Book picks similar to
Cruel Beloved by T.L. Smith


cocky-hero-club
romance
contemporary-romance
audible

Throne of Power


Rina Kent - 2021
    In the mafia world, women don’t reign.I’m the exception of that rule.I didn’t choose this life, it chose me.I have a legacy to protect, a power to snatch, and no one will stop me.If an arranged marriage is what it’ll take to lead, then so be it.What I don’t count on is that my chosen husband is a ghost from my past.Kyle Hunter.He was once my guard, my protector. Now, he’s after my kingdom.The road to the throne is paved with thorns, blood, and casualties.To win, I’ll risk it all. My heart included.This book is part of a duet and is not standalone.

Smug Bastard


Stacey Marie Brown
    Me, my dog named Goat, and the open road. That’s all I wanted.He wasn’t supposed to be part of it. My older brother’s high school friend and my sister’s ex. The cocky boy my eleven-year-old-self hated. The infamous Smith Blackburn.AKA Smug Bastard.The guy every girl wanted to be with and every guy wanted to be.The day after graduation, he left town and disappeared, losing contact with my family. But nine years later, he resurfaces and becomes a thorn in my side once again.After his motorcycle breaks down, my older siblings convince me to let him ride home with me. Kyle wants his old buddy at his wedding, and Kasey, still carrying a torch for him, wants nothing more than to see him again, convinced they are meant to be. It’s the last thing in the world I want, but I learned long ago going up against the powerhouse twins is futile. After nine years, we’ve both grown up, but our mutual dislike lingers. Though I can’t deny he is the sexiest man I have ever seen in my life. His piercing blue eyes, gorgeous rugged face, and muscular, tall figure belong on magazine covers. But he’s still a smug bastard, and I’m still the annoying little “Baby K.”Spending every minute together in a tiny camper van starts to twist the lines of hate, igniting feelings and passions I’ve never felt before, shoving me out of my safety bubble. Tension grows, and nights are filled with strain and forbidden desire. But I can feel him holding back. Cagey and cryptic, Smith’s dark past hints at the surface.When it finds us, nothing could have prepared me for the truth—the secrets that flip everything upside down. I wasn’t supposed to fall for him. He was never meant to be mine.

The Forbidden


Jodi Ellen Malpas - 2017
    Annie has never experienced the 'spark' with a guy-the kind of instant chemistry that steals your breath and blindsides you completely. Until a night out with friends brings her face to face with the wickedly sexy and mysterious Jack. It's not just a spark that ignites between them. It's an explosion. Jack promises to consume Annie, and he fully delivers on that promise.Overwhelmed by the intensity of their one night together, Annie slips out of their hotel room. She is certain that a man who's had such a powerful impact on her and who could bend her to his will so easily, must be dangerous. But she's already in too deep. And Jack isn't only dangerous. He is forbidden.

Lucky Bastard


Kaylee Ryan - 2020
    Landon Barker, the quarterback for the Hermosa Beach Trojans, is a player on and off of the field. He’s got his sights set on me as his next play, but I see right through him. Aubrey says I’m overreacting, that I should give him a chance. What she doesn’t realize is men like Landon don’t fall for the girl next door. That’s not reality. She got her fairytale, although it was a long road. Not all of us are that lucky.Landon She’s a friend of our new kicking coach’s wife. When I ask Chance for her number, he tells me I have to find a way to get it myself. Nothing when it comes to Emma has been easy. She’s the first woman ever to turn me down, and that won’t do. However, as time passes, it’s about more than that. It’s about her smile, her laugh, and just spending time with her. She thinks I’m a player, and she’s right. What she doesn’t know is that I play to win, and her heart is the ultimate trophy.

A Veil of Vines


Tillie Cole - 2016
    Crowns, priceless jewels and gilded thrones belong only in childhood dreams.But for some, these frivolous fancies are truth. For some, they are real life. On Manhattan’s Upper East Side, people have always treated me as someone special. All because of my ancestral name and legacy. All because of a connection I share to our home country’s most important family of all.I am Caresa Acardi, the Duchessa di Parma. A blue blood of Italy. I was born to marry well. And now the marriage date is set. I am to marry into House Savona. The family that would have been the royals had Italy not abolished the monarchy in 1946. But to the aristocrats of my home, the abolition means nothing at all.The Savonas still hold power where it counts most.In our tight-knit world of money, status and masked balls, they are everything and more. And I am soon to become one of them.I am soon to become Prince Zeno Savona’s wife…… or at least I was, until I met Achille. And everything changed.

