Book picks similar to
The Thrill of the Chase by Ellie Thomas
historical
lgbtq
novella-short-story
historical-or-regency-romance
Play Hard
J.T. Fox - 2016
Read at your own risk.
Wanting him is the riskiest play of all...
Miami star quarterback Jordan Barr is the hottest man that halfback Eric "The Brick" Higgins has ever laid eyes on, and he's wanted him in his bed for years.
When a chance encounter puts the two pro football players in the same town, the same TV studio, and the same locked room, the sparks don't just fly, they burn. The chemistry between them is intense, immediate, and explosive and Eric isn't about to miss his chance to have Jordan off the field. He'll have Jordan naked in his bed--rumors of game fixing haunting both of their teams be damned.
Eric is one extraordinarily stunning man, and Jordan would love nothing more than to show Eric what it's like to be taken by someone who knows exactly what he wants, in the bedroom and out. But Jordan has bills to pay and far too many responsibilities to throw caution to the wind.
He has to resist. But it's getting hard....
Really, really hard.
Play Hard is the first installment in a three-part MM romance trilogyPraise for Play Hard:
"Dirty-talking deliciousness!" -NYT and USA Today Bestselling author Lauren Blakely
"Play Hard was fast-paced, face-fanning, and ferociously sexy fun! I loved this hot story of two alpha males in love and can't wait for part two." -Bestselling author Lili Valente
"Two scorching hot, dirty talking football players - need I say more? These guys light up the pages." -Melissa Collins
The Heiress and the Hothead
Sabrina Jeffries - 2016
Return to the beloved Sinful Suitors series from New York Times and USA TODAY bestselling author Sabrina Jeffries in this delightfully sexy winter-themed novella!Stunned by the heat of an unexpected kiss on a cold winter’s eve, two strangers from vastly different worlds turn hotheaded principles into burning passion in Sabrina Jeffries’s charming yuletide story, The Heiress and the Hothead.Can also be found in the anthology, What Happened Under the Mistletoe.
Lord Calne's Christmas Ruby
Jude Knight - 2017
Except perhaps for an earl with a twisted hand and a charming smile. Why, for all the fortune hunters she has fended off since returning from India, is the one man who seems to like her so against marrying for money?Philip has inherited an earldom that his only two choices are to marry for money or to abandon Society altogether and return to his work as an engineer. Which is no choice at all, until a tiny woman with beautiful eyes and a fine mind dances with him on his last night in London.When they meet again in a small country village, they join forces to uncover larceny and deceit, to rescue Lalamani’s aunt from poverty, and to discover that pride is a poor reason to refuse a love for a lifetime.
Yes, Sir (Part One)
Julia Nash - 2019
And now I have to sell my body and soul to fix it… I never wanted to be there in the first place, working in Brock Wrentham’s mansion, under his watchful, relentless gaze. And the last thing I ever expected was to mess up so badly that I’d be in his debt and at his mercy. The only way out? Submit to ten punishments of Brock’s choosing, each one intended to pay off the money I cost him with my colossal screw up. Yes, the punishments involve me in various states of undress. Doing things with Brock, things I’ve never done with another man. Things I definitely never imagined myself doing, much less with one of the world’s most eligible bachelors. But I’d be lying if I said I didn’t enjoy it. I do enjoy it, more and more each time. But as I slip further under his spell, I start to wonder who the real Brock Wrentham is, and what he’s hiding. Because there’s something so terrible in his past, it makes my punishments look like a walk in the park. I don’t know if the fragile trust we’ve built can ever hope to survive the truth. The truth of who he is, what he’s done, and why he wants me to be the one to pay for it all…
The Billionaires Box Set
Claire Adams - 2018
