Book picks similar to
Texas Roots by Jean Brashear


romance
contemporary-romance
western
freebie

Diamonds and Cole


Micheal Maxwell - 2013
    In the past, Cole a Pulitzer Prize winning journalist, worked for The New York Times, The Wall Street Journal, and Time Magazine. Now, he’s returned to the paper where he started his career, The Chicago Sentinel. Instead of writing the big stories, he’s doing the work of a rookie reporter. His “big story of the day” is a cat caught in a tree. During its rescue, the cat’s owner takes her Good Samaritan neighbor hostage. Cole witnesses something so disturbing it reawakens the journalist’s desire to write again.Returning to the paper, Cole finds a desperate message asking for help from Ellie, one that got away. The one that has continually haunted his life. Cole drops everything and flies to California. He must find what would make her so desperate, she would call him after so many years. Cole finds her terminally ill, and abandoned by her husband. He discovers while Ellie was heavily medicated, she mistakenly signed a Power of Attorney. Now her estranged daughter Erin’s inheritance, won’t go to her, but her abusive step-father. Cole vows to find the girl and right the situation.The path to keeping his word is blocked at every turn by the husband who abandoned her, his shady real estate deals, violent con men, street thugs and the lure of a fortune in diamonds that unite them. The anger, sorrow, and crippling guilt of twenty years fires Cole's drive to keep a promise, that in the end, will heal and return the soul to the great journalist.Beaten, bloody but determined, Cole Sage conquers greed and hatred with a strength that only love, and a will as hard as diamond, can achieve.

My Paper Heart


Magan Vernon - 2012
    Dating one of the hottest guys in the biggest fraternity? Done. Failing out of College? Oops... When Libby Gentry's parents receive the letter that she's failed out of school, Libby is forced to pack her Prada bag and head to work for her great aunt in rural Louisiana. Nothing about tiny Elsbury, Louisiana, entices her until she locks eyes with the southern charmer, Blaine Crabtree. Libby is used to getting what she wants and Blaine is no exception, but as the two grow closer, bigger problems arise. Libby doesn't know how much more pain her already paper-thin heart can take and when new opportunities in Chicago pop up she is presented with a difficult situation: wait for her redneck Romeo, or move on.

The Doctor's Secret Bride


Ana E. Ross - 2012
    Can love and forgiveness reunite them?Michelle Carter has been down on her luck since the day she was born. So it comes as no surprise when through a series of unfortunate events, she finds herself jobless, penniless, and practically homeless. In a desperate attempt to get back on her feet, Michelle accepts a job as a nanny and finds it absolutely impossible to resist her handsome, sexy billionaire boss—but resist she must for as long as she could, especially since she’s keeping secrets from him. Believing that his late wife betrayed him with another man, falling in love again is the last thing Dr. Erik LaCrosse wants to do. But fall, he does, and so hard, he secretly marries the alluring nanny from the wrong side of the tracks. However, when he unearths a disturbing secret from Michelle’s past, Erik must choose between his loyalty to a dead woman and the love burning in his heart for one who is very much alive.

Secret Words


Miranda P. Charles - 2013
    But Jasmine had a secret she wasn't at all comfortable sharing with anyone, least of all, the hunky guy who was literally sweeping her off her feet.Kane Summers was a sucker for damsels in distress. When he found himself wanting to protect Jasmine Allen in more ways than one, the instant chemistry they had for each other hit him squarely in the chest. But Kane's life was complicated, and he wasn't totally free to act on the fascination he felt for her.Kane and Jasmine were fighting a losing battle to stay away from each other. But circumstances--and certain people--beyond their control were very much intent on keeping them apart.How could they find their way past secrets and malicious intents to nurture a love that, if given the chance, could last a lifetime?This is a stand-alone novel that would give you enjoyment on its own. However, to enhance your of the Secret Dreams Series, the author recommends reading them in order.Secret Dreams SeriesBook 1: Secret Words (Jasmine Allen and Kane Summers)Book 2: Secret Designs (Ari Mitchell and Dylan Summers)Book 3: Secret Moves (Kristen McCann and Trey Andrews)Book 4: Secret Tastes (Samantha Lane and Adam Craig)

Tease


Alexis Anne - 2014
    He was great in bed and only in town for a few hot nights.There was no way I could have known Adam wouldn't be satisfied with just sex. My craving for his body made me careless. I broke my rules. I let him in. I never thought two weeks could change everything. All I wanted was an escape, what I got was so much more.Something I couldn't live without once I had it.***Alexis Anne novels are explicitly romantic. You will find intense stories of love, passion, and self-discovery, alongside intimately detailed encounters that can only occur when two people are falling hopelessly in love. These novels are best suited for readers seventeen and up due to these exciting reasons. And language. Alexis Anne uses a lot of language.  THE TEASE SERIES Tease (#1) Stripped (#2)Tempt (#3) Burn (#4) *If you love Adam, be sure to check out his cousin Jake in The Storm Inside series!

