Book picks similar to
This Wicked Rush by Jessie Evans


new-adult
romance
contemporary-romance
contemporary

Hard to Resist


Shanora Williams - 2012
    She planned a bright future with him, cherished four years with him, and couldn't have been any happier, but during graduation night, all of that changes.Natalie walks in on Bryson cheating on her. One month after catching him in the act, she finally decides to make an escape by leaving for Florida. She wants to start over, have fun, and be free while also finding a way to mend her broken heart but when she meets Nolan Young, her single-life escapade doesn't last for very long. She tries to stay clear of Nolan and his desires but it's impossible for her. Nolan will do everything that he can to have her as his own, but will Natalie accept Nolan along with the problems of his past? Will she let someone else into her heart that may be even worse than Bryson?For Natalie, Nolan will be something completely new to her. And for them both, their desires will be completely hard to resist.

His Wicked Games


Ember Casey - 2013
    Can she beat him at his own game?Lily Frazer would do anything to save the Frazer Center for the Arts--even take on the infamous billionaire Calder Cunningham. When Lily breaks onto the Cunningham estate, she only wants to find and reason with Calder. (All right, all right, she wants to punch him in the face, too, but that's Plan B.) As it turns out, the arrogant billionaire is willing to give her the money he promised, but there's a catch: she must win it from him.Lily isn't about to give up the money without a fight (or let some haughty bastard seduce her), but she quickly discovers that there might be more to the brooding Calder than she initially perceived. As their games of cat and mouse become increasingly intense, she suddenly finds herself confused by her own emotions. Can she deny her attraction long enough to win the money she needs?

Something Great


M. Clarke - 2013
    He was everything Jeanella didn’t need in her life. Only Maxwell didn’t see it that way. His pursuit was relentless, making her even more determined to push him away.Fresh out of college, life was simple and plain for Jeanella Mefferd. Every part of her life was smooth sailing; her friends, her job, and even the guy she’d started dating. Then one night, while at dinner, she spotted someone who made her feel things she’d never felt before—dangerous, heart pounding and breathless heat. Thinking she would never see him again, she brushed it off, but when she started to run into him unexpectedly, all she could think of was how he made her feel with his sweet flirtations. Everything about Maxwell Knight screamed trouble, especially when she found out he was her new boss’s son. Now, heading to a New York fashion show, would she be able to focus on her career instead of Maxwell, who had been scheduled to attend with her? As much as she tried to forget their encounters, his good looks, smooth words and determination to win her over gravitated her toward him. The next thing she knew, her mind was utterly consumed by him. Would she be willing to ignore all the dangerous signs and jump into his arms? Or would she miss out on the chance of finding something great?

Wrapped in Ink


Carrie Ann Ryan - 2019
    But when an accident lands him in the ER, Liam meets someone that might just be the distraction he needs.Arden Brady has spent her life in and out of hospitals. But according to the world, she doesn’t look sick. She’s lost jobs and friends because they don’t see beneath the surface, but she’s learned to rely on her family and herself to keep going. And then she meets Liam.With two sets of overprotective siblings and a puppy that can't help but get into everything, Liam and Arden might just fall harder than either one ever expected.

Skater Boy


Kay Manis - 2013
    Avoiding surprises and keeping people at a distance is the only way she has to protect herself from the painful scars and shattered memories of her past. When Hindley is offered a new position at her prestigious Austin law firm as sports agent for pro skateboarder, Rory Gregor, she’s ready for the new challenge but completely unprepared for the man who captures her heart. Suddenly, Hindley is thrust into a world where protecting all their secrets could cost her everything; her family, her career, and maybe even her life. Professional skateboarder and X Games royalty, Rory Gregor knows what it’s like to be at the top. But after two years of bad decisions and one-night-stands, he’s having to make a comeback he never anticipated. Hiring a new agent may be what his team thinks he needs to rebuild his career, but what if it costs him his heart in the process? Just when he thinks he’s posed for a comeback, secrets from his past threaten to ruin his chance for gold and a new love. In a sport where trust means everything, this time... it may not be enough.

