Book picks similar to
The Return by A.L. Parks


contemporary-romance
freebie
romance
christmas

Covert Assignment


Missy Marciassa - 2013
    Elle is ready for graduation and full-fledged adulthood: no more living like the leftover of her parent’s divorce. She’s about to graduate with her degree in Information Science (the 21st century term for Library Science) and has a ten-year plan as well-designed as any model for analyzing metadata: earn her JD/MBA, enjoy a couple of years as a single professional, then marry her college sweetheart, Adam, and start her own family. Yet Elle feels like she returned to an alternate universe her final semester. There are pictures of Adam with a classmate who must be surgically enhanced, but he insists he wants Elle. CIA recruiters show up on campus, and they aren’t just interested in recruiting Elle for future employment: turns out she’s already working for them since they’re funding her thesis. Hot operative Preston Raddick is tasked to work with her. Preston isn’t just hot: he’s hot for Elle, but is he offering happy ever after or happy for right now? A fling with Preston could be the beginning of a new life plan, which is exciting and scary, especially with espionage thrown in. Elle needs a predictive model to tell her which decisions have the greater likelihood for happiness…Covert Assignment is about the unexpected turns life can take when making “adult” decisions.

Crown's Chance at Love


Mayra Statham - 2014
    Having lost the love of her life just three years ago, she is content to live her life in muted grey just so she doesn’t have to feel. As a single mother of three she immerses herself in her career and daily routine all while letting her inner light extinguish.One Tuesday morning, a chance encounter with Michael Crown threatens to break down all of the barriers she’s worked so hard to build around her. But who really Is Michael Crown? Despite his struggles with his own darkness, Michael Crown finds himself at a crossroads with Sabrina. He has a chance to completely let his guard down and let love in, but it may come at the cost of losing the only woman he’s ever really ever loved. Can he find the redemption he so desperately needs and let Sabrina Miller in?

Crashing Christmas


Emma Tharp - 2018
    That’s what Jillian Harmon keeps trying to tell herself. Sure, she might be losing her job along with her staff a few days before the holiday, but a drunken night with a sexy stranger with salt and pepper hair and mesmerizing hazel eyes is just what she needs to take her mind off her crappy luck. Could things get any worse? When her new boss, Jack Morgan, strolls in Monday morning, Jillian is shocked to see it’s her new boss’s bed she shared Friday night. He hands out pink slips like they’re Christmas bonuses, but for reasons unknown to her, he doesn’t’ let her go. Somehow, her staff expects Jillian to fix things, which is how she ends up crashing Jack's solo Christmas in a mountain cabin. The storm is how she ends up snowed in with him, and she’s pretty sure, the alcohol is how he plans to bed her again. She’d need a Christmas miracle and a twelve-step program to save her staff. As for being stuck with Jack, she’s not sure she can be saved. Crashing Christmas is a standalone steamy contemporary romance. 18+

Kin Series Complete Set


Jennifer Foor - 2015
    Six full length novels plus the bonus.Follow this family of cousins while they struggle through life and each find love.

Beyond Control


Karice Bolton - 2013
    With a brilliant job in the corporate world, glamorous parties, and a beautiful condo overlooking Seattle, she is thrown into a world she doesn't want to claim. It's not until Jason crashes into her world that she realizes she's not really living. Facing his own demons, Jason attempts to piece his life back together after a personal tragedy. Damaged by his ghosts, Jason finally begins to forgive himself whenever Gabby's around. She makes him feel--alive, something he hasn't felt for a long time.It's only as their love grows and secrets are revealed that they realize a devastating connection from their past might actually tear them apart.------Dear reader:I hope you enjoy reading Gabby and Jason's story as much as I loved writing it. This is a completed story of Jason and Gabby and is the first in a new series. However, the book does end with a new story just beginning surrounding another couple, who I've gotten the joy of writing about. Their story continues in Beyond Doubt and is out now!Again, thank you for taking the time to read the first in the Beyond Love Series, and I hope you enjoy!~Karice

Nothing like the First Time


Keren Hughes - 2014
    17+*Carly Summers and Greyston Sterling were each other's first kiss, first sexual experience, first love, first everything.They had a love that was made to last. That was until Grey took a job as a freelance photographer that took him to the other side of the world. When it came down to a choice between his career and his girl - he chose the career. He's travelled the world and seen sights he wished Carly was there to experience. He's had relationships along the way but nothing meaningful.Carly has had relationships but nothing that lasted. No-one could compare to Grey. Now, 10 years later, Grey's back in town and wants to see if they can rekindle what they had all those years ago. But how can they if he's engaged to somebody else?Nothing Like The First Time is a tale of how nothing compares to your first love. There are trials and tribulations Carly and Grey must overcome on their way back to each other... what if they can't get over the obstacles life throws at them?*This book can be read as a stand-alone or as part of The Sweet Romance Series*

An Officer and a Rebel


Cindi Madsen - 2014
    His complete opposite in every way, Kelsey’s the girl he never allowed himself to want. But when she agrees to stay with him until the storm passes, he definitely finds himself wanting the gorgeous, tattooed woman. Too bad Nate’s sure his brother is still in love with her…Kelsey had only meant to drive through her tiny hometown, not end up spending time there. With a cop. But despite her issues with authority figures, even she can admit Mr. Serious looks pretty hot in his uniform. Unfortunately, she’s sworn off relationships—and she’ll never be the girl for a nice guy.

