Book picks similar to
Mackenzie's Mountain by Linda Howard


romance
contemporary-romance
contemporary
favorites

Extreme Exposure


Pamela Clare - 2005
    Now, she turns her "impressive" talents to a novel of modern romance - and breathless intrigue...It's been years since her child's father dumped her, and since then Kara McMillan has kept men at bay - although every day she aches more for a lover's touch. But to get that, the hard-boiled journalist must become vulnerable - a feeling she vowed never to have again.With his dangerous good looks, charm, and power, Senator Reece Sheridan could have just about any woman he sets his piercing eyes on. But he's intrigued by only one. This Kara, this gutsy investigative reporter, has a sensuality that arouses him to no end. If she's a firebrand in print, he guesses, she must be just as fiery in bed...But this is no fling. A sudden political scandal - and attempts on Kara's life - could very well drive them apart. Or maybe, just maybe, adversity could draw them into a bond even more intense than their steamy sexual embraces.

Sugar Daddy


Lisa Kleypas - 2007
    Hardy Cates sees Liberty as completely off-limits. His own ambitions are bigger than Welcome, and Liberty Jones is a complication he doesn't need. But something magical and potent draws them to each other, in a dangerous attraction that is stronger than both of them. He's the one man she can't have. When Hardy leaves town to pursue his plans, Liberty finds herself alone with a young sister to raise. Soon Liberty finds herself under the spell of a billionaire tycoon—a Sugar Daddy, one might say. But the relationship goes deeper than people think, and Liberty begins to discover secrets about her own family's past. Will they find their hearts' desire or will heartbreak forever tear them apart? Two men. One woman. A choice that can make her or break her. A woman you'll root for every step of the way. A love story you'll never forget.

Behind Closed Doors


Shannon McKenna - 2002
    . .Surveillance expert Seth Mackey knows everything about the women that his millionaire boss toys with–and tosses aside. Raine Cameron is something different. Night after night, Seth watches her on a dozen different video screens. Her vulnerable beauty haunts him and her fresh innocence stirs a white-hot passion that he can barely control. Raine is pure temptation, but Seth has something more important to take care of first. He’s convinced that his boss, Victor Lazar, is responsible for his half-brother’s murder. He cannot put his secret investigation at risk, but he can’t stop wanting her–craving her–and soon he knows he can’t let Victor have her. For Raine may be Victor’s next victim…EVERY BREATH YOU TAKE . . .Raine knows she’s being watched–but no one can see the secrets in her heart. She has reasons of her own to seek revenge on Victor Lazar, and she will, despite her fear–and the distracting presence of Seth Mackey. Though Raine has little experience with men, Seth’s fiercely masculine good looks and animal sensuality stir her most erotic fantasies when she’s alone . . . and lead her to a bold plan. Offering her body to him, surrendering totally to his ruthless desire might well push her beyond all emotional limits–and beyond fear itself.

For the Roses


Julie Garwood - 1995
    In Blue Belle, Montana, everyone knew better than to mess with the Claybornes. The brothers had once been a mismatched gang of street urchins—until they found an abandoned baby girl in a New York city alley, named her Mary Rose, and headed west to raise her to be a lady. They became a family—held together by loyalty and love if not by blood—when suddenly they faced a crisis that threatened to tear them apart....Trouble came to town with one Lord Harrison Stanford MacDonald. Armed with a swagger and six-shooter, he cut a striking figure—but it soon became apparent to Mary Rose that he was too much of a gentleman to make it in her rough-and-tumble town. She asked her brothers to teach him the basics of frontier survival, which he acquired with ease. And soon he possessed a deep and desperate love for Mary Rose. She returned his affection wholeheartedly... until MacDonald revealed a secret that challenged everything she believed about herself, her life, and her newfound love. Now her search for identity and meaning would begin, raising questions that could only be answered if she listened to the truth within her heart....

Baby Love


Catherine Anderson - 1999
    In her loneliest, blackest hour, she unexpectedly finds a warmth and comfort she has never known in the tender compassion of a handsome, down-and-out stranger. In Rafe Kendrick, Maggie recognizes a soul wounded like her own—though she knows she must never trust any man ever again.Rafe is more than he seems—an enigmatic man of secrets who could give Maggie the moon, had he not vowed to spend his life alone. But sometimes love's flames can transform a cold world into paradise—and a man who's lost nearly everything, a woman who's forgotten how to dream, and the helpless child who needs them both can become that most wondrous creation: a family.

Wild Card


Lora Leigh - 2008
    All Navy SEAL Nathan Malone had to do was rescue three young girls from a Colombia drug cartel, then allow himself to be captured just long enough to draw out a government spy. That was before his mission went disastrously wrong…and before his wife, Bella, was told that Nathan was never coming home.Bella’s mourned her husband’s death for three long years. But she has no idea he’s still alive. Forced to assume a new identity, the man Nathan was is now dead. If he can get back to his wife, can he keep the secret of who he really is…even as desire threatens to consume them? And as danger threatens to tear Bella from Nathan’s arms once more?

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.

