Book picks similar to
In the Swim of Things by Tracie Banister
romance
chick-lit
mermaids
contemporary
The Perfect Dress
Carolyn Brown - 2019
Nearly six feet tall, flame-haired, and with a plus-size spirit to match every curve, she’s found her niche: a custom wedding-dress boutique catering to big brides-to-be with big dreams. Taking the plunge alongside her two best friends, she’s proud they’ve turned The Perfect Dress into a perfect success.Just when Mitzi has it all pulled together, Graham Harrison walks back into her life, looking for bridesmaid dresses for his twin daughters. A still-strapping jock whose every gorgeous, towering inch smells like aftershave, the star of all Mitzi’s high school dreams is causing quite a flush.For Mitzi, all it takes is a touch to feel sparks flitting around her like fireflies. She can just imagine what a kiss could do. Graham’s feeling it, too. And he’s about to make that imagination of Mitzi’s run wild. Is it just a hot summer fling, or are Mitzi’s next designs for herself and seeing her own dreams come true?
Craving Perfect
Liz Fichera - 2011
In fact, her life would be perfect if only she could lose ten more pounds, if only the pastry café she co-owns with her sister would turn a profit, if only the hottest guy at the gym would look her way...And then "if only" comes true. Grace is suddenly straddling two lives: an alternate reality where she's a size two, weathergirl celebrity and being chased by the hot guy. Only Mr. Gorgeous isn't very nice, and she doesn't get to eat...anything, much less bake! In her other life, she's starting to realize her sister is less than happy running the family café, and hunky Carlos, the gym's janitor, seems to have a secret crush on her. Maybe there's more to him than meets the eye...Grace is living two lives and it's beginning to cost her. Is there a way to pick one...that's perfect?76,000 words
Hot as Puck
Lili Valente - 2017
We're talking my last date went home with our waitress kind of failure.But I have an ace in the back pocket of my mom jeans--my sexy-as-sin best friend, NHL superstar forward, Justin Cruise.Justin owes me favors dating back to seventh grade, long before he became a hotshot with a world famous...stick. So in return for my undying platonic loyalty, all I want is an easy-peasy crash course on how to be a sex goddess.How hard can it be?***I have never been so hard in my life.The things I want to do to my sweet, kindergarten-teaching, mitten-crocheting best friend Libby Collins are ten different kinds of wrong. Maybe twenty.But I'm a firm believer in teaching by example, and by the end of our first lesson, we've graduated to a hands on approach to her education: my hands all over her, her hands all over me, and her hot mouth melting beneath mine as I prove to her there isn't a damned thing wrong with the way she kisses.Give me a month, and I'll transform Libby from wall flower to wall banger, and ensure she's confident enough to seduce any guy she wants.Problem is... the only guy I want her seducing is me.Hot as Puck is a sexy, flirty, friends-to-lovers Standalone romantic comedy from USA Today Bestseller Lili Valente.
Once Upon A Coffee
Kait Nolan - 2014
Invoking her favorite romantic comedy, they arrange to meet in a local coffee shop with a flower and a book. Under a serious deadline to finish a group project for his MBA--solo--the only thing Dillon Lange wants is peace and quiet. When a beautiful stranger sits down in his booth at the coffee shop, he knows he ought to say something about not being who she thinks he is, but he can't resist her smile or her engaging conversation. How long can he keep up the charade? And what will happen when her real date shows up? A short story of approximately 7,500 words. This story is a crossover with the Wishful series."Meet cute" is a term used to describe a situation in which a future romantic couple meets for the first time. Meet Cute Romance is a series of romantic shorts celebrating the possibilities of that first meeting.
The Gull Motel (A Barefoot Book)
Amie Denman - 2014
Finally finished with college, she heads to her favorite shabby motel on Florida’s Gulf Coast where her aunt and uncle always save her room twenty-four. She quickly finds out, though, that The Gull Motel is not just her home away from home. It’s hers to manage while her aunt and uncle take an extended trip. Skip McComber, The Gull’s former maintenance man, has been working on Savvy’s nuts and bolts for years. Now the new owner of the bar next door, his mission is to renovate a pirate bar while being a walking temptation for the girl he can’t get off his mind.For Savvy, keeping her cool running a motel in Florida heat is one thing, but navigating the steamy waters of a former fling takes a whole other kind of savvy. In addition to the motel and the man next door, Savvy stumbles on a plot to swindle land from the residents of Barefoot Key. Devalued properties tumble like dominoes until Savvy musters her colorful crew from The Gull Motel to make the pillagers walk the plank.