Captivated


Emily Jane Trent - 2013
    He’s a romantic Italian on vacation, surfing at Ella’s beach. But the gorgeous billionaire has secrets. Ella feels like she’s known him forever, but fears she will lose him. Can you meet your soul mate, only to lose him in the same instant? Adam shouldn't involve Ella in the evil he must face in Brazil. But will he stay away from her? Ella Walker, still suffering from issues of mental abuse, turns twenty-one and meets the man of her dreams. Can she break the bonds of her emotional prison and be the woman he desires? As an aspiring romance author, Ella struggles to find passion in her work. When Adam Bianci, the gorgeous Italian billionaire appears in her life, he lights up her drab existence. She’s determined not to let him slip through her grasp. But will his secrets and the tangled web of his own abuse keep them apart?

Almost Matched


A.O. Peart - 2013
    SECOND EDITION released in Sept 2016Would you take another shot at love? Or just settle on a friend with benefits?THEIR HEARTBREAKING PAST WILL MOVE YOU. THEIR PASSION WILL MAKE YOU BLUSH. THEIR ANTICS WILL MAKE YOU LAUGH OUT LOUD. Twenty-five-year-old Natalie Davenport lugs substantial baggage. One boyfriend after the next has been a total disaster, leaving Natalie distrustful toward the male population in general. So when Colin Hampton crosses her path, she’s cautious. Her heart (and some other body parts!) nudges her to go for it, while her head wants her to run for the hills.Colin is one of those gorgeous guys who attract women, no matter the age or marital status. With a successful career at a popular Seattle radio station, hard body, and charming personality, he is the complete package. But something dark lurks in the corners of his soul; some murky experience that has changed him—maybe for the better, but maybe for the worse.Will he steal her heart and stomp over it like other guys did? Will she let him into her heavily fortified world despite herself?Or will they settle somewhere in the middle—establishing the emotional boundaries to protect them from falling in love?***********************************This dark romantic comedy blends humor, sensuality, and angst, with zany characters and witty dialogue. ***Warning: contains sexual situations (some quite vivid!), profanity, and a high dose of sarcasm. Oh, and there is a lot of appletini and beer drinking. May not be appropriate for readers under 18 years old. Not intended for prudes and killjoys with no sense of humor***THE SERIES:The Almost Bad Boys series are the stories of four feisty twenty-something women who refuse to let their past drag them down.***The books in the Almost Bad Boys series are best read in order. They are not stand-alone books, although these are three different stories/no cliffhangers:Almost Matched (book 1)Almost Broken Up (book 2)Almost Too Far (book 3)***

Random


Lark O'Neal - 2013
    Her mom is dead, and she’s on her own, patching together a living as a waitress when a car crashes through the restaurant where she works. In two seconds, she loses her job, watches her best friend hauled away in an ambulance…and meets Tyler Smith, one of the hottest, most fascinating—and mysterious guys she’s ever met. Both for the good and the bad…Within days, Jess is swept up into the mesmerizing force that is Tyler. Their every touch sizzles, every kiss dissolves them both, and the sex is…fierce. But there’s more to Tyler than his hypnotic eyes. He’s adrift, too, and his body—and his soul—are covered with scars. How can she find herself with a guy who is lost himself? Until you take charge….Jess is determined to find her way, and make a life that is better than the one she was given. But how?

Limited Time Offer


Kelly Jamieson - 2015
    Sure, they’re all puffed up, strutting egos, but they’re also the best and brightest creatives in Chicago. Including the newest recruit, disturbingly attractive Levi Wolcott.Award-winning copywriter Levi is pumped to have been headhunted to Huxworth Packard to work on the beer account. But he’s not off to a good start when he and Sloane first meet in an embarrassing encounter in a hotel hall, and the Brew Crew’s merciless new-guy hazing doesn’t improve his shaky first impression. Even worse, Levi can’t ignore the intense attraction he has to Sloane.Despite their mutual “hell no” when it comes to love, a moment of weakness makes Sloan and Levi believe business and pleasure can be kept separate, and maybe a little harmless sex isn’t that dangerous.Or maybe it’s as harmless as a bomb with a lit fuse…Warning: This book contains a hero with an award-winning, panty-melting vocabulary intent on the hard sell, and a take-charge businesswoman who doesn’t mind giving up control in the bedroom…and thinks panties are overrated, anyway.

