Book picks similar to
Collecting Scars by Tee Smith


freebie
stand-alone
romance
contemporary

Lussuria


S.J. Molloy - 2013
    Lexi Robertson's carefully constructed life is about to be turned upside down.Recently hired as Club di Energia's physiotherapist, the stunning yet insecure twenty-six year old finally thinks she has a handle on her physically and mentally damaging past. The only way Lexi can cope is by compartmentalizing her feelings with a unique, internal filing system. To maintain order, Lexi has a firm set of boundaries in place, and she never lets anyone too close.File N for not happening. Lexi has no intention of giving in to the charming Lucca Caruso when he comes into her clinic for an emergency physiotherapy session. Despite his painstakingly handsome face and Italian that renders her speechless, Lexi is able to resist.A Tuscany vacation with her best friend is just what Lexi needs to stop worrying about life and start enjoying it. A cooking course at a villa near the Chianti hills, just outside of Florence, will take her mind off a certain set of mesmerising azure blue eyes.File F for fate. Lexi never expected to see the Italian god again, but they're staying at the same villa.For someone that purposely refuses to feel, Lexi finds herself on a journey of self-discovery, helplessly folding, melting, and crumbling under the temptation of her heart's desire.An emotional, erotic, heart-wrenching story of lust, love, and light.Lexi struggles to confide in Lucca, slowly learning how to love and trust. Lucca is a gentle, patient lover with a heart of gold, but his need for Lexi is insatiable. He's the man we all want and can't get enough of. Through the passion of lust and the sweetness of love, Lexi spreads her wings towards the light … until her past comes back to haunt her.A hot and sexy story of survival, acceptance, learning to trust, and believing. One woman's destiny to find her light, and the one man who can take here there. Welcome to the Luminara series.

The Dream Jumper's Promise


Kim Hornsby - 2012
    Months after signing the death certificate, she pulls herself from the emotional wreckage and trades mourning for saving her Maui dive shop from bankruptcy. When war hero, Jamey Dunn, walks back into Tina's life, things take a strange turn. Lifelike dreams have the dive instructor questioning her sanity and leaning heavily on Hank's best friend, Noble. Jamey and Noble clash at every turn, both desperate to help Tina. When the dreams uncover clues to Hank's disappearance, Jamey must reveal his strange ability to enter dreams. But for Tina, trusting the man who betrayed her years before, doesn't come easily, and the decision to let Jamey enter her subconscious has a price she isn't sure she can pay. As Noble, Tina and Jamey get closer to solving the mystery of Hank's disappearance, grave danger sets in to reveal that one person is flirting with insanity, one is a traitor, and one is an impostor.

Sweet Vengeance


Cindy Stark - 2012
    She’s finally going to have the family she longs for. But her dreams fade to black when her mobster-wanna-be boyfriend is executed at her feet. She’s spared the same fate by a muscle-bound vigilante who tosses her over his shoulder and turns her life upside down, in more ways than one. Jase Tyler has one goal in life—to exact revenge on the Chicago mobsters who slaughtered his family. But when he rescues Allie, things begin to change. The last thing he wants is to be responsible for a woman who reminds him he has a soul, but there’s a price on her head, and he refuses to let the mob have her. Love and danger are now a packaged deal, and they can't have one without the other. The true test will come when she discovers what he's been keeping from her.

Meant for Her


Amy Gamet - 2012
    Ordered to the scene of a fiery homicide, Navy officer Hank Jared wants nothing more than to wrap it up and get to his sister's wedding. His sense of duty won't let him walk away from a case, even if he can't figure out why his boss insisted he handle this one personally.When the key to a safe deposit box is found among the ashes, Hank finds himself staring at two pieces of paper--on one is a coded message, on the other, a name that will change the course of his entire life.Julie Trueblood wouldn't trust a Navy man if he handed her a life jacket on board a sinking ship. Her father was a cryptologist for the Navy, who went into hiding a decade earlier to avoid charges of treason. In his absence, Julie was harassed and interrogated by Naval officers who believed she was a traitor, just like her father.Hank tracks Julie down and confronts her with the cipher. She can't stand what he represents and sends him away, insisting she knows nothing about the message. But when she realizes someone is after her, Hank is the only person she can ask for help. He finds the perfect place to hide Julie, right by his side, pretending to be his girlfriend at his sister's wedding. Now he just needs to remember their relationship is all an act.The coded message brings Hank and Julie together, but its secrets hold the power to tear them apart. Guided by her generous and quirky Aunt Gwen, Julie will gather the courage to unravel the cipher that was meant for her to decode, as she learns to trust the man she was meant to love.

