Book picks similar to
The Purchased Bride by Ruth Ann Nordin


virgin-hero
effed-up-family
get-now
get-together-stay-together

The Sweet Spot


Laura Drake - 2013
    . . Charla Rae Denny was the perfect wife with a perfect life, content to keep the home fires burning while her husband, JB, competed as a champion bull rider. Then their son died in a tragic accident-and everything fell apart. Divorced and saddled with a hill of bills and a failing ranch, Charla must now cowboy up to put her life back together. James "JB" Denny doesn't stay where he isn't welcome. So when Charla shut him out of her grieving heart-and their home-a year ago, he took comfort where he could find it. Now after seeing beautiful Charla again, he wants it all back. She can't work the ranch alone, and deep in his heart he knows he can be the man she needs. But after so much history and heartbreak, can JB convince Charla to take a risk and give their love a second chance?

One Snowy Eve


Alexx Andria - 2019
    Will Oliver solve the case and wash his hands of Harmony or will Harmony help him rediscover his lost Christmas spirit through the healing power of love?One Snowy Eve might just change everything… Ho ho . . . no? It’s the holiday season, and the Flirt Club authors have a flirty new short story collaboration to deck your halls. Meet the six scrooges of Snowdon, a quaint Massachusetts town that goes all out for the winter holidays. If only there was something (or someone . . .) that could melt these scrooges' holiday humbug and help them find a reason to love the most wonderful time of the year. Hang those stockings, trim that tree, and get your hot cocoa ready — the Sleeping With the Scrooge series isn't to be missed!<

The Sheriff and the Innocent Housekeeper


Lynda Chance - 2011
    Mesmerized immediately with his raw masculinity and sinewy strength, her fascination turns to love as the years pass and his honest integrity is revealed. Jake Cooper manages to ignore his pretty, little orphaned housekeeper for three long years. But when she begins a subtle metamorphosis from girl to woman, he can’t control his consuming need for her any longer. It has been his job to protect the town all these years, but who will protect her from him? Excerpt: Becky clutched the plate to her mid-section, standing as still as a rabbit caught in a predators sight, when she saw the way he stood at the door, watching her. Her hands began the all too familiar shaking, and she heard a roaring sound in her ears and a crashing, splintering noise at her feet. She looked down at the broken plate and in her confusion quickly bent down to retrieve it. A sharp pain in her hand jerked her upright again. The spell was broken when his deep voice intruded on her consciousness. “Goddammit!” Becky stood immobile as he pushed off the door and was quickly upon her. He picked up her hand in his. “Becky, what the hell?” She looked down at his hands holding hers and saw a stream of blood running from a cut on her finger. She realized she had compounded her mistake by cutting her finger. The plate was in shards on the floor. She knew those plates had belonged to his mother. Tears welled in her eyes. “I’m sorry, Sheriff.” He pulled her to the kitchen and his large body crowded her against the counter as he held her hand where it was bleeding. His arms wrapped around her from behind, his chest pressed into her back as he held her bleeding finger in the pail of cold water. The water turned pink as she tried not to faint. His mouth moved to her ear. “You’re more trouble than you’re worth.” He growled the words in her ear. His warm breath caressed her face. “I’m sorry about your m-mother’s china.” Her voice wobbled from the impact of his nearness. He reached around and tugged her chin up and around so he could look into her eyes. “You know this isn’t about the goddamn china, don’t you, Becky?”

Mail Order Ruby


Teresa Ives Lilly - 2020
    To escape that lifestyle, Ruby answers a mail order bride ad of a man in Waterhole, Texas looking for someone with upstanding morals to help clean up his town.When Ruby arrives in town, dressed in a saloon gown and toting her younger brother, Timmy, Seth thinks he's been duped and the last thing he wants is a child in his life, having recently lost his own.Will time spent together prove to him that Ruby is who she said she was and can Seth learn to love again?

