They expect their differences will cause them conflict. What they don’t expect are the two women who blow their careful plan apart. Suzanna Quinn is the principal and hates being attracted to the new school psychologist. Worse, thirty year old Social Studies teacher Kelsey Cunningham is horrified by her feelings for Luke, her new “student.” But the very real threat of school violence from more than one student forces them to work together and face their feelings for each other. Suicide, gang warfare and bullying all play a part as this stunning drama unfolds.

    On the second Sunday he saw only the carnage the man had left behind, but that was enough. By the third Sunday, he’d decided to kill him. What else can he do when the lives of the people he cares about are at stake? Look at Kirsty’s brother, Tim, the way he punishes himself, hates himself, wishes he was dead. And their mother — already an empty shell, she can’t hold out much longer. The courts won’t stop Cartwright and he’s got the police in his pocket. Only Kirsty seems able to stand up to him, despite what the monster did to her years before when he was her father.Dylan knows about fathers and the way they let you down. He’s not going to let Cartwright destroy this family, even if the solution seems unthinkable? But how do you stare into the face of a living creature and snuff out the light you see in those eyes? How do you know you can do it? Kill the possum. If you can’t do that to a ball of fur, you’ll never take a man’s life, no matter how much you hate him, no matter how much it has to be done. Tim can’t kill the possum. Can Dylan? What starts in the white heat of anger becomes an obsession. It will end in heart-wrenching tragedy.

    But when a dead body washes up on the shores of Lake Michigan clutching her business card, Eden’s well-constructed world begins to fall apart. Apparently, she’s not the only one with a passion for payback, and staying alive to outsmart a killer has become her most important job of all. A Game for a Game Hardened homicide detective Kelly Riordan is convinced Eden Smith is hiding more than she’s willing to admit. Years on the force have taught him that nothing is what it seems, and that couldn’t be truer than when it comes to investigating the alluring owner of a revenge-for-hire business. But revealing her past could put everything Eden has worked for in jeopardy. And trusting a man like Riordan goes against the very instincts that have kept her alive this long.

    With a little help from his friends, Logan Wright and Jared Monroe, he’s starting a new business and moving forward. He only thinks about the past during the long, dark nights. It’s then that he feels most alone. Brinley Snow has moved into her dream home. It’s everything she’s wanted and more although she's facing a mountain of renovation work. Luckily it came with the bonus of a sexier than sin neighbor. One sultry summer night, Brinley gathers up her courage and asks Jason to join her for dinner. They’re instantly attracted to one another but the evening quickly goes down hill as she ends up in the interrogation room of the local police. An unknown dead man had her address clutched in his hand. The authorities – and Jason – think she’s the key to finding a cold-blooded murderer. With a first date like that Brinley’s not sure she’ll survive a second. Then again she’s never met anyone like Jason. He’s not the typical boy-next-door. He’s all man. And with a little luck, he could become all hers. They just have to stay alive long enough to catch a killer.

    Her newfound peace is shattered a year later when she receives a sinister gift eerily similar to others sent by The Gardener. Although assured by the police it is a copycat, she isn't as confident. Regardless of his identity, her stalker has made one thing perfectly clear; he's set his sights on her and nothing will stop him. Maddox "River" Benson is looking in the rear-view mirror at a twenty-year career with the Navy SEALs. Contemplating an uncertain future, River jumps at the chance to assist an old friend in the New Orleans Police Department. There is an unknown stalker zeroing in on an innocent young woman. Although there is only so much the police can do officially, River isn't as restricted. Protecting Joselyn is his only priority. Joselyn's schedule is a bane to River's security strategy. The feisty beauty is intent on pursuing her budding career regardless of her sexy bodyguard's advice. Although their opinions clash in the beginning, the escalating threats force them to come to a compromise. He must trust her with freedom, and she must trust him with her life. Meanwhile, the growing attraction between them creates an entirely different set of issues. How can he concentrate on protecting Joselyn when thoughts of claiming her for his own continually distract him? When her stalker draws closer, will one ex-SEAL have what it takes to ensure her survival? Will River be able to Protect Joselyn? ********************** TEAM CERBERUS (Each story is complete with its own HEA)

    Emotionally scarred from war, the career soldier returns home on emergency leave to temporarily care for his orphaned nephew and niece. But when someone tries to kidnap the kids and their teenage babysitter, Grant knows it’s not a random act…and neither were the murders.Already devastated by her neighbors’ violent deaths, Ellie Ross is shattered by the attempted abduction of her teenage daughter so she desperately turns to Grant for help. As they navigate a deadly search for the truth, they struggle with growing feelings for each other and Grant’s impending return to deployment.But time is running out. The killer is growing bolder by the hour, and Ellie and Grant must find him before the children become his next victims.

    Her expertise in art and antiques helps his low-profile company, Lost and Found, find missing treasures for high-paying clients. But Cady knows that being useful to a client is one thing—and being used is another. So no matter how alluring she finds Mack, she plans to keep business and pleasure entirely separate. But then a sudden tragedy puts Cady in charge of Chatelaine’s, her family’s prestigious art and antiques gallery. Suddenly the roles are reversed, as strange developments at Chatelaine’s lead Cady to ask for help from none other than Mack Easton. And instead of tracking down missing masterpieces together, they’ll be hunting for a killer…

    Thanks to her rewired brain, Adeline is gifted – or cursed – with a heightened sense of intuition, including the occasional ability to sense evil in others. Following the death of her father, she struggles to find a way forward by revisiting the past – her mother’s childhood home in Rabun County, Georgia. But sometimes that place is a person…Filled with quiet lakes and sparsely inhabited forests, the North Georgia Mountains seem like the perfect place for Adeline to forge a new path. However, within the space of twenty-four hours, things begin to go awry, an early-morning mishap necessitating her rescue by volunteer firefighter Sutton McCloud. Attraction sparked, their relationship begins to heat up even as Adeline’s luck seems to get worse. A string of unsettling accidents and encounters lead her to question whether the apparent black cloud over her head is simply misfortune, or something far more sinister.

