Book picks similar to
Roughing by Jillian Quinn


sports
romance
second-chance
sports-romance

Free Agent


Mari Carr - 2015
    Get the hell out of Quinn the second that diploma was in his hands. Tucker was finished picking his drunk, worthless father off the floor night after night, sick of watching his mother work two jobs to keep food on their table because his dad couldn’t support the family. An average student, Tucker saw only one way out—his talent as quarterback on the gridiron. And his plan worked. Problem was college was still school, so after his sophomore year he turned pro and never looked back, never had any regrets.Except her. Lela and Tucker were childhood sweethearts. Along with Coach, Lela helped him forget about how bad things were at home. Tucker broke up with Lela right after graduation and hit the road. Once he cleared the outskirts of Quinn, he made a vow never to return. For twelve years, he kept that promise, unwilling to face the father he’d cut out of his life and unable to face the girl he never stopped loving.When Tucker gets a call that Coach Carr has suffered a heart attack and needs help, Tucker is faced with a decision. Does he return with his teammates to help his beloved coach? Does he run the risk of running into the father he’s left in the past? And if he does come home, what does he say to Lela? How can he make up for disappearing from her life so completely?

Inhibitions


Kimberly Bracco - 2015
    She walked in on her boyfriend with another woman, leaving her needing a new place to live and a mountain of debt. As if that wasn’t enough, her ex convinces her that his infidelity is her fault for being unadventurous in bed.Deep down Ashley has always had the desire to be wild but has been held back by her own insecurities. She’s desperate to break free, but she's fearful of how people will judge her if they know her inner desires. She wants nothing more than to lose herself in sex that pushes her to the limit, but she hasn’t found anyone she trusts enough to take her there until she meets Tanner.Tanner doesn’t trust anyone outside of his inner circle easily. The infamous, media proclaimed playboy, quarterback is tired of people using him for money, connections and to get their fifteen minutes of fame. Determined to protect his image and himself, he makes sure to keep most people at arm’s length until Ashley is thrown into his life. He’s inexplicably drawn to her, and she needs his help in more than ways than one. But to help her, he’ll need to let her in.There’s an immediate attraction and connection that neither can deny, but can both of them get past their inhibitions and find what they are looking for in each other or will everything backfire in their faces?

Edge of Glory


Magan Vernon - 2016
    I'm Lia and I'll nguhhhhhhhhhhhhh". I froze. Directly facing me was Olympic swimmer, Jay Morningstar… and I just made an idiot of myself. The rest of the table looked up to see me standing there with my mouth practically gaping. His coach, who I recognized from TV interviews, and even two other swimmers from the Olympic team... they didn't say anything, they didn't even blink. "Uh… I mean…" I couldn't even put together my words and Jay Morningstar was just staring at me with that Wheaties box smile and those icy blue eyes. What was I supposed to say? "Sorry I just made a weird noise, it's just that I have a poster of you on my wall where you are wearing nothing more than your gold medals, a smile, and a pair of man panties?"

This Much is True


Katherine Owen - 2013
    A ballerina who lies. A baseball player who believes her. Well, the truth changes everything. Tally Landon just wants to escape her tragic story if just for one night. She doesn't count on meeting Lincoln Presley, Stanford's baseball wonder, but plans to add him to her long list of one-night stands. That's the plan. Lying to him about her age and her name is just a part of her don't-get-emotionally-attached style. She doesn't count on being found out, nor on ever seeing Linc again or falling in love. Lincoln Presley's life is all mapped out. There is only baseball. With the major leagues circling their favorite prospect with a lucrative offer, he cannot afford to mess up. And, he doesn't; until he meets up with the girl he saved from the burning wreckage on the 101 on Valentine's Day months before. By the time he learns her real name and of all the lies she's told, he's in far too deep to ever really let her go. When fame and lies tear them apart, one truth remains; and fate, most definitely, has a different set of plans. This much is true.Author's Note: A coming of age story? Could be. A powerful love story? Most definitely. An unforgettable read? Most likely. Intended for mature audiences, ages 17+? Absolutely. This best selling new adult contemporary romance novel will take you on an emotional roller coaster ride and is the first book (which should really be two books) in the Truth In Lies series, but it can be read as a standalone. It is 432 pages long in 12-point type so carve out some time.

The Tao of Hockey


Melanie Ting - 2015
    Now, five years later, he’s getting one last chance. If he can make the Vancouver Vice of the AHL, it could be the first step to making his hockey dreams come true. There are only two things standing in his way—the coach from hell and his own self-destructive ways.The one talent he hasn’t lost is his way with women. So he’s surprised to be turned down by a mysterious woman he meets in a bar. Eric finds himself pursuing her when he should be focusing on hockey. Yet he’s drawn to her confidence and independence, believing that might be the key to fixing his own on-ice issues.This is the first book in a series about the Vancouver Vice.

