Book picks similar to
Smoke and Sugar (Small Town Sparks #2) by Bel Blackwood
age-gap
ice-queen
ku
lawyers
The Space Between
Maggie Robbins - 2021
Committed to her extraordinary mission, life on that little blue planet feels a bit irrelevant. That is until she meets Dr. Carter.Dr. Daphne Carter’s exemplary two-decade tenure studying astronauts has come to an exciting climax, as she prepares to venture to space for the very first time. A woman of science, Daphne is all work and no play, but while collaborating alongside the beautiful and charming Ruby, she finds herself beginning to unravel.The two can’t deny it. There’s chemistry between them, as hot as the ignited rocket engines on a space shuttle. As perfect as they may seem for one another, their secret romance brings back pieces of a past Daphne fought desperately to forget, and threatens the careers that she and Ruby have worked their entire lives for…
When You Least Expect It
Haley Cass - 2020
First, she is going to be Boston's most sought after divorce attorney by thirty-five. Second, given how terrible her romantic track record is, falling in love isn't in the cards for her. And third, Christmas only brings her bad luck - being broken up with not once, not twice, but three times during the holidays is proof enough of that.When she runs into Hannah Dalton on Christmas Eve, she has no reason to believe her luck will change. After all, though Hannah is probably the most gorgeous woman she’s ever seen, she’s also straight. And married to Caroline’s work rival.While being hired by Hannah throws her for a loop, winning a divorce case and sticking it to her ex-colleague should be enough of a thrill. But as the months slip by, bringing her closer to both Hannah and her adorable daughter Abbie, the lines between attorney and client begin to blur. And she could have never predicted just how much she wants them to.74,500 words
Flashbang
Lee Winter - 2015
No one’s watching two entertainment reporters–knockabout Iowa girl Lauren King and her secret lover, Caustic Queen Catherine Ayers–as they celebrate their last night together in LA in erotic style. A sexy slice from The Red Files universe.
Paper Love
Jae - 2018
Freiburg is too provincial for her taste, and besides, pen and paper are outdated anyway.Anja Lamm, Paper Love’s only full-time employee, takes an instant dislike to the arrogant, digital-loving snob who’s supposed to be her temporary boss.But thanks to a meddling cat, a business trip to a stationery fair, and an armada of origami boats, Anja soon starts to see beneath Susanne’s aloof exterior, and Susanne discovers how sexy pens and notebooks can be—at least when Anja handles them.As the end of Susanne’s three-month stay approaches, will she stick to her plan to leave, or will she open her heart to more than just paper love?Themes: enemies to lovers · geek romance · office romance · set in Germany · workplace romance89,000 words
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
Don't Cry for Me
Rachel Lacey - 2020
The recipe for ratings gold...or heartbreak?Eve Marlow has her eyes on the prize: a third season of her popular business makeover show, Do Over. But when her ratings take an unexpected dive, Eve needs a blockbuster new client, or she can kiss season three goodbye. She has her work cut out for her, and that's before she discovers a litter of newborn kittens in a trash can. Now she's desperate to find someone to take them so she can concentrate on reviving her career.Josie Swanson had to put her kitten rescue on the back burner when she inherited her father's bar two years ago. Since then, she's invested all her time and energy into keeping it afloat, but despite her best efforts, Swanson's is going under. When she gets a phone call from Eve Marlow, host of the television show Josie applied to earlier that year, the woman she's convinced can save her bar, Josie hopes her luck has finally turned.Eve knows what she needs to succeed, and it isn't Josie--or her bar. There's no denying the chemistry sizzling between them, though. Josie's personality is as vibrant as her turquoise-tipped hair. She stirs things in Eve that haven't been stirred in a long time, but there's a reason she keeps her heart under lock and key. Eve stands to lose a lot more than her TV show if she lets her guard down, no matter how tempted she is to see if Josie's love would be worth the risk.
L.A. Metro
R.J. Nolan - 2011
Kimberly Donovan’s life is in shambles. After her medical ethics are questioned, first her family, then her closeted lover, the Chief of the ER, betray her. Determined to make a fresh start, she flees to California and L.A. Metropolitan Hospital.Dr. Jess McKenna, L.A. Metro’s Chief of the ER, gives new meaning to the phrase emotionally guarded, but she has her reasons.When Kim and Jess meet, the attraction is immediate. Emotions Jess has tried to repress for years surface. But her interest in Kim also stirs dark memories. They settle for friendship, determined not to repeat past mistakes, but secretly they both wish things could be different.Will the demons from Jess’s past destroy their future before it can even get started? Or will L.A. Metro be a place to not only heal the sick, but to mend wounded hearts?
Sweet Temptation
Spencer Pearson - 2020
Harper, the woman she'd been crushing on for the last three years.After five years of teaching accounting at the same college as her brother, Lauren Harper was finally settling in.She'd left behind a high paying, high stress job at an accountancy firm, and although teaching didn't pay nearly as well, she was starting to enjoy the simpler things in life, like sipping on a whiskey while she played cards at a local casino.When one of her students sits down at her poker table, it piques Lauren's curiosity. It wasn't unusual for students and teachers to mix in such a small town, but for some reason, she didn't expect to see Riley playing poker.Lauren had been badly burned by a student in the past, and there was no way she was going there again.No way. Under no circumstances.That's what Lauren keeps telling herself anyway, but as the two get to know one another, Lauren finds herself being drawn to the younger woman.How bad would it really be to date a student?
