it is she truly wants to be…and, whether or not that life includes her husband. Locked In is a story about love and forgiveness, about riding the waves of life, and it is about how we continually reshape ourselves but never really feel grown up.

Another Summer


Sue Lilley - 2014
    Is forgiveness out of the question? A race against time and an impossible dilemma. Steamy, passionate and unpredictable romance.Who does Evie truly want – the mesmerising rock singer or the bad-boy soulmate who broke her heart?Stranded in remote and stormy Cornwall, Evie is staring into an empty future. Joe is the only man she ever loved, since that long hot summer when she was sixteen. But he wrecked everything and their marriage is over.Rocker Jake is hot and tempting. He sweeps her off her feet, promising escape and adventure. It’s her chance to show Joe she doesn’t need him. To grasp her own happy ending. But Joe has come to his senses. He sets off on a perilous road-trip. He’s determined to convince Evie he loves her and bring her home. But how will he persuade her to give him one last chance? Does he even deserve one?As Evie prepares to leave with Jake, Joe’s in a race against the clock. Road conditions are treacherous. Will he be trapped in the floods and run out of time?Set in the windswept wilds of Poldark country, this award-winning romance is the sizzling second-chances page-turner you won’t want to miss.Winner of the Literary Titan Silver Award, Another Summer is a sexy tale of bad choices and new beginnings. Scroll up to get your copy now. Evie’s dilemma is sure to melt your heart.

The Fall of Cinderella


K. Street - 2017
    Stand-alone contemporary romance with a happily-ever-after. One perfect life.Two uniformed officers.Three acts of betrayal.Four beats of a heart.Five words that will destroy her.Once upon a time, Tessa Salinger had it all.Until...She discovered that fairy tales were nothing more than extravagant lies dressed up in lavish clothes.In reality...Cinderella falls.

Beary Overdue


Ruby Shae - 2016
    Though she hadn’t turned out to be his mate, he was the best man she’d ever known, and he’d set the standard for all of her future love interests. Unfortunately, no other man had ever come close to measuring up to her first love. Polar bear shifter, Reid Holland, is a corrupt man. When his mate left him seven years ago, everything good and decent inside him died, leaving behind an angry and bitter shell. Instead of going after her, he abandoned his family, and his bear, and built his success on endless drinking, fighting and random sexual encounters. A few glimpses into Reid’s life is all it takes to convince Jillian she made the right choice in leaving all those years ago. Reid had turned into a man she didn’t know, and worse, one she didn’t like. When the truth behind Jillian’s reason for leaving is exposed, Reid is devastated until clarity comes in the form of his bear. Now all he has to do is convince his mate that the man she once loved is back, and he’s here to stay.