Book picks similar to
Different Roads by Joyce Sterling Scarbrough


new-adult
contemporary
contemporary-romance
drama

Shadow of Love


Ellen Wolf - 2012
    He had learnt from early on that trust and unconditional love end badly. Both his mother’s failed relationship with his rich and absent father and his mentor’s marriage to a scrupulous and selfish woman taught him the lesson not to carry his heart on his sleeve. The man who had turned James’ life around in the darkest of his teenage years, died alone and rejected. Ridiculous accusations that prompted such ending left James incredulous and furious, the heat of his anger never completely leaving him in the years that followed.It is impossible to escape the past, his mentor’s suicide and the events that lead to it still very much on his mind. The fate has given him the rare opportunity to finally settle the scores. Avenging Steve Masden’s death is simply too tempting to be ignored. Emily Beggins knows right away that something isn’t right about her stepsister’s mysterious fiancé. He might well be the most handsome and charming man she has ever met, but there is a certain icy resolve in his eyes that frightens her witless. Behind the impeccable façade and lethal smile, she senses something dark and dangerous. Something that shouldn’t really be there…Loyalty has always been a big part of her character, even though her life with her stepmother and stepsister had proven far more challenging and difficult than she had ever anticipated. They share enough memories and dirty secrets to bind them together with the invisible thread of guilt and obligations. Saving Sophie from the unknown disaster leaves Emily no choice but to confront the man who had managed to capture her stepsister’s heart in a span of mere days.Only James isn’t ready to play fair, one sweep of his hand pushing aside any hopes she might have for a happy ending. He knows too much and cares too little to have any sympathy for her or her family.She has to play by his rules, each step taking her deeper and deeper into his world. Soon it becomes her world too and the lines between black and white blur, nothing certain any longer.As time goes by the question of how to survive being around James becomes replaced by another, more urgent one.How will she ever live without him?

Unspoken Bond


Blake O'Connor - 2013
    He’s been skipping school, getting into fights, his grades slip to barely passing, and he has broken up with his fiancée. After he rescues an abandoned dog on a lonely stretch of country back road, things start to look up–that is until he is blindsided by a crippling tragedy. Along his journey to recovery, a girl he met by chance keeps haunting his dreams and his thoughts. But there’s a problem–he doesn’t even know her name.Emma Mendoza is lamenting her turn in life: almost divorced, lousy job, no family, and no one to share her life with. She sits alone in her apartment thinking about her upcoming deployment, and about a boy she met. Who is he? Where is he? Why can’t she stop thinking about him? And so begins a story about the love of two people transcending time and tragedy, and about the love of a dog that will never be forgotten…“Smooth, fluid prose, with a strong emotional hook,” says a judge of a major metropolitan writing contest. Unspoken Bond is an award-winning, heart-warming story about how one unselfish act can have far reaching and lifelong consequences. It’s a celebration of the unspoken bond between a man and his dog, and the timeless bond between two people, held together by a whisper of a touch.

The Inn at Cranberry Cove (Cranberry Cove Series Book 1)


June Foster - 2020
    She’s inherited her aunt’s B&B and is determined to carry on her legacy. Upon preparing for guests, she learns of a century-old tale of treasure within the inn. Many have searched for the illusive gems but to no avail. She discovers a man working on the inn’s grounds, but is he the gardener Gina Price hired? Perhaps he’s searching for the hidden treasure.James Atwood, corporate executive, works in the Atwood’s thriving cranberry business. Tragedy strikes, and he’s numb and riddled with guilt. Befriended by Gina Price, he finds solace working evening and weekends in the fresh earth, fescue grass, and aromatic blossoms of the inn’s gardens, helping to divert his mind from his dishonest cousin Robert, bent on destroying the Atwood business. He continues tending the grounds after Gina passes, and the new owner believes he’s a gardener. After she calls late one night upon hearing a prowler, James races to her rescue and discovers his feelings are more than protective.Ashton’s first guests, the Claxton’s, appear out of nowhere saying they’ve had reservations for a year though she finds no record of a deposit. She chalks the failure up to faulty accounting before she arrived. When an elusive intruder continues to make frightening midnight visits, Ashton fears for her own safety and that of the Claxtons. But then, their odd comings and goings cause Ashton to wonder. Are they really vacationing visitors from California, or do they have other motives for staying at the inn?Can two people allow the majestic northwest and fragrant coastal air heal their wounded hearts? Will they discover the secret of The Inn at Cranberry Cove?

