Should Anything Else Matter?Zora Nella Hampton Johnson knows exactly where she comes from—and her daddy won't let her forget. Of course for that privilege he keeps her in Prada and Kate Spade, Coach and YSL. He chooses her boyfriend, her car, her address, and ignores her love of painting, art, and the old ways of her grandaddy's soulful AME church—where the hymns pleaded, cajoled, and raised the roof. Her daddy may be a preacher, but some-where among the thousands of church members, the on-site coffee house, and the JumboTron, Zora lost God. And she wants Him back.Nicky Parker, a recent graduate of Berkeley and reformed playboy, also suffers the trials of being a preacher's kid, and he can't remember the last time he saw eye-to-eye with his white, racist, Southern Baptist father. What he does remember—and it will be forever burned in his brain despite myriad prayers to Jesus—is the way Zora looked the first time he saw her. Like Nefertiti. Only better. When they meet at a bible study far from their respective home churches, the first churlish, sarcastic sparks that fly sizzle with defensiveness. But God has a special way of feeding the flames and though of different flocks, these two lost sheep will find Him and much, much more.Click Here to listen to an interview with Claudia Mair Burney.

    Kidnapped by a rich madman, Sasha is sold into slavery, while Lily is forced to join The Collection, a unique bevy of exotic beauties enduring frequent horrors at the hands of elite bidders. However, no amount of pain and suffering will break Lily, who will stop at nothing to save her younger sister. Possibly with help from an unlikely ally.Love is stronger than loyalty…Attempting to prove his allegiance to his employer, Jake is tasked with guarding the unruly and uncontrollable Lily. He can’t afford to help her in her quest to free Sasha—not if he hopes to fulfill his own agenda. But in their dark, gritty, tension-filled world, solace is taken wherever it’s found. Bonds are formed and hearts engage despite Jake’s resistance and both their attempts at self-preservation.When certain secrets come to light, the resulting explosion has breathtakingly bittersweet consequences that, by the end, may not leave everyone whole…or alive.

    It was my dad who had hit me.I had been four.Most of my memories were much of the same and no one ever saw, no one ever fought to help, no one ever cared.Then we moved.My new neighbor cared, rescued the twelve-year-old I had been from a beating. Always thought I'd suffer the nightmare alone, I was wrong.Mace Donati saved me that day in all the ways a person could be saved.And his daughter, Mia, she became the friend I had always wanted, my conscience when my own faltered, the light that led me home when I had lost my way.The girl who grew into the only woman I would ever love.But when you realize you're more like your father than the good people who took you in and gave you a home, the only way to return their kindness is to let them go.I let them go, got so far lost in the shadows I couldn't remember who I was anymore. Mia never gave up on me. She fought for me, kept the light on so I'd find my way back.And when I did, life threw us a curveball. I had to hurt Mia in order to save her.But when my past comes back to haunt me and I almost lose her, I'm ready to fight for her...fight to find a way back into her heart while keeping the demons from my past from finishing what they started. Cole Campbell

    I've moved on, but he definitely hasn't. He's also a single-dad now and in desperate need of a capable nanny to manage his out-of-control son. So the powerful CEO decides that I'm the perfect woman for the job--whether I want it or not. According to him....Revenge is best served BOSS!Reader Note: This is part 2 of the Ruthless Second Chance Duet, and it completes the epically romantic story of Holt and Sylvie.

    Between completing a Master’s degree at Caltech and beginning her fruitful career at a local observatory she has little time for socializing. Until she attends one specific party that is.There, Piper is introduced to a drinking game called Never Have I Ever, and she finds herself admitting to a secret fantasy which challenges her friends’ views of her otherwise prudish nature. Her confession piques the interest of one man in particular, Noah; a handsome stranger with a darkly boyish charm.The resulting spiral of rapture and torture that follows is threatened by the demons of both their pasts. Piper's inability to give her heart to anyone, and Noah's guilt over the death of his former lover claw to the surface to tear Piper away from not only the one man who has ever made her feel like she does not have to be in control of her desires, but also the newly collected list of Nevers they both want to turn into reality.*Contains strong BDSM themes*

    Jackson . . . Rex Gunner. As bitter as he is beautiful. The owner of the largest construction company in Gingham Lakes has been burned one too many times.His wife leaving him to raise their daughter was the last blow this single dad could take.The only woman he'll let into his heart is his little girl. Rynna Dayne. As vulnerable as she is tempting.She ran from Gingham Lakes when she was seventeen. She swore to herself she would never return.Then her grandmother passed away and left her the deed to the diner that she once loved.When Rex meets his new neighbor, he knows he's in trouble.She's gorgeous and sweet and everything he can't trust.Until she becomes the one thing he can't resist. One kiss sends them tumbling toward ecstasy.But in a town this size, pasts are bound to collide.Caught in a web of lies, betrayal, and disloyalty, Rex must make a choice. Will he hide behind his walls or will he take the chance . . .

