Book picks similar to
Balance Check by M.E. Carter


romance
arc
contemporary
romantic-comedy

Last Call


Alice Clayton - 2015
    Settling in, but never settling down, Caroline has finally struck a balance between the professional and the personal. As one of the top interior designers in San Francisco, she travels all over Northern California between nook time with Simon.Perpetual globetrotter Simon has cut his frequent flyer miles in half over the last year, preferring to balance his professional and personal life, as well.The next step in their lives seems preordained—toasts, veils, and the aisle of rose petals. But when an accident on a photo shoot in Southeast Asia brings Caroline the most terrifying phone call she could ever imagine, she has to ask whether “till death do us part” is a more realistic prospect than faces most couples.It’s been a grand adventure, and Caroline and Simon wouldn’t go out without the best surprise ending ever. One part sexy, one part laughter, a dash of exotic locales, and one pink nightie, mixed with passion, and you’ve got Last Call. Served with a side of Clive. - See more at: http://books.simonandschuster.com/Las...

Payback


Amy Daws - 2019
    Her cheating ex deserves to see her living her best life; a one-night-stand with a hot South African soccer player would be the perfect revenge. Right? Wrong. Allie is so, so wrong. ROAN DEWALT HAS ALL THE MOVES. On and off the field he’s at the top of his game. Roan respects hard-work, dedication—and follow through. He’s not a one and done kind of man, and he’s far from being done with Allie Harris. One sexy night and two years later, Allie’s job brings her back to town. An opportunity for the perfect replay Roan has been fantasizing about since they slept together. THE PROBLEM? Allie Harris has a secret; one she’s been keeping from Roan all this time. Video proof of their one night together—taken without his consent. Will Allie’s payback plan come back to bite them both? Or can she erase her past mistake and embrace a new future with Roan?

Love, Sincerely, Yours


Sara Ney - 2018
    Three margaritas, two shots, and one beer—because it was free.I think it’s important to be open and honest with your co-workers, don’t you?So here I am, being honest. Drunk but honest. Or just drunk with lust? You decide.I like you so much it’s clouding my judgment and making me do things I never would sober. Like write this letter.I have a hopeless, foolish, schoolgirl crush on you when you are the last person on earth I should be falling for. Did you know people around the office call you a sadist? An egomaniac. An insensitive, arrogant prick. Your bark is worse then your bite, and you don’t scare me. The fact is, I’d love that bite of yours to nip at my bare skin while we’re both wearing nothing but sheets.For once I want you to look at me as more than one of your employees. And as long as we're being honest, that navy blue suit you wear? With the crisp white shirt? It really makes me want to loosen your tie and show you who’s boss. Love,Sincerely,Yours.

Flirting with the Frenemy


Pippa Grant - 2019
    Master Baker. Dimples. Muscles. The unicorn of fake boyfriends.Complication: Wyatt Morgan. My brother's best friend. My sworn enemy. Military man. Sexy as hell single dad. The man I let into my panties for one night of hot hate sex after my ex dumped me. And the man who just scared off that perfect fake boyfriend. By pretending to be my real boyfriend.I can roll with this though. What’s the harm in Flirting with the Frenemy if it helps me get the job done?Complete my mission and move on.Or so I thought.Until Wyatt kisses me again and I start feeling things I shouldn't.The thing about weddings...nothing ever goes as planned. Flirting with the Frenemy is a rollicking fun romantic comedy featuring a single dad military man, an irritatingly attractive blast from his past, pirates, cursing parrots, and a wedding gone wild. It stands alone with no cheating or cliffhangers.

Cupids Anonymous


Lila Monroe - 2019
    Now fall in love with her brand new sizzling standalone - perfect for fans of Sophie Kinsella and Christina Lauren!Poppy Hathaway is a professional Cyrano - minus the honking great nose. Need a love note, raunchy sext, or apology letter so epic that your other half will forget you hesitated a beat too long when you asked, 'does this make me look fat?'? She's got you covered. But when her most frequent client, the annoyingly charming (or is that charmingly annoying?) Dylan Griffin comes to her with an unconventional new job, Poppy discovers that three little words can add up to one big complication. Because Dylan doesn't want help seducing another swimsuit model (for once in his life). He wants Poppy's help winning over her his high-school crush (aka, his one true love) - and he's prepared to make it worth her while. Throw in a summer Catskills trip that's equal parts 'Dirty Dancing' and dirty-talking, and this Cupid is soon out of her depth - and head over heels with the last man she expected. But can she find the right words when it comes to her own heart? Or will this happily ever end in disaster?

