Book picks similar to
A Way With Words by Nicolette Dane


lesbian
age-gap
professor-teacher
academics

Game Night


Cassidy Storm - 2019
    . . Alyssa has crushed on her client, Mia, for months. So, when Mia invites Alyssa over for an all-girls’ “game night,” she’s all-in. But Alyssa quickly finds the stakes are much higher than she anticipated when she learns the name of the game is poker -- strip poker. Alyssa must up her ante when she realizes she faces stiff competition -- and that there's much more to lose than clothing…

Finding Her Treasure


Alexa Woods - 2020
    She’s determined to stay focused and chase her passions—out of the bedroom—and that starts with her new job. Too bad she’s immediately captivated by her older, sensual boss.Kiera has never let herself take a chance on love. She’s done just fine on her own, building a successful business from the ground up. The last thing she wants is to fall for her younger, gorgeous employee.Opposites attract, right? When Romi realizes how much Kiera needs her, she can’t help but take the risk.Kiera’s resolution not to get involved doesn't stand a chance against the unpredictable spark of passion that quickly turns into something else. She’s going to have to be honest. Not just with herself, but with everyone else as well.

Unbroken


Natalie Debrabandere - 2015
    Fresh from an abusive relationship, the British surgeon wants nothing but peace, solitude, and time to indulge in her passion for painting. Kristan Holt is a kayak instructor and a helicopter pilot. Handsome and charismatic, she owns the park and the Activity Centre, and when the beautiful doctor literally knocks her off her feet one morning in the café, she leaves an indelible mark on her heart. When both women fall in love it looks as if both have finally found the missing piece in their lives. But someone will stop at nothing, including murder, to deny them the future that they want.

The Reef


Lois Kay - 2003
    Just as fast, something deeper develops, but circumstances beyond their control cause a separation and they are forced to split up. Eight years later, Sam Stevens, who works for her father's company, is sent back to Australia after her father has received information that business at 'The Reef', a resort the company owns, is not as it should be. On her first day back, Sam runs into Jody and, immediately, both their worlds are turned upside down. As they try to make sense of the past, they also have to deal with theft, arson, murder, kidnapping and betrayal. While Sam fights to keep herself, Jody and her family safe, will they be able to find a way back to each other?

The Art of Pretending (Trope-ily Ever After #1)


Raquel De Leon - 2020
    She eats, she sleeps, she works. On the path to becoming a manager, she doesn't spare much time for anything else.Then she bumps into Nira, one of the regulars she's had a crush on for years, for the first time in a while.Nira isn't in a good place. She needs a friend.Ashley decides that putting the crush aside is a no-brainer. She'll be the friend Nira needs, even if it ends up giving Nira's other friends the wrong idea.There are definitely worse things than people assuming they're dating.

Sleepless Nights


Iona Kane - 2021
    Her life might be a little secretive and a lot lonely, but she’s selling out stadiums around the world on her most successful tour yet. Who wouldn’t want a piece of her success?Tyra MacLean has been there, done that, ripped the sleeves off the T-shirt. Still scarred by her own experience of fame, she hates celebrity and everything that comes with it. All she wants is a quiet life. But when Alex decides she wants Tyra and her band to join her tour, Ty has to put her bandmates first and return to the world that nearly destroyed her.As Alex and Tyra tour America together can they put aside their fears and their differences to find love?Iona Kane’s debut novel is a cool, fun romance set in the world of rock music.

To Boldly Go


Em Stevens - 2018
     Taryn's trip of a lifetime is finally happening. She's saved money, researched, planned, and created an itinerary that will allow her to travel Italy...and finally tell her best friend that she's in love with her. But those plans are ruined when she wakes up alone, her crush gone. Her plans did not include being alone and stranded in Milan. Now Taryn's dream vacation is a nightmare. Enter Holly, a fellow traveler: young, full of life, and comfortable traipsing off the beaten path. Holly feels a connection with Taryn and wants to salvage her trip. After all, they're in freaking Italy! But their radically different travel styles and age differences make for rough terrain. Together, they boldly go into unexplored territories of the heart, and may just discover love.

Liquid Courage


Hildred Billings - 2017
    Things are definitely looking up when a beautiful woman named Shari asks her out for drinks – and possibly more. Too bad the night turns whisky-sour when Shari not only rejects Vivian, but confirms her most self-conscious fears! Enter Kat the bartender, who has seen this train wreck of a date with her own observant eyes. It’s not the first time Shari has destroyed a woman’s self-confidence in one night, but it is the first time Kat has decided to personally cheer up the latest victim. What ensues is the most fateful week to ever befall Vivian the legal secretary and Kat the bartender. Nobody’s sure if a real relationship is on the docket – all they know is that sometimes truth is stranger than fiction, and at least one drink is always on the house.

Waiting


Q. Kelly - 2010
    Caris knew that life after having her baby would be different, especially since her wife did not love her anymore. But Caris never expected post-baby life to be this difficult. Dale, her wife of three years, is in a coma that turns into a vegetative state. Lena, Dale's 29-year-old daughter, is put in the awkward position of revealing Dale's secrets to Caris.Caris and Lena share a perfect, passionate kiss that they cannot stop thinking about. Plus, they can help each other in ways no one else can. They try to build a friendship, but their growing attraction gets in the way. Can Caris and Lena move past the taboo of their attraction and find their path together?

