Book picks similar to
Touchstone by Dinah McCall


romance
fiction
contemporary
romantic-suspense

Trauma Plan


Candace Calvert - 2012
    But how can she show she's competent when the hospital won't let her attempt even simple tasks? Determined to prove herself, Riley volunteers at a controversial urban free clinic despite her fears about the maverick doctor in charge.Dr. Jack Travis defends his clinic like he's commander of the Alamo. He'll fight the community's efforts to shut its doors, even if he must use Riley Hale's influential family name to make it happen.As Riley strives to regain her skills, Jack finds that she shares his compassion--and stirs his lonely heart. Riley senses that beneath Jack's rough exterior is a man she can believe in. But when clinic protests escalate and questions surface about his past, Jack goes into battle mode and Riley wonders if it's dangerous to trust him with her heart.

Love and Protect


Lori Ryan - 2014
    He's providing refuge. Together, they'll fight for new love and survival...Laura Kensington is desperate to give her unborn child a fresh start. On the run from her late husband's ruthless family, she takes refuge on a Texas ranch. As her twisted mother-in-law hunts her down, she has one reason to be hopeful: a loving man who believes in second chances.Cade Bishop has dedicated his life to protecting injured and neglected animals. He didn't hesitate to protect the strong, beautiful Laura when she showed up on his doorstep, but he never expected the passion he feels for her. As the truth comes out, Cade dedicates himself to guarding the woman he's falling for.When the powerful family draws near, Laura and Cade will need more than a refuge to preserve their love and their lives. Love and Protect is the first standalone book in the Heroes of Evers, TX romantic suspense series.Love and Protect was previously published as Ever Hopeful.

Bend


Kivrin Wilson - 2016
    My boyfriend’s best friend. He was never supposed to be anything more—until he was. When my college boyfriend betrayed me and left, breaking my heart, Jay picked a side. He chose me. He stayed, and for the past six years, he’s been my rock, my anchor, my compass…Now we’ve grown up, finished school, and have careers. Me as a nurse practitioner; Jay as a doctor. He’s been everything I needed, but now I want more. I can’t stop thinking about him, and I’m done hiding it.   It’s time to find out if he wants me, too. 
JAY

A friend. Not a lover. That’s who Mia Waters is to me. I’ve tried damn hard to make sure our relationship stays that way. I’m the shoulder she leans on, the last one to talk to her before she goes to sleep at night… And after six years, she means more to me than my own family.The moment I met her, I wanted her. But she belonged to someone else, so I pushed the need down. I didn’t take what I wanted. I’m not that guy. Her happiness meant more.  Until now. Until she asks me a question that shatters our unspoken boundaries. Have you ever thought about having sex with me? Six years of keeping her at arm’s length, and I can feel myself starting to give in and lose control with her.I can’t let it happen. There are reasons I didn’t get close. She hasn’t let go of her ex-boyfriend, not really. And she has no idea about the lies I’ve told her.What if she finds out about me? What if she finds out who I really am?And what will she do when I leave?

Like a Memory


Abbi Glines - 2017
    One special summer. The one thing Bliss had lost herself in when the fear and sickness were too much, moments never to be damaged by the harsh reality that followed… until now. Bliss York didn’t live a normal teenage life. She didn’t go to Friday night football games, walk the halls with her friends every day, go to her prom or even walk to receive her diploma. It had all been taken from her the fall that she was fifteen years old and she was given the diagnosis no one ever wants to hear. She had leukemia. Seven years after spending a summer with a girl who he knew would always be his first love and the one who got away, Nate Finlay returns to Sea Breeze to help his fiancé open her new boutique clothing store. When the new employee walks in Nate is taken back seven years to the girl he thought he’d love forever. The one who never answered his calls or returned his text. The one who shut him out completely with not even a goodbye and broke his heart. They’ve each become someone different. No longer the young teens with stars in their eyes. But does that matter when your heart still says that’s the one.

Zack


Cheyenne McCray - 2014
    Then he comes striding back into her life—bigger, badder, and sexier than before. Zack Hunter never thought his job as an Immigration and Customs Enforcement agent would lead him back to his small hometown, and he never thought he’d set eyes on Sky again. Leaving her behind had been the stupidest thing he’d ever done, but this time he isn’t going to let her go. And as soon as Zack lays eyes on Sky, he makes it clear that he intends to make her his all over again. When Sky becomes entangled in the case he’s investigating, Zack can’t help but take the threat personally. As the danger mounts, their passion burns even hotter. **Please note: Zack was published in print only with St. Martin’s Griffin. Zack was originally published in eBook and print with Ellora’s Cave under the title "Wildfire". Character names were changed at St. Martin's request, and the Armed & Dangerous versions were expanded considerably from the original "Wild" series.