The Summer of Going Topless


Liz Davies - 2019
    No one seems to notice her - not really. Heck, she often doesn’t notice herself, except for her monthly scrutiny in the mirror to check on her body’s steady slide towards middle age.But when her ancient, practical estate car is consigned to the scrap heap, Candice falls in love with a cute, purple convertible, and from that moment on her life begins to take on a whole new meaning. Strangers wave at her and people stop to talk, and suddenly she isn’t invisible any longer.Life seems to be looking up, especially when she meets silver fox and handy-man, Paul. There’s just one fly in the ointment, one thing that has her second-guessing herself.Is it the car that Paul sees - or is it her?

Cowboy's Baby


Piper Sullivan - 2017
     Until his parents cut him off. With no money, he is forced to return to the family ranch in Texas, only to discover his matchmaking mama has big plans for his future. She starts by reintroducing him to someone he would rather forget. The beautiful Caroline Leroy. The woman who walked out of his life four years ago. The woman who broke his heart. Caroline is a woman with a secret. She is enticed to Texas under false pretenses and thrust into a world of cowboys, a very involved family, and Conner. Who was once the love of her life. As she attempts to chip away at Conner’s walls, all she sees in his eyes is mistrust. But Caroline needs his forgiveness, not just for herself…but for her daughter’s future. Cowboy's baby is a standalone Second Chance Romance with a Happily Ever After Ending.

Maria Before Us


Ellie Messe - 2019
     Seven nights I’ve held my nephew as he relives the crash he survived. Six casseroles sit on the kitchen counter from neighbors who don’t actually care. Five fingers drum against the wooden grain to my right. Four bodies try to ignore the growing tension in the room. Three years since I’ve seen the man who’s almost here. Two car doors shut. One doorknob twists. This was me Before Us. **PLEASE NOTE THIS IS A NOVELLA** NOVELLA 1/6 Due to adult content this novella is 18+

Celia's Puppies


Claudia Hall Christian - 2009
    Over the course of her life, she gathered those who needed her special brand of love. Nine years after her death, Celia's puppies are facing themselves and their lives. Exciting, heart-warming, and always fun, Celia's Puppies is the second installment of the Denver Cereal. An Internet sensation, Denver Cereal is a serial fiction grounded in Uptown Denver, Colorado. "I am completely addicted to this series." - P. Cooper "Claudia Hall Christian brings life to each of these characters, a life that you long to be a part of, that you just can't get enough of." - C. Sund "I love Denver Cereal." - L. Richards Crunchy, sweet and always addicting - you deserve a little Denver Cereal in your life. DenverCereal.com

Hook : Alpha Billionaire Romance


Colleen Charles - 2016
    I'm filthy rich, filthy mouthed, filthy in the bedroom and in the boardroom. I've never met a woman I couldn't charm. Into my penthouse and out of her panties. Socialites like a guy with...ahem...assets. Even better if he's smart and loyal. And I get everything I want whenever I want it.Until I meet her.Sexy, smart, Chastity. Unexpected. With a voice ripping through my phone line seductive enough to make my d*ck twitch in my Armani. She's pure, untouched and totally off limits...ChastityCharming NYC playboy, Chase Bradenton, is yanking my chain. He's trying to chase away the ghosts of his past with aged scotch and sleazy hook-ups. He's bored and he's acting out. I'd love to know why but he holds his emotions locked inside his chiseled body. I want nothing more than to throw him down and devour him.But I have to resist. I will resist. Because I'm a senior in college and I'm laser focused on graduating at the top of my class so I can fulfill my dream of becoming a social worker to help underprivileged kids just like me. I'd been doing so well juggling college and my unique part-time gig in the Banks Realty high rise.Until I meet him.He's so hot he could make Satan sigh. Charming. Intelligent. Out of my league and totally of limits...

Running from Love


J. Nichole - 2018
    Not even her closest friends could help her out of the rut she’s been in, after her bad break up with her last beau, Derrick. But, thanks to one of her devoted girlfriends, Laila, and the hot new dating app on the market, DateNight, Jennifer just might have a good chance, and another shot, at love. T​​hat is, until fate finally throws a bone her way. Into her hectic and loveless life walks Aiden, who could have only been sent Jennifer’s way by the dating gods. A gentleman of high reproach, Aiden quickly sweeps Jennifer off her feet, and into his own life. B​​ut, this fairy tale romance may not be all that it seems to Jennifer. Sure, there’s the flowers, the dinners and the earth-quaking sex, but there’s also a secret or two that Aiden is keeping from Jennifer, which may end their perfect relationship forever. W​​hile Jennifer does need to protect her heart from Aiden’s secret, she knows that she can’t keep ​Running from Love f​orever. This book is intended for mature audiences.