Silver Lining


Maggie Osborne - 2000
    Now meet the most irresistible and independent heroine of them all, a woman called Low Down, who never had anything good happen to her until the day she asked for the one thing that only a man could give her. . . .As scruffy and rootless as the other prospectors searching for gold in the Rockies, Low Down wanted nothing in return for nursing a raggedy bunch through the pox. But when pressed to reveal her heart's wish, she admits, "I want a baby." Not a husband, not a forced marriage to the proud man who drew the scratched marble and became honor bound to marry her. To be sure, Max McCord was easy on the eyes, but he loved another woman and dreamed of a different life. Yet they agreed to a temporary marriage that could end only in disaster. But can this strange twist of fate lead to the silver lining that both have been searching for?

Just One Kiss


Samantha James - 1996
    But it is a stranger who greets the penniless miss at her intended's door—the true owner of the grand Boston mansion, Nathaniel's handsome, secretive and insufferable older brother, Morgan.Just One KissThe cruel treachery of a disloyal sibling left Morgan angry and bitter—but he takes in the cad's forsaken fiancée nonetheless. And when one stolen kiss threatens scandal, he offers to wed the proud, golden-haired beauty himself. But Elizabeth is devoted to a rogue. And Morgan must first conquer his own pain and suspicion to know a passion that can thaw a frozen heart...and a love that can heal all wounds.

Claiming The Mail Order Bride


Alix West - 2016
    Not to keep his bed warm but to care for his nephews and home. Or so he thought. Turns out, the letters from his bride-to-be make him crave far more than a simple marriage of convenience. Lizzy’s letters spark something inside him, carnal desires he cannot ignore. Will knows that once Lizzy is in his house he'll need to alter the terms of this arrangement. Then one final letter changes everything. The letter contains a shocking confession. But Will’s not deterred. He wants the woman who wrote those sweet words. Determined to court and marry her, he sets off to confront her and convince her she belongs in his arms and in his bed. ***** Standalone Novel, No Cliffhanger, Happily Ever After ***** ***** Safe Read, No Cheating, Strong Language ***** Also check out Old West Alpha and Sass Collection, twelve steamy, Western romances from Alix West.

The Substitute Wife


Cici Cordelia - 2018
    . . Once his fortune in silver mining is secured, Harrison Carter finally sends back home for his fiancée. It's been four years since he's seen Jenny.But it's Retta Pierce, Jenny's sister, who arrives by stagecoach with young daughter Adeline in tow. When this lovely, soiled dove brings devastating news and a written plea from Jenny to marry and care for Retta and little Addie, what's a good man to do? RETTA . . . Fulfilling her dying sister's request, Retta travels across dangerous territory to marry a man she barely remembers. But the hard miner who meets her at the stagecoach surely isn't the same one her sister claimed was kind and honorable, a gentleman who'll embrace her and her daughter as if they were his own. Has she made a mistake she'll pay for, the rest of her life? TWO PEOPLE . . . Thrown together in shared sorrow, Harrison and Retta struggle to forge a life in the brand-new state of late-nineteenth-century Colorado.

Return to Sender


Harmony Raines - 2013
    Yet over the last few months he had managed to open up to Christie, and now he has written a letter asking her to meet him when he returns.Just one problem it gets "Returned to Sender."Christie cannot believe the man she has corresponded with for the last few months would suddenly stop writing. It's bad enough that men don't fall for her curvaceous body when they meet her, but to be let down by someone who has never even set eyes on her voluptuous body, well, that's just too much!After an argument with her friend, Christie settles down for an evening in with a movie, and chocolate. But a knock at her door brings her face to face with her soldier, can their relationship blossom, or will it die?

