It can also be an exchange, a betrayal, an assault, a promise, a hope...or it could be a goodbye. The intimacy of a kiss cannot be denied. Whether shared, stolen or simply dreamed of, its recipient will be affected. Thirty-one stories by authors from around the world will tease your imagination as you anticipate ‘The Kiss’ in each weird or wonderful tale. This cross-genre anthology contains stories by Kate Aaron, Saxon Andrew, Jacques Antoine, Alison Blake, E. B. Boggs, Shirley Bourget, Ben Cassidy, Jason Deas, Sharon Delarose, Meghan Ciana Doidge, Suzy Stewart Dubot, Corrie Fischer, Brandon Hale, Traci Tyne Hilton, Colleen Hoover, Mona Ingram, J. L. Jarvis, Elizabeth Jasper, Anna J. McIntyre, Jess Mountifield, C. A. Newsome, S. Patrick O'Connell, Suzie O'Connell, Jeanette Raleigh, J. R. C. Salter, Molly Snow, Holli Marie Spaulding, Cleve Sylcox, Robert Thomas, Chris Ward and George Wier. 130,000 words

    Turns out her ‘hero’ is a former lifeguard who has no hesitation in offering the kiss of life. So not happening, right? But for emotionally chastened Chelsea, one touch changes everything. She discovers a desire to satisfy this arrogant, demanding tease. Unable to express her own fantasies, she finds unspeakable pleasure in serving his.Xander Lawson exudes easy charm. He likes a woman unafraid to match his appetite for unfettered fun. He doesn’t do complicated or emotional. But the raw need emanating from fragile Chelsea compels him closer. He can’t resist spinning a sensual fantasy world around them. As passion spills outside their carefully selected boundaries, Xander learns Chelsea’s stronger than he first thought. But is she strong enough to handle the intensity he’s always kept hidden?

    But when her carefully constructed life crumbles around her, Autumn's forced to return to the small southern town that never let her forget she came from the wrong side of the tracks. Jude Southerland, the town doctor, is used to taking care of people and with a pedigree that has the Ladies Auxiliary reaching for their fans, he’s easily the town’s most eligible bachelor – a status he has no intention of changing. That is until he almost runs down the Maddox girl he never noticed in school and suddenly finds her lush curves, dark curls and blue eyes consuming his thoughts, day and night. Autumn would like nothing more than to live happily ever after with Jude. But with every local matron in the valley trying to marry him off to their own daughters, she knows they won’t let her forget that she's not good enough and never will be. With the chance to finally find happiness, can she overcome her family history and find the confidence she needs to believe in herself or will she let love pass her by?

    Now she must leave her friends and family to enter a protection program on Emerson Ranch. A group of good-looking cowboys awaits her, but Reese has her eye on Blake Emerson, the one man too busy with the ranch to give her a chance. Blake Emerson has no time to go lookin' for love. He's got a ranch to run, positions to fill, and an ache in his heart from love gone wrong. So when he agrees to harbor a witness to help on the ranch, Blake assumes his first two problems are solved. But he never dreamed his new guest would be a woman. One he was destined to lose his heart to. With sparks burning hot and danger around the bend, one question lingers in his mind: Has he only added to his list of troubles, or has Blake just found the woman of his dreams?

    So she ended up letting Cooper sweet talk her into a night of scorchingly hot sex…so what? She’d never betray her family. But Josephine is shocked when she finds Cooper pursuing her with increasing passion, acting jealous when other men hit on her, and shadowing her every move. Is he really falling for the feisty, plus sized beauty, or is it all part of a greater scheme – a scheme which could put her life in danger?

    I ended my day with a bottle of tequila. I'll let you connect the dots.Somehow, I wound up working as a waitress at an Italian restaurant. I have no idea what I'm doing. And I'm not just talkin' about life.This should be interesting.Previously published as Tales of a New York Waitress

     After growing up in a dying town, with only two restaurants, no movie theater, and no future, waitress Cassidy Simon wants out. For once, luck is on her side when the oil boom comes to South Texas. She’s determined to use it for her advantage, starting up an RV park for the oilfield workers to add to her escape fund. She’s never been out of Texas, and she’s itching for adventure. Grady McKenna couldn’t get away from his family’s ranch fast enough when he was a teenager, but a tour in the Air Force in the Middle East is enough to convince him there’s no place like home. He’s seen the world, had his adventure. Now he’s ready to contribute to his family’s legacy in Evansville. Naturally, the woman who draws his attention is the one intent on slipping through his fingers. How can he convince her life with him will be all the adventure she needs?

    She slings insults with precision, not caring about the destruction she leaves in her wake. We clash in a battle of wills every time we’re around each other, and yet… I still fantasize about being lodged deep within her body.Clash (verb): to come together or collideI have never encountered someone that grates me the way Cal Carson does. His pompous, arrogant demeanor. A holier-than-thou attitude. Any interaction with “Saint Cal” ends in a verbal clash of epic proportions, and yet… there’s no one I’d rather have in my bed than him.Clash (noun): a battle, fight or skirmishHer breathy moans mingle with the sound of our flesh coming together, clashing with the silence that surrounds us, dispelling any notions I once had about Macy Carrington.Maybe I can break down her walls if we can call a truce to this battle.He whispers filthy words in my ear, provoking feelings I never knew were possible. The burning desire in his touch clashes with everything I once believed about Cal Carson.Maybe he can be the balm I need to soothe my broken soul, if only temporarily.**Cal and Macy’s story is a trilogy within the Legal Affairs series. All three books—Clash, Grind and Yield—must be read in order. You do not have to read the other Legal Affairs books to understand this trilogy.

