Book picks similar to
Pinky Promises by Deana Birch


romance
contemporary-romance
contemporary
not-avail-at-library

Trouble from the Start


Rachel Hawthorne - 2015
    Fletcher knows he shouldn’t bother with college-bound, daughter-of-a-cop Avery. But when their paths cross, neither can deny the spark. Are they willing to go against everything and let their hearts lead the way? Or are they just flirting with disaster? Trouble from the Start releases simultaneously with companion novel The Boyfriend Project. These heartwarming paperback originals are the perfect summer reads, great for fans of Jennifer Echols, Lauren Barnholdt, and Susane Colasanti.

The Butterfly Project


Emma Scott - 2017
    She channels her pain into her art: a dystopian graphic novel where vigilantes travel back in time to stop heinous crimes—like child abduction—before they happen. Zelda pitches her graphic novel to several big-time comic book publishers in New York City, only to have her hopes crash and burn. Circumstances leave her stranded in an unfamiliar city, and in an embarrassing moment of weakness, she meets a guarded young man with a past he’d do anything to change...Beckett Copeland spent two years in prison for armed robbery, and is now struggling to keep his head above water. A bike messenger by day, he speeds around New York City, riding fast and hard but going nowhere, his criminal record holding him back almost as much as the guilt of his crime. Zelda and Beckett form a grudging alliance of survival, and in between their stubborn clash of wills, they slowly begin to provide each other with the warmth of forgiveness, healing, and maybe even love. But when Zelda and Beckett come face to face with their pasts, they must choose to hold on to the guilt and regret that bind them, or let go and open their hearts for a shot at happiness. The Butterfly Project is a novel that reveals the power of forgiveness, and how even the smallest decisions of the heart can—like the flutter of a butterfly’s wings—create currents that strengthen into gale winds, altering the course of a life forever. #standalone #triggerwarning for sibling loss/child loss

Sweet Little Thing


Renee Carlino - 2014
    They have a puppy, a loft in Brooklyn, and a new music studio on the rise. It seems things couldn’t get any better for this talented couple when life decides to throw them a sweet little curve ball. They quickly learn that things don't always go according to plan. Sometimes happily ever after is one giant leap of faith away.With the help of good music, good friends, and one eccentric old lady, they overcome a few of life’s little bumps to find the sweetest thing of all.Watch this duo grow in more ways than one in SWEET Little THING.

Triplet Babies for My Billionaire Boss


Lia Lee - 2018
    triple-fold. My son is number one. My business is number two. And number three – non-existent. I don’t have time for anything else. Love – not for me. Sex – absolutely. Relationships – hell no. I had a wife. She died. HEA over. I was content with that fate… Until my best friend’s daughter. Little Danielle was all grown up, and when she needed a job... Well, I just happened to need a new secretary. I couldn’t help being bad. I had to have her. Her beauty. Her curves. Her doe-green eyes. Her innocence. She was a forbidden temptation. But I became the snake anyway, enjoying every damn second… Until she got pregnant. I told myself another marriage and kid were off the table. Yet I was so drawn to Danielle. Now, we’re at a crossroads. One path is paved with obstacles; The other offers me freedom. Time to choose…

Breathe into Me


Sara Fawkes - 2014
    HEA ENDING, NO CLIFFHANGERS.How did my life get so broken?  It’s a question Lacey St. James asks herself every day. Stuck raising her little brother in a trailer park while she works a dead end job at a grocery store, she has a stalker exboyfriend, a bad reputation, and no way out.And then she meets Everett, whose presence changes her entire existence.Everett is an outsider to her small community, in town for the summer housesitting one of the grand mansions off the Mississippi coast. When he saves her in a bar one night, she’s grateful but wary of his intentions. Lacey doesn’t trust most men in her life, but for reasons Lacey can't understand, Everett is completely captivated by her. He’s determined to show her that life can offer more than she’d ever hoped for, if only she believes in herself. As she works with him to free herself, Lacey desperately yearns to trust him, to move on and perhaps start fresh.But what happens when she finds out that everything he’s told her about himself was a lie?

