Book picks similar to
The Missing Ingredient by Marika Ray


romance
contemporary-romance
contemporary
fiction

Lush


K.D. Elizabeth - 2021
    It’s part of a series about a bunch of hot brothers and features a naughty bartender with an absolutely filthy mouth. You can jump into the series here without having read the others. There is no cheating and it has a HEA.

My Wicked Prince


Molly O'Keefe - 2019
    But my life has never been a bedtime story and no prince with a fancy shoe is turning me into a Cinderella.I had big plans outside of my small but powerful country. But Gunnar, the wicked prince in a gorgeous package, was temptation too strong for me to resist. His sweet lies and sweeter kisses pulled me back into his arms over and over again until his cold cruel heart finally broke mine for good.Now he's going to be King and he wants me back in his country, his palace...and his bed.And we all must bow to the King.

Coming Up Roses


Staci Hart - 2019
    Maybe it’s the day-to-day grind. Maybe it’s that client who never knows what they want, or the guy who always cooks fish in the microwave.But not me. I love every corner of the Longbourne Flower Shop, every flower, every petal, every stem. I love the greenhouse, and I love Mrs. Bennet, my boss. I love creating, and I love being a florist. I don’t hate anything at all.Except for Luke Bennet.The Bennet brothers have come home to help their mom save the flower shop, and Luke is at the helm. His smile tells a tale of lust, loose and easy. He moves with the grace of a predator, feral and wild. A thing unbridled, without rules or constraint. When he comes home to save Longbourne, I almost can’t be mad at him. Almost.He doesn’t remember that night I’ll never forget. That kiss, touched with whiskey and fire. It branded me like a red-hot iron. But it meant nothing to him.Everyone hates part of their job, and I hate Luke Bennet.Because if I don’t, I’ll fall in love with him.

Tofu Cowboy


Lola West - 2020
    He’s everything a cowboy should be - but he still feels like the blond sheep in his family because he’s also a soulful artist with a penchant for veggie lasagna.Twenty-five year old, blue-haired, buxom, beautician, Maddie Richards just moved to Conway, Montana. She’s new to small town life, the gossip and the intimacy. Being open and letting people in isn’t what Maddie does best. On a body positive journey, she’s inspired to model nude for a local drawing class. From the first minute he sees her, up on the podium, modeling, Luke can’t take his eyes off Maddie. Their attraction is magnetic, but Maddie has a secret that could ruin everything.This sexy, smart, rip roaring good time, gallops with tease and titillation and introduces readers to the entire Morgan tribe, a tight knit family of ripped and rowdy ranchers. When the Morgan’s get together, shenanigans abound. If this is your first foray into the Big Sky Boys Series...well, howdy and welcome to the family!

Deceived


Danielle Pays - 2019
    Their current demand? A prominent local winery-and the land it sits on. No doubt it would only take one visit for him to charm the owners into selling.But his plan hits a snag the second he lays eyes on the alluring woman, dead-set on maintaining her family legacy. For the first time, he can see a forever with a woman. A forever that’s threatened when she discovers who he really is.Then the unthinkable happens: Declan is arrested for a catastrophic attack, threatening both their livelihoods and futures. And even though he maintains he’s innocent, Brooke’s trust is stretched so thin she doesn’t know what to believe.Or who’s really to blame. Who do you trust when everyone lies?This is a steamy, stand-alone, HEA romantic suspense.

Loving Callie: A Lucky Strike Lovers Novel


Julia Jarrett - 2020
    But when she sees him again at the Lucky Strike pub, sparks fly a second time, igniting a powerful chemistry between them. This new relationship could be a love greater than she has ever dreamed of. Her family is a roadblock, though, and it's harder than Callie expected to have to negotiate her parents' expectations. They will never approve of Jake. A pub owner does not fit into their political ambitions, and if Callie keeps seeing him, she risks losing her only family.Her entire life has been about trying to earn her parents' respect and approval. Now she has a chance to have the love she has waited a lifetime for, and Callie faces an impossible choice.Read the debut novel reviewers say is “Everything I Want In A Contemporary Romance” and “An Insta-Love Story Done Right.”