The Consequence of Falling


Claire Contreras - 2019
    Not even my soon-to-be ex-husband is on that list. Nope. I save only the worst of the worst, the crème de la crème, the absolute I cannot even for this list . . .1. Black coffee2. Rude people3. Nathaniel BradleyWhich is why when my father informs me that he’s making Nathaniel Bradley his new business partner, and in turn, my boss, I flip out. 1. He’s an annoying know-it-all. 2. He calls me a spoiled princess every chance he gets. 3. He disapproves of everything I do.I go into this knowing I’ll hate every second in his presence. Except the longer he’s around, the more I find myself staring at his lips and remembering the one time they were on mine. I randomly find myself looking at his hands and wondering how they’d feel on my skin. I try to snap out of it, but I guess I’m not as smart as I thought I was. No matter how many times I remind myself of the times I’ve practically thrown myself at him and he’s pushed me away, I keep falling little by little.I’d always heard that it was a bad idea to mix business with pleasure and if that’s the case, this thing with Nathaniel has demise written all over it.

The Devil Wears Black


L.J. Shen - 2021
    J. Shen comes a second-chance romance about love, loss, finding yourself, and getting lost in the right person.Maddie Goldbloom stitched up a plan to ensure everything in her life was perfect—from a career in fashion to a chic NYC apartment to a pediatrician boyfriend.When her ex, Chase Black, storms back into her life with an outrageous request, her immediate reaction is to refuse him. But he only wants to fulfill his father’s last wish. So even though he’s the man who broke her heart, playing his fiancée shouldn’t be hard, especially if it means she gets to watch the arrogant devil squirm a bit.What ensues is a chain of events that detonates Maddie’s life—and when Chase’s walls come down, they both are forced to face reality.They say keep your enemies close. But what if your enemy is also the man you love?

Faking It


K. Bromberg - 2019
    Bromberg—available in audio first! Zane Phillips mistook me for his dog walker. It shouldn’t surprise me that the man with a suit more expensive than my rent would assume that I was there to serve him. The positive? I put him in his place. The negative? I missed my job interview because of it. Now I find out he’s a rich Australian entrepreneur, and he wants to make up for tanking my interview. Yes, he’s impossibly hot – but he’s also an arrogant jackass—so . . . no thanks. But after a little white lie I tell spirals out of control, I’m somehow offered the chance to play Zane’s girlfriend to help promote his new dating website – and the best part? He can’t say no because he’ll get caught in his lie too. Little did I know this would entail sharing a tour bus with him for the next few months. The fact that the bus has just one bed isn’t the most ideal of circumstances, but this spokesperson gig might be the kick in the pants my career needs, so why not take a chance? Famous last words. Now I’m crisscrossing the country–and sharing that bed—with the one guy I can’t stand. And even worse, my traitorous body is wondering at every turn what it’s like to be down under the gorgeous Australian. But as the miles unfurl, so does our passion…and if I’m not careful, I might end up believing that fairytales really do come true.

About Tomorrow


Abbi Glines - 2020
    I take one very long and deep breath hoping to calm the immediate butterflies that take flight in my stomach and hope to slow down the racing of my heart. The voice was slightly deeper but the timbre was one that was achingly familiar.My actions did little to help, but then who was I kidding? A deep breath wasn't going to fix the effect he had on me and my body's inevitable reaction. Even the memories that would forever haunt me couldn't keep my emotions from triggering at the nearness of him once again.I used to pray that I'd find the strength to move on from him, from the pain that the end carried, from the emptiness in my chest, but ultimately move on from—the loss of Creed Sullivan and the death of his sister, Cora.The Sullivans had been the best part of my summers in New England.Deep down, I knew my ache for all that I had lost was the reason I returned...But I hadn't expected to see him again—especially not like this.

