Book picks similar to
Trying by Heather MacKinnon


second-chance
marriage
romance
emotional-cheating

Take Me Back


Meghan March - 2017
    It should have been perfect, but saying “I do” doesn’t guarantee a happily-ever-after.Two years later, I barely recognize either of us behind the walls we’ve built.It’s time to bring it full circle. Back to a tropical paradise. Back to find out if we can still make this work.I’m not willing to give her up, but to save us, I have to risk everything. Two damaged people. Countless secrets. The fight of our lives.We might be broken, but we’re not done.

The Failed Marriage


Carole Mortimer - 1983
    After all, it was nearly a year since Joanna had denied him access to her bed and body. Yet it seemed only yesterday that their fragile love had shattered with the death of their only child."I'm taking Angela to the States, " he had stated coldly, "and you must find yourself a lover, too!" That he demanded a year away with someone else, and the same for Joanna, was hurtful.But the rekindling of desire between her and Joshua right before his departure troubled Joanna most of all... .

Hopeful


Louise Bay - 2014
    . . and I can’t give up hope that it might have been true. How long does it take to get over your first love?Eight years should be long enough. My mind knows that, but there’s no convincing my heart.Guys like Joel weren't supposed to fall for girls like me. He had his pick of women at University, but somehow the laws of nature were defied and we fell crazy in love.After graduation, Joel left to pursue his career in New York. He wanted me to go with him but my life was in London. We broke up and my heart split in two.I haven’t seen or spoken to him since he left.If only I’d known that I’d love him this long, this painfully, this desperately. I might have said yes all those years ago. He might have been mine all this time in between.Now, he’s moving back to London and I need to get over him before he gets over here.But how do I forget someone who gave me so much to remember?

Fateful Fighter


Kathy Coopmans - 2020
    No woman who is still in love with her husband anyway. Our marriage has been tested, repeatedly. It’s been dragged through tabloids and rumors and fans that just won’t let us be. Through it all, we’ve remained unbreakable.We didn’t have the perfect marriage because perfection doesn’t exist.But we had love. We had trust. We had chemistry that to this day sets everything inside meon fire. Then one life-threatening statement creates a chain of lies that leaves me no choice but to say those horrible words. I never thought I’d say them. I never thought my husband would ignore me when I did.I never thought the man I love would sever the vows we took.I never thought I’d pack my bags and move from our home in L.A. to our getaway cottage in Hermosa Beach.Then again, I never thought he'd choose the fate of his life over his fate with me.

Lexi, Baby


Lynda LeeAnne - 2012
    She is madly in love with her sexy, drop-your-panties-at-first-sight, hottie boyfriend who is equally in love with her; more like downright obsessed. He treats her like she is his heart; like he needs her to exist; like he would do anything in his power to make her happy.Lexi knows Landyn James loves her just as much as she loves him, if not more. Deep down, she also knows high school sweethearts aren’t expected to last, but their relationship is different. They are soul mates. Their connection is unbreakable.What could possibly go wrong when you have love like that...?Everything.What will the future hold...?Only time will tell.Author's Note: Contains Adult Content – Namely, a teenager-turned-woman with a very dirty mouth and fiery temper that may or may not know how to throw a punch. Also includes hot and steamy scenes, and a small glimpse into physical/verbal abuse.

One Night


K.L. Humphreys - 2018
    I didn’t expect to walk in on my boyfriend cheating on me. I shouldn’t have slept with my brother’s best friend. I shouldn’t have ran once it was over. But I did, and now I’m back with a secret that will change all of our lives. I want a happily ever after… But that may not happen. Jaxon: One night and she’s ruined me. I slept with my best friends little sister, the one girl I’ve wanted for a long time. It was the best night of my life. She’s back with a bang and the whole town's talking. I need her in my life, but the people trying to sabotage us are making it hard for me to get her. She’s all I want and I won’t stop until I get her.

We're Made of Moments


Molly McLain - 2021
     Jesse She was never mine to keep, but I took every second that girl was willing to give me.I always knew she’d go back to him.But I never expected she’d take a piece of me with her. -- Hayden He changed my life forever, and it happened long before our two weeks together.I didn’t mean to fall for him.But how could I not when he gave me the most precious gift of all?

With Me


Gabbie S. Duran - 2014
    Kasey was left with the consequences of her decision when Joseph left her behind, leaving for the Marine Corps. She never thought she would see Joseph again, leaving her to continue on with her life, moving forward. But fate has a way of intervening …Joseph Mitchell always lived with the regret of walking away that night, never to see Kasey again. Finally ready to settle down, he’s now engaged to someone else. But when he finds Kasey again, he learns of a secret she’s been keeping, a secret that will change both their lives forever. Can they finally have the relationship they never had? Or will Joseph be forced to walk away again?

