Book picks similar to
Pretending in Paradise by M. Ullrich


fake-relationship
romance
wlw
lesbian-romance

Accidental Honeymoon


Miranda MacLeod - 2020
    Could things get any worse?All Ray wants is to finish her job and say adios to the world’s most high-maintenance client. But after being mistaken for Monica’s girlfriend, how can Ray walk away when going along with the charade would grant an old lady her dying wish? It’s not like Ray intended to be so charming that Monica’s grandmother would rewrite her will.Now the unlikely couple stands to inherit a vineyard in rural New England and a heap of cash large enough to change both their lives. The only hitch? They have to get hitched. And since Monica is a professional wedding blogger, they’ll have to make it the wedding of the century while convincing two million followers they’re madly in love.No problem, aside from the simple fact that they can’t stand each other. There’s a good chance the whole thing could end in disaster, but is it possible these enemies might find true love along the way?

16 Steps to Forever


Georgia Beers - 2020
    In a new city, with a new job and a new start as a high-end real estate agent, she’s finally back on her feet. The last thing she needs is a distraction. Not her volatile neighbors, not a damn stray cat, and certainly not the flaky, infuriatingly adorkable girl-next-door property stager she has to work with.Macy Carr believes in soul mates and true love. She knows because she had it all until a freak accident took the love of her life. She’s doing okay though, surrounded by her family, her animals, and her BFFs. Home staging gives her a sense of control, and she’s made her job her happy place. If only the super sexy, super cold new agent working for Macy’s biggest client wasn’t determined to ruin that.

30 Dates in 30 Days


Elle Spencer - 2019
    She’s about to be named a partner at one of the most prestigious law firms in New York City. She’s on top of the world, except for one tiny ridiculous thing: she promised herself she’d be married by thirty-five. After a drink too many, she accidentally lets her “life plan” slip to Bea, her steadfast, ever meddling assistant, and now Bea won’t let the idea go. Rachel Monaghan doesn’t do serious relationships. As a busy wedding photographer, she’s jaded about lasting love, has a thriving repeat business, and hasn’t had much luck with love herself. While bartending at her cousin’s bar, Rachel learns of Bea’s plan to get her boss married off by scheduling thirty dates in thirty days. In this sophisticated contemporary romance, Veronica Welch tries to find love in the most efficient way possible, while Rachel Monaghan avoids love at all costs. What could possibly go wrong?77,000 wordsGenres: Contemporary / Romance

Hotel Queens


Lee Winter - 2020
    Over one long night at a bar in Las Vegas, two powerful hotel executives meet, flirt, and challenge each other—having no clue they’re rivals after the same dream deal.Brilliant ice queen Amelia Duxton is a hotel vice president who thrives on control, truth, and efficiency. She’s in no mood for love or the mess it brings. All she wants is to buy the coveted Mayfair Palace—a massive deal that could finally help her land the CEO job in her family’s hotel empire.Fiery Kai Fisher is charming and chaotic and renowned for closing ambitious deals. Her sights are set on snatching the Mayfair Palace out from under the nose of her hated arch rivals, the Duxton family.But when secrets emerge and everything starts to fall apart, how can either of the warring women win—especially when they’ve just met their match?Tags: fire queen, hotel executives, ice queen romance, Las Vegas, opposites-attract romance104,000 words

Who'd Have Thought


G. Benson - 2017
    And with over $200,000 on offer to tie the knot, no questions asked, cash-strapped ER nurse Hayden Pérez isn’t about to demand answers.The deal is only for a year of marriage, but Hayden’s going into it knowing it will be a nightmare. Sam is complicated, rude, kind of cold, and someone Hayden barely tolerates at work, let alone wants to marry. The hardest part is that Hayden has to convince everyone around them that they’re madly in love and that racing down the aisle together is all they’ve ever wanted. What could possibly go wrong?Words: 122,000

