Book picks similar to
Hard Knocks by Lori Foster


romance
contemporary-romance
lori-foster
sports

Knock Out


Michele Mannon - 2013
    Dropped by her ex on national TV, she's gone from prima ballerina to ring card girl, reduced to revving up the crowds before MMA bouts. However distasteful she finds her new job, it pays well…and she needs the money if she's ever going to rebuild her life. Promised a huge bonus if she can convince a brooding, gifted welterweight to keep fighting, she'll do whatever it takes to earn his trust.Keane O'Shea is unbeatable in the octagon. A former marine, he fights with a ruthlessness no gym jockey can match. He knows his brutal strength is too much for the delicate ex-ballerina, regardless of how fascinating he finds Logan's tight dancer's body. But one private performance and he's drawn to her in a way he can't—or won't—resist.As Logan discovers the heartbreaking truth that lies beneath this handsome warrior's rage, she'll need to forfeit everything she thought mattered for the one thing that matters the most: saving Keane from himself.

Breakaway


Kelly Jamieson - 2011
    Pro hockey player Jason just broke up with his girlfriend because she got too serious. Schoolteacher Remi just saw the last of the younger siblings she raised leave the nest. Jace isn’t ready for responsibility. Remi’s had enough responsibility. They’re perfect playmates. But fun and sexy games get complicated when emotions get involved. Then responsibility and commitment crash the party when Jason’s past comes back to haunt him. Like it or not, Jason and Remi both have to figure out what they really want.

Win by Submission


Melynda Price - 2015
    They say it’s a miracle he can walk, if that’s what you call his crutch-dragging limp. Unwilling to give up on him, Cole’s manager sends the injured fighter to the best physical therapist he knows: his niece, Katie Miller. When Cole arrives in the small town of Somerset, Wisconsin, he quickly discovers his sly manager may have had reasons other than rehab for sending him to this frozen tundra.After a year of running from an abusive ex-boyfriend, Katie has returned to her hometown to care for her father, who’s recovering from a stroke. When Uncle Marcus calls in a favor, she reluctantly finds herself taking on a rancorous MMA fighter, broken at the height of his career. He’s insanely sex-on-a-stick hot—and everything she loathes in a man.If Cole thinks his fighting days are over, he’s dead wrong. To save Katie from her past and to win her heart, he’ll be in for the fight of his life.

Uncockblockable


Shay Savage - 2013
    He always seems to get the girl in the end, even when everyone around tries to plot against him. He’s a party guy, doesn’t work, and spends all his time picking up chicks and making notches on his headboard. He's the ultimate ladies man...or is that man-whore? Until he meets her, and she turns the tables on him.

Bound to Submit


Laura Kaye - 2016
    Twelve Masters. Infinite fantasies. Welcome to Blasphemy...He thinks he caused her pain, but she knows he’s the only one who can heal her…Kenna Sloane lost her career and her arm in the Marines, and now she feels like she’s losing herself. Submission is the only thing that ever freed her from pain and made her feel secure, and Kenna needs to serve again. Bad. The only problem is the Dom she wants once refused her submission and broke her heart, but, scarred on the inside and out, she’s not looking for love this time. She’s not even sure she’s capable.Griffin Hudson is haunted by the mistakes that cost him the only woman he ever loved. Now she’s back at his BDSM club, Blasphemy, and more beautiful than ever, and she’s asking for his help with the pain he knows he caused. Even though he’s scared to hurt her again, he can’t refuse her, because he’d give anything to earn a second chance. And this time, he’ll hold on forever.

Turning Pointe


Katherine Locke - 2015
    He's the one person who can talk her anxiety away, the one person she knows will never judge her. That she's starting to think about him as more than a best friend is something new entirely.Aly is Zed's everything, but their "just friends" label is beginning to chafe. When the company embarks on a month-long European tour, the magic of Amsterdam and a nearly indecent pas de deux routine combine, making their chemistry—both on and off the stage—impossible to ignore.But just as Aly and Zed begin to see what everyone else already knows, just when they've taken the leap from friends to lovers, the unthinkable happens. And in the blink of an eye, Aly and Zed are tossed back to the beginning…19,000 words

