I will not hurt you, unless you want me to.”I'm in deep to the Mafia. My father was the one who made the deal, and when I inherited his club, I also inherited his troubles.Ivan wants to save me, or so he says. More like he wants me to be his slave for a year. After the one-night stand I had with him, though, would that be so bad? With his impossibly hard body, and the way he always makes me scream...But he's still a monster. He's a criminal, and something so much worse.And yet I can't stop the tingling in my body every time I think of how he touched me, and those dark but delicious words rolling off his tongue, tinged with his Russian accent.He knows what I'll say, even before I do. "I'll take your offer."

    After all, the sexy and charming Mateo is everything she's ever wanted—and more. But she needs to protect herself—and her heart—before it’s shattered once and for all. Mateo has no choice but to let her go. His woman needs space, and he loves her enough to give it to her—no matter how much he hates it. The only thing keeping him sane is the certainty that their separation will be short-lived.Ava thinks it’s over, but she’s about to find out that Mateo will stop at nothing to turn her “I Don’t” into an “I Do.”

    He's dangerous... He's right next door. I gave up everything to save my sister from a monster, and now I’m lying low in this rundown apartment so I can stay out of danger. Hiding from everyone.Except for the guy in apartment 1A.He’s rude. Silent. Muscled, mysterious, and hot as hell. I don’t know if he likes me or hates me, but the more time I spend with him, the less it matters.I want him.And for the first time in my life I'm going to go after what I want.She doesn’t belong in my world.From the second 1B moves in, I know she’s keeping secrets. She doesn’t belong here, much less with a street fighter like me.But that doesn’t stop me from craving her. Her softness and sweetness. She’s a drug, and suddenly I’m addicted.I know someone is going to try and hurt her and I can’t let that happen. But unless I push her away and get her out of my world, that someone could be me…

    Rule #2 Pay attention.Rule #3 The less they know about you, the harder it is for them to hurt you.Rule #4 Comfort is dangerous. It can be taken away.Rule #5 Need is a handicap. It can cripple you.Rule #6 He isn’t what he seems. Don’t trust him.Simple rules made for a simple purpose. Nina Ryan learned early on in life that if you want to avoid being hurt, you need to be proactive. If you pay attention the Universe will always steer you in the right direction. It will help keep you safe. So, she follows the rules, and she is safe. Until Connor Wright barges his way through all her carefully laid defenses and threatens to destroy the comfortable life she has created. Faithfully following her #1 rule, Nina tries to accept that the Universe has pushed Connor and her lives together for a purpose. Determined to make Nina his, Connor chips away at the walls Nina has placed around her heart and her secrets. Is Nina following the signs that will lead her down the right path, or does Connor hold secrets of his own that will ruin Nina for good? Only the Universe knows.Recommended for 18+ only due to sexual content and mature situations.

    But what he got was a woman who shook his lonely bitter world upside down, and touched him in a way no other woman could. Emily Nelson, a courageous young mother, ends a loveless, bitter marriage and strikes out on her own. She answers an ad as a cook and live-in caregiver to a three-year-old boy on a local ranch. Ranch owner Brad Friessen hires and moves in Emily and her daughter. But Emily soon discovers something's seriously wrong with the boy, and the reclusive, difficult man who hired her can't see the behavior and how delayed his son is. So Emily researches until she stumbles across what she suspects are the soft signs of autism. Now she must tell him, give him hope, and help him come to terms with this neurological disorder-to take the necessary steps to get his child the help he needs. As their lives become intertwined, their attraction is unavoidable-a connection sparks between them. But just as they're getting close, Brad's estranged wife, Crystal, returns after abandoning the family two years earlier. Among the shock and confusion is one disturbing question Brad can't shake: How does Crystal know so much of his personal business, the inner working of the ranch, and Emily's relationship with his son? Crystal must've had a plan, as she somehow gains the upper hand, driving a wedge in the emotional bond forged between Brad, Emily, and the children. The primary focus for care and therapy of three-year-old Trevor is diverted. The lengths to which Crystal will go, the lies, the greed, just to keep what's hers, are nothing short of cold and calculating. Emily's forced out of the house. Brad fights to save his boy, to protect what's his, and struggles over his greatest sacrifice-Emily, and the haunting question: Has he lost her forever?THE OUTSIDER SERIES: The Forgotten Child (Brad & Emily) A Baby And A Wedding (An Outsider Series Short) Fallen Hero (Andy, Jed & Diana) The Search (An Outsider Series Short) The Awakening (Andy & Laura) Secrets (Jed & Diana) Runaway(Andy & Laura) Overdue (An Outsider Series Short) The Unexpected Storm (Neil & Candy) The Wedding (Neil & Candy) Or grab The Outsider Series: The Complete Omnibus Collection which includes all the books and short stories in this in this romantic saga. THE FRIESSENS: A NEW BEGINNING: The Deadline (Andy & Laura) The Price to Love (Neil & Candy) A Different Kind of Love (Brad & Emily) A Vow of Love, A Friessen Christmas

