Book picks similar to
Miss Congeniality by Marie Garner
dnf
new-adult
contemporary
arc
A Chance at Love
Karolyn James - 2014
The day billionaire businessman Sullivan Chasen receives a phone call that his father is dying is the day his world became turned upside down. The problem is that his father has been dead for ten years. The bigger problem is that the person who called keeps calling, insisting that Sullivan’s father is going to die soon. A shocking DNA test suddenly has Sullivan questioning everything he has ever known and has him packing up and driving to the small town of Ferry Creek, North Carolina. There, he confronts a past he never knew existed, including a half-brother who is living in a small apartment above the family diner, a local staple in Ferry Creek.What begins as a short trip to settle any necessary needs soon turns into a new life for Sullivan. The longer he stays in Ferry Creek, the more he falls in love with the small town… and a waitress named Jess who works at the diner.
Take Two
Laurelin Paige - 2014
On the night of her graduation from film school, straight-laced Maddie Bauers fell completely out of character for an oh-my-god make-out session with a perfect stranger. Complete with the big O.Seven years later, that romantic interlude is still fresh in her mind. That stranger is now a rich and famous actor. And she’s one very distracted camera assistant working on his latest production. She might consider another tryst…if he even remembers her.Micah Preston does indeed remember Maddie. Too bad he’s sworn off Hollywood relationships. He allows himself as much sex as he likes—and oh, he does like—but anything more is asking for trouble. For the woman, not for him. Yet knowing Maddie could want more than a movie-set fling doesn’t stop him from pursuing her like a moth drawn to hot stage lights. But as the shoot nears its end, it’s decision time. Is it time to call, “Cut!” on their affair, or is there enough material for a sequel?Warning: Contains a dreamy movie star hero, a focus-pulling heroine, off-the-charts instant chemistry, steamy sex in near-public locations, and a new use for lip gloss.
Hollywood Scandal
Louise Bay - 2017
SHE’S LITERALLY THE GIRL NEXT DOOROne of Hollywood’s A-listers, I have the movie industry in the palm of my hand. But if I’m going to stay at the top, my playboy image needs an overhaul. No more tabloid headlines. No more parties. And absolutely no more one night stands.Filming for my latest blockbuster takes place on the coast of Maine and I’m determined to stay out of trouble. But trouble finds me when I run into Lana Kelly.She doesn’t recognize me, she’s never heard of Matt Easton and my million dollar smile doesn’t work on her.Ego shredded, I know I should keep my distance, but when I realize she’s my neighbor I know I’m toast. There’s no way I can resist temptation when it’s ten yards away.She has a mouth designed for pleasure and legs that will wrap perfectly around my waist. She’s movie star beautiful and her body is made to be mine.Getting Lana Kelly into my bed is harder than I’m used to. She’s not interested in the glitz and glamour of Hollywood, but I’m determined to convince her the best place in the world is on the red carpet, holding my hand.I could have any woman in the world, but all I want is the girl next door.A sexy, standalone romance.Releases 22 August 2017
Beautiful Goodbye
Heather D'Agostino - 2016
Some words can break us so badly that we never fully recover from them. Goodbye being the worst of all. As a young adult I was forced to say goodbye to my father. Losing him broke me in a way I never thought I’d recover from… until I met Ryan. Ryan Mitchell was the balm my soul needed to heal. He filled my life with happiness, love, and affection. He made me want things I didn’t think I ever would, and the dreams I’d said goodbye to years before didn’t seem so lost anymore. He taught me to live life to the fullest, and open myself to love. I didn’t think anything could bring me down from the high he kept me on… but I was wrong. Life sometimes throws us curveballs that we can’t explain. It tests us and pushes us harder than we can ever imagine. I didn’t think I’d survive the crash, but I did. Sometimes goodbye can be beautiful and it was…with Ryan. ***This is a STANDALONE contemporary romance.*** It contains profanity and graphic sexual encounters. It may not be suitable for readers under the age of 17.
