Book picks similar to
Skipping Stones by J.B. McGee


romance
new-adult
contemporary-romance
standalone

Until I Break


Michelle Leighton - 2013
    Tempted beyond what I’ve ever been before. To know her, to open her up. To break her."In love, sometimes what you fear most is exactly what you need.Laura Drake is an author. She writes bestselling paranormal romances that continue to top the charts. She is sharp. She is confident. She is in control. And she doesn’t exist.Samantha Jansen is the woman behind the wig, the woman most of the world doesn’t know exists. She is shy. She is insecure. She is nothing like her main character or her alter ego. She is scarred—deeply scarred—by a past she can’t let go of and a present she can’t make peace with.Samantha’s dreams are consumed by one man, the broken hero from her books. Mason Strait is both her wildest fantasy and her most terrifying nightmare. When Samantha meets Alec Brand, a corporate consultant, it is as though Mason has come to life. Alec is handsome to a fault, as elegant as he is arrogant, and more intense than any man has a right to be.Samantha is soon sucked into a world that mirrors the fiction she writes. Just like her main character, Daire Kirby, Samantha finds herself unable to resist the forbidden lure of Alec. And just like Daire, she also finds that she is faced with taking a chance on a man who could either set her free or destroy her.The scale tilts toward destruction when Samantha finds out that Alec is as much a work of fiction as Mason. And he has scars of his own, scars that could ruin them both.**This book may be read as a stand-alone, as the story of Alec and Samantha comes to a conclusion in this book**

Revelry


Kandi Steiner - 2017
     She never expected to be divorced at twenty-seven, but now that the court date has passed, it’s official. The paperwork is final. Her feelings on it aren’t. Spending the summer in a small mountain town outside Seattle is exactly what she needs. The peaceful scenery is a given, the cat with the croaky meow is a surprise, but the real kicker? A broody neighbor with nice arms, a strange reputation, and absolutely no interest in her. Anderson Black is perfectly fine being lost. He doesn’t care about the town’s new resident — he’s too busy fighting his own demons. But when he’s brought face to face with Wren, he can see her still-fresh wounds from a mile away. What he doesn’t see coming is his need to know who put them there — or his desperation to mend them. Sometimes getting lost is the way to find yourself. Sometimes healing only adds a new scar. And sometimes the last place you expected to be is exactly where you find home.

Ten Below Zero


Whitney Barbetti - 2014
    And you’re closer to death than I am.”My name is Parker. My body is marked with scars from an attack I don’t remember. I don’t want to remember. I choose to live my life by observation, not through experience. While people are laughing and kissing and connecting, I’m in the corner. Watching them live. I’m indifferent to everything, everyone. The only emotion I feel with any kind of depth is annoyance, and I feel it often.A text message sent to the wrong number proves to be my undoing.His name is Everett, but I call him rude. He’s pushy, he’s arrogant, he crowds my personal space, and worst of all: he makes me feel.He chooses to wear all black, all the time, as if he’s waiting to attend a funeral. Probably because he is.Everett is dying. And he’s spending his final days living, truly living. In doing so, he’s forcing me to feel, to heal. To come face to face with the demons I suppressed in my memory.He hurts me, he fulfills me, he completes me. And still, he's dying.

The Light We See


J. Lynn Bailey - 2019
    From Carpinteria, California, we left.In Arizona, we barely spoke.In New Mexico, I gave him a promise that I knew I couldn’t keep.In Texas, we slept under the stars.In Oklahoma, he told me a story I wouldn’t soon forget.In Louisiana, he gave my soul a voice.Between Arkansas and Mississippi, we took full advantage of an opportunity.In Tennessee, I studied his face.In Kentucky, he introduced me to his parents.In Ohio, he found my heart.In West Virginia, we drank whiskey and told ourselves that truths are better left untold.In Maryland, we felt the weight of the night.In Pennsylvania, his wife called.And in New York, I asked myself one question:Would he be able to let me go when it was time?