Every Wrong Reason


Rachel Higginson - 2015
    She thought she had her happily ever after. But seven years into Kate’s marriage, she realizes that her husband Nick is not what she wanted. He’s selfish, he’s oblivious and he doesn’t love her anymore.Maybe she doesn’t love him anymore either.Divorce is the only option if either of them wants to find happiness.Kate and Nick thought they knew what they wanted, but neither is prepared for the heartache that separating will bring them. The journey they embark on is not the freedom they wished for, but a painful look at the people they’ve become.At the end of it, Kate has to decide if this is really the life she wants or if maybe there’s a way to salvage her broken heart.

Hotshot


Ahren Sanders - 2016
    I don’t remember a time I didn’t love Crenshaw Bennett.I tried to deny it, but my feelings grew deeper.I thought he could never love me the way I love him.I was wrong—outrageously, deliriously, and beautifully wrong.One innocent kiss changes my life forever.Suddenly, Shaw is mine.Loyal, devoted, and the most loving man on this Earth.Together, we create an explosion of fiery passion, devotion, and chemistry I never knew was possible.All of my dreams are within reach, but I should have known it was too good to be true.The past always catches up to you, and I’m left staring at my worst nightmare.Faced with the unthinkable, I am forced to choose between the man I love and a past I cannot change.Shaw’s fighting like hell to prove we can have it all, but can I find the strength to be the woman he needs?

Forsaking Gray


K.L. Kreig - 2015
    Deception. Betrayal.Within less than twenty-four hours of proposing to the love of Gray's life, Liva disappeared. No note. No trace. No explanation. Nothing. Now, five years later, she’s resurfaced and Gray will stop at nothing to make Livia his again. But is love enough to forgive an unforgivable wrong?Livia had less than sixty seconds to make a decision that would change her life forever. She sacrificed. She suffered. She survived. Now that she's back, she's determined that no one ever discover her shameful secret - especially the only man she's ever loved. But will hiding the past destroy her future?

Snow-Kissed


Laura Florand - 2013
    After the utter destruction of her marriage and her happiness, Kai knew it was better to shut herself away from the world than to hurt and be hurt. Holed up in her mountain cabin, she planned to spend her Christmas alone. Until her not-quite-ex-husband shows up as the first flakes start to fall. Now should she send him back out into the cold? Or can she be brave enough to let this winter snow bind them back together?(A novella of 34,000 words. Approx. 130 pages.)

The Greek Tycoon's Pregnant Wife


Anne Mather - 2007
    but what about their baby?Five years ago, Jane's marriage to Demetri Souvakis ended. Devastated and betrayed, she left him and started a new life. Now Demetri needs an heir and demands a divorce. But they have one last night together--for old times' sake....However, that one last loving has dramatic results. How can Jane tell her soon-to-be-ex-husband that she's pregnant with his child?

Accidentally on Purpose


L.D. Davis - 2012
    She does the unthinkable after a night of drinking and sleeps with him.She tries to put the enormous mistake behind her, but Kyle mercilessly pursues Emmy despite her new relationship with Luke Kessler and Kyle's long-standing girlfriend Jessyca.When Emmy's resistance begins to crack, she makes a series of bad decisions that result in heartbreaking, life-altering, and even devastating consequences.

Blind Kiss


Renee Carlino - 2018
    Fourteen years ago, this shop was her childhood dance studio... Now she’s a suburban housewife, dreading the moment her son departs for MIT, leaving her with an impeccably decorated McMansion and a failing marriage. She had her chance at wild, stars-in-her-eyes happiness, but that was a lifetime ago. After The Kiss. Before The Decision.The Kiss was soulful. Magical. Earth-shattering, And it was all for a free gift card. Asked to participate in a psych study that posed the question, “Can you have sexual chemistry without knowing what the other person looks like?” Penny agreed to be blindfolded, make polite conversation with a total stranger, and kiss him. She never expected The Kiss to change her life forever and introduce her to Gavin: tattooed, gorgeous, and spontaneous enough to ask her out seconds after the blindfolds came off.For a year, they danced between friendship and romance—until Penny made The Decision that forced them to settle for friendship. Now, fourteen years later, both of their lives are about to radically change—and it’s his turn to decide what will become of their once-in-a-lifetime connection."