Saving Ariel


Ellie Masters - 2021
    His focus is on raising his daughter as a single dad, and keeping his offshore oil rig crew safe. As his crew evacuates in advance of Hurricane Julian, a category five monster barreling down on the gulf, disaster strikes. Two of his crewmen are critically injured. He needs to get them to safety before the hurricane hits. When the aeromedical rescue helicopter pilot turns out to be a woman, he’s surprised. When she falls into his arms, his entire body takes notice. The tough, gorgeous, pilot is everything Aiden thought he’d never have—or want—again. Can Ariel be the one? His second chance at love?Too bad the storm seems to have other plans for them…Ariel Black doesn’t believe in love.With a category five hurricane barreling down on the Gulf, helicopter pilot, Ariel Black, is on a mission to evacuate wounded men from an oil rig. When the massive storm arrives ahead of schedule, it grounds Ariel’s helicopter, trapping them on the oil rig. She and her men, along with Aiden and his wounded, must ride out the storm. It’s the worst possible time to fall in love, but she does. Ariel falls hard…right into the installation manager’s arms. Aiden Cole makes her heart race, her pulse pound, and the butterflies in her stomach soar. Could he be the one?Will the storm of the century destroy Aiden and Ariel’s chance at happily ever after? Or does fate have something else in store?Saving Ariel, a steamy, second chance, contemporary romantic suspense, about love at first sight. It features a protective hero and the smart, feisty heroine who steals his heart.Get your copy today and let the binge-reading begin.(Saving Ariel was previously published as 'Aiden.')

Foundation: A Grouchy Geek Romance


Lainey Davis - 2020
    They're brilliant, brooding and barreling into relationships whether they like it or not.Zack Brady doesn’t do relationships. He does calculations.When his family engineering firm sends him to investigate a sinkhole at a client’s house, Zack feels a tremor in the foundation of his carefully calculated world.Her name is Nicole Kennedy. She’s loud and crass, and has no time for nonsense. She certainly doesn’t have time for a mysterious trench swallowing her yard. To make matters worse, the grouchy engineer who shows up to fix it is the same jerk she’s forced to run beside during the corporate relay race her boss insisted she run.Somewhere between jogging and poring over geotechnical engineering plans, Nicole and Zack feel the earth move. Can they overcome their past to build something meaningful?Foundation is book one of the Brady Family series. If you love messy family dynamics, unforgettable characters and sizzling chemistry, you’ll devour this new series by Lainey Davis, creator of the Stag Brothers series.

Size King: A Romance Collection


S.C. Adams - 2019
    The man who makes my heart rate go haywire while my temperature skyrockets. And oh yeah – he’s gorgeous, growly and tempting, and I’m definitely not supposed to want him. Aiden Marx is the kind of man you can’t help but crave. The man is huge: at least six four, with broad shoulders, a wide chest, and a perfectly cut vee that leads to … Well, I shouldn’t go there. After all, I’m a junior PR analyst at Mr. Marx’s firm. He hired me to put a positive spin on even the most disastrous scenarios. But when the gorgeous billionaire comes into my office late one night asking for some dictation assistance … He does more than dictate… … And I do more than take notes. But there’s a reason why they call Mr. Marx the King. He’s not just a king at work, but he’s also a size king exactly where it matters most. Warning: High heat ahead. Take your sweater off and get settled on the couch for a rollicking good time that will leave you craving more. Not responsible for singed couch cushions and items nearby spontaneously bursting into fire. HEA guaranteed with no cheating and no cliffhangers. This collection contains three books: Making Her Mine, The Mountain Man’s Secret Baby, and Single Biker Daddy.

Flirting with my Enemy


Laura Burton - 2021
    I threw it in the trash.Off the record––I totally ate it, and oh my heck, it was finger-licking delicious.Just as I get ready to release something new, Got Cake? announces something suspiciously similar.Not forgetting the time three crates of fish got delivered to my shop. Dead fish.It took me DAYS to get rid of the stench.And Zane is my number one suspect.The only way I’m gonna find the proof I need to stop all this nonsense is to get close to him. Real close.He’s a man’s man with a hunky smile and a smolder that can melt any heart, I know exactly what an alpha male like him wants in a woman.My friends think I’m playing with fire. But I'll do whatever it takes to unravel his dark secrets. And the only way I'll get hurt is if I let my heart get involved. That's not gonna happen.Besides, there’s zero chance I’m gonna fall in love with my enemy.Flirting with my Enemy is a cozy mystery romcom. Packed with swoon-worthy romance, heart-warming characters, laugh-out-loud humor, and an exciting mystery.Author note: This is a steamy-clean romance. Sizzling kisses but no sex or curse words.