His Wicked Games


Ember Casey - 2013
    Can she beat him at his own game?Lily Frazer would do anything to save the Frazer Center for the Arts--even take on the infamous billionaire Calder Cunningham. When Lily breaks onto the Cunningham estate, she only wants to find and reason with Calder. (All right, all right, she wants to punch him in the face, too, but that's Plan B.) As it turns out, the arrogant billionaire is willing to give her the money he promised, but there's a catch: she must win it from him.Lily isn't about to give up the money without a fight (or let some haughty bastard seduce her), but she quickly discovers that there might be more to the brooding Calder than she initially perceived. As their games of cat and mouse become increasingly intense, she suddenly finds herself confused by her own emotions. Can she deny her attraction long enough to win the money she needs?

Saving Me


Alannah Lynne - 2010
    Deceit. Backstabbing friends… Welcome to the jungle known as advertising… Kat Owens can tell you all about the snake-infested world of big-time advertising. Thanks to an ex-best friend co-worker and a gone-wrong love affair with a client, she’s forced to leave her large Charlotte agency for a small-town coastal one. It’s do-or-die time to prove she can be a success to the aging grandfather she adores. Which means she can’t afford to be distracted by a client who’s a walking, talking definition of sex… Even if he is the man who stole her heart thirteen months before in a one-night stand she can’t forget. Erik Monteague is a handsome, charismatic, highly respected businessman who has it all. Or so it seems. Only his closest friends know the truth about the guilt and emotional scars he carries, or why, following his fiancée’s death, he invoked the twenty-four/two rule. He never spends more than twenty-four hours with a woman, he rarely dates them twice, and he never thinks about them afterward. But Kat Owens is different. She cheated him out of twelve hours, and now he can’t forget her. At least that’s what he tells himself, because admitting the truth is too dangerous. When she suddenly appears in his hometown, he sets out to finish what they started thirteen months earlier. But while his perfectly executed seduction gets Kat back in his bed, the emotional fallout is more than he counted on. Will he face his tragic past once and for all… or spend the rest of his life running?

Angels & Whiskey


Kimberly Knight - 2015
    Serving his country was his destiny. Until he fell in love…When Gabe’s love affair is cut short, he turns to whiskey for comfort and swears he will never fall in love again.Until he bumps into an unexpected angel…By all appearances, Autumn Jones has the perfect life. Her husband, Richard, is a loving man who wants to be a father to her unborn children. But Autumn knows the truth. Richard has a controlling, dark side that leaves nothing to chance, especially Autumn. He’ll stop at nothing to make her the trophy wife he wants her to be.When Autumn bumps into Gabe, he consumes her every thought, but she can’t act on her feelings. She’s married to a dark man she can never leave. When he learns who Autumn’s husband really is, Gabe knows he will stop at nothing to protect her. Or is it too late for him to save his angel?

Frosted Shadow


Nancy Warren - 2011
    She’s also got a nose for trouble and a passion for solving mysteries. Imagine Columbo in a lavender suit. She never met a woman who wouldn’t look better with a little help from the Lady Bianca line of cosmetics. But don’t be fooled by appearances. Underneath the fake diamonds and the big hair is a sharp brain and a keen eye that sees the details as well as the funny side of life. When a Lady Bianca sales rep is murdered at the annual convention in Dallas, Toni is the one who notices things that some people, like sexy Detective Luke Marciano, might easily miss. Only someone who understands as much about how to make appearances deceiving could see into the mind of this killer -- a murderer who wants to give Toni a permanent makeover. Into a dead woman.

The Way We Fall


Cassia Leo - 2015
    Maybe we shouldn’t have fallen so fast and so willingly.Maybe we shouldn’t have moved in together before we went on our first date.Maybe we should have given our wounds time to heal before we tore each other to shreds.Maybe we should have never been together.Houston has kept a devastating secret from Rory since the day he took her into his home. But the tragic circumstances that brought them together left wounds too deep to heal.Five years after the breakup, Houston and Rory are thrust together by forces beyond their control. And all the resentments and passion return with more intensity than ever.Once again, Houston is left with a choice between the truth and the only girl he’s ever loved.The Way We Fall is the first book in The Story of Us series, which follows the tumultuous love story of Rory and Houston. The sequel, The Way We Break, will be released Spring 2015.