A Million Dirty Secrets


C.L. Parker - 2013
      Delaine Talbot has a secret. When a matter of life and death threatens to tear apart her family, Delaine makes the ultimate sacrifice. She auctions herself off at Chicago’s most exclusive erotic club. Now she belongs to Noah Crawford, a wealthy mogul who introduces her to a seductive feast of the senses, awakening desires she only dreamed about.    Noah doesn’t know why Delaine sold her body for a cool two mil. But it’s the perfect business arrangement. The inexperienced beauty will learn to satisfy his every sensual need, yet never touch his heart. Almost immediately their relationship generates heat—in more ways than one. When they fight, they take no prisoners. When they love, they show no mercy. When they’re together, they never want to leave each other’s arms. But soon, their intense, physical bond will take an unexpected turn—evolving into something neither has bargained for: the promise of a lasting love.

Talk British to Me


Robin Bielman - 2017
    Everyone’s hooking up…well, except for me. Sure, I can get any woman I want, but I’ve got a “no relationship” clause in my contract and the only woman I want has “relationship” written all over her. Probably stamped on her ass, too. And wouldn’t I like to confirm that.Unfortunately, she wants nothing to do with me. At all. Something about the next Ice Age might have even come up in her rebuttal. Adorable. Because she’s determined to ignore what one simple kiss proved: she wants me as badly as I want her.Everything in me is screaming to go after her, but I’ve got a secret that I’m fairly certain will end up with her roasting my nuts over an open fire. So, job on the line? Check. Nuts on the line? Check. Can’t get her out of my head? Nail…meet coffin. But what a way to go…

Back to You


Kristen Granata - 2021
    Clearly, they haven’t tried hard enough. I’ve spent five years forgetting about Christopher Hastings. His gentle touch? A distant memory. Those gorgeous hazel eyes? Long gone. The sparks that flew when we kissed? Wiped from my mind. Now my life is going exactly the way I want it to. I landed a teaching job at my old elementary school. I’m happy again. Everything’s perfect. Imagine my surprise when I find out my school’s gym teacher is none other than Christopher Hastings. Cue panic attack. But it doesn’t matter how good he fills out those basketball shorts—I’ve moved on. At least that’s what I keep telling myself. If only my heart would get the memo. They say you never forget your first love, and it looks like Christopher is determined to make sure I never forget mine.

Making Him Sweat


Meg Maguire - 2013
    With it, she can realize her dream of launching an upscale matchmaking business…provided she can take on the very intimidating—and wickedly hot—boxer who stands in her way!Round 2In the far corner is former pro boxer Mercer Rowley. He’s the only one who can protect his “home”—even if it is a little run-down— from his determined and feisty little opponent. But man, once the gloves come off, his hands just want to touch her everywhere…Round 3This matchup is too close to call. But no matter which contender comes out on top, the other is sure to enjoy every minute of it....

Hard Time


Cara McKenna - 2014
    Tall frame, wide shoulders-but not burly. His near-black hair was due for a cut, curling under his ears. Dark brows, dark stubble, dark lashes and eyes.And he was handsome. So handsome it broke your heart.A deck of cards was split between his hands, paused midshuffle. Some of the men wore navy scrub tops and bottoms, some navy tee shirts, a few white undershirts. This man wore a tee, with COUSINS stenciled on the front, above the number 802267. Those digits imprinted on my brain, burned black as a brand.He watched me. But not the way the others did. If he was trying to picture me naked, his poker face was strong, though his attention anything but subtle. His entire head moved as I passed through his domain, but his eyes were languorous. Lazy and half-lidded, yet intense. A hundred looks in one. I didn't like it. Couldn't read it. At least with the horny jerk-offs, I knew where I stood.I wondered what the worst thing you could do and still only get sent to a medium-security prison was. I hoped not to ever learn the answer. And I hoped to heaven inmate 802267 hadn't signed up for any of the day's programs.