    WILDE RIDERS can be read as a STAND ALONE NOVEL or as part of the SERIES.Cooper Wilde spent his entire adolescence counting the days until he could escape rural northwest New Jersey. Now at 26, he can't believe he's coming back. But his late father's bar, Haymakers, is in financial trouble and his older brother, Jake, has asked for Cooper's help.Riley Smith, 25, is fresh out of her Ivy League MBA program and wants to make an impression on her employer, H & C Bank. Her first solo assignment is a fraud investigation on a business loan they made to Haymakers.Even though Old Town is less than 90 minutes from New York City, Riley feels like she's stepped into another world in this remote, one-bar town. Riley can't wait to do her business and get back to the city as quickly as her sports car will take her...until she meets Cooper Wilde. He's not like the other guys in this rural town and Riley feels inexplicably attracted to him.UPCOMING BOOKS in the OLD TOWN COUNTRY ROMANCE series:The Wilde One (Tucker's Story)A Wilde Night (Hunter's Story)Wilde Times (Jake's Story)

    Holly is working overtime, cold and lonely and broke. Across the hall, Declan is lonely too, and thinking this Christmas is going to be a joke. Then one blustery night Holly’s car won’t start and Declan is there to help with a little love in his heart. Open this gift from bestselling author Jasinda Wilder to find out if a single mother of two can let herself fall in love with her sexy-as-hell workaholic boss.

    Now, she’s running from her old life. Not sure where else to go, she decides to move back to Laurel, where she plans to renovate the farmhouse her grandmother left her. She has a new job and is looking forward to a new start in life. The last thing she expects is to bump into her old high school flame.Cole Montgomery knows what it’s like to run from something. Due to an unfortunate case of being in the wrong place at the wrong time, he felt he had no choice other than to leave Laurel and the girl he loved right after high school graduation. But now it’s eight years later and he’s back. And by some strange twist of fate, she’s back too. Cole is determined to right his wrongs. Even if it means finally telling Sarah the real reason he broke her heart. He needs her to know that he only wanted to keep her safe then as well as now. Because the truth is, he’s still worried his past will come back to haunt them both. What he doesn’t know is that Sarah’s past haunts her too. Winning her back might be the easy part. It’s keeping her safe that might be a challenge.

    I never put much thought into it. Not until the minute I heard her take her first breath. That little girl is my world. I'd do anything to protect her. My ex signed over her rights and her family vowed that my daughter didn't exist. Now that she's gone, they want my little girl. They're trying to say I can't give her what she needs. I've known Evan all my life. Our families farms run parallel with each other. He and my brother Aaron have been best friends for as long as I can remember. What they're trying to do is wrong. He needs my help, someone he can trust and I'm more than happy to do it. I volunteered without hesitation. I should have thought about what it would be like to have our lives intertwined. I should have thought about what would happen when our time together ended and how my heart would feel when I had to walk away.

    She hides away in her lab in Atlanta, burying herself in her work...until a call from a stranger drags her out of the city and into the wilderness.Former oil man Russ Tyler has made his billions and bought himself a stud farm in Wyoming. He needs Amanda to treat a feral horse high in the mountains...but that means persuading the timid beauty to trek there with him on horseback.Amanda's used to soy lattes, not camping out under the stars with a gorgeous, muscled cowboy. Can Russ convince her that he loves her curves...and wants her to have his children?

    Marisa Rutherford has actually returned to care for her mother, who's suffering from Alzheimer's disease, and to run her mother's cafe. But when the town is sold in an eBay auction, it could mean the end of Agua Dulce as Marisa and the other nine residents know it.Terry Ledger is a high-rolling real estate developer who knows a good deal when he sees it. Though purchasing a remote town in West Texas on eBay sounds crazy, this serene hamlet actually holds much promise as a hub for travelers. Unfortunately, the citizens don't share in his vision. To win them over to his side, Terry must curry favor with the town's unofficial leader, feisty Marisa, who fiercely guards her hometown and her recently broken heart. With different plans for the future of Agua Dulce, they find themselves agreeing on one thing--an undeniable attraction that could change their lives forever.

    She must save her home, Beargrass Hills Ranch. She also has no time for men. She already is boot-deep in blue-eyed cowboy trouble.City-boy, Cordell Morgan, isn't who he seems. His fancy suit and slow smile hide dark secrets. Secrets as to why his hands are callused, why he never stays around and why he has really come to Marietta, Montana.Between a shrewd old rancher, a cantankerous rodeo horse and a stud bull called Trouble, Payton and Cordell have no chance to lead separate lives. No matter how much their futures may depend upon them doing so.Can a sassy cowgirl lower her guard for a man who will soon be gone? And can a man who believes emotions are nothing but a liability take the ultimate risk?Wildflower Ranch SeriesBook 1: Cherish Me, CowboyBook 2: Her Mistletoe CowboyBook 3: Her Big Sky CowboyBook 4: His Outback CowgirlBook 5: Hold Me, CowboyBook 6: His Christmas Cowgirl   The 75th Copper Mountain Rodeo seriesBook 1: Tempt Me, Cowboy by Megan CraneBook 2: Marry Me, Cowboy by Lilian DarcyBook 3: Promise Me, Cowboy by CJ Carmichael (also the first book of The Carrigans of Circle C series)Book 4: Take Me, Cowboy by Jane PorterThe 76th Copper Mountain Rodeo seriesBook 1: Tease Me, Cowboy by Rachael JohnsBook 2: Cherish Me, Cowboy by Alissa Callen Book 3: Kiss Me, Cowboy by Melissa McClone Book 4: Please Me, Cowboy by Megan CraneThe 77th Copper Mountain Rodeo seriesBook 1: Claim Me, Cowboy by Charlene SandsBook 2: Hold Me, Cowboy by Alissa CallenBook 3: Keep Me, Cowboy by Nicole HelmBook 4: Choose Me, Cowboy by Barbara Ankrum