It's Not a Date
Heather Blackmore - 2018
Entrepreneur and innovator Kadrienne Davenport gets results. A demanding executive and stickler for punctuality, Kade throws herself into work to avoid hurting anyone, convinced she only causes pain to those she loves. When Jennifer Spencer meets an incognito Kade at a conference, sparks fly. But when Kade unexpectedly becomes her boss, Jen’s problems multiply. The company she founded is going broke, her grandmother’s dementia is worsening, and her attraction to Kade―her difficult, brilliant, charismatic mentor―is growing. Kade’s desire to keep things professional between them is in Jen’s best interest. Yet what’s in Kade’s best interest…is Jen.
Steal My Heart
Marian Snowe - 2020
Taking over her late parents’ company has been hard enough; now some uppity consultant has swanned in and is driving Irene crazy—in every sense of the phrase.Liana Page is smug, condescending, and maddeningly gorgeous. She and Irene form an instant rivalry where every conversation is a battle for the upper hand...and it’s starting to look dangerously like seduction. Something suspicious is going on within Irene’s company, though. Irene refuses to turn a blind eye, especially once she finds out that Liana is involved.Can Irene and Liana get to the bottom of it without ripping off each other’s heads—or clothes?
Sealed with a Kiss: A Lesbian Love Story (Lesvos Island Collection)
Sam Skyborne - 2020
Finding Jessica Lambert
Clare Ashton - 2020
Returning to London for the premiere of her latest film, she’s recognised everywhere she goes. When she runs away through the streets of London, she’s taken in by the beautiful and more mature Anna. The two hide in the sanctuary of Anna’s roof-top flat, a haven away from the crowds, but why has Anna removed herself from the world?As the two women get to know each other, stripping away the layers, both appreciate what each does for the other. This could be the start of something wonderful, more than either of them know.113,000 words
When She Thaws
Lily Craig - 2019
After her beloved mother has a health scare, Sadie decides it’s finally time to see the world. So, Sadie crosses the Atlantic to work as an au pair for a year. Austria’s supposed to be nice: chocolate, beer, and scenic mountain ranges beckon. She’ll figure out teaching and living with an Austrian family along the way. Inga Weber trusts only herself. Ever since her husband of twenty years left her for an Instagram model, Inga’s opted to homeschool her three children. Better keep them close so they can’t get hurt. Except it turns out it’s hard to keep an au pair on staff when Inga’s expectations tower higher than the Alps. Exercises, punctuality, and rigor grind down even the best candidates. When Sadie arrives at Inga’s doorstep, her fate seems clear. She’ll be sacked like the rest of them, inadequate in the face of precise demands. Except something about Sadie’s warm smile and caring green eyes makes Inga falter. Though the two diverge in their approaches to life, maybe this time, it’s different. Maybe this time, Inga’s met someone who can melt her frozen heart.
Fake It
Lily Seabrooke - 2021
She’s staying optimistic, though: she’s confident she can fake it till she makes it, roll with the punches, and find a way to save her luxury restaurant, Paramour.But it gets harder when she gets restaurant mogul and star chef Mike Wallace angry, and finds herself on the other end of a campaign to shut down Paramour.Celebrity chef Holly Mason’s show is in trouble: people are bored with her routine of helping struggling restaurants. Worse, her ex-boyfriend Mike Wallace is making backdoor deals trying to steal the starring role.Luckily, Holly’s agent Tay has a solution: ditch her show plans for the season, throw their lot in with luxury restaurant Paramour against Mike Wallace’s racketeering operation of a restaurant partnership. The cherry on top? A fake relationship between Holly and Avery to stir up drama.It would already be a mess if Holly and Avery weren’t already struggling to hold back their attraction for one another. Despite their promise not to date, the lines between acting and reality get awfully blurry sometimes.Fake It is an 80,000-word fake-dating celebrity romance between a disillusioned TV cooking star and a bright-eyed restaurant owner who’s sure she can manifest a solution to her hard times if she believes hard enough. Features an agent named Tay who calls their brilliant ideas “inspir-Tay-tion,” plenty of descriptions of food that made me hungry while I wrote the book, and a cute bisexual trans girl who gets to fall in love. Content warnings for open-door sex scenes that get a little bit kinky, a gross man who won’t stop calling his ex-girlfriend babe, and sapphics getting in the way of their own feelings, like they always do.
Cougar Boss
Kerry Belchambers - 2019
A last-minute interview lands her a challenging but fruitful job at Amelia Gallagher's mansion and immediately, intimidation sets in. An unpredictable spark of passion intertwines her with the Queen of the Gallagher palace, Amelia Gallagher herself, and an incredible journey of destructive passion and a secret love affair changes her entire life, opening her up to a dangerous world of blackmail, manipulation, heartbreak and most of all, vast wealth.