Love So Hot


Marquita Valentine - 2015
     LOVE SO HOT, Book One of The Lawson Brothers Bank Teller and all around good girl, Sydney McKnight, is tired of being the girl all the guys want to have as a friend. Who better to help unleash her inner vixen than her best friend and secret crush, Brody Lawson? Only, Sydney has no idea how to ask him, without their friendship going up in flames, until that is, the town of Jessamine's annual Firemen's Auction gives her the perfect excuse to set her plan into motion. Fire Captain Brody Lawson has been in love with his best friend, Sydney, for years, but he would never risk their friendship by confessing his feelings to her. So, when Sydney beats out the competition to buy his time at the annual Firemen's Auction, Brody can hardly believe his luck until she asks him to teach her how to seduce a fellow fireman. Now, it’s up to Brody to show Sydney how perfect she already is and convince her that the only man for her is him, because if Sydney is going to seduce any man, it’s going to be him. And once he has her in his bed, he’s not letting her go.

Shadowboxer


Cari Quinn - 2014
    I’ve faced the darkest parts of life and survived. But now I’m starting a new life with my baby sister. And that means I need cash.Quick. To get the money I need, I’m going to beat the reigning king of the male fighters in New York’s underground MMA circuit, Tray “Fox” Knox. Tray refuses to fight a woman, until he learns I’m not what he expected. At all. Then he makes me a bet I can’t refuse. He’ll fight me, but if he wins, I will spend the night in his bed. All night long, his rules. No tapping out. I agree, certain he will lose. Because I have to win. I have no choice. What I didn’t realize is that Tray loves to fight dirty…and that this match may end up being the most important one of our lives.Author’s note: Shadowboxer is a full-length MMA novel and is book 1 in the Tapped Out MMA series. It has a happily ever after ending and no cliffhanger, though it contains violent material that may be triggering. It was previously published by Cari Quinn in 2014 and has been lightly re-edited.

Home Tears


Tijan - 2016
    Her mother died. Her two sisters loathed her. One aunt hated her. The other was strangely distant, but the worst storm—being dumped by her childhood best friend/high school boyfriend/first love for her younger sister. There went the one person who was hers and with that, the main reason she stuck around. So, she left for ten years. But now she’s back, and nothing’s the same. With help from Jonah Bannon, a reformed—kind of—bad boy she remembers from high school, Dani uncovers family secrets that have spanned generations. And along with those, she’s about to face the biggest sh*t storm of her life. Only this time, she may not survive.

Undertow


Elizabeth O'Roark - 2013
    It almost seems like enough until Nate Sullivan comes home. Nate – her childhood best friend, her first love. The boy who left without a trace one night and broke her heart. When their attraction threatens the future she and her parents have so carefully crafted, loyalties will be tested and secrets will be uncovered. Giving in may cost her everything. But how do you resist the only thing you’ve ever really wanted?

Fever


Melissa Pearl - 2014
     Ella Simmons does not want to move across the country. But she is, because her boyfriend has persuaded her to join him at UChicago to finish out her college education. Never able to tell him no, she hops on a plane and makes the trek from LA expecting to adjust to life like she's often forced to, but things are not that simple when she hears a luscious voice singing over her shower wall. His deep, sexy tenor makes her weak in the knees, spreading fire through her limbs and making her question everything about her life and relationship. Can one voice really have that much of an impact? Cole Reynolds is on his way out. In his final year at UChicago, the only thing he wants to do is finish school and get on with his life. But the sweet voice that interrupts his morning shower turns his world upside down. Compelled to find his shower songbird, he begins a search across campus. The only thing to distract him from this goal is his roommate's gorgeous girlfriend who's just arrived from LA - Ella Simmons. Relationships are put to the ultimate test as future dreams are questioned and friendships are thrown on the line for love. ALL THE SONGBIRD NOVELS CAN BE READ AS STAND ALONE BOOKS.

