Book picks similar to
Somewhere Between Black and White by Shelly Hickman
romance
fiction
contemporary-romance
freebie
Poggibonsi, An Italian Misadventure
Dan Alatorre - 2017
But romance gets derailed by head colds, constant bickering, and assaults from ankle-breaking cobblestone streets. Their daughter develops a gelato addiction. Mike’s Italian partner has a coronary. And as for amore . . . Mattie tells Mike to handle things himself—and storms back to America. Mike is trapped. Leaving Italy will blow a promotion; staying might cost him his wife and family. While reeling from Mattie's frantic departure, a replacement liaison is assigned—a top-notch, beautiful young Italian woman who is instantly smitten with Mike and determined to reveal the passions of her homeland—whether he wants to see them or not! Normally immune, Mike is tempted—but is headstrong, voluptuous Julietta worth the risk? “Funny, Sexy, Heartbreaking, Hilarious” In Poggibonsi, Dan Alatorre tells a compelling and hilarious story while giving its serious and heartfelt themes fair treatment. Protagonist Mike Torino is a hard-working family man who is struggling in his marriage, and when temptation looms on a business trip in Italy, he can't help but indulge. His winding and sometimes bumbling misadventure leads him on a journey that ends only when he discovers what is truly important to him. Funny, sexy, and at times heartbreaking, Poggibonsi is much more than a riotous romp. It's an exploration into what makes us human and drives us through life. - Allison Maruska, The Fourth Descendant and Project Renovatio trilogy “Outrageously funny” Poggibonsi is disarmingly charming; a laugh-out-loud, bumbling romp through lust and love in central Italy. Alatorre captures the breathtaking romance of the novel’s namesake perfectly, peeling back each layer of story until all that remains is genuine, raw emotion. An outrageously funny, guilty pleasure of a read. - J. A. Allen, Old Souls
Your Gift to Me
Bonnie Bartel Latino - 2012
Nearly ten years after Emily Ann Meade's husband died in a fiery Special Operations helicopter crash in the Gulf War, grief still follows her like a second skin shadow. Still single and emotionally guarded, she clings to her vow never to get involved with another man committed to a dangerous profession ... until she meets charismatic F-16 Viper pilot, Colonel Ted Foley, in Hawaii. Although she is attracted to Ted, he is assigned to a fighter wing that has recently lost two pilots in unexplained air crashes. Ted finds the elusive Emily to be like smoke--smoke that surrounds and envelopes him, but that he can't quite grasp. He is intrigued by the first woman who has made him feel alive since his wife died of breast cancer. Allowing her mind to wander through fields of dreams on which she can't afford the emotional mortgage, Emily lowers her barriers and discovers Ted's greatest virtue. He makes the ordinary feel sublime! Healing in shared confidences solidifies their relationship. As Emily becomes the vivacious woman she was before her husband's death devastated her spirit, her worst fear resurfaces. Ted's squadron suffers a third mysterious F-16 crash. Terrified that his life could be in danger, and she will be left to suffer the emotional consequences, she pushes him away . . . again. Their relationship shatters. Emily must find a path through her emotional minefields or risk never discovering that she's rejecting the only type of man to whom she is genuinely attracted . . . and a man whose life could be in danger! Ultimately Ted and Emily discover that grief, like joy, is finite, but love is infinite. Written from alternate he said/she said points of view, this full length novel will appeal to anyone, age eighteen to eighty, who requires both entertainment and substance in their leisure reading.
The Reluctant Billionaire
Krista Wagner - 2020
Struggling to navigate the constant presence of bodyguards and a sudden deluge of eligible bachelorettes, he is convinced that getting back to his private life is the answer, until he meets Shelly. She doesn't care about his money or his star status, and she seems to genuinely like him, but his heart has been broken once before. Can he risk opening himself up again?After Shelly meets Shawn at a charity event, she can't stop thinking about him. He’s humble, kind, and generous, everything her ex-husband wasn’t. But when his wealthy status is leaked to the press, it’s impossible to ignore all of the women who are vying for his attention, triggering her painful past. Will she be able to give love a second chance?