The Long Weekend


Clare Lydon - 2014
    Fresh air, sandy beaches and historic friendships - what could possibly go wrong? The catch is, university sweethearts Vic & Stevie are on the rocks, their three-year marriage floundering, while Kat & Abby’s combustible relationship looks set to ignite at any second. Meanwhile, Tash & Laura have downed responsibilities & kids for the weekend and are ready for some fun; single CID sergeant Geri can’t wait to get away from the London scene to reboot her slumbering love life and that’s not to mention Stu & his boyfriend Darren who bring their own man-sized baggage… Add in laughs, simmering tension, romance & no shortage of wine and you’ve got all the ingredients for a rollercoaster ride of a long weekend…

Heatwave


Maggie McIntyre - 2020
    She is hired under the radar of the female CEO, Katherine Konrad, but within hours of starting, Cat discovers nothing about her new life is going to be straightforward.Raised by her hippy artist mother in Portland, Oregon, Catriona has never followed the crowd, and she certainly doesn’t fit in at Montpellier. Her colleagues dress and act like wannabe starlets, and seem to despise her on sight. Her line manager, Frankie, is a man whose career is in trouble, and it takes all her energy to keep him in his job in charge of “Montage”, Montpellier’s current affairs program. Cat begins to question why she stays.Maybe the answer lies on the top floor of the Montpellier building. Katherine Konrad, CEO, beautiful, quick-witted and a broadcasting legend, has played verbal mind-games with Cat from day one. But Katherine’s quips are often barbed and her wit acidic. She is unpredictable and her private life is a mystery.Events bind the two women together, literally as well as figuratively as they embark on a much closer relationship expected. It’s a struggle for emotional survival, but then Cat discovers the truth about Katherine. Will she run for the hills, or be drawn into the battle as her boss fights with her own past? Summer in the city, two women in love, and the heatwave is not the only thing sizzling. A seductive age-gap story of love and loss, danger and delight.

It's Complicated


Evelyn Dar - 2018
    And who could blame her? Caitlyn is smart, generous and the kind of beautiful that makes Bailey’s stomach do backflips, then front flips, then somersaults. Needless to say, Caitlyn’s perfect in every way…well, she would be if she wasn’t Bailey’s high school English teacher. On graduation night, fueled by liquid courage, Bailey does the unthinkable and confesses her love to her former teacher. She’s all in and hopes Caitlyn will be too. Who cares if there’s an obstacle…or two…or ten in their path? True love conquers all, doesn’t it?

Switchback


S.W. Andersen - 2017
    A rising star in women's professional downhill mountain bike racing, she has all the tools to become a world champion. All she needs to do is fully commit herself. Something far easier said than done. As stubborn as she is independent, Sierra has always carved her own path, refusing to fall in line with the controlling, commercialized aspects of the sport. Her trademark no-holds-barred, reckless style of riding has earned her as many cheers as it has jeers. Dr. Kara Davies, a highly regarded and accomplished physician, is well on her way to achieving her dreams in chiropractic research. Commitment to her goals has never been an issue, but her personal life is a different story. Preferring the comfort and safety of her lab over personal relationships, Kara's one-track mind allows no deviation. But life is full of twists and turns. After an accident on the track lands Sierra in Kara's on-site medical center, the doctor suddenly finds she has more on her mind that work. Blindsided by mutual attraction, Sierra and Kara struggle to accept their feelings for each other and to deal with the change it brings. Will love be enough? Or will life's little switchbacks send them both careening off course?

Playing For Keeps


Carla Kincaid - 2019
    Her focus, for the past fourteen years, has been on making sure her daughter Dana has everything she needs. After losing her own mother at an early age, Kate vowed never to let her daughter feel that kind of loneliness — even if that means missing out on the love Kate truly desires. Joy Sizemore has been living the dream. As one of the top professional softball players in the world, her life is filled with great times on the field, exotic travel, and more than her fair share of post-game fun. But all of that changes when she suffers what might be a career ending injury. Forced to return home to her parent’s house to recover, Joy tries to forget her sorrows in the bottom of a bottle — with nearly tragic consequences. When Kate and Joy's lives unexpectedly collide they both have to decide whether they’ll give up on the game of love or stay on the field and try Playing For Keeps.

Hotel Liaison


J. Lee Meyer - 2008
    Laurel Hoffman, an associate professor of women's studies in Berkeley, struggles to stay on track for tenure while caught up in the last throes of a crumbling relationship with a senior colleague. When she hears of a hotel being renovated and a secret room full of papers about women who once stayed there, she knows she has a potential career-saving article. Stefanie Beresford, the hotel owner, is not exactly receptive when Laurel approaches her about researching the hotel’s history, but that doesn't stop her from flirting with the alluring academic. She doesn't need the distraction, but for the first time in her life she wants to take a chance on more than a fleeting encounter. While Laurel can't deny her powerful feelings for Stefanie, she fears she's risking her heart as well as her future if she acts on her desires. But can a simple encounter between two rational adults really be all that dangerous?