Book picks similar to
Hard Ball by Heather Stone


romance
sports
novella
sport-romance

Jax


Lane Hart - 2015
    Known for his viciousness in the cage, and his playboy ways out of it, Jax is arrested and charged with a brutal rape. The thought of spending decades in prison is one of the few things that actually scares the shit out of this cocky fighter. Newly admitted attorney Page Davenport is willing to do anything it takes to get out from under her father's thumb and finally prove herself in his law firm. Anything except represent the infamous miscreant, Jackson "The Mauler" Malone. Despite her protests, Page is powerless to avoid becoming the sacrificial lamb, the token female, who will be the face of the violent, angry Neanderthal's defense team. Jax is a bad boy with a temper, doing whatever the hell he wants in life while flipping the bird at all his haters. Page is the prim and proper rich debutante her parents want her to be. They've been pulling her strings, telling her what to do, where to go to school, what to wear, and even who she should marry. Page and Jax struggle to work together, engaging in a knockdown drag-out fight for dominance. When they finally stop taking swings at each other, they're both surprised to realize that sometimes first impressions are completely wrong. In fact, opposites really do seem to attract. However, there are lines that attorneys and their clients can never cross, if Page wants to keep her license to practice law. Will Page risk it all and submit to the cocky fighter? Or will Jax's temper and jealousy prove too much for her to take on outside of the courtroom? Either way, one thing is for sure - neither Page nor Jax are going down without a fight. In the end, the secret for them to find heaven may be to battle their way through hell first. This 72K word book has a HEA with no cliffhanger.

Bleed For Her


R.B. Hilliard - 2019
    Finally back on track, she’s looking forward to the quiet life she’s built for herself. When she comes home to discover her almost-fiancé dead and his killers hunting her, she’s left with no choice but to run. Little does she know that the past she’s fought so hard to escape is about to catch up with her. Clay Buckson has carved out a new life for himself. As a member of Steele Raiders MC, he has everything he’s ever wanted, except for the one woman he can’t have—Reynolds Walker. When his world threatens to destroy hers, he has no choice but to step in. Can he save her before it’s too late, or will he lose her again forever? Sometimes you have to fight for love, but sometimes you have to bleed for it.

Rookie Mistake


Alice Ward - 2016
     I thought I'd achieved everything I ever wanted. Then I lost her... Standing on the pitcher’s mound for a professional baseball team has been my dream since I was a small boy. Now I’m here, pitching for the newest team in the league — the New York Beasts — with the woman I’ve loved since high school by my side. Calvin and Whitney forever! Wow, we made it. But there’s a downside to instant fame and fortune, a trap that unleashes self-control and morals. A gilded cage that separates us from the real world. This is the big city, the major leagues — the big time. And temptation is around every corner. People change. We changed. Neither for the better. I don't even recognize us anymore. Calvin and Whitney forever? I used to think so, but the beasts that had been hibernating in both of us have taken control, and now I’m not so sure. The dream has become a nightmare. Can we wake and find our way back to each other? NOTE: Although this is the first book in the series, it has an emotionally charged HEA you won’t soon forget, and No Cliffhanger. *** For a limited time only, to celebrate the new release week, this copy also includes The Billionaire Prisoner - The Complete Series Box Set as a FREE BONUS + More Exclusive FREE BONUSES ***

Raw Deal


Cherrie Lynn - 2017
    Gone is the fierce, brutal beast she’s seen in the cage. In his place is a beautiful man torn with guilt, seeking forgiveness, and willing to do anything to ease her pain.Her family doesn’t approve, but her heart doesn’t stand a chance. Irresistibly drawn together, neither of them can deny the intoxicating desire unleashed between them, turning their pain into the most exquisite pleasure.But every time Mike steps into the cage, Savannah knows she could lose him too. She can’t go through that again, but how can she let go of the one man who sets her body and soul on fire?