His on the Rebound
Fiona Murphy - 2016
I’m going to hell. I can hear the nuns now, condemning me, and I deserve it. How could I have let Maxwell Brandt kiss me? A man I found disgusting at the way he treated woman—as if they were disposable, to be used then thrown away. It didn’t matter who he was, or how much money he had. He was a horrible person. Who the hell am I kidding? I’m just as bad because I let him kiss me. Then I did the unthinkable and kissed him back, with a hunger I’ve never felt before. All of this while my fiancé was in the same house. It was a horrible mistake, one that can never happen again. I love Kevin. I want to make a life with him, not be used by a man who won’t remember my name a month from now. What Kevin and I have built is real and I’m not throwing it all away. It didn’t matter if no other man, including Kevin, had made me feel the way Max did, it was wrong. Despite the fact Max keeps coming back to entice me, I stand firm. I won’t cheat on Kevin. I won’t become that person, no matter how badly my body wants him. I don’t want to want him. Until the moment he drops a bomb that destroys everything. Kevin has been cheating. His words destroy the illusion I’ve been hiding behind, because I know he’s telling the truth. Knew it in the way Kevin has gradually been pulling away... late nights out with the guys, his disinterest in me, and the way he’s twice pushed back the date of the wedding. I hadn’t wanted to believe, had been willfully blind to preserve the promise of a future with a man I believed I loved. All I want is to hide and lick my wounds, but Max won’t let me. With Kevin gone, he demands I fulfill the promise of that kiss. I don’t understand how a man like him wants a plus size woman like me, when my own fiancé refused to date me before I lost weight. Yet, he does, refuses to go away. In a rush of anger, pain, and hunger, I give in. The feeling of being wanted by a man like Max wiping away the humiliation of Kevin’s betrayal. Maybe a fling, a rebound affair, is exactly what I need. No promises, no expectations, and no broken heart. At least, that’s the way it started. Max Out of curiosity, to get a look at the fiancée who put up with a cheating weasel like Kevin Jarvis, I find myself looking into the bright green eyes of a woman who makes my body hard with longing. Then the weasel does the unimaginable and introduces green eyes as his fiancée. Even though she looks at my hand like it’s a grenade about to go off, she takes it and we both feel the attraction. We’re both in deep shit now, because I know she feels what I feel and I’m about to go after her, fiancé or not. I don’t care if she stays with Kevin. I just want her body. Besides, it won’t last long, desire never does and I don’t want her clinging after it’s over. Only, the bitch keeps pushing me away, denying us both the satisfaction our bodies crave. Her sanctimonious refusal as she uses Kevin and her engagement ring as a shield pisses me off. I didn’t want to drop a bomb, but if it gets me what I want, her in my bed, then I’m not going to flinch from it. I need her to satisfy this craving that’s eating me from the inside out. I’ll make her pay for making us both wait. I’m not her ex, and I’m sick of paying for his stupidity. Her body makes my body ache and I want her exactly as she is. Only, inch by inch I’m consumed by my need. I warn myself to pull away, sure this won’t last, can’t last. But letting go isn’t an option, no matter how hard I try.
I Called Him Dancer
G. Edward Snipes - 2011
The once promising Broadway star now washes windows for tips and lives among the homeless. When his former dance partner recognizes him behind the fray of whiskers, shame drives him away from her. Angry at God and the world, the Dancer refuses to allow anyone into his life. When everything is stripped away, three things remain: faith, hope, and love. The greatest of these is love. I Called Him Dancer is a story about how one woman’s enduring faith and unconditional love drives her to reach out to a homeless man who has given up on life.
Full of Fire
Jennifer Millikin - 2015
Up until that fateful night, Lila was content experiencing emotion through her camera. Xavier's handsome face and captivating personality changes all that. Lila wants Xavier, bad boy reputation be damned. If only Xavier's past mistakes weren't also in the present. When faced with the consequences of Xavier's past, will Lila's fiery personality and fierce determination be enough to see them through?
Made for Him
Alexis Ashlie - 2020
It will give you the HEA that you crave with OTT everything. You don’t want to miss this one.
Feels like Home
Evelyn Adams - 2014
But when her carefully constructed life crumbles around her, Autumn's forced to return to the small southern town that never let her forget she came from the wrong side of the tracks. Jude Southerland, the town doctor, is used to taking care of people and with a pedigree that has the Ladies Auxiliary reaching for their fans, he’s easily the town’s most eligible bachelor – a status he has no intention of changing. That is until he almost runs down the Maddox girl he never noticed in school and suddenly finds her lush curves, dark curls and blue eyes consuming his thoughts, day and night. Autumn would like nothing more than to live happily ever after with Jude. But with every local matron in the valley trying to marry him off to their own daughters, she knows they won’t let her forget that she's not good enough and never will be. With the chance to finally find happiness, can she overcome her family history and find the confidence she needs to believe in herself or will she let love pass her by?