Prince Joe


Suzanne Brockmann - 1996
    Experience it here with a hero who must face the most daring adventure of all - falling in love.Love is the toughest assignment of his life…It will be the biggest challenge of Veronica St. John's career. She has two days to teach a rugged Navy SEAL to impersonate a European prince who has been targeted by terrorists.It's a tough assignment, but Veronica is sure she's up to the task—until she actually meets Joe.Despite his physical resemblance to the handsome prince, Lieutenant Joe Catalanotto is nothing like the stuffy aristocrat. Everything about the combat-hardenedNavy SEAL—from the arrogant gleam in his eyes and streetwise attitude to the New York accent—says regular guy, not royalty. One conversation and Veronica knows nothing could turn this military man into an aristocrat. Joe, on the other hand, is confident he's got what it takes to complete his duty.But neither of them expects their assignment to include falling in love…

Paradise


Judith McNaught - 1991
    A long way from the country club where, feeling like an outsider, he had dared to fall in love with a beautiful blonde named Meredith Bancroft, and known a once-in-a-lifetime passion and betrayal that still haunted his memory... Now world leaders courted him, the media watched his every move, and he was ready to move in on the Bancroft empire.A cool, poised executive in her family's legendary department store chain, Meredith had once defied her father for the sexually magnetic, intense Matt Farrell -- and their brief, ill-fated marriage was the disastrous outcome. Now, as the Bancroft firm is threatened by a hostile takeover, Meredith is forced to confront Matt. As tensions build between them, bittersweet memories rise to the surface, leaving them suspicious, restless, and uncertain. Will they be able to believe in each other -- and grasp the tender miracle that is before them?

Against the Wind


Kat Martin - 2010
    But when her husband is murdered and his associates come looking for her and her daughter, Sarah has only one place left to go—Wind Canyon, Wyoming. She runs right into Jackson Raines, the man she spurned in high school, who has now become a successful ranch owner. She expects anger from him, but instead she gets mercy. Jackson knows Sarah and her daughter, Holly, are in trouble, and he can’t turn them away. He’s never forgotten the beautiful girl he could never have, and she’s more alluring now than she ever was in high school. So when Sarah’s enemies show up in Wind Canyon, Jackson is determined to protect Sarah and Holly, and prove to them that they’ve finally found their way home.

To the Edge


Cindy Gerard - 2005
    Now a TV anchorwoman, she refuses to let another hired thug follow her around. Not even when she begins to receive terrifying death threats. Not even when the bodyguard is the darkly seductive Nolan Garrett... Trained in Special Ops, bodyguard Nolan Garrett has been hired by Jillian's father to keep her out of danger. But it's clear from the start that Jillian isn't going to make his job easy. Far from the spoiled princess he expected, Jillian is tough, independent, and totally sexy. And she's fighting him every step of the way.As Jillian's stalker raises the stakes, Nolan must keep her close if he wants to keep her alive. But being so close can only turn up the heat that's been simmering between them-a heat that could explode into passion at any moment...

Branded


Laura Wright - 2014
    But it also holds painful memories and shocking secrets for the Cavanaugh brothers...When the Cavanaugh brothers return home for their father’s funeral, they discover unexpected evidence of the old man’s surprising double life—a son named Blue, who wants the Triple C Ranch as much as they do. The eldest son, Deacon, a wealthy businessman who couldn’t wait to leave the ranch and move on with his life, is looking to use his powerful connections to stop Blue at any cost. He never expected the ranch’s forewoman, Mackenzie Byrd, to get in his way.Mac knows Deacon means to destroy the ranch and therefore destroy her livelihood. But as the two battle for control, their attraction builds. Now Deacon is faced with the choice of a lifetime: Take down the Triple C to feed his need for revenge, or embrace the love of the one person who has broken down every barrier to his heart.

Giving Chase


Lauren Dane - 2006
    Ridiculously hot and notoriously single.When landscaper Kyle Chase takes notice of Maggie Wright, all of Petal, Georgia, wonders what the quiet schoolteacher is hiding underneath her tight bun and boring blouses. Even Maggie doesn’t quite get it, but after a failed relationship and a disastrous attempt to get back out there, she’s no match against the famous Chase charm, and Kyle has it in spades. Kyle wants Maggie in his life—and in his bed—and he doesn’t mind getting down and dirty to prove it. For years he’s avoided the kind of trouble that comes with “good girls” like her, but Maggie’s the best trouble he’s ever been in. He craves more of it. And more of her.But even as their love grows into thoughts of forever, a hidden danger from Maggie’s past threatens to tear them apart. And when Maggie suddenly disappears, Kyle must put his faith in his family and race to save the love of his life before he loses her forever.The Chase is on. One small town. Four hot brothers. And enough heat to burn up anyone who dares to get close. Don’t miss the next books: Taking Chase, Chased and Making Chase.

When You Dare


Lori Foster - 2011
    If a cause appeals to him and the price is right, he'll take the mission he's offered. But then the lovely Molly Alexander asks him to help her track down the men who'd had her kidnapped—and for the first time, Dare's tempted to combine work with pleasure.Fiercely independent, Molly vows to trust no one until she's uncovered the truth. Could the enemy be her powerful, estranged father? The ex-fiancé who still holds a grudge? Or the not-so-shy fan of her bestselling novels? As the danger heats up around them, the only anchor Molly has is Dare himself. But what she feels for him just might be the most frightening thing of all…

An Unforgettable Lady


Jessica Bird - 2004
    . . . Forced into the spotlight by her fabulous wealth, heiress Grace Hall isn't always prepared for the consequences of her standing. When a string of attacks against the city's most prominent women leaves Grace vulnerable, the refined beauty reluctantly hires a bodyguard. Now she finds herself subject to the ironclad will of her new protector. In spite of her frustration, Grace is drawn to John Smith in ways she can't explain. For beneath his tough exterior and dark past, there's an inner core that is tantalizingly seductive.John knows that when you're a professional bodyguard, it needs to be all business. But such conduct makes for a solitary life with few ties and too many good-byes. Grace was supposed to be just another assignment on a long list. Yet there's something about her that gets under his skin. With each passing day, the attraction grows more intense - until John is faced with a decision he never thought he'd have to make. Can he give up the only life he's ever known to be with the only woman he's ever loved?