Plastic Hearts


Lisa De Jong - 2013
    I like it that way. I grew up in a fake society where plastic hearts rule. If our hearts are made of plastic, they can never be broken. My parents have expectations and I do everything I can to meet them, even if it means giving up on my own dreams. Now, all I want is to be free to make my own choices.Dane Wright is everything I have been warned to stay away from. We met one night while I was with my perfect, parent-approved boyfriend and I haven’t stopped thinking about him. I don’t want to like him. I am doing everything I can to ignore his pull, but my heart seems to want what it cannot have, what it has never had.Can he measure up? He may think I am too good for him, but maybe he is too good for me. Life is a series of choices and I have never been able to make my own. Until one day, when my heart decides to make a choice for me.Recommended for mature readers due to sexual content and language

Chasing Luck


Brinda Berry - 2014
    Especially when you’re a sole survivor...At the age of seven, Malerie walked away from a bombing that left hundreds dead—including her mother. When a crazed gunman kills her guardian on her eighteenth birthday, Malerie suspects there may be more to her survival than luck. A mysterious code holds the key to her future, and a reluctant white knight holds the key to her heart.A loner wearing emotional armor…Ace is a twenty-year-old entrepreneur focusing on two things in life: financial security and a life without ties. A life that doesn't risk losing the ones who matter. When Ace is hired to secretly act as a bodyguard for Malerie, he faces an unwanted attraction that threatens to sabotage his heart. Can Ace find the courage to love a girl with a death wish? 9780991632039 - alternate cover edition

Before You Go


Clare James - 2013
    But she soon realizes the changes are not enough. Tabby must take action to help her heal and move on from the past. And though it sounds crazy, she believes a one-night stand is the best way to take back what’s hers. If she can choose where, when, and most importantly, who … maybe she can regain control.First, she needs a willing participant. She finds more than that when she meets Noah Adler. Unfortunately, she can’t go through with it. And when she tries to forget about the plan—and the guy—it becomes impossible. Noah quickly weaves his way into her new life and her heart. But as he comes dangerously close to discovering her secret, Tabby’s at risk of losing it all.

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.

Better Than Me


Emme Burton - 2013
    Last semester ended badly, leaving her unsure about whom “Biz” really is anymore. She is determined to get through her final year with no drama and as few panic attacks as possible.The plan seems solid. Then, early in the semester, Biz is introduced to two guys at the same time. Jake is a sweet, open jazz major and unlike the guy that leveled her last year. And then there is Davis, the theatre designer. He is beautiful, dark, quiet and has eyes that render the usually over talkative Biz speechless. She makes a decision to keep any relationship she has under her control. But can she, really?

Thursday Nights


Lisa N. Paul - 2013
    But when fate brings two weak souls together, will the love they find mend the fragments that are barely holding them together, or will the weight of their past finally cause them to crumble?Max DeLucca has spent seven years trying to forget the betrayal of his past. He lives his life from day to day never looking forward and never looking back. The walls around his heart keep anyone from getting too close and prevent him from feeling too much…until he meets her.Her entire life, Janie Silver searched for the kind of love that wouldn’t leave her broken and more importantly, wouldn't leave her behind. She longs for a love that can heal the wounds of her past and give her the future she knows she deserves. She thought she was looking for something that just didn’t exist…until she meets him.Danny’s on Main is where their story begins. A neighborhood bar where strangers become friends, friends become family and some … become lovers… it all started on Thursday Nights