Sweet Sinful Nights


Lauren Blakely - 2015
    It’s his greatest regret, especially since she’s all but disappeared. But when the gorgeous and captivating woman walks into his life unexpectedly, he’s determined to win her back. Whatever it takes, he won’t make the same mistake twice. Easier said than done… Shannon Paige has hardened her heart to the man she was once engaged to be married to. After the way he left, and after the hell she’s been through with her checkered family, there’s no way she’s letting him into her life again. The problem is, the second she sees him, he’s more handsome and charming than before. And she’s torn between wanting to fight with him and wanting to sleep with him -- Maybe both. Soon they fall into each other’s arms, consumed with a desire that burns through the years. But if these two fiery lovers are going to have a real second chance at this kind of intense, passionate, bone-deep love, he’ll have to give her his whole heart, and she’ll have to give up all the secrets from her messy past. And that messy past is about to spill over into her carefully constructed present… SWEET SINFUL NIGHTS is book one in SINFUL NIGHTS, a four-book series. Each book will follow a new couple.

Tattoo Thief


Heidi Joy Tretheway - 2013
    But as his house sitter, she must pick up the pieces for the front man of the white-hot rock band Tattoo Thief. When ultra-responsible Beryl confronts the reckless rock star, she wants to know more than just what to do with his mess. Why is he running? What’s he searching for? And is he responsible for the death of his muse? New York newbie Beryl must find her footing in Gavin’s crazy world of the ultra-wealthy to discover her own direction and what can bring him back.Steamy, sassy and tender, Tattoo Thief is a story of breaking from a comfort zone to find a second chance.

The Music Box


Heather Meyer - 2013
    In hopes of finding it, she escapes the city and settles in a small South Carolina town to write his story. There, she meets Matt, a young man struggling to come to grips with his own father’s legacy.Despite a growing attraction, she keeps him at arm’s length until the tune from a tiny music box reveals a common bond that pulls them together and sets them on a journey of discovery that will challenge everything she believes about herself and about the man she thought couldn’t possibly exist.

Rock Me


Carly Phillips - 2017
    Ben Hollander has sworn off mixing business with pleasure. But keeping his hands off of the sexy songstress is easier said than done and once the threat is neutralized, will she choose fame over love?

Every Rose


Lynetta Halat - 2013
    If you're open-minded and willing to have a life-changing experience even if you have to go through the wringer emotionally, this is definitely the book for you.What do you do when you realize you were foolish enough to throw away true, unconditional love? Lorraina Dabney turns her back on her creativity and tumultuous upbringing to embark on a college career that will lead her to law school and to becoming what she values most in life—a controlled, powerful, respected woman. When she stumbles upon her childhood friend's artwork, she feels inspired to reconnect with him and her former self. This onslaught of emotion will send Lorraina in a tale-spin to figure out exactly why she abandoned all that she was, all that she could've been.Coming from his own chaotic upbringing, Michael falls quickly and deeply in love with Lorraina at a tender age. Even her rejection can't stand in the way of his obsession. When she starts to date other boys, however, Michael finally relents, causing him to spiral further into a world filled with violence, drugs, alcohol, and women. Realizing this lifestyle will only lead to his further estrangement from Lorraina, Michael sets about to turn himself around before going to get his girl. Michael Bang will have Lorraina questioning everything.

Wasted


Suzannah Daniels - 2014
    It was part of his job after all, and he needed the tips—badly. When Lexi Swafford plopped her pretty little tail down on the bar stool, Mason offered her a drink. He had no idea that he would soon be working with her or that he’d be letting her room with him until her new apartment was ready.In fact, once Lexi Swafford landed in Creekview, Tennessee, life as Mason Cambridge knew it would cease to exist…because after a night of drinking away the agony of his loneliness, one touch from her would change everything.WASTED is a new adult contemporary romance recommended for adult readers due to mature content.It is the first book in the WHISKEY NIGHTS series. Since each book in this series will focus on a different couple, they can be read as stand-alones. Many readers may prefer to read them in order for maximum enjoyment.WHISKEY NIGHTS series order:Wasted #1Ignited #2Deceived #3Betrayed #4Seduced #5 (Release date to be announced.)