    Son of a congressman. Successful businessman in my own right. With a résumé like mine, women have never been a challenge.Until I met her. This sexy, tatted-up bad girl wasn’t part of my plans, but that punch to my gut every time I see her tells me I have to know more.She’s a mystery. An enigma. A challenge. I’m going to figure her out — and then I’m going to make her mine. We’ll find out what she’s hiding... beneath this mask.

    The lush and majestic setting of the Pacific Northwest calls to her and offers a place of refuge and perhaps renewal. Her grandmother has passed away, leaving the Madrona Island Bed & Breakfast Inn to Lily. Left with only an old guestbook as her guide–a curious book full of letters, recipes, and glimpses into her family history–Lily is determined to embrace her newfound independence and recreate herself, one page at a time. With the help of the quirky island residents she has befriended, she slowly finds the strength to seek out happiness on her own terms. But as soon as she has sworn off men and is standing on her own two feet, Lily meets Ian, the alluring artist who lives next door, and her new life is suddenly thrown off course. The last thing she wants to do right now is to open her heart to another man. Ultimately, Lily must decide if it’s worth giving up her soul for security or risking everything to follow her heart.

    Unfortunately, one of the firm’s partners has been pressuring her for a date. She has no interest in sleeping her way up the corporate ladder, but he won’t take no for an answer, and he’s following her. His Lexus is in the parking lot of her uncle’s gym when she steps outside. In a split-second decision, she plasters herself to the sexy man leaning casually against the wall outside the gym. Rafe Wesson is stunned by one look at the woman so totally out of place at the gym. His plan is to casually run into her outside and ask her out. And then she catches him off-guard with a kiss that rocks his world. Katy isn’t Rafe’s type. She’s far too innocent. But two dates don’t dampen his desire. Rafe has personal rules against sleeping with a woman before she is fully informed about his preferences. However, Katy is persistent. She wants him, but he fears he’ll lose her when she finds out about his lifestyle. Rafe tries to step away from her, but he can’t ignore the unknown threat that haunts her, and time is running out. Someone wants Katy dead. And Rafe wants Katy...very much alive.

     ReaganI hate him. Jude Titan is everything that’s wrong with the male sex: cocky, domineering and loaded with swagger. Oh, and did I mention he’s a Republican? Yeah, the guy’s so conservative he leans to the right when walking. And lucky me, I’m running against him for Senate. But I’ve got plenty of fight in me. A golden boy war hero opponent with a smile that leaves melted panties in its wake? Bring. It. On.JudeDamn, she’s sexy. Reagan Preston intrigues me from the moment I lay eyes on her. And speaking of laying…I want between those thighs. But I want to make her burn for me first. Every debate and stolen moment is foreplay for us. She claims she hates me, but her body tells a different story. I plan to win this election, but I also want to win the sharp, fiery Democrat who captures my attention like no woman ever has. Politics is filthy, just like all the things I want to do to Reagan Preston.

    On the tail end of her latest bad decision, Jessica realizes she needs to make a life change. So when college finally ends, she packs up her life and heads to Texas for a fresh start. It is there she meets the most ruggedly handsome cowboy she's ever encountered. An entrepreneur with a million prospects, Jessica knows he's out of her league, but life, and an adventurous spirit, keeps driving her toward him, stumbling and laughing all the way. He can only resist her for so long.