The Changeup


A.M. Williams - 2019
    Tall. Handsome. Compassionate. Confident. He makes me feel things I haven’t in years.There’s just one problem: me. He can’t stand me and I’m getting to where I can’t stand him either.The glares stiffen my resolve to forget about my dream man and concentrate on my new job.Except...eventually those stares turn to something more. More heated. More promising. More everything.ChaseEmma Carlisle is what I didn’t know I needed in my life until I saw her.I don’t want her in my life, though. I have too much riding on my shoulders to concentrate on a relationship. A sick mom. A team owner who’s breathing down my neck to win a baseball championship.It’s easier to ignore her and pretend like she doesn’t exist than to think about how pretty she is or how I feel alive whenever she's around.But one surprise kiss and I’m left wanting more. One glimpse into what love could be like and I can’t think of anything else.We have to decide if it’s worth tempting fate and the flames of desire to see what love might be like.The Changeup is the first book in A.M. Williams Boys of Summer baseball romance series. It’s a workplace, enemies-to-lovers romance that features two perfectionists struggling to come to terms with the curveballs life has for them.If you love men in tight pants and the sassy women they fall for, this series is for you.This book was previously published as Coached in Love. It has been updated with new content and re-edited.

Finding Autumn


Heather Topham Wood - 2014
    His stepfather—a man he trusted and admired—had been accused of sexually assaulting one of his students. His stepfather declared his innocence and Blake chose to stay loyal to the man who had raised him as his own.Cook University is the one place Blake can keep his anonymity. No one knows about the scandals surrounding his stepfather’s arrest and subsequent conviction. To his friends, he is merely the star running back for the college team and an NFL hopeful. But the life he has built at Cook is threatened when Autumn Dorey locks eyes with him at a campus party.Getting entangled with Autumn is a mistake. Yet Autumn is the only person who can answer the one question that haunts him: is his stepfather a monster?Blake conceals his identity and starts a friendship with Autumn under false pretenses. What begins as a way to uncover the truth about his stepfather changes as he grows close to Autumn. His relationship with her calls into question everything he thought he knew about his family. Against all odds, he falls in love with the one girl he’s forbidden to have feelings for. But can their love last once Autumn finds out who Blake Preston really is? ***Not a standalone. Falling for Autumn from Blake's POV. Includes bonus chapters set after the events of Falling for Autumn.***

Squeeze Play


Kate Angell - 2006
    Whenever she broke up with someone, she could call him, and wherever he was, he'd show up for a few days to "console" her.Years later, Risk, now a team captain of a World Series-winning baseball team, returns to their hometown of Frostproof, Florida, for a benefit. He has seen eccentric Jacy every six months or so for years, and he now plans on asking her to marry him. Jacy has never had anyone in her bed but Risk, her true love. All those boyfriends were just a way to keep him in her life. But now she is afraid of changing the status quo.No fan of the genre should miss Angell's surefire romance, and all readers who enjoy light fare will like this amusing and sexy tale and its terrific, likable characters.

Hooked


Brenda Rothert - 2016
      Miranda: Even though I’m broke, putting myself through college, and working two jobs, I’m trying to make the best of it. Meanwhile, Jake Birch, hockey’s hottest bad boy, lives in a luxury hotel in downtown Chicago—and still complains about every little thing in his penthouse. But after I tell him off, instead of getting me fired, Jake requests me as his personal housekeeper. Then he starts flirting with me. Only I’m not flirting back . . . at least, I’m trying not to. Did I mention that he’s hockey’s hottest bad boy?   Jake: I’ve met the best woman at the worst possible time. Miranda is the fire to my ice—a sexy, charmingly candid spark who breaks down my walls and reminds me what it’s like to feel again. But I’m being forced to date my team owner’s daughter to keep my job, so I can’t be caught with Miranda. Still, we’re getting closer—until Miranda finds out about my “girlfriend.” And that’s not the only secret I’ve been keeping. But Miranda’s the one I want . . . even if she doesn’t believe me.   > Includes an excerpt from another Loveswept title.

Beyond the Bases


Kaylee Ryan - 2018
     He's sexy and irresistible. I've done my best to ignore the magnetism that flows between us. I don't need complications in my life. I can't get wrapped up in his world, the last thing I need is to get attached to a professional athlete. I don’t have time for heartbreak. 

Something about her pulls me in. I want to get to know her. I want a chance to show her I'm more than just my career, my paycheck. I'm the man for her. I know I am. No matter how much she resists this connection between us. It doesn't change the fact that she’s my grand slam.

