Book picks similar to
Captive Lies by Victoria Paige


romantic-suspense
romance
contemporary-romance
arc

Heller


J.D. Nixon - 2011
    But she soon discovers her new boss is a man of many secrets. And what is she to make of the strange group of people who live with him? After her first two assignments go disastrously wrong, and with a ruthless competitor on the scene, Tilly must decide if she has what it takes to survive the rough world of security work.

Married to the Bad Boy


Vanessa Waltz - 2015
    A man-whore. Whatever the hell you want to call it, I get around. During the day, I crack heads and extort businesses. At night, I find girls to f*ck. I live to hear them moan for me, but one night is all they get. No one ever made me want more. Until her.Elena.The moment her lips wrapped around me, I was done. All day, I think about running my tongue all over those curves. Too bad those curves are off limits. She's running from a man who will kill me for touching her.Well, she's tired of running and needs my help.She thinks I'm doing it for money.I'm doing it to make her mine.

Into the Crossfire


Lisa Marie Rice - 2010
    His world is dangerous, uncertain, violent…and there is no room in it for the helpless and weak. Then the most beautiful woman in the world moves in next door to him…Nicole Pearce’s life is complicated enough—with an ailing father and a new business to worry about—and the last thing she needs is to get involved with a secretive, hard-bodied, hardheaded neighbor. Yet Sam leaves her breathless—her body tingling with erotic desire—and it takes every ounce of her fabled control to resist offering herself to him, no strings attached. What she doesn’t know is that Sam Reston is on an undercover assignment . . . and she’s about to step into the crossfire.Never has Sam ached for a woman so badly, and he’s never fallen in love before. Now that Nicole is in grave danger, he will become her shield, and guard the tempting body he longs to touch and taste. Because a terrorist plot hatched half a world away is heading to their doorstep—and it can only be derailed by one man and one woman.

The Ritual


Shantel Tessier - 2021
    You vow. We vow.Barrington University is home of the Lords, a secret society that requires their blood in payment. They are above all—the most powerful men in the world. They devote their lives to violence in exchange for power. And during their senior year, they are offered a chosen one.People think growing up with money is freeing, but I promise you, it’s not. My entire life has been planned out for me. I never got the chance to do what I wanted until Ryat Alexander Archer came along and gave me an option for a better life. He offered me what no one else ever had—freedom.I chose to be his. He made me believe that anyway, but it was just another lie. A way that the Lords manipulate you into doing what they want.After being sucked into the dark, twisted world of the Lords, I embraced my new role and allowed Ryat to parade me around like the trophy I was to him. But like all things, what started out as a game soon became a fight for survival. And the only way out was death.Things to know about The RitualIt is MFTRIGGER WARNINGS (Please see the author's note on the inside)J/P & OTT Hero (jealous/possessive & over the top)This is a 150K word dark romance and may contain triggers for some due to sexual situations, language, and violence.

The Brave Line


Kate Stewart - 2017
    With a fresh perspective on life, she trades her tragic past in California for the coastal waters of Charleston. Fueled by a new career as a dispatcher, she’s determined not to let her scars weigh her down. She apologizes for nothing, especially her insatiable need for a certain police officer.Rowdy is a newly minted sergeant dedicated to his job, but the life of a Charleston police officer has never been more dangerous. With his need to take order of a city spiraling out of control, the last thing he wants is an entanglement with a mouthy dispatcher. But, there’s just one problem. He can’t get enough of her.As the heat rises between the unlikely pair, so does the tension.Three months of summer was all it took to shake their foundations, rattle their walls, and bring them crashing down.It was lust.It was love.It was real.And it would have been perfect . . . if it wasn't already over.Note to reader:This book has several elements and explores topics that some may consider triggers. For mature audiences only. Explicit sex, violence and language. (less)

Restoring Hope


C.P. Smith - 2014
    Determined not to make the same mistakes with his son he made with his daughter, Nic Beuve is single-minded . . . until Hope walks into his life. Hope Delaney, a woman with a past that almost broke her, tries to keep people at bay for their own protection. Fortunately for her, no one listens when she says she wants to be alone. Burning desire, a deep need to protect, and a woman who looks like an angel break down Nic's defenses until he can’t ignore them any longer. He wants Hope and what Nic wants . . .

The Insiders


Tijan - 2021
    But still, normal for her. Then, things happen—a guy breaks into her house in the middle of the night to take her hostage. She finds out her father is actually billionaire tech genius Peter Francis, the same guy she’s idolized all her life. She learns all this when she meets dark, mysterious, and electrifying Kashton Colello. He’s an associate of her father’s, and he gives Bailey two choices—go with him and meet her father or survive on her own because those kidnappers are going to try again. It’s a no-brainer.After this, three things become clear for Bailey:1. She’s living at her father’s sprawling estate, complete with bodyguards and the best security that money can buy.2. She’s no longer an only child. She has three siblings and has no idea what to do with them and vice versa.3. She is being guarded by Kash himself. Personally guarded. And there is a lot of guarding going on there and some of it is going to drive her crazy.A complete outsider in a world of wealth and decadence, Bailey has to find her way within a family that has more secrets than she could have imagined. One of these secrets could be deadly…

Rescue Me


Christy Reece - 2009
    Claire has made secrets her life’s work. Seven years ago, an evening of emotional vulnerability and pure pleasure almost destroyed her. Now Eden wears her beauty like a mask, concealing any hint of vulnerability or the demons of her past.A daring rescue of an innocent girl on a Greek island leads Eden to a new partner. Jordan Montgomery has been looking for Eden–though he knows her by another name, from another time. But his search for her is overshadowed by a case that’s gone international. A powerful, ruthless, organized network is stealing women and children around the world. And a lover, a traitor, and a killer all wait for Eden’s next move.