Stud Muffin


Jiffy Kate - 2019
    After Tempest Cassidy walks in on her husband banging her high school nemesis, her whole world gets turned upside down. She goes from being known as the Duchess of Muffins to the town crazy. Her new MO: revenge. Eventually, Tempest grows weary being arrested. Yet what choice does she have? If she’s not angry, then she’s simply . . . sad.Just as she decides to get her life back on track, in walks Cage Erickson, the new bouncer at the local strip club. He’s scary-handsome and the polar opposite of her ex. She’s attracted to him, but she’s not looking for a rebound. He’s attracted to her, but he’s not looking for a serious relationship. So, they agree to be friends.But when lines get blurred in the friend zone, will they both get burned? Or will it be a TKO?'Stud Muffin' is a full-length contemporary romantic comedy, can be read as a standalone, and is book #1 in the Fighting For Love series, Green Valley World, Penny Reid Book Universe.

Moti on the Water


Leylah Attar - 2019
    An Indian family. A summer wedding on the Aegean coast…Meet Moti Ferreira—spectacularly jinxed from the day she’s born.Saddled with an eccentric mother, she stumbles upon the one man who holds the key to her freedom—the best man at her cousin’s upcoming wedding.All Moti has to do is overcome her fear of water, board a yacht to the Greek Isles, seduce the dreamy Nikos Manolas, and survive two weeks at sea with her oddball family.The only obstacle Moti doesn’t see coming is Alexandros Veronis, the onboard chef and star witness to her awkward mishaps. He transforms onions into chocolate and aroma into nostalgia. Day by day, his alchemy works its magic on Moti. But she’s not the only one falling under his spell. Everyone has a secret, growing round and ripe at Chef Alex’s table. When the masks fall off, they spill out one by one, and everything blows up in their faces.Now Moti’s truth is exposed, and worse, she’s hooked on more than Alex's midnight snacks. But this time, screwing up could be the best thing she’s ever done…

Fancy Pants


Susan Elizabeth Phillips - 1989
    Now she's broke, furious, and limping down a backwoods road in an ugly pink Southern Belle gown. He was tall, lean, and All-American gorgeous. He liked his brews cold and women loved to keep him warm. So why is he stopping his car for this woebegone, surly Scarlett?

Once Upon a Real Good Time


Lauren Blakely - 2018
    Oops. But I didn't know that the night I met Campbell. All I knew was he played my body the same way he played a guitar — like he owned it. My libido is still high-fiving me after being self-served for too many years, and we’re both ready for another night or two of fun, especially since we don’t just have chemistry in bed — we connect over everything. That is, until I learn he’s the man who’ll be coming to my house twice a week to teach my son — the best music lessons money can buy. Time to turn down the volume on our shenanigans. Only that’s easier said than done. *** I can rock a guitar solo in front of thousands, I can write chart-topping tunes, and I can absolutely stop thinking about my student’s mother naked. After all, I’m a single parent too, and I know what it’s like to put your kid first. That’s what I do every damn day. Trouble is, now that I’ve had Mackenzie, it’s hard — and I do mean hard — to stop wanting her. Harder too when I get to know her, and learn she’s an awesome mom, a great friend, and, oh yeah, she happens to get along perfectly with my daughter. All we have to do is set some rules. No dating, no nookie when the kids are around, and no one gets hurt. It’s all working out beautifully. Until we start breaking the rules, one by one. Making music with her in the bedroom is easy. But will we be more than just a real good time when the music stops?

#1 Crush


T. Gephart - 2017
    Sure, she could get a little crazy at times—life around Tia was never boring—but that was part of her appeal. And while she didn’t see herself as ‘classically beautiful’, she had no shortage of options in the boyfriend department. She just hadn’t found one who held her interest.Until she laid eyes on Eric Larsson, and then it was lust at first sight.He packed the perfect mix of smoldering sexy and unapologetic cool into his blond-haired, blue-eyed, ridiculously hot six-foot-four frame. One smile from him was enough to twist her insides, making her girlie bits tingle in the most delicious way. But it wasn’t just his looks, he was smart and funny—charming in the most a-dork-able way.The only problem was . . . Tia had never actually met him.Eric Larsson was one of Hollywood’s hottest movie stars, rising to the top of his game and leaving a trail of disintegrated panties in his wake. Tia’s were no exception—but she wasn’t delusional. Love, marriage and happily-ever-after were not part of her fantasy; she just wanted to meet him. Just one time. One time. Confident that just seeing him in the flesh would get him out of her system.So, with her resolve steeled, Tia set off on a quest to make it happen while avoiding her mug shot being splayed across the five o’clock news.The journey no doubt will make for one hell of a story.