Next August
Kelly Moore
He’s a public figure— a billionaire business genius and eligible bachelor—with no personal life, and he likes it that way. Tragedy has followed August throughout his life, and by the time he meets Nashville Jacoby, the secrets he’s harboring aren’t just sad, they’re dangerous.Nashville is a nurse from the Deep South—the consummate country girl. She works hard, takes care of her family, and dreams of a simple life. She’s drawn to August, despite his refusal to open up to her, his intimidating fortune, and his controlling tendencies. He’s not only mesmerized by her physical beauty, he’s enthralled by her kind heart and sassy honesty. Their intense sexual chemistry surprises them both, and soon they’re locked in a passionate love affair. When August’s secrets finally catch up with him, however, their relationship isn’t the only thing that’s at stake. Someone from the past wants revenge on August and isn’t afraid to destroy the one thing August’s money can’t buy—the woman he loves.
New York In Love
J.B. Pettry - 2019
. . or is it?After two years of providing juicy material for her aunt’s popular relationship column, Violet Monroe decides it’s time for her career as a serial blind dater to come to an end. That is until her aunt talks her into accepting one last date . . . 1700 miles away. Future heir to his family’s media company, wildly handsome Sawyer Quinn knows what’s expected of him, but longs to break free of his overbearing mother and her suffocating expectations. When his uncle hands him an interesting opportunity, he’s pleasantly surprised when it leads to a young woman unlike any he’s ever met before, but there’s a problem—his meddling mother.
New York In Love
is a full-length sweet, swoony romance with a HEA.
Trophy Life
Elli Lewis - 2016
Meet Amy, the world's most improbable trophy wife. She has a degree, ambitions and something resembling a mind of her own. The trouble is, she just doesn't use it anymore. Married to handsome aristocrat, Harry Green, Amy’s world is a whirlwind of luxury, labels and lunches. But amidst the peerages and polo of the privileged few lie wolves in minks' clothing. Before she knows it, Amy's perfect existence is plunged into chaos by the poshest of plots. Ominous heiresses, simpering starlets and a terrifying mother-in-law abound as Amy faces up to some harsh realities. Can Amy survive life in the upper crust? Or is high society an all new low?
Lucky Charm
Carly Phillips - 2008
Now, divorced and broke, all he has left is his teenage daughter and a healthy respect for ancient sorcery. But then Gabrielle returns, determined to defeat the curse and rekindle their passion. But will her stubborn streak and her unwavering love be the lucky charm Derek so desperately needs?
Where Forever Lies
Tara Neideffer - 2014
It's hard to see the light at the end of the tunnel when life gives you a chaotic mess of grief, but Paige Griffin is determined to make a good life for her and her three-year old daughter, Kyra. At twenty-three, she juggles her days as a nurse, with the rest of her time being a single mother. Too busy to know which way is up, she doesn't give dating much thought until one guy makes a sudden impact on her life. Tyler Evans seems like a nice guy, good looking even, but Paige is hesitant about letting a guy into her and her daughter’s life, especially when he seems just as closed off as she. But once Paige keeps running into Tyler and his eight-year-old son, Brandon, she begins to realize that there’s more to him than she thought. Eventually, they both find themselves unable to keep their guards up any longer; but can a country boy and a city girl make a relationship work? As they both question their love, they realize that sometimes fate has its own plan for where your forever lies. ***This is book one in a trilogy but each book can stand-alone*** ***Due to sexual content, this novel is intended for audiences ages 18+***
Lessons in Mountain Climbing
Eliza Lloyd - 2014
That doesn’t mean the media is willing to leave the Titan of Telluride alone—not when his past is shrouded in mystery and not when one particular journalist has something to prove. As a young girl, Kinzey Vance first met Rane. She’s never forgotten him. She’s also never lived down her perceived failure as one of the Kirk Enterprise Grant’s original scholarship recipients. She had planned to change the world, only life got in the way. As an adopted orphan herself, she feels particularly responsible for her siblings, and gives up her dream, in order to care for them after the death of their mother. Years later and back in Colorado, Kinzey finally has something she must share with the elusive Rane Kirk. Climbing the mountain to Kirk’s compound, Kinzey is more determined than ever to tell her story. And to learn the truth of his. She doesn’t know Kirk has never forgotten her and the moment she lands in his koi pond, their stars don’t realign; they collide.
Finding the Magic
Casey McMillin - 2014
It was all I really knew, so I was crushed when it was taken from me by an unforeseeable twist of fate. I decided moving back home to Florida would be the best way to pick up the pieces.I had just begun settling into Plan B when I first laid eyes on Drake Kelly. I thought he was just some hot guy I could see through a small crack in my friend Megan's fence, but her brother informed me that his dad was a notorious modern-day pirate.That one piece of information was so intriguing that, even though it was highly unlike me, I instantly began scheming a way to get into his house and his life.