Wilde Nights in Paradise


Tonya Burrows - 2013
    Although she makes it clear she wants nothing to do with Jude, they’re forced to fake a relationship for her safety. He can’t ignore the heat still simmering between them, and when her stalker’s threats escalate to attempted murder, he’s left with no choice but to whisk her away to a friend’s safe house in Key West, FL. Cooped up in paradise together, Jude begins to chip away at Libby’s resolve to hate him. But even as she gives in to his proximity and her body’s demands for his, she refuses to fall for his charms again. Maybe a torrid affair in the sun is exactly what she needs to get him out of her system. But when her stalker tracks them down, can they escape the steamy Key West night without anyone getting hurt?

Forever Never


Lucy Score - 2021
    Especially when they’re all the same woman.Under Brick Callan’s mile-wide chest beats a loyal heart with a few cracks in it. He’s the steadfast, overprotective type. Especially when it comes to the one woman he can never have. It’s a long, complicated history punctuated by fights, friendship, family, and an attraction that strains his iron willpower.When Remi Ford returns to Mackinac Island in the dead of winter with a secret, Brick makes it his mission to find out what put the shadows in those green eyes. Even if it means breaking down the walls he’s built between them. Even if it means falling for the one girl he’ll never get over.The free-spirited artist just needs to lay low for a few weeks so she can figure a way out of this nightmare. She’s definitely not staying. Not when the man who broke her teenage heart into splinters keeps showing up at her parents’ dinner table. Remi doesn’t need broody, bearded Brick riding to her rescue…again. Not when it will put them both in danger, costing them much more than their hearts.Author’s Note: Frenemies-to-lovers. Opposites attract. Slow burn. Girl in danger. Glorious, glorious banter. Fighting as foreplay. Small-town shenanigans. Big, grumpy, pining, overprotective hero. Wild-child, trouble-finding heroine who keeps on pushing the hero’s buttons. Steam Level: Lava. Suspense: Nail-biting. Feels: Big time.

The Lighthouse Keeper


Cynthia Ellingsen - 2017
    Thanks to a mud-slinging exposé, Dawn’s late great-grandfather is assumed guilty of stealing silver from a century-old shipwreck. Hoping to clear his name, Dawn returns to Starlight Cove, her idyllic hometown on Lake Michigan, where the doomed vessel sleeps beneath the beam of a ramshackle lighthouse.Her plan: remodel and sell the lighthouse while untangling the perplexing family mystery. Neither task is easy, especially once her well-meaning parents and the quirky locals—including nautical researcher and Starlight Cove’s most eligible bachelor, Kip Whittaker—get involved. Despite their attraction, Dawn is reluctant to trust Kip, or any of the close-knit townsfolk. But as she pieces together the truth, Dawn’s once-shuttered heart opens up. And if she’s willing, the lighthouse might guide her to a place she never expected to find, where the past entwines with a bright new beginning.

The Body Painter


Pepper Winters - 2019
    Must also enjoy being studied while naked in a crowd.”The fourth made me shudder.“Call or email ‘YOUR SKIN, HIS CANVAS’ if interested in applying.”The final made my heart race.I should’ve kept scrolling past the advertisement.I should’ve applied for the boring receptionist job at minimum wage.I should’ve clicked on any other job where I got to keep my clothes on.But I didn’t.I applied.My interview is tomorrow…

Not by Sight


Kay Lyons - 2012
    The job is an answer to many prayers. Blind herself, Emma dreams of independence and freedom away from her overprotective family. Tutoring Ian in all things “blind” isn’t easy, especially when the biggest challenge is helping him walk by faith. Protect someone you cannot see? Good soldiers show no weakness. Ian MacGregor holds his battle with claustrophobia close to his chest, unsuccessfully trying to cope on his own, too angry with God to seek comfort. Ian knows duty, honor, serving his country. So why is he being punished with this very personalized hell? As Ian struggles to strong-arm his phobia and let go of his anger, his growing feelings for Emma are overshadowed by the danger lurking around them. Emma would be better off with someone else. Someone sighted. Someone able to protect her from the person determined to keep them apart...