Relatively Famous


Heather C. Leigh - 2014
    As the daughter of Hollywood royalty, she grew up with money, looks, and fame. But with that also came stalkers breaking into her bedroom, paparazzi running her dad’s car off the road, and multiple kidnapping attempts. Her seemingly glamorous childhood was far from perfect.At age twelve, her mom quits acting and moves Sydney to New York City, changing her last name to hide her from the craziness and danger. Now twenty-four, Sydney still keeps her identity a secret, not getting close enough to anyone for them to figure out who she is. Yet when she meets the gorgeous Drew Forrester in a chance encounter, she has to decide if it’s time to let someone in or if it’s better to stay alone forever.***Relatively Famous is book 1 in the Famous Series***

Castle Cay


Lee Hanson - 2010
    Who could have killed rising artist Marc Solomon, and what does Castle Cay, the Solomon's mysterious Caribbean island, have to do with it? Before long, Julie's sixth-sense pulls a hidden string that unravels a deadly conspiracy...and her own troubled past.

Last Chance to Run


Dianna Love - 2005
    He’s interested. Escaping the compound of a deadly international felon--with a fortune in rare, stolen coins hidden on her body--elite athlete Angel Farentino has to make the most important run of her life. Literally. With her father in prison, where he belongs, and a prior undeserved conviction hanging over her head, she has nowhere to turn and no one to trust. Definitely not law enforcement who railroaded her through a judicial nightmare. One step ahead of lethal men and dogs on her trail, she runs into the arms of a dark stranger willing to help her if she’d let him. But that would only get the sexy pilot killed. Between figuring out who’s sabotaging his undercover work for the DEA and trying to save his baby sister from herself, Zane Jackson has enough on his plate. The last thing he needs is to get entangled with a woman who’s treading on the wrong side of the law. But when the long-legged distraction races into the middle of his operation and stows away on his plane, a primal need to protect forces Zane to risk everything, starting with his heart.Note - This book was originally released as Worth Every Risk. When Dianna received the rights back she revised the story to the much larger romantic thriller version she'd always envisioned, which includes more romance and plenty of action.

Lost and Found


Elle Casey - 2014
    Sometimes engagement rings can get lost and then found. Sometimes people can too. All it takes is a heavy-duty dose of karma and the magic of Manhattan to make it all come together.Leah is a financially destitute new age hippy. James is a wealthy surgeon with a trust fund. She's awkward, he's poised. She's completely crazy, he's way too sane. People might say they have nothing in common, but they'd be wrong. They both live in Manhattan, they both have no idea how to change a baby diaper, and they're both lost … until they find one another. LOVE IN NEW YORK SERIES READING ORDER Love in New York: Book 1 (Lost and Found)Love in New York: Book 2 (Cabin Fever)Love in New York: Book 3 (Mister Fixit)About this series: I’d never been to New York City before, but I knew I would love it and wanted to write a story that was set in the most exciting city in the world. So I hopped on a plane with my friend Susan and spent 5 whirlwind days there, soaking up the culture, seeing the sights and nailing down the scenes that would eventually end up in this series. Those of you familiar with New York City know what I’m talking about when I say you just can’t beat Russ and Daughters’ bagels, Central Park, Times Square, Brooklyn, and Yonnah Schimmels’ knishes.

Love With An Imperfect Cowboy


Ann Major - 2016
     Should she? Or shouldn’t she? Hannah Lewis never imagined she’d run from her own magnificent, Upper East Side wedding. Born and bred in a penthouse on Park Avenue, she excels at everything - except maybe juggling a career, planning a wedding and paying attention to her fiancé. But couldn't he have chosen another day to cheat with her twin sister? Now Hannah's headed as far away as she can get from New York and her public humiliation. No one will expect to find her at a dude ranch in Lonesome, Texas … but just maybe she can find herself there. Liam Stark is trying to hold it together on the anniversary of the worst night of his life. When a stuck-up beauty walks into the Lonesome Dove Bar, full of rough truckers and ranch-hands, she's trouble in red cowgirl boots--trouble that Liam doesn't need. Especially when he offers her safe haven from a storm on his ranch, and she stirs up memories he'd give anything to forget. Liam has lost too many people he loved--his wife and son on a dangerous stretch of Texas highway, and men under his command in the Afghan conflict. This beauty will be gone in a New York minute as well … unless he asks her to stay. Attraction flames between them, hot as the Texas sun. But when their pasts cause problems, can they trust each other enough to believe they can share a future?