Book picks similar to
Keep Happy by A.C. Bextor
cheating
2nd-chance
romance
contemporary-romance
This Time Around
Tawna Fenske - 2017
Her law career ended before it ever started, her parents landed in jail for running a Ponzi scheme, and she just inherited her grandmother’s B&B—which is nice, even if it is full of extra-toed cats. As for her love life…she’d rather not talk about it.When Jack Carpenter reaches out to reconnect with Allie, the girl who broke his heart in college, his plan is to impress her with the adult he’s become. Sure, he was a deadbeat then, but life has forced him to grow up. And it’s a relief to find out that things didn’t necessarily go the way Allie expected either.As Allie and Jack get reacquainted, they rediscover the things they loved—and hated—about each other. But who they are now isn’t who they were then, and secrets—old and new—will test whether they have a future together, or if the past is destined to repeat itself.
Breathing Black
Poe Avondet - 2014
INTENSE. EMOTIONALLY HONEST.A stunning debut novel that will leave you breathless.
A desolate childhood; a scarred, jaded, damaged girl. Larkin Grant knew she couldn’t end up like her mother … so she ran. All her belongings packed in the back of a rusted, brown Cadillac, her best friend June in the passenger seat as the co-pilot, she fled Aspen and never looked back.A new life in a new city, Larkin was finally starting to breathe again, an unfamiliar sense of happiness seeping into her lungs. Landon Black, the boy she loved from afar, came back into her life despite leaving him and her awful memories buried hundreds of miles away. A weakened pulse brought back to life.He said she was beautiful. She was starting to believe him. He pursued her and changed the course of everyone’s plans. Life had dealt Larkin a cruel hand, but maybe this was it. Maybe the boy that never knew she existed finally saw her and came to free her from the darkness of her past.But we are never truly free. There are secrets that bind us and lies that unravel from the most beautiful of lips. Blackness that suffocates and makes us question everything we thought we knew. Larkin and Landon are intertwined in ways they never imagined, their future unclear as ghosts come back to haunt them.
Friendship. Revenge. Love. Drugs. Murder. Deceit.
The first in a two-book series, Breathing Black is a mix of suspense and breathless romance. It’s a provocative tale that challenges what one is willing to do to protect the ones they love. An emotional journey where trust isn't an option and falling in love never hurt so bad.Content Warning: This is a dark romantic thriller and contains language, adult content, and subject matter that may be sensitive for some readers. Reader discretion is advised.
The Torn Up Marriage
Caroline Roberts - 2015
But what happens when you tear that family apart? Kate and Michael are about to find out as they cope with the crushing fallout of his affair, whilst trying to protect their two young children. This powerful and poignant novel captures the explosiveness of everyday life and what it is to be human; to make mistakes.Set in the historic town of Alnwick, Northumberland, with its stunning backdrop of castles, moorland hills and coastline, this relationship story of love and family takes you in a rollercoaster ride of emotions along with Kate and Michael.Michael’s mother’s battle with breast cancer shatters them all, yet shows them how precious life, love and family is. Can they find a way back and fight for their battered yet enduring love?So, what would you do if it happened to you? Could you betray? Could you forgive?
A Broken Forever
Megan Noelle - 2014
Despite the none-too-quiet protests from his family they married straight out of high school. Their love was strong and only grew when a year later they welcomed their baby girl into the world. Life was perfect…until one night changed everything. A horrendous accident destroyed them; stripping them of everything they knew, taking away their happiness and their daughter. While mourning the loss of their little girl they were also suffering the loss of each other. Stefan blamed himself for their daughter’s death, drowning away the guilt in liquor. Grey had never been so alone. Stefan had died inside the day their child did. Doing the only thing she could to save herself, she ended their marriage. *********Seven Years LaterStefan Harrison is the most eligible bachelor with a wallet and company that continues to grow. Every night he has a different woman on his arm with the next not far behind. Grey Desmond is the lead stylist and co-owner of a reputable salon with the perfect fiancé and a beautiful wedding in her future. But one chance meeting between Grey and Stefan is all that is needed to reawaken the feelings from the past.She tries to avoid him but he won’t let her. Losing Grey was Stefan’s biggest mistake and he won’t stop until he wins her back. But Grey doesn’t know if she could ever trust him again. Leaving her heart to decide between the perfect future…or the past she never let go.