Primal Obsession


Susan Vaughan - 2008
    After hitting rock-bottom, he needs to prove he can pull himself out of the bottle and succeed at something. He can't let himself be distracted by an ambitious, obsessed female, even if she's sexy, witty and smart.Investigative journalist and confirmed urbanite Annie Wylde embarks on the canoe trip to keep a promise to her murdered friend. She intends to use the outing to study her notes on the notorious killer called the Hunter. She banters with Sam but rebuffs his advances, considering him just another egotistical jock.But when Annie realizes the killer has followed her into the woods, she learns there's more to Sam than testosterone and dimples. And Sam faces the challenge of his life to keep Annie safe and defeat the Hunter.

The Prince


Jillian Dodd - 2016
    Fans of The Selection and The Hunger Games will discover a heart-pounding thrill ride of espionage and suspense set in glittering high society.An eighteen-year-old covert agent is pulled out of training before graduation by Black X, a espionage group so secret even the President of the United States doesn't know it exists.For her first mission, she must go undercover as the long-lost daughter of a recently deceased billionaire, infiltrate high society, and protect the Prince of Montrovia from assassination. But Prince Lorenzo is known as the Playboy Prince for a reason and his sensuality and charisma add a whole other level of complication to her mission. She knows that her every move is being watched, but what she doesn’t know is that the Prince is just a chess piece in a bigger game that will have world-wide ramifications. And that Blackwood Academy, the place she has called home for the past six years has secrets of its own.

Imposter: A Billionaire Single Dad Romance


J.J. Bella - 2017
    I just didn’t realize how tangled up it would become with the one man I was supposed to avoid at all costs… Ashley: Working for an eccentric boss in his mansion while I’m trying to finish college? It’s a piece of cake. But I never expected my new boss to be my best friend’s ex-fiancé—the one man who dumped her and left her hurt and broken. I’m prepared to hate him. I’m prepared to be cold to him. What I’m not prepared for is a man who is the complete opposite of what I’d always expected. He loves his daughter with all his heart. He’s warm. He’s caring. He’s sinfully sexy. And he’s interested. Suddenly things are not as easy as they seem—especially when a certain situation has us pretending to be a couple, and I’m no longer able to fight the temptation… Scott: Personal assistants are supposed to be bland, no-nonsense nerds. They’re not supposed to be pretty, sweet ladies that distract you beyond your wits’ end. My personal assistant is gorgeous. Efficient. Fierce. And forbidden. She’s my ex-fiance’s best friend. She’s too young for me. She’s a complication I don’t need. Except she’s the one complication I can’t seem to resist…

The Secrets on Forest Bend


Susan C. Muller - 2011
    Another dead body.Detective Adam Campbell is searching for a serial killer when he stumbles across a crooked cop, an intriguing woman, and a vengeful ghost. Can he live long enough to bring down the cop, win over the woman, and destroy the ghost?

Entangled


Barbara Ellen Brink - 2010
    One summer of her childhood is a mystery she intends to solve. But digging up her past also lays bare the skeletons of others, including her mother’s. Entangled between what she once believed and a new reality, will she be able to live with the consequences of full disclosure?

Promises to Keep


Kathryn Shay - 2002
    They expect their differences will cause them conflict. What they don’t expect are the two women who blow their careful plan apart. Suzanna Quinn is the principal and hates being attracted to the new school psychologist. Worse, thirty year old Social Studies teacher Kelsey Cunningham is horrified by her feelings for Luke, her new “student.” But the very real threat of school violence from more than one student forces them to work together and face their feelings for each other. Suicide, gang warfare and bullying all play a part as this stunning drama unfolds.