Dalton Boys Box Set


Em Petrova - 2016
    The Dalton boys must marry to get a piece of the land they love. Cowboy Crazy--When a pretty little woman is delivered into Hank’s hands, he believes it was fate that kept him from joining his brothers for a “wife hunt” in the city. But she’s leery of men and hiding something dark. Can Hank tap into the attraction they both feel before she drives away? Cowboy Bargain -- Cash figures being hitched to a woman is no different than taking care of cattle, but his bride is driving him crazy. Between her sharp tongue and soft curves, he’s over his head. Finding common ground might be the only way to tame his little bride. Cowboy Crushin' -- When Witt spies the curvaceous new candy shop owner, he suddenly has a sweet tooth. Trouble is, so does every other man in the vicinity, including his brother Kade. Shelby seems to crave male attention, and they flock to her like bees to honey-flavored hardtack, though nothing she says or does seems genuine. Who is she really? Cowboy Secret -- The part-time school teacher sent Beck into fits of insanity—right before she drove off with his clothes and truck, leaving him naked in the middle of nowhere with nothing but his guitar and cell phone. At least he’d had something to pass the time. Now the woman he’s never forgotten has walked back into his life. And she has a secret. Cowboy Rush--The new ranch hand has curves that are sending Kade into a skid. Kade’s desires for Ryan are sloping toward dangerous, and she’s had enough of the big cowboy getting in her space and not showing what he’s made of. But as a natural disaster strikes the ranch, they’re forced together. Question is, who will come out on top?

Ruff House


Mellie Callahan - 2019
    She was the reason he stayed. Therapist Katie Mitchell’s dream to buy the property she’s leasing is finally within her reach. After losing her husband and high school sweetheart, the safe haven she intends to build will honor his memory – and ease the guilt she’s felt for years – in their hometown of Tradition, Texas. With funds in hand, the expansion of her animal-centered non-profit seems like a sure thing until a sexy stranger steps foot on her land, right in the way of her plans – and her life in a way that she isn’t ready for.Ex-Marine businessman Troy Montgomery is searching for an answer to the question left by his brother’s journal when he finds the perfect property for his foundation’s equine retreat. He wants it instantly – just like he wants the feisty woman who lives there. She speaks to the damaged cowboy beneath his polished exterior. But the more he pursues, the more he realizes she might hold the key to answers he doesn’t want – and a change he may not be ready to make.This means war. Or cohabitation. Or maybe healing for them both.

As Deep as the Ocean


Serenity Woods - 2017
    “To save the vineyard. It’ll be strictly business.”He’s right, Winifred (Fred) Cartwright thought. It was just a contract, a way to access the money tied up in her inheritance. It didn’t mean anything.She mustn’t think about his broad shoulders. About the intriguing tattoo that curled around his arm, how his muscular body gleamed when he worked in the warm sunshine, or how his ocean-blue eyes heated her from the inside out. She mustn’t think about the stolen kiss, the way he’d slipped his arm around her waist to pull her against him. The soft touch of his lips on hers.“It’ll be strictly business,” he repeated.Yeah, right.

When the Stars Align


Isabel Jolie - 2019
    I can’t stand the place. But when an offer to move to NYC includes a fast track to partner at a well-respected law firm, there’s no way I can decline. My move to the city goes exactly according to plan, everything falling perfectly into place…until the elevator door in my new apartment building opens, and I come face to face with my past. Four years ago we parted ways, neither of us willing to change our future career plans. We were too stubborn, too ambitious, and refused to make sacrifices. To add salt to the wound, she ended the year dating my roommate. But right now, staring at her beautiful face after all this time, I can still feel it. The attraction, the desire—it’s palpable. Four years ago, I wanted forever with Anna. Now, I’m a different man. A relationship isn’t in the cards. She threw that chance away. But that doesn’t mean we can’t have fun…right?

Unpredictable


C.A. Harms - 2015
    With an absent father and a mother who drowns herself daily in a bottle of Rum, there was no other option. Jett Jameson was the distraction Quinn needed, even if it was just for one night. A void filler, and a chance for a moment to allow herself to feel something other than emptiness. He wasn’t what she expected. Gentle. Her life didn’t have room for a man like Jett. Unpredictable. But now it was too late, there was no turning back. Desire. Nothing would ever be the same…