Life After Taylah
Bella Jewel - 2014
Until the night she disappeared. Ten years on and my life, my families lives and the world around us has never been the same again. How can it be when you are left not knowing?No leads. No connections. Nothing. Just pure emptiness. My dancing is the only way I can separate myself from the pain that lies in my home, in my father's eyes and in my brother's spirit. They need me and I'll fight with everything I am to be there for them, but who will be there for me?Then I meet Nate. Champion Motocross racer and everything my father doesn't want for me. He's forbidden, he's beautiful, and he's carrying a bundle of his own secrets. When I step into his world, there is no turning back. He will consume me. He will teach me how to breathe again. He will put a tiny piece of my broken heart, back together.
Irish Kiss
Sienna Blake - 2018
Long haired, tattooed and tall as an Irish giant. He was more than just handsome, he was drop dead gorgeous. And the only one who ever truly cared. It didn’t matter to him that my father was a criminal and my mother a whore. He saw me, understood me. I could be anything I wanted, he said. Except his. Because I was too young and he was my Juvenile Liaison Officer. Diarmuid It’s been years since I last saw her. No longer a girl, she has a body of a woman. When our eyes met again, I saw the only one who ever broke through my asshole mask. She never judged me. She saw me, accepted me. She could be anything she wanted. Except mine. Cause she’s only seventeen and I’m trying my hardest not to fall for her. If I give in, she will ruin me. This is a slow-burn, angsty love story spanning across a seven-year time period with sexual situations and drug-use involving characters under the age of eighteen. Irish Kiss is a complete standalone novel with a Happily Ever After, but damn, it is going to hurt along the way.
If
Randi Cooley Wilson - 2018
The ifs that linger between the pages of this novel will break your heart and stay with you long after the final chapter. Emerson Shaw thought she’d left her old life behind her, but when she returns home for her best friend’s wedding, she has no idea her past is waiting to reclaim her. Dark and broken, Lincoln Daniels never wanted to find love. But when he met straight-laced Emerson, he fell. Hard. The only thing they seemed to have in common was an undeniable mutual attraction, but from the moment he laid eyes on her, there was something about her that called to him. Until he lost her. Consumed by their pasts, it took years to slowly glue together the shattered pieces of their what ifs. Just when Emerson is finally ready to let go and stop existing in a past full of pain and regret, Lincoln returns, turning her life upside down. What begins as a tentative friendship quickly escalates, and the two soon realize that all the ifs lingering between them no longer matter. What happens when two broken people meet, fall in love, and realize they can never be? What happens when all the what ifs no longer make sense? If you knew your heart would break, would you still fall? This book is intended for mature audiences.
The Baby Package
Sarah J. Brooks - 2018
"I don't want you. Just your baby." I wanted to say no. But second chances don't come around often... My billions buy me whatever I want. Except Julia. I had her once and f*cked things up. Now she's back. And this time, I'm marking her as mine. She just wants a baby, but I just want her. I'll give her what she wants, but on one condition. We do things the old-fashioned way. She says she doesn't do relationships, But she's already submitting. One taste wasn't enough for me. I want all of her. Every sinful curve. Every mouth-watering kiss. Now she's pregnant, and I won't let her go. Julia can try and run, but she can't hide. I don't care about my money. I just care about my family. Can I stop Julia from running from our past... and get her to run towards our future? "The Baby Package" is a full length standalone romance with no cheating and no cliffhangers, but with plenty of steam and a HEA. I've also included bonus content for your reading pleasure! - Sarah J. Brooks (USA Today Bestselling Author)
The Charlotte Chronicles
Jen Frederick - 2014
Nate Jackson always viewed her as a pesky kid…until the day she got sick. The one bright spot during her illness? He realized she was all grown up. But just when she allows herself to believe that dreams can come true, Nate disappears from her life, taking her heart with him.Nate knows he lost more than his best friend when he deserted Charlotte to enlist in the Navy. He thought he was doing the right thing, sparing the girl he loves from the shame and humiliation of his actions. Nine years later, it’s time to right his wrongs. He returns home determined to win back his first love…only to find that Charlotte's moved on without him.But if there's one thing that being a Navy SEAL has taught Nate? Never give up, even when all hope seems lost. And Nate's never going to give up on Charlotte. Ever.