Dirty Boxing
Harper St. George - 2017
A fighter made of chiseled muscle and steel resolve who can bring a man to his knees with his bare hands. In the octagon, he always wins. But when he joins a new fighting organization, he comes face to face with Jules Darcy, the only woman who ever broke his heart. The daughter of the man who could make or break Nick’s career. And Nick knows one thing: Jules is his, and he wants her back. Jules Darcy doesn’t do love. After an unstable childhood and a front row seat to the damage it does, she’d have to be crazy to sign up for inevitable heartbreak. But a year ago, her fling with Nick quickly escalated into something more, scaring her and sending her running. Now, he’s back in her life and sexier than ever. And he wants her. In his bed. In his life. His, fully and completely.She’s as powerless to resist Nick now as she was a year ago, but even if she does give in, no one can ever find out. Revealing their relationship could end Nick’s career. But something this hot, this intense, can’t stay secret for long…
Fake
Kylie Scott - 2021
She’s more familiar with vacuuming one. When a scandal tarnishes the reputation of hot as hell A-lister, Patrick Walsh, he needs a reputation rescue, pronto. Enter waitress Norah Peers–a nobody who’s average with a capital A. She’s available, dependable, and has sworn off men for the rest of her natural born life. In other words: the perfect match for a no-strings fake romance. For the right amount of money, she can avoid waitressing and play the part of his dependable down-to-earth girlfriend. What she can’t avoid–dammit–is the growing steam between them. But being hounded by the paparazzi and having your life dissected on social media is a panic attack in the making. And while Patrick might be a charming rogue on screen, in real life he’s a six-foot-two confusing, gorgeous, brooding grump, who keeps her at a distance . . . but also makes her feel like this bond between them might be more than just an act. Being dumped on cue should be no big deal. Except being fake with Patrick is the realist relationship Norah has ever had. What’s a girl to do, but flip the script, and ask for a rematch made in Hollywood?
Frisky Business
Staci Hart - 2016
Not the drama of working in a tattoo parlor, which seems to be around every corner. When things get him down, he smiles and cracks a joke. But he’s not the kind of man you cross, or you’ll find yourself at the wrong end of his fists.Annika Belousov takes everything seriously.Like her job as a reality television producer, given that she typically has something to prove. Or her love life, which is defined by a series of requirements — affluent, ambitious, accomplished, to name a few. Definitely her family, who worked their whole lives to afford her every opportunity, a sacrifice she doesn’t take lightly. When she’s tapped to produce a reality show at Joel’s shop, she doesn’t think twice, just goes in for the kill, as if there were any other way.The second Annika walks into Joel’s shop, he makes it his mission to crack her open, but she’s not having it. He’s all wrong — too crass, too hairy, too un-serious. But it doesn’t take her long to find out there’s more to him than smirks and tattoos. And what she finds could put her career and his heart on the line.Not that Joel cares. Because for the first time in a long time, he’s found his tonic.
Every Little Piece of Me
Lexi Ryan - 2020
. . and the wedding invitation that changes it all.
The first time I saw Brinley Knox, she was crying and heartbroken at her own sweet sixteen party. The daughter of the wealthiest family in Orchid Valley, she was off limits to someone like me—the teenage charity case, the hired help.But that didn’t stop me from kissing her. Or from promising if she were ever mine, I’d never let her go.The last time I saw Brinley Knox, I made good on that promise. Forget that it was the first time we’d seen each other in ten years, or that we were drunk in Vegas when we said I do. I meant every word, every touch, every promise.The problem? When I came back to the hotel, she was gone—the ring I slipped on her finger and the note she left behind the only reminders she had been there. Well, those and the hole she left in my chest in place of my heart.We haven’t spoken in the six months since, and I’m not the kind of guy who’d file for a divorce he doesn’t want.But when I get the invitation to her wedding to another man, it’s time to return to Orchid Valley and remind the bride-to-be that I’m a man who keeps his promises.Every Little Piece of Me is a sexy, standalone second-chance romance in Lexi Ryan’s all-new Orchid Valley series.
King of Code
C.D. Reiss - 2017
Step by step, and for every step she'll unlock a piece of his system.Kissing unlocks a partition.Touching unlocks another.Using your mouth to…How far is this crazy woman going to go?They hate each other. They can't keep away from each other. They're decoding each other with every step, until all Harper's secrets are revealed, and Taylor risks losing his heart as well as his company.
