Book picks similar to
Guarded Dreams by L.J. Evans


romance
arc
contemporary-romance
contemporary

Bride in Trouble


Serenity Woods - 2018
    She doesn’t remember her father passing away. She doesn’t remember opening the Bay of Islands Brides shop with her mother and sisters. And she definitely doesn’t remember Rafe Masters, the gorgeous firefighter who tells her that they’re due to be married on Valentine’s Day in ten days’ time.Rafe insists they’re madly in love, but the thought of saying ‘I do’ to a complete stranger makes Phoebe want to run for the hills. Her family suggests she postpone the wedding until her memory returns. But Rafe’s determined not to give up on their marriage before it’s even started. He has ten days to convince Phoebe that he’s still her Mr. Right, and he’s determined to win her all over again, no matter what it takes.

Shouldn't Want You


Lilian Monroe - 2020
    I swooned.He left.Poof! Gone.His kiss still echoing on my lips, his face still etched on my brain.G-O-N-E. Disappeared. Ghosted. Never to be heard from again…...until now.My brother’s getting married, and his best man happens to be the one person I never want to see again.Sacha Black is all grown up.All man.All muscle.All thigh-clenching, cheek-burning, panty-melting misery.The moment his stormy, gray eyes meet mine, I know my poor heart doesn’t stand a chance.The only thing standing between us is ten years of pain and my very protective brother.Easy, right?... Wrong.

The Tillman Crush


Kelly Gendron - 2021
    His hold was firm.The next day, he vanished. After seven years, he’s back with a sexy smile, flirty eyes, and jacked muscles.Not that I care.Let him slather on the charm.I won’t give in to The Tillman Crush. Not this time. BRITT Sadie Holland. Beautiful. Smart.The untouchable girl next door.Growing up, I wanted her.To keep her at a safe distance, I was mean to her.Then, the accident happened.With my mom gone, my father turned to the bottle.So I left town the first chance I got.Now, I’m back and not just for Sadie.The other thing I want.Well, the girl I came back for might not like it.Still, I won’t stop until I get what I want.Not this time.

Run with It


M.L. Nystrom - 2020
     Then Connor moves in next door. Connor is healing from a hard break from his family and is working to find his own identity.  He has no interest in joining another one. Then he meets his neighbor. Two people building new lives. Two people with no time or energy for love. Bev and Connor are determined to stick to their plans, but life has other ideas—now they just have to run with it. "Run With It" is a Dragon Runners motorcycle romance spin-off., featuring Connor from "Stud."

Cole, (A Second Chance Romance)


Stella Marie Alden - 2021
    In retrospect, hooking up was a mistake because no woman has measured up, since.When I see her again and she asks me for alone time, I assume we’re of the same mindsetInstead, I learn she’s an amateur sleuth, investigating her friend’s death. A county deputy, I shut that down fast. This is real life, not one of her video games.Join Cole and Danielle as they try to solve a murder and deal with smoldering desire, about to burst into flames.Warning: High heat, thrills, mystery, and romance. Not for the faint of heart.

Boss Rules


Jenna Gunn - 2020
    Today my off-limits Boss..It was supposed to be my dream job.Ocean rescuer on the highly respected Southern California team.But he happened.A few hours ago Bryce Archer wasn’t my boss.Or my anything for that matter.He was a one night indulgence.One that left my voice shredded and my body in withdrawal.But my new job on his team doesn’t allow us to mix business and pleasure.The rule book says we’re done.But the electricity between us says we’re not.So my dream job hangs in peril.If I become the secret lover…it could all come crashing down.This badass job and perfect seaside town are everything I want.But now I want him too.Enough to risk it all.Enough to follow his reckless lead and break all the rules.It’s a dumpster fire in the making.One that might leave me knocked up, broken hearted, with my dreams in tatters.Boss Rules is a steamy stand-alone book in the Archer Brother's series. Scorching passion, plenty of humor, and lots of adventure action set this seaside love affair apart from the rest of the pack. No cliff-hangers and no cheating in this HEA. This one will melt you and your Kindle!

Faster


Deana Birch - 2018
    The junior producer knows she's dodged a bullet. Because, despite his melt-your-heart chocolate eyes and rising fame, Jake Riley is not boyfriend material. And those messages he sends in the middle of the night get filed under, "drunk text, best to ignore," without delay.Twelve grueling years of paying dues has finally resulted in a hit song for Jake. But, knowing the new zeroes in his bank account come with as many ways to blow it, he craves stability. So, stocked with an arsenal of charm and a reminder of what happened against her front door, he persuades Louana to see him again the next time he's in town. Now, certain he's found the calm to his storm, he asks her for the previously unthinkable-monogamy.

Carter


Brie Paisley - 2016
    CarterShe’s always been the one for me.The one that I knew would be mine forever, until I made the biggest mistake of my life. I’ve tried to move on, and I’ve tried to put the memory of her behind me, but she’s always there, consuming my thoughts. Now, she’s back in our hometown, trying to rebuild a new life, but I know deep down, that she’s keeping secrets. She tries to hide them from me, but I will do whatever it takes to prove that I’m the one she needs. Shelby Ross is the other part of me that I can’t live without, and I refuse to let her go again. ShelbyHe broke my heart.I never thought that I would be able to pick up the pieces he left behind, so when he let me go, I ran away from it all, thinking it was the easiest thing to do. However, running always has a price, and I’ve paid it in full for years. Now, I’m back to where it all began, and it should’ve been easy. Carter Harlow is slowly reawakening long buried emotions that I thought were gone. He wants to make me his again, but I can’t let that happen. He ruined me once, and then broke my heart, and now, I’m afraid I’ll never survive it a second time around. This is a standalone series, and it does not have to be read in order.*

Healing the Broken


K. Street - 2017
    Monsters didn’t just exist in nightmares.They were real; they lived among us.As the sole witness to a brutal murder, Ryann Sinclair knew that better than anyone.He’d been burned once, and Cash Donovan swore it was the last time.That all changed when Ryann stumbled back into his life.She was fiercely protective of her heart, and he was hell-bent on protecting her.Never one to back down from a challenge, Cash was determined to break her.Just so he could be the one to put her back together.