The Baby Pact


Lexi Whitlow - 2017
    Eliza Lane was the good girl in town, until I got a hold of her.
I ruined her, and she gave it right back. Now she’s back in town, on the run from her abusive ex-husband. She needs help — and she’s ready to start a family. She just doesn’t want the whole marriage thing that goes along with it. Fine by me. I’m a billion dollar playboy, and after I split with Eliza, I never wanted to settle down. Her luscious curves are making me want to sign up for the job of Baby Daddy anyway. Once I get a taste of her, the old addiction returns. This good girl turns bad just for me. Now it's my mission to make her and our future baby all mine — and I’ll move heaven and earth to protect her if anyone stands in our way.

All Lined Up


Cora Carmack - 2014
    My life has always been ruled by both.Dallas Cole loathes football. That's what happens when you spend your whole childhood coming in second to a sport. College is her time to step out of the bleachers, and put the playing field (and the players) in her past.But life doesn't always go as planned. As if going to the same college as her football star ex wasn’t bad enough, her father, a Texas high school coaching phenom, has decided to make the jump to college ball… as the new head coach at Rusk University. Dallas finds herself in the shadows of her father and football all over again.Carson McClain is determined to go from second-string quarterback to the starting line-up. He needs the scholarship and the future that football provides. But when a beautiful redhead literally falls into his life, his focus is more than tested. It's obliterated.Dallas doesn't know Carson is on the team. Carson doesn't know that Dallas is his new coach's daughter.And neither of them know how to walk away from the attraction they feel.

Rebel Heart


L.K. Farlow - 2018
     When AJ Adams is coerced into tutoring Brock Larson, she can’t help but wonder what she’s done to deserve such an epic punishment. He’s the very definition of an All-American good boy—and a total kiss ass. He’s the perfect son, the perfect student, and according to rumor, by far the best golfer the university has ever seen. Puh-lease. If he’s so perfect, why does he need tutoring? With his British Literature grade circling the drain, Brock knows he needs help. But when he meets his tutor, he can’t believe his friggin’ luck. Abby Jane no longer resembles the childhood best friend he used to play hide and seek with. No, she’s all attitude and pink hair and tattoos. Oh, and she hates him, so that’s a plus. Brock and AJ couldn’t clash more and antagonizing one another is just too easy. But, as they spend more time together, the lines begin to blur, leading them to realize they have more in common than what meets the eye. Hate. Lust. Love. They all look the same when you’re in denial, and everyone knows you can’t control your rebel heart.

The End Game


Kate McCarthy - 2015
    They are heroes in the eyes of boys and girls and are expected to conduct themselves in a manner that positively represents their community.”The public loves a good scandal. Seeing someone fall from the pinnacle of success makes a great headline. No one knows that better than I do. What started out as a promising career in college football, spiraled into scandal and shame. But being a hero is easier said then done. Especially when there are those who expected to see the great Brody Madden fail. I craved nothing except being the best—willing to do anything to prove them wrong. But I went too far, and I tried too hard, and it broke me.“At the time of going to print, Jordan Elliott was unavailable for comment.” I met Brody Madden in my senior year of college. An Australian native on an international scholarship, I was the female soccer sensation with stars in her eyes and no room for a hotshot wide receiver with a chip on his shoulder.But a heart bursting with ambition and a driving fire to succeed isn’t made of stone. I became his strength, his obsession, and the greatest love of his life. Only I wasn’t there when he needed me most.This is a story about love and a game that takes everything. Where the path to glory is paved with sacrifice. Where pressure makes you, or breaks you, and triumph is born in the ashes of failure. Where two people’s end game will change everything.

Hands Down


Mariana Zapata - 2020
    Including those your once loved ones might have unintentionally given you. (Those just take longer.)She thinks she’s ready when a call has her walking back into her old friend’s life. Or at least as prepared as possible to see the starting quarterback in the National Football Organization. Before the lights, the fans, and the millions, he’d been a skinny kid with a heart of gold. Waltzing out of Zac Travis’s life should be easy. Just as easy as he walked out of hers.

Take a Chance on Me


Jaqueline Snowe - 2017
    Their relationship had always been easy. Both of them loyal to a fault, they had been there for each other through everything: heartbreaks, hangovers, and tragedy. So when Kate needs a place to stay for three months, Brody doesn’t think twice about agreeing. After all, they had known each other forever. What could go wrong living with his closest and oldest friend? Apparently, everything. Three months in a small apartment becomes more than complicated. Brody shouldn’t be attracted to his dorky best friend…he most definitely shouldn’t. That would be absurd. She’s a relationship girl and he’s more a one-night-sans-clothes kind of guy. One drunken dare of strip poker changes everything. Suddenly, two people with too much to lose play a dangerous game. The unapologetic playboy and the girl-next-door have a choice to make, if only their pasts didn’t keep getting in the way of their future.