Accidental Tryst
Natasha Boyd - 2018
Suit monkey, commitment-phobic serial dater. No more than three dates, unless he hasn't ... you know. Emmy:What a disaster! I only just made my flight to New York to help my uncle, and the phone I’m holding is not mine! It seems to belong to some commitment-phobic serial dater who’s never made it past four dates (according to the constant notifications he's getting from his fake dating profile...) And worse? I have a sinking feeling it’s that hot suit-monkey with the arctic grey eyes I just had a run-in with at the airport. Somehow I have to persuade him not to get a new phone until I get back. My whole life is on that phone. It’s only a few days. Surely we can handle it. Trystan :This is a joke, right? My life could not get more f*cked up. I’m in the middle of selling my company and on my way to a funeral and that hot mess hippie-chick stole my freaking phone. I’m not sure how she convinced me not to immediately walk into a smart phone store and get a new one, but now she’s going to have to play stand in and distract me while I deal with my long-avoided and estranged family. I don’t have my dating apps after all, and frankly she’s pretty funny. And sexy. And why can’t I stop texting her? And now we’re talking. And … look, I’ll admit that I usually run for the hills the morning after, but the morning after phone sex? That’s not really real, right?
Going Rate for Mr. Right
Jessie Evans - 2016
That’s why she’s moving forward with her Happily Ever After solo, with the help of a sperm sample from a double PhD holder. At least that was her plan until the sperm bank sold her the wrong sample and she ended up deep in let-me-have-your-baby-batter negotiations with her unnamed donor. Her homecoming to Sapphire Falls is taking a hard turn for the sour, and that’s before her mother’s prize-winning rooster, Sampson the Third, makes it clear he’s out for blood—Yasmin’s blood.The first time Noah Riley visited his cousin, Mason, he fell hard for Sapphire Falls. So he’s not really surprised to find himself falling hard for a Sapphire Falls girl. The moment Yasmin races past him, chased by a demon rooster, his gut utters two words—yes and mine. He and Yasmin share an instant connection, but convincing this wounded woman to let him be her knight in faded blue jeans is harder than he ever imagined. Especially when he discovers she’s the woman who was accidentally given his sperm sample!Can Yasmin and Noah survive the attack of the killer poultry and find their way to you and me and baby makes three the old-fashioned way? Or will the scars from the past keep two destined lovers from their Meant To Be?
Just like That
Nicola Rendell - 2017
He's got a military haircut, a scar through his eyebrow, and he's rocking a pastel pink dress shirt like only a real man can. But Penny is on a man-free diet so she leaves the airport without succumbing to his delicious double-entendres...or his dreamy dimples.PI Russ Macklin can't take his eyes off Penny. As she sashays out of the airport with hips swaying and curls bouncing, he suspects they may share more than just sweltering chemistry. That suitcase she's rolling along behind her? It looks a lot like his.Because it is.When he tracks her down, he holds her bag hostage in exchange for a date. Their night begins with margaritas and ends in urgent care, and Russ proves that Cosmo's theory about a very particular type of orgasm was oh-so-wrong.In Penny, Russ finds a small-town sweetheart with a very naughty side. For the first time ever, he’s thinking about picket fences. Penny finds in Russ a loving, caring man who understands the power of massaging showerheads.But Russ is only in Port Flamingo for a week. They agree it'll be a fling and nothing more. Because really, they can't fall ass-over-teakettle in love just like that...Can they?Dual POV. No cheating. Featuring a big drooly dog named Guppy.
On the Corner of Love and Hate
Nina Bocci - 2019
Cooper drives her crazy in every way possible. But he’s also her father’s protégé, and she can’t say no to him without him finding out the reason why: Cooper and her have a messy past. So Emmanuelle reluctantly launches her father’s grand plan to get this Casanova someone to settle down with and help him lose his lothario reputation.Cooper Endicott wanted to run for Mayor, but he never wanted the drama that went with it. Now that he’s on the political hamster wheel, the other candidates are digging up everything from his past. Even though he’s doing all the right things, his colorful love life is the sticking point for many of the conservative voters. He wants to win, badly, and he knows that if he wants any chance of getting a vote from the female population, he needs to change his image. The only problem? He might just be falling in love with the one person he promised not to pursue: the Mayor’s off-limits daughter.A perfect blend of humor and heart, On the Corner of Love and Hate is the first in a new series from USA TODAY bestselling author Nina Bocci.