Custom Built for Me


Susan Coventry - 2017
    Aside from making changes to her appearance, she needs a new lease on life and on men. Enter sexy builder Shane DeMarco of DeMarco & Sons Building Company, where Jess works as a new homes sales consultant. Besides working together, there are plenty of other reasons why Jess shouldn’t get involved with him. Her best friend, Hannah, who happens to be Shane’s sister, warns Jess that her brother is a confirmed “player.” But Jess isn’t looking for a serious relationship anyway. Beginning with a chance late-night encounter, Jess and Shane agree to a no-strings arrangement, or at least, it starts out that way. It doesn’t take long for Jess to wonder if the player might turn out to be the one who is…Custom Built for Me. Custom Built for Me is Susan Coventry's sixth standalone contemporary romance novel. For fans of sweet and sexy romance with a touch of humor!

While You Were Dead


C.J. Snyder - 2011
    To be qualified to earn the coveted prize, a book (published in 2011), must score higher than 8.0 on twenty questions provided to six randomly selected reader judges. This year's winners were the best of the best!NEW FORMATTING!Lies have consequences…Twelve years ago, Max Crayton had no choices. Honor bound to hunt a traitor, the government declared him dead to the outside world. He completed his mission, but lost the only woman he ever loved and a child he never knew existed.And so does breaking a woman’s heart…Max was her life, her very heartbeat. After his death, alone and haunted by a dangerous past, Kat Jannsen made the ultimate sacrifice to keep their daughter safe.When Kat discovers Max is alive her carefully constructed jigsaw puzzle life is torn to pieces. But an old enemy has been watching…waiting to strike. As the danger mounts, she has nowhere to turn but to Max. She can trust him with her life, but does she dare trust him with her heart?

Love Always: A Game of Hearts Novel


Candace Knoebel - 2015
     Phillip Warrington is smart, sexy, and goal-oriented. He has always had his life planned out. But none of those plans involved falling for a wildly adventurous employee at the resort. She liberates him in ways he never thought possible—with methods that his parents would never approve. But he can control his yearnings, right?Maggie Fairchild knows the season is almost over. With her plan to take to the seas only months away, she wasn't expecting Phillip, one of those off-limit kinds of boys, to stumble onto her path and steal her heart. Between steamy kisses and late-night moments near the ocean, Maggie finds herself caught in a riptide of passion, one she never anticipated. But who’s ever prepared for meeting the greatest love of your life?With summer coming to an end, Maggie and Phillip take their relationship to the next level before they have to say goodbye. Can their budding romance be enough to survive the pulling tides of change, or will they drift apart before they even have a chance to explore what could have been?

Fall


Eden Butler - 2017
    He was the promise she didn’t let herself keep. After all, nothing in life seems meant to last, and love is no exception.When Lily’s life takes an unexpected and tragic turn, she leaves behind both her island home and the boy she could have loved to protect the only family she has left. But sometimes life takes without giving. Sometimes you cannot bend, only break. And when her career spirals out of her control, Lily can only watch as everything she worked for falls to ruin. But some lies are hard to come back from. And some promises are made to be broken. Sometimes going home again is the only thing that can save you. But first you have to break. First you have to fall.

Because of Lucy


Lisa Swallow - 2013
    A revised and expanded 2016 edition is now available***Recommended 17+ due to strong language and sexual content* Ness's parents are shocked when she turns down her place at Leeds University and takes on a full-time job in a call center. Determined to begin her adult life the way she wants, Ness moves to Leeds to live with her best friend Abby.One night she meets Evan, who is everything she hates about guys. He may be hot but he's also drunken, arrogant, and on top of that, he apparently has sex with girls and forgets about it. But Evan isn't what he seems and Ness soon discovers they have more in common than she thought.Evan is struggling to escape from his past too, and when Lucy appears she threatens his new relationship with Ness. Unsure if she can deal with the effect Lucy has on Evan, Ness makes a decision about her future which pulls them apart.When their new lives don't go as planned, Ness and Evan are both faced with difficult choices. All because of Lucy...