Jock Blocked


Pippa Grant - 2020
    And what's working is him keeping his pants zipped and doing all of his scoring on the field.So when I hear he's planning to ditch his V-card now that he's been traded to baseball's lovable losers — aka my home team and my reason for living every March through October — I do what any rational, dedicated, obsessed fan would do.I make a plan to stop him.But the thing about stopping him is that it requires spending time with him.Lots. And lots. And lots of time.And the more time I spend with him, the more I like him. Not as the guy who's going to help save my favorite team and finally bring home a championship ring, but as the guy who's helping me in my quest to bring back the team's old mascot. Who also loves making pancake and bacon sandwiches. And who would do almost anything for his love of the game.But after all this time of jock-blocking him… do I even have a chance?And if I do, are we both destined to a life of celibacy in the name of winning?Jock Blocked is a home run of a romantic comedy featuring the world's most superstitious sports fan, baseball's oldest virgin hero, a rogue meatball, an adorable puppy with a cussing problem, and the best lovable losers. It stands alone and comes with a happily ever after more satisfying than a game-winning grand slam.

Focused


Karla Sorensen - 2020
    requited. That day was bad enough, but things just got worse.Noah Griffin turned himself into one of the best football players in the country and a transfer to the Washington Wolves— the team I work for—lands him on my doorstep. The timing couldn't be worse, because my boss just handed me the opportunity of a lifetime. And that promotion rides squarely on Noah's big, muscular, condescending shoulders.He wants nothing to do with me, and the feeling is so very mutual. But for the sake of my career, I can ignore all those things about him that drive me insane. His eyes. His mouth. His big, big … hands. Until one day, we can’t ignore them anymore.You know what they say about the line between love and hate though? They’re so very right.

Break Point


Rachel Blaufeld - 2017
    Traumatized by hazing at her last school, all she wants is to attend classes, win tennis matches, and be left the hell alone.She should have known her coach, Drew King, would be a problem from the moment he flexed his sexy-as-hell forearms.What happens when you mix a pissed-off woman with a bunch of snooty teammates and a hot coach? A heated match, complete with team politics and a forbidden game of singles with the coach.It’s reckless and hot until one of them taps out.Unable to admit she may be better off as a double, Jules is convinced she needs to play the game of life alone. Then life throws her a lob and she runs smack into her past.Coach King is back, and he wants to take control of the game. But she’s not certain she wants his advice when it comes to the life she’s built.The power struggle is on, but this time off the court.

Kiss To Conquer


Anna B. Doe - 2020
    Hayden thinks he knows all about Callie’s life before Blairwood and he’s not ready to let go of the past, much less forgive her for what she has done three years ago.One thing’s for sure… it’s going to take more than a kiss to conquer their broken past.Note: Kiss To Conquer is an enemies-to-lovers sports romance and it can be read as a standalone novel.

Hate Mates


Mickey Miller - 2020
    Or the one about his father, the head football coach. Or even the one about his special talent between the sheets.I’m talking about the one where he has a female roommate in an all-male dorm.I can’t speak to the first three, but that fourth one is true. I know because that girl in his room is me.Because of an error by the college, I’m placed with Mr. Campus Celebrity in the traditionally male dorm.Is he panty-meltingly handsome with an attitude to match? Sure.Do I accidentally fanaticize about him one (okay, maybe two) times? Fine, I’m honest enough to admit it.None of that matters, because we’re opposites in all the ways that are important for getting along as college roommates:He comes from a perfect life and old money. I come from a broken home and bowls of ramen.He’s at Greene State to party. I’m here to study.He’s a popular jock. I wouldn’t be caught dead playing sports.To say we get off to a rocky start would be an understatement.Ironically, that’s what causes our sizzling attraction to boil over one night. But even that comes at a price.Because our story has a twist neither of us could see coming.One that changes both of our lives, ‘till death do us part.

Throttled


Elizabeth Lee - 2015
    Becoming Motocross royalty was always the plan, and he was willing to make sacrifices along the way to reach his goal. Sacrifices he thought he could live with until he returned to the small town where he grew up and learned to ride, and, more importantly, where he fell in love.When fate sends Nora Bennett back into his life, he takes one look at her and realizes that he made a huge mistake breaking up with her seven years ago. Now, he'll do whatever it takes to win her back. As Reid sets out to earn her forgiveness and convince her that the guy she's dating is not the one for her, Nora finds herself torn between what her head is telling her and what her heart wants. It's a race he never expected to be in, for a girl he can't stand to lose again.