In Development


Rachel Spangler - 2018
    Only, she's not a teenager anymore. Ready to challenge herself artistically and earn the part she's always dreamed of, she's forced to face the realization that in order to win the roles afforded to edgier actresses, she might first have to audition by playing someone edgier in her day-to-day life.Pop star Lila Wilder built a multimedia empire by always having her finger on the pulse of what's hot. However, as she struggles to produce her next smash hit record, she's finding it hard to keep her name in the public eye, and a string of tumultuous relationships with Hollywood boy-toys no longer captivates anyone's attention.Both women tentatively agree to a headline-grabbing fauxmance, with two simple rules: Always stick to the script, and never forget that on the stage of public perception, nothing is real. Can two women find love in a world of carefully crafted illusions, or will a successful charade mean the potential for something more gets left on the cutting-room floor?

Breaking Down Her Walls


Erin Zak - 2018
    When a meeting with her birth parents goes horribly wrong, Julia escapes on a hastily planned road trip and winds up breaking down in a Colorado town so small the cows outnumber the people. Completely out of her element, she takes a temporary job as a ranch hand at Bennett Ranch. She only has to survive long enough to get her car fixed, and then she’s out of there for good. Her bad luck continues when she meets the ranch owner, Elena Bennett. Elena is unhappy, abrasive, and annoyingly breathtaking. But the longer Julia stays, the more the ranch starts to feel like home, and her feelings for Elena become impossible to ignore. She’s spent years building her defenses high and running from her past. Could a love worth staying for be the key to breaking down her walls?Genre: RomanceWords: 78,000

The Roommate Arrangement


Jae - 2019
    A former cop with a wounded heart. An unusual roommate arrangement…Comedian Stephanie Renshaw hopes to finally get her big break in LA. A chance encounter lands her the perfect apartment close to the comedy clubs, but it comes with a catch: she needs a roommate to afford the rent.Enter Rae Coleman, a former police officer working the door at one of the top comedy clubs. After getting injured in the line of duty and losing her job with the LAPD, Rae guards her wounded soul behind a tough exterior.At first, the two clash horribly before a tentative friendship develops. Bit by bit, Steph manages to break through the walls Rae has built around her.But Steph has never been in a relationship, preferring casual flings, and Rae isn’t sure she’s ready to be happy again. Will they find the courage to open themselves up to love?Falling in love is not a laughing matter in this opposites-attract lesbian romance with a bit of a fake relationship thrown in.

Contract for Love


Alison Grey - 2015
    She’s been raised by her rich grandmother, and her only goals are partying and bedding women.When her grandmother threatens to disinherit her if she doesn’t clean up her act, Madison has to find a way to convince her she’s changed.After a chance encounter with Sherry, Madison comes up with a crazy idea that will rock both of their worlds: she wants to hire Sherry to play her fake girlfriend.Themes: fake dating · fake girlfriend · fake relationship · play girl · pretend romance · rich girl/poor girl97,000 words

Breakthrough


Kris Bryant - 2018
    She’s worked too hard over the years to have it snatched away because of one tiny indiscretion that ended with a giant lawsuit. After five months of writing mind-numbing articles about current events, her boss agrees to let her get back to reporting on the rich and famous after one last story. A born and bred city girl, Kennedy is sent to cover fishing in Alaska, which has her feeling just like a fish out of water. When Brynn Coleman, director of Alaska’s Wildlife Rescue and Sanctuary, comes to her rescue time after time, Kennedy can’t help but lower her guard and open herself up to Brynn’s standoffish charm. Falling for the sexy ranger is one thing, but is the possibility of love worth giving up a career she’s always dreamed of?Cover Artist: Kris Bryant and Sheri HalalGenres: Contemporary / RomanceWords: 68,400