The Grateful Bride's Passion


Rowan Gracemill - 2020
    She has a pretty face and a sweet, grateful heart, and she's a wonder with small children. But when she nearly loses her nanny position at Pendleton Hall over a false accusation, she is sentenced to the laundry, where the endless, backbreaking work promises her no future. What were these false accusations? Can she prove her innocence?A fellow servant introduces Cassie to The Matrimonial Times. Cassie jumps at the idea of finding a husband and home of her own as a mail-order bride. Soon she is writing to Jake Everly, a Nebraska rancher, intrigued by his large extended family and small town lifestyle. Did she overreact, or did she make the right decision?When Jake proposes marriage, Cassie gratefully accepts. But while she waits for him to send the funds for her trip West, a tragic accident leaves her forever physically and emotionally scarred. What was the accident? Will Jake still want her as his wife after what happened to her?While Cassie is traveling to Nebraska, she meets a man named Zach Wright. He is going to Nebraska too, with his little nephew Samuel. When Cassie offers to help him with the toddler, Zach gratefully accepts, and watches in awe as the child instantly takes to her. Is this enough to make Zach fall in love with Cassie?Zach is prepared for life as a minister and carpenter in Nebraska, but he needs someone to help him care for his adopted little boy. Cassie longs for a family and a home, but wonders if anyone can love her now. What will happen with the arrangement between Jake and Cassie? Are love and happiness meant for Cassie, Zach, Jake, and Samuel?

His to Princess, a modern fairytale romance: Loving World, Les Iles de la Victoire


Theodora Taylor - 2017
    The last thing Talia expects to find on her first day of work is a flirtatious French squatter named Al. Escape with a homeless veteran tonight...? What?! No, no, no! This is NOT a recipe for romance—even if this particular squatter is cut like a Greek god, weirdly sexy, and possibly really good-looking beneath his huge red beard and overly long hair. However, when Talia deduces that he’s a homeless veteran, she agrees to let him remain at the castle in exchange for his help with her cleaning duties. But what starts out as an attempt to assist a troubled soul, eventually turns into something much, much hotter... His secret is about to become her undoing… ...until Talia discovers her homeless veteran is none other than Prince Aldrich Gerulf Pierre de Chanval du Fort, Crown Prince of Les Iles de la Victoire—AKA the Bad Boy Prince of Victore. WTH?! Furious with him for lying to her, Talia immediately breaks off their budding relationship. Only to find out that she’s… Pregnant by the bad boy prince…. So though she’s done with Al, he’s not done with her.  Not even close. Talia’s about to find out, in the most romantic modern fairy tale way possible, that she’s… HIS TO PRINCESS Are you ready to get princed? Then one-click this steamy and delicious BWWM romance--perfect for those who prefer their princes red-headed, ridiculously charming, and devilishly handsome!

Kitty's Deputy


Tonya VanWinkle - 2018
    On her own for the first time, will she find the place where she belongs? Being a bounty hunter was all Milo thought he could ever be. Baggage from his past keeps him from the one thing his heart desires; a family. Will Kitty and Milo find common ground? Will the law bring them together or will their pasts and fears keep them apart?

Love Child


Kat Austen - 2016
    Love Child caters to wealthy bachelors who’ve been unsuccessful in creating a family through traditional means. Despite Love Child being an unconventional route to take, the conception takes place exactly the way nature intended. Nearing forty and still single, Abel has accepted he won’t meet the right woman to marry and have a family with, so Love Child is his last hope for becoming a father. He’s gone through the files of the potential donors and handpicked one perfect candidate to create his baby with. The moment he comes face to face with Adeline Matthews, Abel knows she’s the one. But not just the one he’s hoping to make a baby with. She’s the one he’s hoping to create a family with.

Shelter from the Storm


Lori Foster - 2018
    Not all foster care homes are as welcoming and caring as the Pilar family’s. In her foster-brother Roy, Sabrina found safety and friendship. Years later, their relationship has the potential to deepen into something more meaningful if they’re willing to brave their emotions.   Originally published in THE PROMISE OF LOVE.

Train Station Bride


Holly Bush - 2012
    Julia strikes out on her own to gain independence, traveling to the Midwest to marry an aging shopkeeper and care for his mother. Julia finds her new home rough and uncivilized after the sophistication of a big city, while closely held secrets threaten to ruin Julia’s one chance at love. Jake Shelling was sixteen and grew up quick when his parents died from influenza on the South Dakota prairie. Left with a half-cleared farm and two young sisters, he spent little time on his own needs . .till now. At thirty-five, he figured it was high time to have some sons and a mail order bride would suit him just fine. No expectations of love, just a helpmate from sturdy stock, ready for farm life. Will fate and chance play a trick on Julia and Jake?