Book picks similar to
Crossroads by Lori L. Otto
romance
novella
freebie
young-adult
Pieces of You & Me
Pamela Ann - 2014
Olivia Taylor’s life turned upside down when she found out her mother was moving into her boyfriend’s home. The glitch? The boyfriend had a son named Greyson—the guy she loathed more than anything. Greyson Edwards was your typical arrogant self-entitled jerk. He loved to taunt and tease Olivia. But the more time they got to spend together, the more complicated things became. Will these two stubborn folks ever figure things out? Will they let themselves feel what was truly boiling underneath the angst and unveil the passion that’s only a mere kiss away?
Spark
Jennifer Ryder - 2014
An addiction to romance novels. I eat them for breakfast. I hide it the best I can, but I need them to breathe. It’s how I cope.I’ve had a swag of book boyfriends, but now that I’m free from the responsibility of caring for my three younger brothers, it’s time to find one in the flesh. In real life, no girl meets their hero on page one, or even at the end of chapter one. I should know. My journey is real. It’s not perfect, and it sure as hell isn’t easy—but the fight for something worthwhile never is.
Say I'm the One
Siobhan Davis - 2021
Although, I can’t pinpoint exactly when Reeve Lancaster became my entire world. Was it when we were little kids, practically brought up together, after Reeve’s mom died during childbirth and his dad subsequently fell apart? Or when I doodled his name in my school journal at age ten? Maybe it was when we became boyfriend and girlfriend at fourteen or when we shed our virginity at sixteen, pledging our forever? I was there as his star ascended—like I’d always known it would—and there wasn’t a prouder person on the planet. As the only child of Hollywood’s golden couple, I’ve lived my life in the spotlight enough to know it wasn’t what I wanted for my future. But I sacrificed my own desires, because Reeve’s happiness meant everything to me.Until he crushed my heart into itty-bitty pieces, forcing me to fly halfway around the world just to escape the gut-wrenching pain.The opportunity to study at Trinity College Dublin came at the perfect moment, and I jumped at the chance without hesitation. If I’d known fate was meddling in my life, perhaps I would have chosen differently, but my future was cemented the instant I laid eyes on him.Dillon O’Donoghue was Reeve’s polar opposite in every way, and perhaps, that’s why I felt drawn to him. He was the dark to my light. The thorn in my side, irritating me with his cold disdain, wild recklessness, and a burning rage hidden deep inside him that spoke to a silent part within me. Yet Dillon showed me what it was like to truly live, opening my eyes to endless possibilities. What happened next was inevitable, and I only have myself to blame. He warned me, and I knew my reprieve was temporary, because there is only so far I can run.Especially when fate hasn’t finished messing with me yet.This is a full-length 168K-word second-chance romance novel that is book one of two. It cannot be read as a stand-alone, and it ends on a cliff-hanger. Recommended to readers aged eighteen and older.
Perfectly Broken
Maegan Abel - 2014
Liliosa Cortez found a place to start over in a city built for hiding. But when her roommate’s brother moved in she pegged him for a pretty boy with enough baggage to fill a semi and major hostility toward women. But now, after two years, Lili and Zane have become best friends and the perfect “wingmen.” They’ve developed a system for tagging and bagging tourists. No strings attached. They are partners in crime who have managed to have the time of their lives in the City of Sin.Life would be perfect if they could keep it this way, but a new player in the game makes both Lili and Zane face the feelings they had not been prepared to notice. What happens when dangerous shadows from a forgotten past find their way into the neon spotlights? What happens when the fuse is lit on all those emotions they have deeply buried? Can they survive the explosion or will the backlash tear them and everyone they love apart?When two pasts become one present in the searing Nevada heat…When two realities collide under the lights of Vegas…When two lives are threatened due to secrets and lies…What do you do when you find out your perfect world is Perfectly Broken?**This is a New Adult Romance with dark themes**
Keep Me Still
Caisey Quinn - 2013
When she runs into Landen at freshmen orientation, she has a choice to make. Reinforce those steel walls she's built up around herself or give the only boy who can keep her still a second chance.Landen’s more than ready to tear down those walls, but this time when they come crashing down, they might bury her* This special edition of Keep Me Still includes the novella, Let You Leave:Layla Flaherty had the perfect life, or close to it. Until a stranger gunned her parents down right in front of her, leaving her with seizure inducing PTSD. After years of trying to pass as normal and failing miserably, she resigns herself to being invisible. But new to town Landen O’Brien sees her, and he likes what he sees. Much to Layla’s surprise, he doesn’t freak out when she has a seizure in front of him. He does the exact opposite, calming her until the tremors subside. But Landen has secrets of his own. Secrets that will either bind them together or tear them apart.