    She blames the rumor mill at her school...and, okay, him. His adorable son has only been in preschool, but Jake has already made an impressive dent in dating the unmarried faculty. She's had to hear of his every exploit from the broken hearts he's left behind. She was fine to loathe him from afar, but now his son has entered kindergarten--and she's the teacher. It's going to be a very long school year. Jake Polaski was more than fine to avoid Ms. Thorne after it became clear she was not amused by his very existence. But then they get stuck in an elevator for an evening. He finds out that underneath that baleful glare she always gives him, lies a warm, funny and sexy as hell woman. He does his best to not be smitten after every exchange afterward. His son needs him rational, steadfast...and love is the most uncertain thing. It was the elevator's fault. Had it worked like it should, Bailey would have gone on with her life without seeing why so many of her co-workers had fallen for the grumpy single dad. (It's his dry wit, his playful teasing and the drool-worthy cut of his jawline.) And now she's caught in the way he doles out smiles and the dark depths of his secrets. If nothing else, she knows from rumor there's a clock ticking on their affair before it implodes because things always do with Jake the Rake, but she can't seem to walk away first.

    It is about revenge and hatred, misery and violence. I wasn’t always this way even though it was in my blood. I grew up happy and in love with my best friend until she betrayed me and walked away. After that, I fell into the deep, dark world I was meant for. Presleigh Clarke's actions turned me into the ruthless man I am today. Too bad for her, I believe people should pay for the things they have done. The more painful and messy, the better. I get off on making people bleed. It feeds my inner demon, and right now, he is starving. She crossed me once, so now she’ll know what it’s like to fear me. But not all stories end the way you think they will … mine certainly didn’t.

    Two boys.One tragedy.Grief bonds us.The mystery of this murder will break us.My best friend was brutally ripped from this world, but her brother and boyfriend are still here.One of them wants to use me.The other wants to forget me.Both of them make me feel alive.We’ll find Violet’s murderer, no matter the cost.Two boys.One tragedy.Grief bonds us.Love will tear us apart.**This is an emotional forbidden romance with dark themes that might be triggering for some readers.

    -Ernest HemingwaySince day one, Celeste Logan has had a string of bad luck—no, scratch that. Her past is so tragic, anyone would think she’s been irrevocably cursed. But this is no paranormal story…it’s her real f*cking life.Fortunately, there are people in her life who make it worth living. Though the past will never be completely forgotten, she has moved on and beat the hell out of the statistics. But just when it seems things are about as good as they’re going to get, disaster strikes—again. Can what’s broken be fixed this time, or was she ever fully mended in the first place? And will the past catch up to her, or is the present what Celeste should fear most?

    I should've known that this was what life inside this dangerous club would be like, right?AaronHow the hell did I end up here? I was face to face and chest to chest with the one woman I was forbidden to touch. Strange, sexy, inexplicitly delicious, and just downright twisted events started to unfold when I meet Megan. I can't figure her out, but there is one thing she can't hide- her attraction to me. When Megan wiggles her way into my life, I discover that her quiet, good-girl persona is a cloak she uses to hide the twisted mind she harbors. A mind just as bent as mine.*** WARNING ***This book contains strong violence and sexual content and is intended for adults. If you are easily offended or squeamish about harsh or demeaning language, murder, and violence, this may not be the book for you.

    Later she discovers him hiding in her hayloft, escaped from virtual imprisonment since childhood by the carnival's evil owner. She shelters him on her farm, fighting a powerful sexual attraction while learning about his mysterious past and gentle nature. When a local child goes missing, Tom uses his psychic gifts to locate her, but his assistance in the case doesn't allay the town's mistrust of such an exotic stranger in their midst. Small-town prejudice tears the lovers apart and a very real threat from carnival owner Art Reed endangers them. Can they rise above obstacles of fear and hate to create the family both have always craved?

    This multi-award winning bestseller makes frequent appearances on Favorites lists and continues to stand the test of time. Callie Lawson is a small-town business owner with few plans that don’t involve a spreadsheet, a clipboard and a PowerPoint presentation. When Bryan Spencer, renegade rock star leader of the legendary band Storm Crow shows up in her store those plans are rapidly derailed. Bryan, reeling from the drug overdose death of his best friend and band mate has been exiled to the Alabama town before he succumbs to guilt and his self-destructive tendencies. LA sin and southern comfort collide in an explosive conflagration that neither is prepared for but are unable to resist. A passion this intense will not be denied, even when Bryan’s own personal Gollum steals away his newfound love. He’s prepared to do what it takes to get her back, even if it means taking on their worst enemy: the one within.

    A soft-spoken younger man with charm and good looks, Ryan leads a mysterious double life which becomes increasingly hard for him to conceal from Sara as their intimacy grows.

    The fact that Shane's in the military and away for long periods helps—but when tragedy strikes, everything changes.After Rachel, pregnant with her fourth child, dies in a car accident and the baby miraculously survives, Kate upends her entire life to share parenting duties. Then on the first anniversary of Rachel's death, Kate and Shane take comfort in each other in a night that they both soon regret.Shane's been angry for a year, and now he feels guilty too—for sleeping with his wife's best friend and liking it... liking her. Kate's ability to read him like a book may have once sent Shane running, but their lives are forever entwined and they are growing closer.Now with Shane deployed for seven months, Kate is on her own and struggling with being a single parent. Shane is loving and supportive from thousands of miles away, but his homecoming brings a betrayal Kate never saw coming. So Kate's only choice is to fight for the future she deserves—with or without Shane...