The Girl Next Door
Emma Hart - 2020
One fake husband. What can go wrong?There’s nothing like starting your Monday morning with a positive pregnancy test.Trust me, I know. Because I’m looking at one right now.All I can think is: Oh, hell. My grandmother is going to kill me.This might just send her to an early grave, so there’s only one option—pretending the father is my new husband.If only he’d agree to fake it.Kai Connors was supposed to be nothing more than a one-night stand. A long, dirty, one-night stand fueled by one too many tequila shots, where the only promise was to never speak of it again.But if my unfairly sexy next-door neighbor gets his way, this fake marriage could turn out to be very, very real…
His Sexy Bad Habit
Cheris Hodges - 2011
. .He's hot and he's single, but Antonio Billups has been out of the dating game for three years. Since his wife died, his focus has been on his business--and their son A.J. Enter new-in-town sultry, sexy Serena Jacobs, a woman who just might inspire Antonio to change his mind about being alone. . .That His Body Can't Resist. . .Serena's new restaurant is about to take off, and so is her heart--to Antonio. But events from her past are about to hit the fan--with a little help from Antonio's scheming sister-in-law. Soon, Hollywood catfights and long-ago love affairs threaten the steamy relationship between Antonio and Serena, and when their secret histories collide, they must choose between a future with--or without--love. . ."Hodges delivers a sizzling romance. . ." --Publishers Weekly on More Than He Can Handle
The Learning Curve
Melissa Nathan - 2006
She's idolised by her class - in particular ten-year-old Oscar Samuels - but she's starting to find she'd quite like some adult adoration for a change. Mark Samuels is a frazzled single father working all the hours God gives to provide for his beloved son, Oscar. But he's unable to see that Oscar would prefer his presence to his presents once in a while. Ms Hobbs knows Mr Samuels is a heartless workaholic. Mr Samuels is certain Ms Hobbs is an interfering busybody. But when they finally meet they start to discover that first first impressions can be deceptive. And perhaps they've both got a bit of learning to do...
Summer Longing
Jamie Brenner - 2020
After years of hard work and making peace with life's compromises, Ruth is looking forward to a carefree summer of solitude. But when she finds a baby girl abandoned on her doorstep, Ruth turns to her new neighbors for help and is drawn into the drama of the close-knit community.The appearance of the mystery baby has an emotional ripple effect through the women in town, including Amelia Cabral, the matriarch who lost her own child decades earlier; Elise Douglas, owner of the tea shop who gave up her dream of becoming a mother; and teenage local Jaci Barros who feels trapped by her parents' expectations. Ruth, caring for a baby for the first time in thirty years, even reaches out to her own estranged daughter, Olivia, summoning her to Provincetown in hopes of a reconciliation.As summer unfolds and friends and family care for the infant, alliances are made, relationships are tested, and secrets are uncovered. But the unconditional love for a child in need just might bring Ruth and the women of Provincetown exactly what they have been longing for themselves.With heartfelt storytelling, Summer Longing is Jamie Brenner's eagerly anticipated return to Provincetown; another unforgettable tale about motherhood, friendship, and finding your way home."Welcome to the gold standard of summertime escapism." ---Elin Hilderbrand, #1 New York Times bestselling author of Summer of '69
Yours Truly
Kirsty Greenwood - 2012
Newly engaged Natalie Butterworth is an easy-going girl. She’ll do anything for a quiet life and if telling a few teensy white lies keeps her friends and family happy, then so what? It’s not like they’ll ever discover what she’s really thinking… Until one night, thanks to a pub hypnotist, Natalie’s most private thoughts begin to bubble up and pop out of her mouth. Things get very messy indeed. Especially when some sticky home truths offend her fiancé. Natalie must track down the hypnotist before the wedding is officially cancelled. So along with bad influence bestie Meg, Natalie finds herself in the Yorkshire Parish of Little Trooley - a small village bursting with big secrets, nosy old folk and intriguing Wellington-wearing men. When the girls get stranded in the village with no means of escape and no way to break the hypnotist's spell, Natalie is forced to face the truths she has been avoiding her whole life...
Traded: Brody and Kara
Tess Thompson - 2018
He’s focused on football. When giving in to desire is risky, will they choose to play for love?Nurse Kara Boggs lost everything because she stood up for what’s right. After turning state’s evidence against her mobster father, she’s forced to go underground with an assumed name. But taking a job for a handsome celebrity quarterback could shine a very dangerous public spotlight.After leading his team to a Super Bowl win, Brody Mullen should be on top of the world. But he’s shocked when his quiet seaside homecoming reveals his mother in a cast, and her housekeeper dying from a brain tumor. Frantic to get the best care for the women he adores, he hires a gorgeous nurse… despite her strange request to stay publicly invisible.As Kara’s attraction to the charming jock grows, she becomes trapped by her own high-stakes secrets and the constant threat of exposure. And Brody’s famously strict “no women” rule means falling hard for the beautiful woman could ruin his career.Will they be sidelined by their own rules, or will they complete a pass to passion?Traded: Brody and Kara is the touching first book in the Cliffside Bay small-town romance series. If you like courageous heroines, steadfast heroes, and heartfelt stories of friendship and family, you’ll adore Tess Thompson’s emotional saga.Buy Traded: Brody and Kara to win love’s game today!