The Wrong McElroy


K.L. Hughes - 2019
    Besides, how hard could one festive family weekend be, anyway?That’s before she meets the boisterous McElroy clan, with accents as thick as a homemade pie crust, and an endless supply of competitive siblings, including Lizzie, Michael’s beautiful younger sister.Lizzie seems to be everywhere, with her intoxicating scent, wandering hands, lingering gaze, and that bright, echoing laugh. The more time Fiona spends in her orbit, she wonders how she can even concentrate let alone pull off a convincing fake relationship.An amusing, charming lesbian romance about finding unexpected love inside family expectations.Themes: Christmas · family · holiday romance · POC64,000 words

Back to September


Melissa Brayden - 2019
    She’s never been one to take big risks and would much rather stay in on a Friday night with a warm cup of decaf and her favorite mystery novel, so why do her friends insist she needs more? Plus, Hannah has bigger problems to focus on. She’s in trouble. Well, her bookstore is, and if she doesn’t find a way to bring in some more cash, she’ll be closing the doors of A Likely Story for good. When world famous romance novelist Parker Bristow accepts her request to come in for a signing, Hannah might finally be able to drum up some much-needed attention and save the shop. What she didn’t anticipate was an unexpected evening and a woman she wouldn’t soon forget. A real romance is off the table. Parker is flashy, sought after, and Hannah is just, well, Hannah. But for Parker, it seems like Hannah might be a safe place to fall. The question is, what kind of falling are they doing?

Rock and a Hard Place


Andrea Bramhall - 2017
    She wants nothing more to do with the mountains, and turns her back on it all.Rhian Phillips is a successful London marketing executive who has the chance of a lifetime fall in her lap. She’s sent to produce a reality TV series on competitive climbers, while showcasing the stunning beauty of a Patagonian glacier and the Cerro Fitz Roy range.An accident brings Jayden and Rhian together, and outside pressures keep them at each other’s sides. When you’re stuck between a rock and a hard place eventually something has to give. The one thing they never counted on was them both wanting to stay together.A lesbian romance about pushing onwards and defying expectations.100,000 wordslesbian romance · mountain climbing · Patagonia · reality TV series

Room Service


Fiona Riley - 2018
    Olivia grabs the chance to reignite her passion, to step outside her comfort zone, and to achieve national exposure if she delivers everything the client expects.Savannah Quinn fled a broken heart and started fresh in a new city, at a new job, without any of her past in the rearview. Her new position as corporate liaison to Olivia and her team is exactly the distraction she’s looking for. She doesn’t have to settle into her empty apartment if she’s never there, right? And she can’t be betrayed if she never asks for forever.Long days in strange cities bring Olivia and Savannah closer, but keeping their growing attraction separate from their professional relationship feels impossible.

Technically Faking


Robin Hale - 2019
    It hasn’t made her many friends, but it has made her a fixture on all the best ‘Under 30’ lists in Silicon Valley and the CEO of SparkSignal, a company she built from nothing. And now it’s about to make her unemployed. The Board of Directors wants her out. They say she’s difficult. Abrasive. They’ve already set the date to vote in her replacement: someone charming and easily controlled. Her assistant has a plan. One last-ditch effort to overhaul her image. Amber Kowalczyk has lived the hustle so long she is the hustle. And she loves it. She loves her little social media empire and everything it takes to keep on top of it. What she doesn’t love is the rising cost of rent that makes staying in her corner of San Francisco look more and more impossible. But when a cheeky caption on a photo of one of Silicon Valley’s prickliest entrepreneurs results in a clandestine meeting, Amber might have a way out of her mounting debt. It’s simple: Iris Spark has money, Amber Kowalczyk has public opinion, and SparkSignal’s popularity goes up when people think the two of them are dating. It’s only a few weeks. It’s only pretend. What’s the worst that could happen? Technically Faking is a fake relationship F/F romance between a grumpy tech CEO and a charming (but poor) social media darling set in the high-stakes world of Silicon Valley’s start-up scene. Buy now for staged kisses and real feelings!