Riskier Business


Tessa Bailey - 2015
    And this time, there are no rules…After a life of pool hustling and living on the wrong side of the law, Ruby Elliott is living on the straight and narrow with sexy-as-all-hell NYPD detective, Troy Bennett. Now the only trouble Ruby has with the law is the naughty kind, pinned against the wall by Troy's strict and spectacularly hard body. Obeying his every command. Both of them losing themselves in a lust that borders on obsession...But then her father returns with an offer she can’t refuse: one last hustle in exchange for information. Information she’d die to have. As the pieces and the players of the game reveal themselves, Troy feels the fine edges of his control slipping—control he can’t channel without hurting Ruby. The stakes are high, and the risk higher. Because losing this final game could cost more than Ruby’s heart…it might cost her life.

Stitched Up Heart


Tarina Deaton - 2016
    Now a physical therapist, she uses her experience to help other veterans heal from their physical wounds; while she battles her own emotional damage. Blaming himself for his best friend’s suicide, former Army Ranger Jase Larken, retreated from life. To honor his best friend’s memory and assuage his guilt, he started an outdoor adventure company to help veterans with PTSD. Bree had better things to do than catch her cheating fiancé in bed with another woman. Jase is something better - for a night at least. For the first time in years, Jase wanted more. When he finds her again, he doesn’t give her another chance to run.Jase’s possessiveness grates on Bree’s independent nature. She’s dealt with her fair share of alpha-male, door kickers and doesn’t need one telling her what to do now. But as a new danger emerges, Bree and Jase must face their pasts, before someone's obsession with Bree destroys any chance they have of a future.

From Rags


Suzanne Wright - 2012
    Her mum, who committed suicide. Her sister, who she hasn’t seen since her teens. And Connor McKenzie, who disappeared from her life the same day he left their foster home. The hardest part of that was that he never completely left her life because she was forever seeing him on T.V. or in magazines as a Formula One Driver. But Jaxxon refuses to live a ‘woe is me’ life, even in spite of living alone in her one-roomed flat and being expected to survive on a ridiculously low income. Then one night she is offered a modelling job and before she knows it she has been catapulted to the peak of success, gaining fame, fortune and security. Oh and a stalker. Connor McKenzie is busy trying to shake off his crazy ex-girlfriend – another woman who thought she could get around his no marriage rule – when he sees Jaxxon on the cover of a magazine. Remembering how close they had once been, he’s shocked when she doesn’t respond to his attempts to contact her and then acts indifferently to him when they meet. But Connor can’t let it go. The only reason he had kept his hands off her ten years ago was that she had been younger than him. Now that they’re adults, he isn’t prepared to allow anything – not even Jaxxon – to stop him from having her. Warning: This novel contains a bitchy female who curses like a sailor, a persistent alpha male who doesn’t understand the word ‘no’, and explicit hot sex in some very public places.

Darker Than Love


Anna Zaires - 2020
    Both merciless. Both damaged.In his embrace, I find hell and heaven, his cruelly tender touch destroying and uplifting me at once.They say a cat has nine lives, but an assassin has just one.And Yan Ivanov now owns mine.

Say No To Joe?


Lori Foster - 2003
    Now, the Winston brothers' seductive, bad-boy cousin is back and up against a woman who's immune to his considerable charms. . .or so it seems. . .Irresistible Force--Meet Immovable ObjectJoe Winston has a routine with women: he exists; they swoon; roll credits. With his smoldering looks, macho style, and irrepressible charm, Joe can have any woman--except the one he really wants. Secretly, Luna Clark may lust after Joe, but she's made it clear that she's too smart to fall for him. He can just keep holding his breath, thank you very much. But now, Luna's inherited two kids who need more than she alone can give in a small town that seems hell-bent on driving them away. She needs someone to help out. . .someone who can't be intimidated. . .someone just like Joe. Becoming an instant family wasn't exactly what Joe had in mind, but hey, it's a start, and you can't blame a guy for trying every angle. After all, where there's a Joe, there's a way. . .straight into a woman's heart.

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.

The Romeo Arrangement


Nicole Snow - 2020
    Stinking rich. Fed up owner of one angry rooster. Eyes set to permanent storm.Of course, it doesn't end there.My unexpected Romeo doubles down on this ridiculous “fake fiancée” rescue scheme.One blazing kiss shatters worlds.I'm swept up in a small-town fairy tale, wishing I hadn't lost my faith in wishes years ago.He's saving my life. Hero and done. Nothing more.Prince Charmings don't really marry pumpkin farmers from Wisconsin.Give me strength.Tell me his gaze doesn't scream obsession.Save me from his oh-so-believable growls.Help me believe our little arrangement never, ever ends in “I do.”Full-length romance novel with a Happily Ever After sure to blow some socks off. Two shattered hearts from opposite worlds find their forever. A damaged heartthrob takes control, lays claim, and protects his sassy stray.