Faster Harder


Colleen Masters - 2013
    The esteemed daughter of Alfonso Lazio, the greatest driver F1 has ever seen, Siena seems to have it all figured out. All she has to do is uphold her family's honor and ensure her brother Enzo's public image is pristine while he rises to fame and clenches the title as Formula One's new champion.Everything is perfect......Until she's swept mercilessly off her feet by the one man she can never be with. The one man who can fuck it all up.Harrison Davies is Team McClain's secret weapon and he's the only driver who threatens to steal the championship from Enzo. The tattooed British bad boy knows how to get what he wants. And always gets what he wants.Harrison and Siena fall deeper and deeper with each secret tryst. Passion flares, reality fades, and the lines between right and wrong begin to blur. Driven by lust and ambition the couple delves into a world of treachery, deceit, lies, and ultimate betrayal. Is Siena ready to place her fragile heart into the hands of a speed demon and will the thrill of falling for him be worth it when they wreck?Full length New Adult Contemporary Romance novel. Readers 18+ only. Contains adult themes and explicit sexual content.

Unbreakable


Abby Reynolds - 2014
     This is a stand alone novel. It is not a cliffhanger. And it is the first novel in the Forehead Kisses Series. Can there be too many pieces to piece back together? This is a question Keira faces every day. It’s impossible for her to go anywhere unaccompanied by her cousin, the only person who knows what happened on that horrific night a year ago. The guilt and pain weigh her down every day. Unwilling to open up to anyone and give someone a chance, she lives in solitude. For her, that’s the only way to live. Liam struggles with his own demons. After losing someone who means the world to him, he combats his anger and pain on a daily basis. He dives into violence and sex, losing himself more and more. But as soon as he meets Keira, he recognizes the same pain he suffers every day. And he pursues her, wanting to connect to someone who understands. Keira can’t put herself back together, and neither can Liam. But can they do it together?

Outside the Ropes


Ashley Claudy - 2015
    Outside the ropes, she fights to survive.Regan Sommers spent her life fighting. Fighting foster parents, kids in the group home, and classmates. But the night she has to fight for her life changes everything. Now, she's fighting for money in the ring, and from the first punch she's addicted. Every addiction has a price though, and this one is the gym's star boxer, Gage Lawson. He may come in an enticing tattooed package, but his demands are more than she can handle. The responding officer from that night, Anthony Fields, comes with no demands. He wants whatever she's willing to give, and Regan can handle that. She can definitely handle him. But no help comes string free, and Regan's not the only one with a hard past and scars to cover. The life she was trying to escape is nothing compared to the danger she's in the middle of now, and she can't fight her way out.***Reader please be aware: Story contains mature content such as: Drugs, sex, abuse, and explicit language that may be upsetting for some.****

Alpha Fighter


Ava Ashley - 2014
    She fled everything she ever knew to follow her career dreams and not endanger anyone by getting too close. But she wasn't expecting her new roommate to be her dream guy.For Cooper Quin, being any girl's dream man, is nothing new, but he's determined to stay exactly that: a dream. His focus is on killing it in the brutal MMA ring. With a dark past of pain and betrayal, falling in love is the last thing he intends to do. But his sexy new roommate is nothing like one of his usual one-night stands. With her, it feels safe to let his guard down.Cooper knows a little about running from the past; Savannah's is still looking for her. He can't leave her alone, but pursuing her might be the MMA fighter's undoing. She knows she can't stay forever--not with two outlaw gangs searching everywhere to bring her back.

Compromising Positions


Jenna Bayley-Burke - 2009
    That is, until he gets tangled up with Sophie Delfino and her Sensational Sex workout. He s supposed to help her demonstrate Kama Sutra positions for her couples yoga class. The rigorous postures require more than just physical control. And his co-instructor unexpectedly tests his control to the limit.Sophie s been fantasizing about David since her teens, but she never dreamed she d actually be expected to run through her intimate desires with an audience! The class is very professional, tame even or it would be, if she d been in any of the positions before. But she hasn t except in her wildest fantasies about David. Sophie knows she wants David in every way, and she s flexible enough to use whatever she has to get him.David can t afford any unexpected distractions. Besides the sensual positions he has to endure without embarrassing himself in public, there s an embezzler stealing from his company. And then there s Sophie who is well on her way to stealing his well-guarded heart."

Needing Nita


Norah Wilson - 2010
    Craig Walker, but he's given up asking her out. She doesn't date cops...until a doctor's call makes her re-examine her priorities. Believing she has a brain tumor like the one that killed her father, she vows to make love to Craig Walker while she still has her full faculties. By the time the doctor realizes he's mixed up the scans, she's in way too deep.