Who Will Save Your Soul: And Other Dangerous Bedtime Stories
Skye Warren - 2020
Each standalone story ends in a happily ever after.WHO WILL SAVE YOUR SOULEmily's a pathological liar. When her life is at stake, will anyone believe her?MAFIA CINDERELLAOne dress. One dance. Lucia has one chance to change her life--and the lives of her family.BEDTIME STORYJessica is on the run when her car breaks down. A small town sheriff can't be her knight in shining armor.HEAVY EQUIPMENTCold. Rough. Merciless. The foreman of the construction crew is going to make her pay every last cent.
We Own Tonight
Corinne Michaels - 2017
I’m not a one-night stand kind of woman. I’m especially not the woman who has a few drinks at a concert and ends up in bed with my childhood celebrity crush, Eli Walsh. However, that’s exactly where I find myself. What’s a girl to do after a drunken mistake? Run. I grab my clothes and get away from the powerful, irresistible, and best-sex-of-my-life superstar as fast as I can. His gorgeous green eyes, rock-hard body, and cocky smile have no place in my world. My life is complicated enough.Someone forgot to tell him that. Eli is relentless. Pushing his way into my heart, wearing me down, proving he’s nothing like I assumed, and everything I need. But when my world shatters to pieces, he holds the broken bits together. Unwillingly, I fall desperately in love with him. He made me think we’d have forever . . . I should’ve listened when he said we could only own tonight.
Lovestruck Summer
Melissa C. Walker - 2009
Fun for everyone!Okay, living with my sorority-brainwashed cousin, who willingly goes by "Party Penny," is not exactly what I had in mind.All your favorite bandsBut the cute musicians I've met totally make up for it . . . like Sebastian. Swoon.All ages welcomeSo why can't I stop thinking about Penny's friend All-American Russ and his Texas twang??Saturday & Sunday, from noon to midnightDon't wait up!
Gravity
Lauren Runow - 2017
Spanning over twenty years—it’s raw, it’s real, asking the question if soul mates really exist.LilyAt eight years old, the boy next door changed my life. He was the force pulling me toward him despite our differences. It was like magic.We understood each other, supported each other and in the process became everything to each other.But in chasing Trevin’s dream, I lost myself along the way. TrevinThrough tremendous heartache, she was there. Through fame and fortune, she was there. Loving Lily was the one thing I got right.Eclipsing her in my shadow, I took from her until she was empty. Now I must do anything to prove I can be the man she wants, no, the man she deserves.
The Surprise
Kristen Proby - 2022
He’s also the love of my life. So, when he ends up in my emergency room after a car accident, I can’t resist helping him—but only long enough to get him healed. And then I’m out of there.He’s broken my heart before.I’m not giving him the chance to do it again.But the more time I spend with him, the more it feels like coming home again. He swears he’s changed and that we can start fresh. And it feels so good to be in his arms.I long to believe him.But what if this is just another of his lies, and I end up with a broken heart anyway? Is it worth the risk? Or should I walk away?