Security


Mandy Baggot - 2013
    She's a style icon, the paparazzi's darling and everyone wants to be her friend. But when her safety is threatened, her whole life starts to unravel. Enter Nathan Regan, an ex-elite soldier who is assigned to protect her. He's a good man doing bad things but what drives him? Passion? Madness? Or grief? Demons from his past are threatening to consume him. Can he win the fight alone or will he have to admit he needs help? As the threat deepens, Autumn starts to find out who she really needs in her life. Is there still room for personal assistant Janey or rapper boyfriend Rockweiler? When everyone around her is feeding her lies, how does she work out the truth? Does her record producer know more than he's letting on? What is her mother, the British Foreign Secretary's involvement in the situation? And can Autumn put her faith in a forty-something Jamaican woman who handles an automatic weapon as expertly as she cooks? Eluding kidnap and trying to stay alive, can Autumn find the strength to be the person she longs to be? And can two people, poles apart, forge something strong enough to survive anything?

Possessed by You


J.M. Walker - 2014
    Not for a younger reader audience*** Releasing control is relief… I was warned about men like Brett Maclean. He was dark and thrilling, intense and controlling. And he captivated me from the very start. He unleashed something inside of me like no other. His bad rep and troubled past drew me to him like gasoline feeding a flame. With just one taste, I felt the danger in him, the uncontrollable power that left me breathless. The passion consumed me. Fast and hard. Temptation couldn't guard my heart. I should have known a man of such raw and wild desires came with competition.

Fallen Snow


Aven Jayce - 2014
    Some readers may find it offensive or disturbing.Sophia My story begins in St. Louis with my best friend and former college roommate, Mera. I'm twenty-three, not the romantic type, and convinced that I can mistreat my body however I see fit. I'm not worried about any consequences, only my therapist is. I see her twice a week as requested by my father. He believes my lack of motivation, foul-mouth, and immaturity all stem from my mother's neglect. But my therapist? She thinks I'm a sex addict. All of this is about to change... because of him. Cove Everton holds secrets that are far darker than mine. The demons he carries are destroying him, and his connection to my family is tragic. He distances himself, but our attraction is too powerful for that to last. Once his private life is exposed, there's no turning back. We fall fast and hard, both virgins to love and troubled by the unknowns of a future together. Can we erase the scars of one another's past and move forward? Or will we be consumed by our former lives? You'll spend time in shallow water getting to know me before you advance into the deep end with Cove. And it is deep, be patient. The unexpected is coming. ~ Sophia Jameson

Snowbound


Janice Kay Johnson - 2007
    Their host is John Fallon, a handsome, enigmatic war veteran haunted by secrets and scars that may never heal.John Fallon never imagined he'd be playing host to this captivating teacher and her eight teenage charges. But when his solitude is shattered by their arrival, his world shifts on its axis. He needs Fiona--but does she need him? There's only one way to find out. The ex-soldier must find the courage to reach out to the remarkable woman who has transformed his life....

I'll Run to You


Nikki Vale - 2016
    Now, Hunter is back and turning her world upside down once again. Will Evie survive when he tears down the walls surrounding her heart?

The Secret Son


Joan Kilby - 2015
    A day, maybe two, to tie up loose strings and he’ll be out of there, heading for Mexico, margaritas and blondes in bikinis. Emma Stanhope is all too familiar with hot, rich, entitled guys like Alex. They never hang around for long, especially not for a Plain Jane like herself. No problem. She’s smart and logical, like any good scientist, and knows better than to lose her heart. What Emma doesn’t count on is chemistry—of the romantic kind. What Alex doesn’t count on is meeting the girl who’ll make him want to change his ways. But when he learns that he’s a secret from his father’s real family, he can’t stay in Cherry Lake… even if he wants to. Will love be enough to convince Alex to stay… for good? Secrets of Cherry Lake series Prequel: Small Town Secrets by Roxanne Snopek Book 1: The Secret Son by Joan Kilby Book 2: Her Secret Love by Paula Altenberg Book 3: Her Secret Protector by Roxanne Snopek Book 4: The Secret Bride by Jeannie Watt

Midnight


Elizabeth Miller - 2014
    Perfect smile. Perfect manners. Tall, broad and beautiful. The most powerful Senator in DC is seeking the White House. And he wants me to help him get there.Me. Charlie Carter, sister, daughter, a pseudo-journalist from a small town with limited experience. He's a god among men. Colin McKenna isn't the boy next door—he's the lion ready to slaughter the lamb. I should run, bury myself under the years that have slipped by, but the new whirlwind of opportunity his offer holds entices the prey from her hiding spot.I give in. And because we're both a little bit broken, we fall, and it's fast and hard and intense. But just as the campaign gets going, things start to fall apart. Someone is intent on breaking us. Not just breaking us up, but destroying our hope for a future. My secrets, his advisers, and the past conspire together, and it seems they'll succeed.Or will they?The Midnight Series is an intense, sexy romance with a dash of intrigue and loads of emotion from author Elizabeth Miller. This thrilling, complete series is at times laugh out loud funny, it sizzles between the sheets and drops one surprise after another. Midnight is not a political drama, nor does it delve deeply into politics. Prepare for an epic romance about two people with disparate lives trying to come together. It's for the 17+ crowd.

Beautiful Ruin


Amy Olle - 2015
    Soon, she's face-to-face with a man from her past. The one man she never stopped longing for.Renowned archaeologist, Noah Nolan, swore he’d never return to the small, remote island in Lake Michigan. After agreeing to complete a short-term excavation project, he realizes the site belongs to the woman who inexplicably rejected him years before. A woman he’s never forgotten – or forgiven.When Noah’s affinity for uncovering all things lost, forgotten, and buried stirs Mina’s repressed memories of a terrifying secret, she must find the courage to unearth the past, or risk losing the treasure of her heart forever.