Book picks similar to
Incumbent by Joanne Schwehm


romance
contemporary-romance
contemporary
politics

Fire at Twilight


Lila Ashe - 2013
    She's good at it, too. In her acupuncture practice, she fixes the community of Darling Bay, and in her personal life, she's rescued her sister too many times to count. Her love life, though... Grace doesn't think she needs help, especially not from a man whose very nickname is unhealthy.Tox Ellis is the hazmat expert at the Darling Bay Fire Department, and he knows about harmful substances. He knows what gases to keep apart to prevent explosions. Why, then, can't he seem to stay away from Grace, the woman who seems to think he needs fixing?Is Darling Bay ready for the chemical reaction Grace and Tox generate whenever they're in the same place at the same time? And who will be standing by to put out the flames?The Firefighters of Darling Bay seriesBook 1: Fire at TwilightBook 2: Fire at DawnBook 3: Everyday Hero (A Darling Bay Short Story)

First Class to New York


A.J. Harmon - 2012
    Trying to escape the oppressive loss and hopelessness of a life without him, Janie sets off on the adventure she has dreamed about since she was a little girl. Exploring New York City, she secretly hopes that this landmark event will free her from her grief and unlock a future as wonderful as the life she had lost with Robert’s passing.After a series of embarrassing encounters with a man in a dark grey suit during the flight, Janie wonders if this trip might be more than she bargained for. At 42, she is much too young to spend the rest of her days as a lonely widow, but is resolved to the fact that, like lightning, a love like that of her first marriage rarely strikes twice.When she accepts his invitation to dinner that evening, Janie is terrified at the realization that she’s actually attracted to him. The handsome and wealthy Matt Lathem is sexy as hell, but, as Janie comes to realize, has baggage of his own. Can they help to heal each other in time to realize that a second chance at love is within their grasp?‘First Class to New York’ is a contemporary, adult romance novel

Mountain Angel


Suzie O'Connell - 2012
    When a call from her stalker makes it clear he wasn’t deterred, Aelissm asks her overprotective uncle for advice. His decision to send Patrick O’Neil to keep her safe might become an even bigger problem. Pat is a haunted man with a kind smile and sad eyes. Aelissm knows he will leave, but there is something irresistible about him. He could be the best thing to ever happen to her… if she can convince him to stay.

Summer with a Star


Merry Farmer - 2015
    The grand Victorian on the beach of Summerbury, Maine was the object of her childhood fantasy and her standard of romance—and it was finally happening. Her dream summer is ruined, however, when she arrives in Summerbury to find that Hollywood superstar Spencer Ellis has muscled his way into the house instead. His offer that they share Sand Dollar Point is not only infuriating—it’s insulting. He’s a celebrity—and one she’s determined to hate. Spencer’s summer in Maine was supposed to help him get his head screwed on straight. One look at Tasha, however, made that impossible. She’s beautiful. She’s angry. She doesn’t care who he is. She doesn’t care about his fame. In fact, she doesn’t even like him. She’s irresistible. He’s only got the summer. She’s only got her heart. They’ve only got each other.

Find Her, Keep Her, A Martha's Vineyard Love Story


Z.L. Arkadie - 2015
    It's addictive romance reading that gets more satisfying as you journey further into these characters experience. Book one of the LOVE in the USA series features Daisy Blanchard and Belmont (Jack) Lord. Don't be surprised by the hot and fast start, Daisy and Belmont have a lot to learn about love, and here is where their education begins. It was one intense week in late October. I probably should've slowed our pace but I wasn't thinking clearly. I had just learned my boyfriend and best friend were engaged via a Facebook post, which left me heartbroken and wrestling with ghosts from my past.But Belmont Lord was so convincing and uninhibited, unlike me. He also had demons of his own. We threw caution to the wind. Could fate had picked a more perfect time and place for two people to meet?Yes, it was one steamy and surprising week, but was it long enough to make us last forever?Find Her, Keep Her: A Martha's Vineyard Love Story is the first sexy, sensual and addictive contemporary romance in the LOVE in the USA series by author, Z.L. Arkadie.This manuscript has been updated as of 6/18/2017. Sex scenes are still frequent but they are no longer written in graphic detail. Also, some of the details that were hard to swallow have been made palatable. Although, do realize that I had chosen to write two imperfect human beings. In later books, as they choose to make their relationship work, they also choose to resolve their personal issues. After all that is the theme of the LOVE in the USA series--true love, real love is another catalyst in life which helps evolve two people for the better. So I write love stories more than romance, and from book one through twelve of this series, you will be able to read the difference. Visit zlarkadiebooks.com to learn more about the author.

Plain Jayne


Laura Drewry - 2014
      Worn out from the long drive back home, Jayne Morgan can only smirk at the irony: Of course the first person she sees from her old life is Nick Scott. Once best friends, they lost touch when Jayne left town at eighteen, but nothing could keep them apart forever. Jayne has returned to take over her grandmother’s bookstore, determined to put all her bittersweet memories and secret disappointments strictly in the past — until, that is, Nick insists she bunk at his place.   Nick never did care what people thought about having a girl for a best friend — or the “scandal” she caused by showing up to his wife’s funeral four years earlier — so he’s got no problem with the gossips now. Jayne was always the one person he could count on in his life. Now Nick is starting to realize that he never wants her to leave again... and that being “just friends” isn’t going to be enough anymore.  Includes a special message from the editor, as well as an excerpt from another Loveswept title.