     Rachel fell in love at nineteen with a man who came into her life on a whirlwind of sunlight and romance. She married Gary Tanner, had his son, and thought she would live happily ever after. But fate had other plans. Gary died in a tragic accident … at least she thought it was an accident. Now, there are questions that need to be answered, and only one man she can turn to, Gary's best friend, Dylan. Rachel was everything Dylan Prescott wanted in a woman. But Gary met her first, so she became untouchable. For years he stayed away from her. Now Rachel is a widow, her marriage is over, and she turns to him for help. The passion he feels for her is no longer out of his reach. The life he always wanted is beckoning to him, but when the secrets come out, will their love find a way to survive? Reviews: "Freethy has once again penned an exceptional piece of fiction." - Library Journal "Freethy deftly weaves the evocative tapestry of family life, love and pain with a delightful splash of whimsy in this intense story of evolving emotions, of relationships taking form against the ultimate loom of resiliency and triumph. And triumph this story surely does." BookPage LOVE WILL FIND A WAY is a captivating, heart-tugging story of love and family, of dreams and second chances. Barbara Freethy is a master storyteller with a gift for spinning tales about ordinary people in extraordinary situations and drawing readers into their lives." Romance Reviews Today "Heartwarming and life affirming, LOVE WILL FIND A WAY ranks right up there with the other deep love stories that go beyond the traditional. Let it find a way onto your shelf." Romance Readers Connection IF YOU LIKE CONNECTED SERIES, don't miss Barbara's new family series, The Callaways, filled with love, romance and adventure! ON A NIGHT LIKE THIS (#1) SO THIS IS LOVE (#2) FALLING FOR A STRANGER (#3) BETWEEN NOW AND FOREVER (#4) NOBODY BUT YOU (A Callaway Wedding Novella) ALL A HEART NEEDS (#5) THAT SUMMER NIGHT (#6) WHEN SHADOWS FALL (#7) Coming September 2014

    She thought she knew what she wanted in life. She had a great boyfriend, a promising career, and a clear path. How could one simple portrait change all that? A photograph. A sculpture. A painting. One clue leads to another, and Kate learns that pieces of the past might leave unexpected marks on her own future, too. And how, exactly, did she end up in an irritable sculptor's studio? One portrait may hold the answers, but learning its secrets will challenge everything Kate thought she knew about love, art, and life. A single picture can tell more than one story, and in the end, a young artist will discover that every real love story is a unique work of art.

    He’s hard-hitting, rough and puts up with very little. He’s kept to himself throughout his years at Providence University, but it’s time to train the next man up in line for his position. His second on the Hockey team has a twin sister that catches everyone’s eye and leaves most of the guys acting like idiots, but Lucas isn’t interested. Girls are too needy, too catty and a pain in butt. Plain and simple. Aubrey Moore’s had her eye on the captain of the hockey team for the last few years since her brother, Jayce joined the team. He’s known for being a complete jerk, but Aubrey’s had the pleasure of seeing around the edges of his personality and wants to know him more. Now she just has to figure out how to help him breakaway from being so jaded and join her in the best adventure anyone could embark on -love. 18+ Explicit sexual content, possible foul language and violence. **HEA - these novels are all within the Pro-U series, but are about different couples at the university and should stand-alone.

    The supposed bad girl is determined to walk the straight and narrow, a seemingly impossible task when Tall, Dark and Sexy shows up…Rich and powerful, Dane Michaelson is every woman's dream. When he returns to Strawberry Valley after a sixteen-year absence, he is unprepared for the redheaded girl he's never been able to forget. She's all woman now—and he's never wanted anyone more. But to have her, he'll have to break through her defenses… and surrender his own.* First published in the 2014 anthology, All For You.

    By night, she’s an award winning salsa dancer who wears sexy corsets and garter belts. She wants to keep her two lives separate, but Liam Mikin knows her secrets. Liam Mikin is a co-pilot used to getting any air-hostess he wants with one blazing look of his blue eyes. And he wants Nina. But Nina is adamant she won’t end up as another notch on a pilot’s wingtip.However, fate intervenes when their airplane malfunctions on a routine flight to Samoa, stranding all the crew on the Pacific island. Liam has his opportunity to prove to Nina he’s not what she thinks, but he wasn’t counting on competition in the form of an engineer. Nikolai Rivers dances as well as Nina and is linked to Liam’s past. As Nikolai fights for Nina’s affections, Liam is forced to face what happened all those years ago. Being island-wrecked in a five star hotel is anything but relaxing. Fraught with male egos, dancing, and secrets, both Nina and Liam aren’t ready for what fate has in store.