Too bad she's not interested...yet. Can Maddox win her over without spilling too many of his secrets in the process, or will his desire for her have him baring all?Billionaire's Vegas NightHow does happily ever after begin? While you can no doubt think up a million romantic ways for it to get started, getting sloppy drunk and passing out probably isn't one of them. Which is why Luna is so mortified to find herself waking up in her boss' bed in Vegas, her memory of the night before little more than sporadic flashes.While she is embarrassed, her billionaire boss, Gabriel, is unfazed. Unlike Luna, he remembers the night before--including their wedding, officiated by Blues Brothers impersonators. No, for Gabriel, everything is just fine. Until the police come knocking at the door of his hotel suite.And why are they knocking on the door of his hotel suite? Because not one, but two of his ex-girlfriends are in the same hotel as him--and they are both dead. Strangled to death during the night. And he is their number one suspect.And his alibi can't remember a thing.Will Luna and Gabriel be able to carve a path together?Billionaire's Best WomanShe didn't expect to fall in love with her best friend...On paper, Parker's life is amazing. His tech company is worth billions, he works just a few hours a day, calls the Florida Keys home, and has a smoking hot girlfriend. Sounds pretty sweet.And that doesn't even take into account that his best friend, Sienna, helps him keep his life both fun and grounded. But it is with her that things go a little sideways. He has felt himself attracted to her for some time, and she has long carried a torch for him, but neither let each other know. Is it too late?Billionaire BeastAfter Billionaire Aiden Walker lost his entire family in a tragic plane crash, he wanted nothing more than to be left alone, so much that he fired his entire staff.He mourned his loss by drowning himself in booze at a small bar on the wrong side of town, where the local bartender became his only friend.So just when he thinks life couldn't get any worse, one of the families involved in the tragic accident is determined to ruin him with a lawsuit that could take his sprawling Savannah estate.The two fall into bed, but will her lies destroy any chance for love once Aiden learns who she is?Billionaire's ValentineDeclan needs a new assistant because of his poor behavior. But as luck would have it, Emmi has also recently been chased off by a badly behaved boss.
Mended with Gold
Lee Welch - 2017
Forty-five-year old, Alex Cox worked as an international photographer until a deadly explosion left him with post-traumatic stress disorder. Emotionally wounded, and desperate for a sense of safety, he's run all the way to wild and remote Kahawai Bay, New Zealand.Under the worst possible circumstances, Alex meets Joe, a shy young comics artist. Joe lets Alex into his playful, gentle world of comics, and soon Alex is falling for him, hard. Alex longs for more. Joe is reticent. But is it shyness? Or does Joe not want a much older lover with 'issues'? Or is something else keeping them apart?This is a tender and uplifting story about creativity, adversity, true love, and comics.
Chance Encounter (Polar Bear Alaska)
Harlow Layne - 2021
Everything about him rubbed me the wrong way and still does. In high school, he was always trying to one-up me either in class or out on the ice. Much to his disappointment, I was always the winner.The competition between us was fierce, and even though we’d been out of school for over a decade, Chance Reed was still always trying to one-up me.Today he finally got his wish. The man I hate with a passion saved me, and now I owe him and he’ll never let me forget it.What was once hatred has turned into an attraction I’m not sure I can deny, not now that he’s got me right where he’s always wanted me.Do I give into what my body wants, or do I fight him like I’ve been doing from the moment we met?Polar Bear, Alaska’s days are short and chilly. And the nights, well, they’re long and frigid. The small, isolated town known for its yearly icy swim is overflowing with hunky, lonely men. These Mountain Men are waiting for their special soulmate to come along and heat things up. This December, take the plunge with nine of your favorite Instalove authors as we introduce you to your new Mountain Man book boyfriends. 12/1 - Loni Ree12/3 - Frankie Love12/6 - Logan Chance12/8 - Heather Dahlgren12/10 - Harlow Layne12/13 - Kelsey Cheyenne12/15 - Evie Mitchell12/17 - Sarah Curtis12/20 - KL Donn
Don't Fight the Spark
Kasia Bacon - 2019
One he can't win. With the odds more than stacked against him, the gorgeous Barbarian is as good as dead. Unless his lover, healer Ĥaiatto Ẽkana, proves himself every bit as determined as he is clever and finds a way to protect the man he'd stop at nothing to save.