Lightning


Sandi Lynn - 2016
    Playing in the NHL and for the New York Rangers had been my dream since I was six years old when my dad took me to my first game. Hockey was my life. It consumed me. It was the one thing in life that I could commit to. Relationships were a no. Sex with beautiful women and no strings attached were a yes. I was a bachelor—happy and living the dream. Then the accident happened and the doctors told me I’d never play hockey again. My life went to shit in the blink of an eye. All hope and the will to live was gone: until Brooke Alexander walked into my life.I was hired to help Logan Jackson get back on the ice. I had rules. Rules he needed to follow if he was going to play hockey again. He was stubborn, defiant and nothing I couldn’t handle. Rehabilitation was going to be difficult and pure hell. I had to break him in order to help him. I knew what it was like to have your dreams taken away and I was determined to give him his dream back, even if it meant losing him.

Rule Play


Elizabeth Perry - 2019
    My only defense is that it all happened in a moment of weakness. I'd literally just wiped a Ben & Jerry's stain from my three day old t-shirt (that I'd slept in, of course), turned the corner, and almost face planted into my ex's chest. I had three days worth of dry shampoo in my hair since I'd been too depressed to wash it, a hole in my leggings, and a seriously crushed ego.Here's where the story takes a turn, though.As I looked him over, standing arm and arm with the woman he left me for (who looked perfect, by the way) I opened my mouth, and told the biggest lie in the history of lies.Mouth, insert foot.Why I chose to pretend that I have a new boyfriend is beyond me. Why I chose to say that my new boyfriend is Adrian Malone, all star quarterback of the Minnesota Saints, is something that I may never understand. The man is a legend, devilishly handsome and rumored to have a really big, ah...heart, so he's quite obviously out of my league.But I'm a woman scorned, and desperate for revenge, so basically, one way or another, I'm going to make my lie come true.After a brief stint in jail (not my most shining moment) I finally manage to meet the guy. And when he agrees to go along with my plan, I'm more than ready to bring my ex to his knees.Adrian has a set of rules that I must follow, but I'm willing to do just about anything these days, if it means getting revenge.What I didn't plan on though, was breaking every damn rule.And opening up my heart to be broken all over again.

The Jock


Tal Bauer - 2021
    Three years in, he has it all: he’s the starting tight end, team captain, and, according to ESPN, maybe the best college football player in the nation. But he’s been keeping a secret from everyone.Justin Swanscott has three certainties in his life: he’s gay, football is overrated, and he really, really doesn’t like cowboys. He should never have fallen into Wes’s open-range eyes or let his heart run wild when Wes gave him that shy little smile over summer. But he couldn’t stop himself.Everyone’s asking questions about Wes this season: How is he playing so well? Will Texas be undefeated this year? Will he take the team all the way to the national championship? What’s next for him?The truth? Wes isn’t dreaming about an NFL contract. His heart belongs to Justin, even though the world wants it to belong to football.Wes has stadiums packed with screaming fans, ESPN is all over him, and the NFL wants him badly. He’s living under a microscope, and the pressure keeps building as the team keeps winning. Everyone wants something from him, but all Wes wants is to love Justin.Something’s gotta give.

Fair Catch


Meghan Quinn - 2013
    Lexi didn’t see the need to party since she didn’t know what the hell she was doing with her life after college but her friends wouldn’t take no for an answer. Little did she know going to the first party of the season was going to flip her world upside down. Jake Taylor, starting quarterback for Cal U and campus heart throb spent his entire college career, partying, getting drunk and winning football games but it is all finally catching up to him. He is ready to throw in the towel of his partying days when he decides to have one more last fling. That is when he runs into the one person that could turn his life inside out. Lexi wants nothing to do with Jake and his partying ways but after one bet gone wrong , she finds herself on a date with the annoyingly obnoxious, egotistical heart throb. Even though she wants nothing to do with him, she finds herself gravitating toward him and giving into his charm. They fall hard and fast for each other as they find love, comfort and a home. They live in their own littler world where nothing matters besides the love they share for each other. But love isn’t enough for Lexi when she is trying to find her way after college. She slowly sinks into Jake’s shadow and finds herself clawing out of the Jake sized hole she buried herself in so she can find who she is, who she wants to be and what her future holds for her. Fair Catch is a true love story that goes through the trials and tribulations of Jake and Lexi’s insecurities, jealousies, short comings and strong personalities. Love is one hell of a strong bond but sometimes, it’s not strong enough. Follow Jake and Lexi as they try to hold on to the love they share while they try to find themselves and find out what life is after graduation.