The Consequence of Loving Colton


Rachel Van Dyken - 2015
    He should have known that sharing a cookie with a sugar obsessed little monster would do the trick–it sealed his fate. So really, the fact that he’s sporting a black eye, a limp, almost got ran over by a car, and was nearly responsible for another person’s death? Right. HIs fault. Not mine. I made a pact with myself–this weekend would be different. I’d come home for my brothers wedding, smile, and Colton would naturally melt into my arms, we’d get married have five kids, live in a house by the river, and get a dog named scratch (clearly I’ve thought this through).What really happened? I punched my brother in the face, Colton kissed me and apologized, I lied about having a boyfriend, oh and everyone wants to meet the mystery man. They say laughter always comes before insanity–ha, ha. All I wanted was my brother’s best friend…instead I’m sitting in prison. Let this be a lesson to you all…life rarely happens the way you want it to. Damn cookie.

Holy Frigging Matrimony


Emma Chase - 2013
    Steven went first. He was kind of our test subject. Like those monkeys that NASA sent off into space in the fifties, all the while knowing they’d never make it back.And now another poor rocket is ready to launch.But this isn’t just any posh New York wedding. You’ve seen my friends, you’ve met our families, you know you're in for a treat. Everyone wants their wedding to be memorable. This one’s going to be un-frigging-forgettable.Holy Frigging Matrimony takes place about a year after Tangled’s end and is from Drew’s POV.

An Unwanted Love Story


Ellie Hall - 2021
    It’s easy enough to overlook his sky blue eyes, the beard that gives him both a distinguished yet wild look, and his buff bod. Vroom. Vroom.What? It’s summer and hard not to notice things like that. Why do I hate him? Sheesh. So many questions.For one, it’s Doug’s fault our lake is in trouble. For two, the guy despises ice cream. Who turns down free ice cream? A monster. That’s who. But he’s the monster who can stop the pollution from ruining our water and livelihoods.Too bad I’m the head of the lake committee and have to work with him. The problem is, I’m afraid he’s melting my heart like ice cream in the sun.This is the first book in the Falling Into Happily Ever After series. It is novella length, giving you a sweet taste of what’s to come in the subsequent books which are all full length. It was also previously published in the USA Today bestselling collection Love, Laughter & Happily Ever After but has been expanded with extra scenes and details for your reading pleasure.

Always Room for Cupcakes


Bethany Lopez - 2020
    The next thing I knew, my entire world crashed and burned.I used to wake up at night in a sweat, crying because I’d dreamt my husband was cheating on me, or he hated me, and resented our kids. He’d always hold me close and tell me it was all just a dream, that he loved me and our family and he’d never let me go.He was a f*cking liar.Now I spend my days taking photos of scum just like him, trying to be a champion for others who are being taken advantage of by the losers in our town, and my nights being a single mom to my beautiful twins.I've got great friends who always have my back, and a sexy, mysterious motorcycle man who keeps showing up when I need him. Things are finally starting to look up. And, one thing's for sure... There's always room for cupcakes.WARNING: THIS BOOK CONTAINS FOUL LANGUAGE, SEX, SOME VIOLENCE, AND SHENANIGANS. IF NONE OF THAT BOTHERS YOU, GRAB A CUPCAKE AND READ ON!Cupcake Series - Should be read in orderAlways Room for CupcakesCupcake OverloadLei'd with CupcakesCupcake ExplosionCupcakes & Macarons: Honeymoon ShortLei'd in Paradise: A Cupcakes Series Novella (Carmen and Bran)Crazy for Cupcakes - Coming Soon

Clam Jam


R.C. Boldt - 2017
    Example: You're chatting with a guy you're interested in and your friend comes along and lays claim to him.MaggieThat's my life except it's worse. My friend who keeps jamming me is my gay roommate, and if that isn't a W.T.F. moment, I'm not sure what is. Fact: He went home with three yes, three of the guys I had been so sure were into me. Fact: He's really pissing me off. I mean, hello? I'm trying to get back in the saddle, but I'll never manage to get a boyfriend before the age of fifty if he keeps this up. Fact: Secretly, I wonder what it would be like if he weren't gay.RyThe day I interviewed for the room to rent, everything changed. I knew I had met the girl, except there was one small problem: she didn't want anything to do with men. I recognized a top-notch force field when I saw one. She'd been burned badly and didn't want to deal with a heterosexual guy as a roommate. I could've turned around and found another place to live, but I wanted to live there with her. So I had to go undercover. Fact: I'm in love with my roommate. Fact: She's going to hate me if I come clean now. Fact: I'm not giving up. Which means I'll just have to continue to run defense until I figure out a way to get Maggie to see the real me. The me that loves her. The me that would never do her wrong. Until then, I'll keep running off every guy who shows any interest. Until then, I'll continue to Clam Jam.