Book picks similar to
Better Than You by Lauren Gilley


contemporary-romance
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Judged By You


Patricia Voois - 2013
    With her parents dead and her brother in jail it has left her broken. She pursues her dream of becoming a lawyer to bide her time but realizes that life isn't all about dreams.That's until Damon O'Conner walks into her life. He is everything shes not but sparks fly when they meet. Damon chases Savannah through every turn even though she fights it. It's all pleasure when Savannah finally lets down her guard and gives in to Damon. Neither of them can fight the inevitable between them even if they tried. But when the past catches up with one of them, everything they felt for each other will be questioned. Will this change their feelings for one another or will they be forced to judge?

Bayou Stix


Skye Turner - 2015
    Their onstage presence, chemistry with fans, and God-given talent have made this rock band, based out of Baton Rouge, Louisiana, a household name, but the real stories are the way into their hearts.

Breach


K.I. Lynn - 2013
    To keep myself safe I hide in the world and let life move around me.My new partner, Nathan, isn’t safe. Far from it.The darkness coils around him, hidden by a shield created by a blinding smile. But those who live in darkness see past the façade we create.Even in darkness, there is light. A spark that ignites, then explodes.Every filthy word from his mouth, every possessive touch—I crave them, need them. Violent and passionate and everything I need to fill the void inside me, but one thing is missing.He can never love me.More than my heart is on the line, and I don’t know if I’ll survive our breach.

The Strongest Steel


Scarlett Cole - 2015
    She's determined to forget her old life and is looking for an artist who can tattoo over the scars on her back.Trent Andrews, local legend and owner of the Second Circle tattoo studio, has his own reasons for specializing in inking over scars. And in spite of her mysterious past and the difficult road ahead, he quickly realizes that Harper is funny, smart, and--under her ridiculously oversized clothing and SPF 100 sunscreen--totally hot. He's happy to take on the challenge of designing a meaningful and deadly full-back tattoo for her.But when cryptic messages start appearing on Harper's phone, strange deliveries arrive at her door, and Second Circle is vandalized, Harper is convinced that her ex-boyfriend has tracked her down, and worse, that he knows about Trent. Running was the only thing that saved her last time, but now that she's started to put down roots in Miami, she'll have to decide if she can finally fight back instead.

Skin Deep


J.M. Stone - 2013
    What she didn’t plan on was ending up face-first on the floor of the shop with a busted lip. Or doing it in front of the hottest guy she’d seen since…well, ever.Mortified, Emma never thought she’d ever step foot back in Skin Deep again. But fate, with a little help from Emma’s flighty best friend and a chance encounter with a fudge bar, steps in. Now Emma’s torn between taking a chance on getting her heart broken by the enigmatic, gorgeous Lucas, and playing it safe with good ol’ trusty B.O.B. Lucas lets Emma know that he gets what he wants, and what he wants is her. When Emma gives in and quits pushing him away, she’s surprised at how quickly the walls around her heart crumble. She’s even more surprised that her unconventional, zany family just endears her even more to him.But no one knows there’s someone that wants her more, and they’ll stop at nothing to get her.Recommended for readers 18+ due to HOT sexual encounters, adult situations, and language.

Worth the Fall


Claudia Connor - 2014
    . . . Abby Davis isn’t wearing a skimpy bikini or sipping umbrella drinks, not when she’s busy chasing around four little ones. And Matt McKinney isn’t looking for fun—he’s a Navy SEAL, a grown man with a long list of missions . . . and fallen brothers.   They only have a week. . . . Abby has brought her children to this beach to start over, to give them the enjoyable memories they deserve. Matt’s been sidelined by a combat injury, and haunted by the best friend he lost and the promise he made: to remain a SEAL—focused and dedicated. This leaves no time for what he’s always wanted: a family.   But a week is all it takes. . . . Matt opens her heart while Abby soothes his soul. And though they plan to say good-bye when the week is over, something magical happens on that beach, something neither can forget. Something utterly, completely worth falling for.

Beautiful Disaster


Francette Phal - 2012
    They call it the “bet” and new girl Ellie Holbrook is their latest target. Ellie is not the kind of girl Nicholas dates, but she is pretty enough to be his next conquest and so he sets out to seduce her and claim a nice little prize at the end. But her seduction proves difficult when she openly rejects his advances. In his dogged pursuit of her he slowly finds himself in her small circle of trusted friends and meets her two year old daughter, Sophie.Life takes a startling turn for Nicholas when he realizes his happiness now lies with the young mother and her daughter. Falling in love with Ellie isn’t something Nicholas ever thought could happen to him and he’s completely frightened at how fiercely she makes him feel. But before he can further examine those emotions and clearly process them, enemies from Nicholas’s personal circle of friends conspire to tear them apart and he must now decide whether their love is worth saving or allow his friends to take away the greatest thing that’s ever happened to him.