If You Let Me Go (First Love Billionaire)


Sonia Rao - 2021
    But she will have none of that. Shivalika has her life mapped out. She does not believe in love at all and is only focused on her career the reason for which is a secret she has nursed since she was a teenager.But when billionaire Vikramarya Kumar aka VK aka “the most eligible bachelor in the country” enters her company as the new boss, sparks fly and she finds all her beliefs getting shattered, one by one.Shivalika’s secret has already created havoc once in her life. Will she be able to overcome it to find her happily-ever-after with VK or will the pain of it destroy every chance of finding true love and healing?If You Let Me Go is a standalone sweet romance novel in the First Love Billionaire Romance series.

Captivated


Emily Jane Trent - 2013
    He’s a romantic Italian on vacation, surfing at Ella’s beach. But the gorgeous billionaire has secrets. Ella feels like she’s known him forever, but fears she will lose him. Can you meet your soul mate, only to lose him in the same instant? Adam shouldn't involve Ella in the evil he must face in Brazil. But will he stay away from her? Ella Walker, still suffering from issues of mental abuse, turns twenty-one and meets the man of her dreams. Can she break the bonds of her emotional prison and be the woman he desires? As an aspiring romance author, Ella struggles to find passion in her work. When Adam Bianci, the gorgeous Italian billionaire appears in her life, he lights up her drab existence. She’s determined not to let him slip through her grasp. But will his secrets and the tangled web of his own abuse keep them apart?

Bombshells


T. Elliott Brown - 2011
    Six-year-old Birdie Adams wants to run away and join the circus but guesses she’ll have to go to the first grade and hang around with her new baby brother instead. Maybe her big sister needs a little help, too. The circus will have to wait.Twelve-year-old Melanie Adams wants her friend to stop bugging her to get her first kiss. Melanie’s already had her first kiss, but won’t spoil the special secret by talking about it. Norah Adams is a good mother and wife who wants to keep her family safe and happy, but tucking the order form for dogtags in her daughters’ lunch boxes is a big change from the everyday bologna sandwiches.Lola Carter wants the life her sister, Norah, has. Instead she has a factory job, an alcohol and prescription drug addiction, and an abusive boyfriend. Even if President Kennedy prevents World War III, these women’s lives will be changed forever.

Blossoms of The Heart


Khardine Gray - 2018
    Tai was the guy I wasn’t supposed to have… The tattooed rebel my mother told to stay away from me. My heart stopped beating that day. I was off- limits to him and he was forbidden to me. I never thought I’d see him again. He stayed away, just like my mother demanded. Until… fate decided to hand us an all access card eleven years later. Leaving it to us to work out the kinks. We got to see what could have happened if we got together. Then it became complicated…. The passion and heat between us is wild. Scorching hot and consuming. He wants more. So much more… But I can't give him more… This time it’s not my mother telling me I can’t have him. It’s life … Because … now I have a secret. A secret that could tear us apart. **This is a full length novel with a happily ever after, no cliffhanger, no cheating, and plenty of steam. *** If you like hot, steamy, romance with gorgeous, drool worthy ex-marines that, you will like this book. Scroll up and one-click your copy today!

Deep


Lucia Jordan - 2016
    After exhausting herself trying to save her broken relationship, Richard Kaye left her anyway. Deciding to take an adventure trip designed for singles, she thought she might be able to use the time to find out who she was without Richard. That’s when she meets charismatic and controlling, Ethan Everett. He demands a lot from her—but he gives a lot in return. Before she realizes it, she finds herself drawn into his world, where the risk, along with the pleasure of the fling, is great, but the reward might be true love. Which will it be?

Beyond Control


Karice Bolton - 2013
    With a brilliant job in the corporate world, glamorous parties, and a beautiful condo overlooking Seattle, she is thrown into a world she doesn't want to claim. It's not until Jason crashes into her world that she realizes she's not really living. Facing his own demons, Jason attempts to piece his life back together after a personal tragedy. Damaged by his ghosts, Jason finally begins to forgive himself whenever Gabby's around. She makes him feel--alive, something he hasn't felt for a long time.It's only as their love grows and secrets are revealed that they realize a devastating connection from their past might actually tear them apart.------Dear reader:I hope you enjoy reading Gabby and Jason's story as much as I loved writing it. This is a completed story of Jason and Gabby and is the first in a new series. However, the book does end with a new story just beginning surrounding another couple, who I've gotten the joy of writing about. Their story continues in Beyond Doubt and is out now!Again, thank you for taking the time to read the first in the Beyond Love Series, and I hope you enjoy!~Karice