Sweet Dreams
Nina Lane - 2016
Sugar Rush Candy Company CEO Luke Stone is a devoted businessman who doesn't do relationships. He does short-term affairs with clearly defined rules. But when a sexy bohemian angel propositions him in a bar, Luke is tempted to want more. Polly Lockhart is horrified when she wakes the morning after her twenty-third birthday to realize she made a fool of herself with a sinfully delicious man. She tells herself she doesn't have time for romance anyway, as she's fighting to keep her mother's beloved bakery afloat and finish her culinary studies. That all changes when her class tours the famed Sugar Rush headquarters, and Polly collides with her dream man again. As she succumbs to their hot attraction, Polly soon realizes her bakery isn't the only thing that needs saving. Luke, driven and unyielding, will burn out unless someone convinces him to taste the sweetness of life. But can Polly remember this sugar rush is only temporary?
The Last Thing
Briana Gaitan - 2014
With nowhere else to turn, she escapes to LA, clinging to the promise of a fresh start.Chase Crowley is known for being selfish and unbelievably persistent. All he's ever wanted is to become a successful actor. But now that he is about to have it all, he finds that something is still missing. Money and fame aren't what he expected.After a fervent encounter, the two of them are thrown into a situation for which neither is prepared. Can Quinn extinguish her fears and let Chase in? Can Chase learn to put someone else's needs before his own?The Last Thing is a novel all about love, Hollywood, and accepting what life throws at you even if it is the last thing you want.(This is a New Adult Romance novel & contains language & adult situations. Not recommended for readers younger than 17)The Last Thing is a standalone book in the Hollywood Timelines series with NO cliff hanger ending.Hollywood Timelines Series#1 The Last Thing#1.5 Bash#2 The One Thing#2.5 Maria#3 The Love Thing (coming Winter 2015)
One Wild Night
A.L. Jackson - 2018
Living in L.A. her entire life, she knows the glitz and glam of Hollywood is just an illusion.That is until she stumbles head first into the arms of Hollywood’s most eligible bachelor. It was just another day for Paxton Myles on the red carpet until the blue-eyed beauty literally stumbles at his feet. A single glimpse in her innocent eyes and he knows he has to have her. After one night of unbridled passion, Kaylee slips away to live her quiet life, but the paparazzi has other ideas.When Kaylee’s world comes crashing down, can Paxton convince her that their one wild night could turn into forever?
Finding Alexei
Kendall Ryan - 2018
He’s also a pro athlete who needs to focus on winning games and staying out of the headlines.I’m fiercely independent and need a man like I need a second period each month.So when our worlds collide, I never expected him to be the one to jump in and save me. Especially not when my roommate disappears, leaving me with her baby.I’m clueless about babies—and it shows. Good thing Alexei isn’t. With six nieces and nephews and an apparent hero complex, the dude is both sexy and more than capable. It’s a combination that makes it easy to forget we’re just playing house.
Right Where I Want You
Jessica Hawkins - 2018
. . and it cuts right through the middle of their office.
Bad boys? They run right over good girls like Georgina Keller. But after a confidence-shattering breakup, she’s determined not to let anyone at her new workplace push her around—least of all the brooding creative director, a “bad boy of publishing” who’s made it clear she’s enemy #1.Sebastian Quinn's taste for fast cars, late nights, and beautiful women may have gotten him to the top of a leading New York magazine, but the reputation that made him is suddenly threatening to end his career.Georgina can help Modern Man shed its bad reputation, but in order to do that, she’ll have to start at the top—and no amount of rakish charm or inconvenient attraction will distract her.Because if Sebastian gets her right where he wants her, it means she’s going down.
A Risk Worth Taking
Heather Hildenbrand - 2013
Everything she thought she knew—heck, everything she thought she wanted for her own life—feels like a lie. The truth is love is a risk. And the true kind, the kind that lasts, might even be a fairy tale. Reeling from the divorce, Summer derails her own future by breaking up with her parent-approved boyfriend and giving up her lifelong plans for a big-city career. She moves back home, business degree in hand. Dad needs her to fill the gaps her mother left behind; Summer needs to find who she is outside of the cookie-cutter life that failed so miserably for her parents.Ford O’Neal’s future involves one person: himself. He doesn’t have a permanent address and he definitely doesn’t commit. To a place or a person. Raised by hippies, he plans just far enough ahead to secure his next stop, this one landing him at a work-study program at Heritage Plantation where he can grow his own herbal and medicinal creations. Summer is gorgeous and smart and fun to be with, the perfect way to pass five months. It won’t be love—Ford’s got too many things to accomplish, too many places to go, before he settles down. Yet Summer pulls him in, challenging him to rethink his own philosophy. When Ford’s five months are up, each of them must decide if love is really worth the risk.