Return to Me
Justina Chen - 2013
She's weeks away from starting college--at a school chosen specifically to put a few thousand miles of freedom between Reb and her parents. But her dad's last-minute job opportunity has her entire family moving all those miles with her! And then there's the matter of her unexpected, amazing boyfriend, Jackson, who is staying behind on the exact opposite coast.And if that isn't enough to deal with, mere days after moving cross-country, Reb's dad drops shocking, life-changing news. With her mother and brother overwhelmed and confused, Reb is left alone to pick up the pieces of her former life. But how can she do that when everything can change in an instant? How can she trust her "perfect" boyfriend when her own dad let her down? Reb started the year knowing exactly what her future would hold, but now that her world has turned upside down, will she discover what she really wants?Justina Chen, the acclaimed author of North of Beautiful, has created a moving and powerful novel about the struggles that arise from betrayal, the uncertainty of life after high school, and the joy that ultimately comes from discovering what's truly in your heart.
Be the Girl
K.A. Tucker - 2019
New postal code, new last name, new rules. But she doesn’t mind, because it means she can leave her painful regrets behind. In the bustling town of Eastmonte, she can become someone else. Someone better.With the Hartford family living next door, it seems she will succeed. Sure, Cassie Hartford may be the epitome of social awkwardness thanks to her autism, but she also offers an innocent and sincere friendship that Aria learns to appreciate. And Cassie’s older brother, Emmett—a popular Junior A hockey player with a bright future—well … Aria wishes that friendship could lead to something more. If he didn’t already have a girlfriend, maybe it would.But Aria soon finds herself in a dicey moral predicament that could derail her attempt at a fresh start. It is her loyalty to Cassie and her growing crush on Emmett that leads her to make a risky move, one that earns her a vindictive enemy who is determined to splinter her happy new world.
Liar, Liar
T.L. Martin - 2020
So I ran—from them, from home, from everything.That’s when I found him. He became my savior before he even knew I existed.And then I was welcomed into the family.Now he sees me. I make sure of it.I notice the way he watches me when I slip from my bed and fall into someone else’s. See the heated flicker in his eyes when I peer up at him from behind red solo cups, wandering hands, and blaring music. Feel the burn in his touch when I stumble and he catches me—and he always catches me.But I’m no longer the same weak girl he discovered hiding behind his house all those years ago, and some demons simply can’t be set free. All the lies in the world can’t hide that.Even though the same blood doesn’t run through our veins, I know he can never be mine.I was never supposed to fall for him.We’re family now, and I’m going to be a good little sister.Liar, liar, liar.CONTENT WARNING: contains sex, profanity, and sensitive subject matter, including sexual abuse (such as rape) and taboo content.
All for Allie
Julie Bailes - 2013
Leaving her without an explanation broke us both. Our hearts have been left shattered. I could make excuses. I could lay the blame on others, but still I made the decision. I had to. It was the only way to protect the both of them. After all of Allie’s loss, my thought was only on her and her happiness. On her love and need for her big brother. I was replaceable, Kyle wasn’t. I wouldn’t allow him to crush her heart with his death. I knew I had follow him. I would throw myself on top of bombs, in front of bullets, whatever it took to get him home to her, alive. There are two sides to every story, and you’ve only heard one. Don’t be so quick to judge; I hate myself for what I’ve done. But all that I did, it was all for Allie.
The Bride
S. Doyle - 2017
I’m sixteen and I’m getting married. Super weird, I know.My dad is a cattle rancher in Montana. Or he was, until he died suddenly, leaving me an orphan (which is still a thing). I’m sixteen months away from being a legal adult, so I have two choices.Foster home, or married. To Jake Talley. The foreman of the ranch and my best friend.It’s legal. It solves all my problems. Except now I’m living with Riverbend’s hottest cowboy - my husband (in name only of course) - and I’m still in high school. Trust me, no one wants to date Weird Married Ellie.But it’s cool. All we have to do is wait it out until I'm eighteen and we'll get a divorce. Then Jake and I will go back to being normal. We’ve got this.Right?JakeI’m twenty-six, and I never saw this coming. Married. To a kid I’ve known her whole life. But there was no way in hell I was going to let her live at a foster home, instead of at the ranch where she belongs.Sure we’re married but it’s not real. Just a piece of paper. My girlfriend is furious but I know I’m doing the right thing - for Ellie. For sixteen months, it’s me and her against the world - until the divorce. No big deal.Or is it?