Forever Never
Lucy Score - 2021
Especially when they’re all the same woman.Under Brick Callan’s mile-wide chest beats a loyal heart with a few cracks in it. He’s the steadfast, overprotective type. Especially when it comes to the one woman he can never have. It’s a long, complicated history punctuated by fights, friendship, family, and an attraction that strains his iron willpower.When Remi Ford returns to Mackinac Island in the dead of winter with a secret, Brick makes it his mission to find out what put the shadows in those green eyes. Even if it means breaking down the walls he’s built between them. Even if it means falling for the one girl he’ll never get over.The free-spirited artist just needs to lay low for a few weeks so she can figure a way out of this nightmare. She’s definitely not staying. Not when the man who broke her teenage heart into splinters keeps showing up at her parents’ dinner table. Remi doesn’t need broody, bearded Brick riding to her rescue…again. Not when it will put them both in danger, costing them much more than their hearts.Author’s Note: Frenemies-to-lovers. Opposites attract. Slow burn. Girl in danger. Glorious, glorious banter. Fighting as foreplay. Small-town shenanigans. Big, grumpy, pining, overprotective hero. Wild-child, trouble-finding heroine who keeps on pushing the hero’s buttons. Steam Level: Lava. Suspense: Nail-biting. Feels: Big time.
Tap Left
A. Zavarelli - 2017
She’s soft in too many ways. A people pleaser who goes the extra mile. Some might call her an easy target. In short, she has all of the qualities that I despise. But when it comes to me, she doesn’t hesitate to fling her poison arrows my way. She has every right to her feelings. Over the years, I’ve given her plenty of ammo. Yeah, I hate Lola. But it doesn’t stop me from wanting her too. When she makes me a proposition I can’t refuse, there’s just one problem. She tastes so f*cking sweet. So f*cking good. So f*cking mine. This is a full length standalone.
Slip of the Tongue
Jessica Hawkins - 2016
Nathan Hunt has her coffee waiting every morning. He holds her hand until the last second. He worships the Manhattan sidewalk she walks on. Until one day, he just…stops. And Sadie finds herself in the last place she ever expected to be. Lonely in her marriage.When rugged and sexy Finn Cohen moves into the apartment across the hall, he and Sadie share an immediate spark. Finn reveals dreams for a different life. Sadie wants to save her marriage. Their secrets should keep them apart, not ignite a blistering affair. But while Sadie’s marriage runs colder by the day, she and Finn burn hotter.Her husband doesn’t want her anymore.The man next door would give up everything to have her.Slip of the Tongue is a standalone contemporary romance. The second book in the series, The First Taste, is a standalone about a different couple.
Dark Lessons
Julia Sykes - 2017
That’s all it was supposed to be. So when my darkly domineering one-night stand turns out to be one of my instructors at Quantico, my life becomes far too complicated. I’m training as an FBI agent, but Jason has other forms of training in mind. Like bending me over his desk for a spanking.I try to resist him, but soon we’re stealing forbidden hours of lust when no one’s watching. It could cost us both our careers, but I can’t help myself. He’s broken, and I want to be his salvation.In return, he says he wants to protect me, to love me. But can he save me when my new job puts me directly in the path of danger?
Exes with Benefits
Nicole Williams - 2017
I want a divorce. To get what I want, I’ll have to give him what he does.***From New York Times & USA Today bestselling author, Nicole Williams:The only benefit I want from my ex is a divorce. We got married for all the wrong reasons. The one thing we got right was our separation. I should have known better than to think I could bet on forever with a guy like Canaan Ford. Everything about him screamed impermanent, from his wild eyes to his restless soul. When I left him and the small town I’d spent my whole life in, I swore I’d never go back. Never only turned out to be five years. Canaan claims he’s changed, but he hasn’t—same knowing smile, same rough demeanor, same body crafted from sin and sinew. And yet, something is different. He thinks this is his chance for redemption. My disagreement comes in the form of divorce papers dropped in his lap. He refuses to sign them. Unless . . .He wants a month to prove himself to me—that’s his offer. One month to make me fall in love with him again and if I don’t, he’ll sign the papers. As much as I want to say no, I agree. I can suffer my ex for a short amount of time if that’s what it takes to be free of him once and for all. I fell for him once; I won’t make that same mistake twice. He says we’re not over. I say we were over before we got started. Only one of us can be right, and I can’t let it be him.