Royal Pain


Leslie Pike - 2020
    BelindaAs a political blogger living in Manhattan, I have no time to date. My few free hours are spent with best friend Soraya, and her husband Graham. Love has no place in this equation. Then Prince Zan walks into the coffee shop. He’s confident and different from other men, making it clear from our first conversation royal lineage won’t stand in his way.I know better than to be carried away by green eyes and soft lips.But if that’s the case, how did I end up in his bed?ZanMy dark past is a nightmare I can’t escape from. It was anything but easy to become a royal. Then I met Belinda. She might be a commoner, but there’s nothing at all common about this woman. One look is all it takes. Maybe if I bring her to my homeland she’ll be under its spell too.But the differences between our two worlds seem impossible to overcome. I refuse to ignore my duty and passion for my people, and Belinda won’t abandon her career. The right woman or destiny? Whatever it takes, I'm determined to have both.**Royal Pain is another steamy edition to the Cocky Hero Club series by author Leslie Pike. Opposites attract in this royal romance of choosing between love and duty. Follow your heart by devouring this passionate love story today!

Secret Keeper


Christopher Harlan - 2020
    Graham Morgan was my first boss, but soon after I was working with some of the most famous entrepreneurs, business moguls, and movie stars in the city. They trusted me because I always followed the cardinal rules:Never betray secrets. And never, under any circumstance, get personally involved.I’d never dreamed of violating my professional mantra.Not until she walked past me.The look we exchanged that night set my body on fire, and I knew right then and there that no matter the consequences, she was going to be mine. But she was one of them—off limits and out of my league, but she was the kind of woman who I was willing to risk everything for.I keep other people’s secrets for a living, but the biggest secret of all might be my own.

Ruthless Saint


S. Massery - 2021
    His gaze steals my breath.Even if my heart thinks this could work, my brain knows better.We say “I do” with his brother’s blood on our clothes,and the bars of my gilded cage slam closed.Our wedding vows are forever – ’til death do us part.But with enemies closing in from all sides, death might be closer than we think.Please note: this book contains dark content that some readers may find distressing.

Hotshot Deceiver


K.E. Osborn - 2020
    My father, an 80’s icon, and my siblings all celebrities in their own right. Then there’s me, Lyric Griffin, hiding in plain sight, trying to be everything I’m not.Along comes Eddie, someone I find myself completely attracted to. I’m simply Lyric to him, not a princess of rock. He’s gorgeous, a little cocky, and knows what he wants—me.But I made a mistake.I trusted him, and he betrayed me.Is Eddie nothing but a hotshot deceiver?The thing about secrets, they always come out in the end.From international bestselling author K E Osborn comes Hotshot Deceiver – a novel, based on Vi Keeland and Penelope Ward’s Cocky Bastard. Featuring Eddie, with guest appearances from Pixy, Chance, and Aubrey the characters you all know and love.

Cocky Carpenter


Maggie Mundy - 2020
    She can escape the cold English weather, her ex-husband and a stalker. A year to get her life back together and not have any romantic involvements.‘Love them and leave them wanting’ is Brett’s motto. That is until he sees Doctor Autumn Blake. This lady just might get through that tough layer he has built around himself.Can the sexual chemistry they feel be just that, or could it be more?Is one year long enough for these two people to forget their pasts and grab onto a chance of love or will they lose it forever.

Sexy Suit


J.H. Croix - 2020
    I swear. Also, my dog broke in first.Ryan Blake is jaw-dropping handsome, wealthy, and cocky. Not quite my type. By some miracle, he doesn't call the police on me when he catches me trying to rescue my dog. He even fetches a doctor for me. Don't ask why.I don't figure I'll see him again. Then, I do. Then, he kisses me. Once. Twice. Is three times the charm? To be honest, I swooned at the first kiss.All swooning aside, we are seriously opposites. I wear cowboy boots and skirts. He wears suits and ties. He's all New York City. I'm a Southern girl looking for a new start. We even talk at different speeds.The list of things I don't expect from Ryan is long. I don't expect him to think twice about me. I don't expect him to nearly bring me to my knees with a look. I don't expect him to be so much more than I ever imagined. I absolutely don't expect to fall for him. So hard I'm skidding sideways just to catch my balance.