The Weight of Life


Whitney Barbetti - 2017
    The words I would soon say again, in a moment that didn’t involve bridges, but something much more fragile: my heart.He held onto me for three weeks, in a time when I needed to be held. Needed to connect to someone who understood how loss tunneled unrepentantly through the fabric of your soul.Although he said he'd stay, we both knew he wouldn't. I had already survived one loss—I didn't know if I'd survive another.-Ames-She spun into my life like a tornado of smiles and chatter and everything else I'd long avoided, with a persistence that I admired, albeit begrudgingly. She broke down each neat wall I’d constructed without even trying. Her presence alone caused me to remember what it felt like to smile, to look forward to what the day would bring.But it was only supposed to last three weeks.“Don’t let go,” she’d pleaded.I’d promised her I wouldn’t—but I would. I didn't have a choice.

Love is a Lyric


Michelle MacQueen - 2020
    That’s the number one lesson Piper Hayes has learned as the assistant to her rock star sister. Don’t ruffle any feathers. Quinn always get what she wants. The perfect boyfriend. The right media attention. And the lyrics that seem to pour out of Piper at every opportunity. But a good assistant does the right thing. She does her job and keeps her mouth shut if she knows what’s good for her. Yet, when her sister’s actions hurt the best guy Piper has ever known, she must choose between being a good assistant, a good sister, and taking care of the one person who ever made her feel like she could do more.Keep your chin up.Rockstars don’t get to complain. Ben Evans is a household name. He has more money than he ever dreamed of and the perfect girlfriend.It was fate, the way they fit together. The only lyrics Ben had ever been able to craft music to were Quinn’s. The words spoke to him, made him believe in himself and what their band, Fate, was doing. When his longtime girlfriend betrays him, the only thing he wants is to escape to his hometown where the media’s rumors can’t get to him. He never expected Piper to follow him, to choose him over her sister. Now, he must decide if it’s truly the lyrics he loves or the girl who was right in front of him the entire time.Love is a Lyric is book one in Rockstars Anonymous, featuring one rock star support group, five ridiculous stars, and four swoony romances. Beware of concert crashers, meddling families, and rock stars who can’t seem to stay out of each other’s love lives.

In the Grasp: A Second Chance Sports Romance


Cadence Keys - 2021
    I thought I’d have more accomplished by now - like a wife and family - but for nine years I’ve held onto the memory of the girl who got away. Now she’s back and I’m more determined than ever to make her mine. For good this time.PaigeAfter years of working tirelessly, I just landed my dream job at the largest newspaper on the west coast. Unfortunately, that lands me in the same city as the man who broke my heart nearly a decade ago - the same one I’ve never really been able to let go of. When my editor assigns me to write an exposé on Jack, I’m forced to decide where my loyalties lie - with the career of a lifetime, or the love of my life.In the Grasp is the first steamy standalone contemporary sports romance in the LA Wolves series.

First


Kimberly Stedronsky Adams - 2017
    Each moment between us only fueled our need for each other. He was older, and forbidden by my parents.And then he was gone.Grant wrote to me from Saudi Arabia, and in his very first letter, he asked me to marry him. In his last letter, he promised to hold me in his arms on my graduation day.His last letter ended in forever.As I tried to move on with my life, I was consumed each day with the memories of a ghost...Of my young love. My first love.On August 26th, 1997, he was finally found...but I'd already lost him.This is the story of our life.... and it's only just begun.

A Hero for Hailey


D.E. Haggerty - 2020
    When I run into a teensy weensy bit of trouble, who should show up but Aiden – my high school nemesis. Unfortunately, Aiden doesn’t realize he’s my high school nemesis. Nope. He doesn’t even remember who I am. Gee, thanks. Suddenly Aiden is everywhere, claiming he’ll protect me. Do I look like I need protecting? But when Aiden speaks to me in that deep, sultry savior voice, my knees wobble and I forget my name. I better get to solving this trouble I’m in, so Aiden will move right on out of my life. Only he says he doesn’t want to move on. He wants to stick by my side forever. Not happening. But like my pops always says Love will OUT. A Hero for Hailey is book 1 of the romantic comedy series Love will OUT but can be read as a standalone.

Velvet Fire


K.B. Winters - 2020
    Kill or be killed. I was born into this grim reality. MaisieI never thought I’d fall in love with a cold blooded killer.But with those dreamy eyes and that smile that won’t quit.I find I’m thinking of Virgil more and more.So what if he’s a criminal.My brothers are too. I’ve been around bad boys all of my life.And I’m not sure,Is he really that bad?Even after he saves my life?VirgilI’m not a knight in shining armor,Or even one of the good guys,But I really screw up when I kidnap the wrong girl.Maisie from Texas, with curves in all the right places.She thinks I’m her salvation—her rescuer.Not the guy who drugged her...But they say everything happens for a reason,And she’s my reason.For everything.I’ll rise up for her. Protect her.Crush those who are out to hurt her,And prove not all Prince Charmings ride a white stallion.Some wear a gun.And I’ll do it for her.For us.And when she’s safe, I’ll make her mine.