Lost and Found


Lori L. Otto - 2010
    I was so taken by Nate and Emi’s love for each other. It’s the kind of love that few have and many desire but never get to experience.” - Megan, Reading Books Like a Boss Independent and sensitive, idealistic and hopeful, Emi Hennigan lives her life with optimism and an open mind. Between sharing a tiny Manhattan apartment with her fun-loving roommate and spending most of her free time with her heart-breaker friend, Emi’s seen enough failed relationships to know what to avoid in her quest to find her true love. Not only that, but a single moment from her past lingers in her mind, setting high expectations for every man she dates. Emi’s best friend, artist and hopeless romantic Nate Wilson, has been her closest companion all of their adult lives. After swearing off love with Emi in a silly high school pact, Nate has been seeing other women in hopes of finding one that evokes stronger feelings than the ones he’s been harboring for Emi since he was a teen. Over the span of a year, boundaries are crossed, feelings are confessed, and their unique friendship begins to blossom into something more. Through Nate’s eyes, an atypical romance unfolds, disrupting the comfortable safe haven their friendship has provided. With a promising future ahead of them both, fate intervenes to bring two soul mates together. Photography and cover design by Christi Allen Curtis, assisted by Katrina Boone

The Stuff That Never Happened


Maddie Dawson - 2010
    She’s been in a stable marriage that’s lasted almost three decades and has provided her with two wonderful children, thousands of family dinners around a sturdy oak table, and a husband so devoted that he schedules lovemaking into his calendar every Wednesday morning. Other wives envy the fact that Grant is not the type of man who would ever cheat on her or leave her for a younger woman. The trouble is Annabelle isn’t sure she wants to be married to Grant anymore. The trouble is she’s still in love with someone else. In the early tumultuous years of her marriage, Annabelle carried on a clandestine affair with the one person whose betrayal would hurt her husband the most. When it ended, she and Grant found their way back together and made a pact that they would never speak of that time again. But now years later, with her children grown and gone, and an ominous distance opening between them, she can’t help but remember those glorious, passionate days and wonder if she chose the right man. Then, when called to New York City to help care for her pregnant daughter, Annabelle bumps into her old lover. Offered a second chance at an unforgettable love, she must decide between the man who possesses her heart and the husband who has stood squarely by her side. A journey into the what-ifs that haunt us all, The Stuff That Never Happened is an intricate, heartfelt examination of modern marriage that brims with truths about the nature of romantic love.

The Edge of Darkness


Melissa Andrea - 2013
    I was in an accident I don’t remember… or maybe I don’t want to remember. Either way, every day since, has been… an adjustment and I’m left with a constant reminder that nothing is forever. Now, my life is a tangled web of darkness filled with deceit, hate, betrayal and lies. I don’t dwell on the past, I don’t regret and I don’t remember… I survive. But then I met Ryland Dare and he changed everything. He reminded me that life’s worth living and that remembering isn’t always a bad thing. You don’t know true darkness until you've felt light… On the outside looking in, some would say my siblings and I have had a pretty easy life. But beyond the fancy cars, the huge house and endless social events, is where the truth really lies. Power hungry father, defeated mother and fake friends? Yeah I have one of each. Then Araya Noelle comes along and shows me what I’ve been missing. She thinks I changed her life, but really, she saved mine. At the edge of darkness, you must DARE to HOPE. DARE to LOVE. DARE to LIVE

Wild Card


Karina Halle - 2017
    Rough, raw & rugged.As the man in charge at Ravenswood Ranch, Shane Nelson has never been afraid to get his hands dirty. His sculpted physique isn't the product of a gym, but of years of hard labor under a relentless sun. His straightforward, alpha tendencies come from a man who knows what he wants and goes after it.And what he wants is Rachel Waters.He's never stopped wanting her.They were childhood best friends, then teenage lovers who evolved into soulmates. But on one fateful night, Shane made a grave mistake, breaking both their hearts in the process.Now, after six years, Rachel is back in the small, wild mountain town of North Ridge, BC.Ready to face her past.Ready to face Shane.Ready to face his dark secret.But is a second-chance at a one true love in the cards? Or will their wild hearts be broken once again?WILD CARD is a complete standalone novel and the first book about the Nelson brothers of North Ridge.

Say You'll Stay


Corinne Michaels - 2016
    Instead, he got on that bus and took my heart with him.That was seventeen years ago.I moved on. Marriage. Kids. White picket fence. Everything I ever wanted, but my husband betrayed me and I was left once again.Alone, penniless, and with two boys, I had no choice but to return to Tennessee. He wasn’t supposed to be there. I should’ve been safe. However, fate has a way of stepping in.This time around, the tables are turned. It’s my decision. Second chances do exist, but I don’t know if we can repair what’s already been broken . . .

Crazy on You


Rachel Gibson - 2012
    Now Lily is happily single, and she's turned it all around. She knows she's a good mom, a homeowner, and a businesswoman, all wrapped up in one good-looking package.A package that police officer Tucker Matthews is dying to unwrap. This ex-military man sure doesn't need another woman in his life. His last girlfriend left him with nothing but memories and a cat named Pinky! But living next door to Lily has been driving him nuts. He dreams about her long blonde hair and even longer legs. And maybe it's time to go a little crazy . . . and fall in love.

Hope Over Fear


J.A. DeRouen - 2014
    I don’t deserve pity or sympathy. I’ve made my bed. I left Mason and ripped his heart to pieces as I ran away. The guilt and sorrow consume me, threatening to choke me everyday.But today is a new beginning. Today is the day I will wake up with a renewed resolve and determination to do better … to be better … to be worthy. My name is Sara Preston, and this is my story about what happens after.

The Reckless Oath We Made


Bryn Greenwood - 2019
    Almost six-foot, with a redhead's temper and a shattered hip, she has a long list of worries: never-ending bills, her beautiful, gullible sister, her five-year-old nephew, her housebound mother, and her drug-dealing boss.Zee may not be a princess, but Gentry is an actual knight, complete with sword, armor, and a code of honor. Two years ago the voices he hears called him to be Zee's champion. Both shy and autistic, he's barely spoken to her since, but he has kept watch, ready to come to her aid. When an abduction tears Zee's family apart, she turns to the last person she ever imagined--Gentry--and sets in motion a chain of events that will not only change both of their lives, but bind them to one another forever.A provocative love story between a tough Kansas woman on a crooked path to redemption and the unlikeliest of champions, from the New York Times bestselling author of All the Ugly and Wonderful Things.