    A girl. A Chihuahua. Two of them will find the love of their lives. Coming off a broken engagement to a lying charmer, all bookstore owner Docia Kent wants is a fling, not a long-term romance. And for her fabulously wealthy and fabulously nosy parents to butt out of her life for a while. The Texas Hill Country town of Konigsburg looks like the perfect place to get both. Especially when she gets a look at long, tall country vet Cal Toleffson. Cal has other plans for Docia. One glance at the six-foot version of Botticelli's Venus, and he knows he's looking at the woman of his dreams. Now if he can just fend off the eccentric characters of Konigsburg long enough to convince her romance isn't such a bad idea. One night of mind-blowing sex isn't the only thing that leaves them both stunned. With Docia's bookstore under attack, Konigsburg suddenly doesn't seem so welcoming. Once again she finds her trust tested and is left wondering if she was ever meant to have a happily ever, after all. Warning: Contains explicit sex, hot Texas nights, cool sarcastic friends, the world's sweetest hero and the world's saddest Chihuahua.

    Because unlike her usual fugitives, Dean is cooperative, accommodating, and hot as sin . . . and not at all guilty as charged. But this bad boy isn’t so innocent either, and she finds it increasingly hard to resist his seductive charm, and their mutual attraction.After years of working himself to the point of having no life outside the office, Dean Colter is in the mood for an adventure. But being kidnapped by a gorgeous bounty hunter—one he discovers is into bondage, to boot—isn't exactly what he had in mind. Still, it doesn’t take long for him to realize that being a willing captive has its advantages.Jo might be the one with the handcuffs, but Dean's about to discover the key to unleashing the passionate, uninhibited woman beneath the tough, stubborn facade. And when he does, all bets are off.Originally published as A Wicked Seduction by Janelle Denison.

     McKenna O’Brien is desperate to get her Private Detective Agency off the ground. She takes a job for professional football player Tate Campbell. Tate, whose father owns one of the largest ranches in Texas, wants to make sure his girlfriend is with him for love and not his money. Sparks fly between Tate and McKenna from their first meeting. McKenna fights against the growing attraction, but when the two share a kiss and Tate’s girlfriend walks in, everything implodes, jeopardizing her career. McKenna vows to never have anything further to do with Tate Campbell. Sure he’s charismatic and handsome with his dark lively eyes and quicksilver smile, but he’s a womanizing snake! When a deadly stalker becomes enamored with Tate, McKenna must put aside her grudge for the greater good. While McKenna has no intention of falling for Tate, her heart has other ideas. As the stalker’s net closes in tighter, McKenna questions if she has the skills necessary to keep Tate safe, especially when her heart keeps getting in the way. Georgia Patriot Romances: 1. The Hot headed Patriot 2. The Twelfth Hour Patriot The Twelfth Hour Patriot is part of the O’Brien Family Romances. Here’s the order: 1. The Impossible Groom (Chas O’Brien’s story) 2. The Twelfth Hour Patriot (McKenna O’Brien’s Story) Coming soon: Tess Eisenhart and Caden O’Brien’s story

    His boss arranges for him to hitch a ride with the corporate attorney Emily Richards, who is in Russia as a mediator.Emily Richards wants only to return home then on to a peaceful vacation with her best friend. When armed men invade her hotel room minutes after Mac arrives, Emily is forced to depend on Mac to stay alive. Anger that Mac has entangled her in a life or death struggle quickly turns to fear when the men pursuing them call her by name.Together Mac and Emily engage in a tumultuous ride to escape with their lives and capture a crazed bomber and a vindictive drug lord. More difficult is tearing down their own emotional walls. Can they succeed and admit love is the most precious thing in life?

    Her itinerary did not include being stranded by her siblings, kidnapped by a sexy American movie star, dodging bullets, or fleeing criminals in a car chase around Lake Como.And that's just in the first three hours....often go awry.Trent Tomlin put his movie career on hold to investigate his brother's murder-ruled-suicide at his Italian villa. He's closing in on the suspects when an American tourist unwittingly films the murder of the retired cop helping him. The killers will stop at nothing to get the evidence-including holding Halli's family as collateral.Life's a little different unscripted. Thrust into the role of real-life hero, Trent finds himself falling for the Plain Jane whose beauty blossoms with every challenge they face. But how can he keep the evidence from falling into the wrong hands and get justice for his brother and friend without betraying Halli and her family?

    As she struggles to find a new way, Emily gets involved with a devious, underhanded man and his brother. Will she find out too late what they are up to? Take an extraordinary wild ride with Emily through love, deception and renewal as she learns that with every thorn there is a rose ready to bud.

    But now Dad's dead and I'm mysteriously offered the best job of my life at the college where his life blew up when he was accused of a crime he didn't commit.Someone wants me here. Desperately.I'm hoping it's Mark.Because if it's not, I'm in more danger than I ever imagined.And if it is?Mark may be the most dangerous choice of all.RETURN is book 1 in the Coming Home romantic suspense trilogy by Meli Raine. Read all three books:RETURN: FREEREVENGEREUNION