By Mistake


Sigal Ehrlich - 2021
    Teaching countless hours at the studio and nurturing the three major relationships of her life – her group of tight-knit friends, all while attempting to not screw up this whole adulthood thing leaves very little time to waste on yet another dating app. At this point, a relationship is off the menu. Being “self-partnered” is more than enough.A serious relationship has been crossed off Liam Brody’s list of goals, at least for the foreseeable future. Completing his residency and becoming a trauma surgeon is his only priority. Casual relationships, his friends, and books are the only things he’s willing to lose his precious free time to. When an accidental email starts a deep online connection, both Liam and Anna dive in with zero concern . . . because there’s really no harm in getting close to someone who you’ll never meet in real life, right?Wrong.When a turn of events brings their “safe” virtual connection to an unexpected face-to-face, Anna and Liam learn their online chemistry pales in comparison to the real deal. A realization that brings along the bazillion-dollar question – what do you do when you meet The One at the most impossibly wrong time?by Mist@ke is book 1 in a standalone series with connected characters, but independent storylines.

Flirty Dancing


Jenny McLachlan - 2014
    When national dance competition Starwars comes to her school looking for talent, she wants to sign up. It's just a shame her best friend agreed to enter with school super-cow Pearl Harris. Bea will fight back! But when school hottie, Ollie Matthews, who also happens to be Pearl’s boyfriend, decides to enter the competition with Bea, she will have more than a fight on her hands.This warm, nuanced, hilarious story about friendship, fortitude . . . and dancing is impossible not to fall in love with. Jenny’s voice is fresh and convincing, and she handles both darker and lighter elements of the story with equal panache.

Strictly Professional


Kathryn Nolan - 2018
    Developed a strategic marketing plan 2. Pined for him. 3. Denied my feelings for him. 4. Dragged him into an alley and had my way with him. Roxy Quinn thought she’d never see Edward Cavendish III again. The wealthy, English hotelier had wandered into her tattoo parlor, slightly drunk and broken-hearted. Roxy judged him on the spot: too polite and reserved for her punk-rock tastes. But Edward was more than just a handsome stranger with a sexy accent. He was a man desperate to unleash his secret desires. After a night of exquisite passion, Roxy sends Edward back into the night. She has no time to be tempted by his charming wit when her business is failing and she’s struggling with her MBA classes. Besides, they couldn’t be more wrong for each other. After a lifetime trapped in his parents’ legacy, Edward remembers his night with the tattooed, scowling vixen as glorious freedom. But it’s not freedom he needs now. It’s to find the right wife so he can finally take charge of the hotel he loves. Roxy, with her ripped stockings and secret piercings, is not the kind of wife that would fulfill the terms of his trust fund. Months after their memorable one-night stand, Edward and Roxy are paired up in a business school mentoring program where they must maintain a strictly professional relationship for the semester. With the future of Roxy’s business and Edward’s inheritance at stake, can they do it? Or will they surrender to their desires, risking everything?

STRIPPED (The Slate Brothers, Book Three)


Harper James - 2017
    Each One A Football Star. Each One Sexy, Rough And Completely Untamed. A standalone romance with a guaranteed HEA I can’t believe I want to f**k a football star. I’m so not that girl. I’ve always been a nerdy loner, my head in a book. And that’s how I prefer it… But Tyson Slate is different, and for some reason he keeps teasing me, toying with me, touching me and making me melt. I try to resist him but he’s so undeniably sexy, with muscles that I want to run my fingers over and gray-blue eyes. I try to pretend to be calm when Tyson is near, not wanting him to see how he’s flustered me with his words and his looks and that hard stare. I can’t understand why he seems to want me, out of all the hot girls lining up to be with him. But maybe it’s because I’m different, because I don’t come from his world. Maybe that’s why he can be himself around me, let his walls down for just a little while, and then…touch me. God, the way he touches me. The way he looks at me. I’m falling for him and he’s only going to trample my heart. But Tyson Slate always gets exactly what he wants. And he wants me. Hard. Deep. Stripped of my defenses. And he won’t stop until he gets it…

Latte Girl


Katia Rose - 2017
    Hot guys? Not so much.Her grueling shifts at a cafe in the heart of the city’s business sector are rarely punctuated by anything special, so when the gorgeous heir to the security company next door strides into Hailey’s life, it feels like punctuation with a capital P (or D, depending on your preferred terminology.)Jordan Knox is enough to send her heart racing faster than a triple shot of espresso, and when the attraction proves to be mutual, no hidden corners or empty offices are safe from their game of cat and mouse. But when she’s ready to drop the pretenses, Jordan continues to hold back, and Hailey realizes he’s been hiding secrets that could make whatever’s brewing between them boil over and burn.