A Mysterious Lady for the Resolute Sheriff
Carol Colyer - 2019
He's only got time to make sure everyone in his little town is safe from all danger - especially from the vicious Kinsley gang! After witnessing a fierce shooting, Trent swore to bring every single one of the gang's members to justice. For years they eluded him. They've become his obsession - until one day he meets someone else who captures his attention. Can he afford to succumb to this alluring distraction?Eliza Kinsley is a beautiful, mysterious woman trying to get a job as a new school teacher in town. But she has a well kept secret that revolves around her ties with the Kinsley gang. What is she hiding? She wants to make a new start, but someone is holding her back. Trent's feelings towards Eliza are growing rapidly, but she's keeping him at arm's length in order to protect him from the truth. Can she trust her heart, even if the risk is too high for them both?In this Romeo and Juliet kind of situation, can Eliza follow her heart and be happy, or will her secrets stand in the way of her true love? And will Trent be able to handle the truth about the woman who stole his heart?"A Mysterious Lady for the Resolute Sheriff" is a historical western romance novel of approximately 80,000 words. No cheating, no cliffhangers, and a guaranteed happily ever after.
Decisions
Dustin Stevens - 2020
The things he says and does, decisions he makes, reverberate in ways he can’t begin to fathom.”In the year since his tenure as Governor of Montana came to an end, Carson Wirth’s life has been little more than a victory lap with time spent back in his hometown of Helena, free to make the perfunctory rounds as something of a minor celebrity. Someone to give the occasional guest lecture at the local college or to offer a sound bite on the evening news.His existence isn’t without its benefits, but when an opportunity presents itself to insert himself into a newly vacated United States Representative seat, Wirth jumps at it, envisioning an entirely new act for his career.An act that many others aren’t nearly as excited to see come to pass.Hours after stepping off the stage to receive his endorsement from the outgoing representative, Wirth wakes up alone in an old farm outbuilding. Handcuffed to a steel chair bolted to the floor, he embarks on a night painstakingly put together by his captors, each moment meant to impart the full repercussions of every decision he made overseeing the state.Some with consequences reaching far beyond anything he ever intended…or even imagined.
The Ragged Hatmaker
Faye Godwin - 2019
1854. For years, Fern Hall has lived in an orphanage in the East End of London. It’s a brutal life of endless chores and punishments—for even the smallest infractions. She’s able to escape it for a time when she’s hired out as a temporary maid to the wealthy Hawk family, but a servant’s lot is little better. Gerard Hawk, the second son of the prosperous merchant, is drawn to Fern from their very first meeting when she comes to work for his parents. When Fern is falsely accused of a crime, Gerard is the only one who believes her innocence. She is forced to flee, leaving behind everything—and everyone—she has ever known. A year and a half later, Fern and Gerard meet again accidentally, but the gap between their circumstances is wider than ever. Now in love with Gerard, Fern despairs of anything ever changing in her life. Then something mysterious from Fern’s past surfaces. Can Fern gather the courage to see it through? Is change really a possibility at last?
Green but for a Season
C.S. Pacat - 2016
It follows the relationship between Jord and Aimeric and is set during the events of Prince’s Gambit.
Slay Ride
Josh Lanyon - 2019
Wounded in the Pacific, Police Chief Robert Garrett was hoping for a little much needed Peace on Earth, but finds himself chasing after a "fiendish" killer on Christmas Day--aided by eager young reporter Jamie Jameson.
Dearest Millie
May McGoldrick - 2018
Dearest Millie A Pennington Family Novella Lady Millie, youngest of the Pennington family, has always lived in the shadow of her talented and powerful siblings. She’s been the rock of stability and order for her sisters and brothers. Her future looks bright until fate deals her a tragic hand. Dermot McKendry is a former surgeon in the Royal Navy who has returned to his home in the Highlands to open a hospital. As disorganized as he is passionate, he is a man with wounds and a secret past he has worked a lifetime to hide. Providence brings them together, but their future may lie beyond redemption. Dearest Millie is a poignant tale of two lovers, life’s calamities, and the healing power of the human heart.