Her Billionaire Rancher Boss


Genevieve Turner - 2015
    The secretarial job Benedict Merrill gave her five years ago has allowed her to support her younger brother and she’s indebted to the wealthy rancher. But soon her brother will be on his own and she’ll leave the tempting Benedict—and her powerful attraction to him—behind forever. When she hands in her resignation, Benedict reveals plans of his own—ones that involve Pilar in his bed. She can handle a three month affair, no sweat. But when she starts to fall for Benedict, will she be able to handle loving him for always?

Wet


Stacy Kestwick - 2015
    Wouldn’t have dived in after him.Wouldn’t have met West Montgomery.The cocky bastard should have been thankful, grateful even. Of course, he wasn’t.That should have been the end of it. Of course, it wasn’t.Damn doughnuts.

Father Found


Judith Arnold - 1997
    Never did he expect to find the unplanned result of that fling - a healthy, wailing baby named Samantha - strapped into a car seat on his back porch, along with a suitcase full of diapers and infant apparel and a note informing Jamie that he’s her father.Maybe he is and maybe he isn’t. But first things first. He’s never fed a baby or changed a diaper in his life. He doesn’t own a crib or a stroller. In a panic, he phones the nearest hospital, where neonatal nurse Allison Winslow takes his call and tells him about a class she teaches called the Daddy School.Classes on how to be a dad are exactly what Jamie needs. But when he attends his first class and sees the tall, earnest, amazingly beautiful and even more amazingly competent Allison, he realizes that he might just need more from her than her lectures on how to hold a baby.Jamie’s efforts to be a father to this precious baby touch Allison. His sense of humor amuses her. His striking good looks turn her on. But how can she trust the sort of guy who’d sleep with a stranger on vacation, without giving a thought to the consequences? How can she give her heart to such a reckless man?

Roommating


Noelle Adams - 2016
    And they don't have sex all the time...at least not at first. Chris doesn't go around shirtless, flexing his muscles and driving Heather wild...too often. And he doesn't get jealous and possessive every time she goes out with another man...well, maybe occasionally.But they definitely don't fall in love...right away.When Heather comes back to her hometown, she plans to take over her father's historic restoration business and move into a beautiful converted apartment in Preston's Mill. Then she finds out she'll have to partner up with the one man she can never forgive. Chris Dole, who abandoned her father and betrayed her trust three years ago.It gets even worse. They don't just have to work together. They have to become roommates for six months to prove they can get along. That means Heather will have to play nice with Chris and put up with his obnoxiousness, his drop-dead sexiness, and his ugly recliner named Flo.She'll do what she has to do out of loyalty to her father, but she isn't going to like it.At least not much.

Burning Through Gravity


Addison Moore - 2014
    Two beautiful souls.Two seemingly innocent deceptions.Once they meet, Stevie and Ford explode into one another in a ball of lust, hotter than a July moon. Ford is assertive, dominate and in control, that is until Stevie brings him to his knees. He thinks she’s the most beautiful woman he’s ever met both inside and out. Stevie thinks he’s sweet, and sort of goofy—of course it doesn’t hurt that he drips sex like honey. Stevie is starting to fall hard for Ford.And Ford is all in with Stevie.She wonders if he could ever forgive her for what she’s about to do.She wonders if she wants him to.They say love conquers all. But love never met two liars like Stevie and Ford. His lie cost her a few sleepless nights. Her lie will cost him everything.

The Bride Wore Blue


Cheryl Bolen - 2002
    While amassing his fortune in India, not a day passed he did not recall Felicity's fair loveliness, did not recall the silken tones of her sweet voice, did not desire to possess her. Now a widow, Felicity Harrison does not recognize the handsome nabob as the young man left for dead by highwayman years earlier. Though she wants nothing more than to snub the arrogant man who promises to rescue her family from financial ruin in exchange for presenting his sister to Society, she cannot snub him. She must force herself to bear his company. But the longer she is with him, the more she has to force herself to remain true to her dead husband's memory. Why is it the humbly born Thomas Moreland possesses more nobility that any man of her class? And why is it she finds it harder and harder to mourn a dead man when Thomas's virility awakens her deepest desires?

Texas Secrets


Jean Brashear - 1999
    The only place he's ever thought of as home now belongs to a woman who doesn't want it, and he must keep her there for thirty days—or it will be lost to them both.

Operation Cinderella


Hope C. Tarr - 2012
    After he smears her article on his show, nearly costing Macie her job, she devises a plan to masquerade as a modern-day Cinderella and get her revenge on the infuriating Texan.All Ross wants is a woman with old-fashioned values to be his housekeeper and role model for his troubled teenage daughter. When the perfect woman shows up, Ross is relieved—until he finds himself drawn to his gorgeous, red-stiletto-wearing new employee. “Martha Jane” is opinionated and sexy, and Ross is intrigued…and more than a little turned on.Macie thought Operation Cinderella was foolproof, but Ross, with his rugged good looks and southern charm, proves to be as perfect behind-the-scenes as he does in public. But when she finally uncovers a secret that could destroy Ross's reputation, she faces losing her job or losing the fairy-tale ending she didn't even know she wanted.

Heartless


Winter Renshaw - 2016
    It was raining sideways that morning, and my plan was to return it the next day; safe and dry. Only I kept it. I kept it, and I read it. A week later, overwhelmed with curiosity and feeling guilty for harboring secrets that didn’t belong to me, I tried to return it. Only I wasn’t expecting to meet him. Unapologetically heartless and enigmatically sexy, he claims he knows nothing about the journal I found outside his place, but the reticent glint in his blue-green gaze tells me otherwise. There’s something different about him; something damaged yet magical, and I’m drawn to him; pulled into his orbit. There’s just one problem. The more I get to know him, the more I’m positive the journal belonged to him... ...and the more I find myself hoping, selfishly, that I’m wrong.