Book picks similar to
Precarious Summer by Lyn Cote


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You Can't Plan Love


Synithia Williams - 2012
    But as much as she believes she can plan her future, it's hard to ignore the way her boss, Malcolm Patterson, ignites her passions with just one look.After Malcolm learns of her engagement, he makes a play for her heart and reminds her that passion between a man and a woman has its perks... but also its costs. When Brad confirms his suspicion that there's more than work between Kenyatta and Malcolm, he devises a sinister plan to keep Kenyatta by his side.Torn between her promise to marry Brad and her irrepressible longing for Malcolm, Kenyatta must decide if she can live her life in a passionless marriage of convenience or once again trust her heart. Yet Brad does not intend to let her go easily, and by the time she realizes the depths of his treachery, it may be too late.

An American Duchess


Caroline Fyffe - 2019
    Because with the duke comes his new American bride, who isn’t quite what anyone expects. By accepting the hand of her beloved, Emma Brinkman went from hardworking Colorado rancher to duchess. Now she’s expected to comport herself as nobility. Overnight. For Emma—stifled, homesick, and unable to shake the feeling she’s being watched—the metamorphosis is a challenge. And if Emma’s suspicions are correct, perhaps even a dangerous one.Fortunately, Emma has found a trusted friend in the orphaned Charlotte, Brightshire’s scullery maid. Charlotte longs to experience—if only for a moment—the luxuries and gentry romance that come with a titled life. When one of the duke’s handsome cousins takes notice of Charlotte, the castle kitchen is set abuzz with speculation.In navigating their two different stations, both servant and duchess alike will discover all they have in common—from secret fantasies to daring hearts to upending the rules of society. And that finding their places in the world—and love—is a dream that can come true—no matter the risks.

Untamed Fire


Donna Fletcher - 1991
    The imperious aristocrat expected his people to behave the same way, so Rafael was outraged when a buxom barefoot chit "borrowed" his favorite horse and then dared to disobey him! Determined to subdue the willful gypsy girl, be followed her to the vineyard, but his stern purpose evaporated when he spied her eating grapes and licking the sweet juice from her lips. He knew he must steal a kiss from that sweet mouth, caress every curve of that sun-warmed body, and tame the rebellious vixen with caresses until she begged to be taken to the heights of ecstasy--on his terms!SHE LOVED FROM THE HEARTGabriella was astonished when the outraged senor made such a fuss, just because she galloped off on his borne to rescue her little brother. And when the authoritarian ranchero insisted that she atone for her crime by working at his hacienda--and wearing shoes!--she couldn't help but laugh, which made him even angrier. Vowing never to serve anyone, she defied his commands every chance she got--until she felt his strong arms crushing her against his powerful chest. And when she tasted his first searing kiss, Gabriella longed to feel the length of his virile body touching her own fiery flesh and to surrender to the rapture of love's ultimate embrace--just this once!

Dance on the Wind


Brenda Jernigan - 2002
    Desperate but determined, lovely Brandy answers an advertisement for a mail order bride, hoping to build a new life out West for herself and the five orphans she’s taken under her wing. She needs a guide to reach Fort Laramie by wagon train and turns to Thunder, a Cheyenne scout, for help. When he curtly refuses, Brandy is undaunted. And when he’s jailed after a gunfight she makes a devil’s bargain: he gets his freedom and she gets a guide.Thunder has learned the hard way that prejudice runs deep for half-breeds. Now, his only desire is to live among the Cheyenne people. He doesn’t want the temptation beautiful Brandy offers and the wild passion that explodes between them only hardens his resolve to avoid what he cannot have: another man’s soon-to-be-wife. Can he truly walk away from Brandy and the ragtag family? Or has his destiny been sealed by a kiss.

Hail Mary


Hope Anika - 2021
    “How did it happen?”“How did what happen?”The growl in his voice probably cowed a great many folks. She didn’t happen to be one of them. Even if he was big and intense and talked about delivering death like it was the mail. “Your leg.”He didn’t respond. Instead, he stood at the sink and stared out into the storm.“Is it a state secret?” she wanted to know. “A matter of national security? An injury suffered while on a clandestine mission that you can’t talk about under penalty of death? Did they make you swear on a Bible?”“You’re a piece of work,” he said. “I know.” When he turned to glower at her, she smiled. “It’s a gift.”His gaze fell to her mouth, and awareness speared through her, a hot, electric slide that made her cheeks burn. He was attracted to her, the same way she was attracted to him. And he didn’t like it.Not one bit.You and me both, bucko...◆◆◆When a local bank robbery brings newly elected Sheriff Beau Greystone to Wynn Owens’ front door, she has only two things to give him: the endless bounty of her caustic wit and a one-finger salute. Wynn has history with the law, none of it good. And the notion that one of her elderly tenants might have something to do with the robbery is just plain crazy.A former DEA agent, Beau owes his newly minted badge solely to his meddling aunt and his own foolish indifference. Recovering from the murder of his wife—and the debilitating injury caused by the explosion that killed her—Beau has been happily checked out for some time. But the people of Blossom Hills are counting on him to do his job, and bringing a bank robber to justice is a fine place to start…until the killer that's haunted the town for the last decade abruptly returns. Wynn has a tenant to exonerate; Beau, a killer to catch. Neither is prepared for the compelling but unwelcome current between them, or the unexpected circumstances that will force them to reassess the rules by which they live. But the clock is ticking, and they must decide: adapt and evolve, or surrender to the past and the dark malevolence that has risen within it…. A dark, edgy, steamy thriller with characters you won't forget…contemporary romantic suspense at its best.

The Lost Art of Reverie: (Aveline Book 1)


Rae Walsh - 2019
    A long-forgotten dream. A new life in a spacious place.Corporate life has not been treating Katie Grace well. Suffering from extreme anxiety due to a recent incident at work, she learns that she has inherited her late grandmother's Victorian house in the lake town of Aveline, in the rolling hills of the Los Padres National Forest. Maybe a new start will be exactly what she needs.Hardware store owner Sam Grant remembers Katie from when they spent summers together, years before. Sam has determined never to get involved in a relationship again, but working on Katie's house renovations might put that resolve to the test.In Aveline, Katie allows herself to dream again, finding solace in creating food and a space for her new friends to gather. As members of the town welcome Katie, her heart begins to find safety, but will the events of the past repeat themselves?The Lost Art of Reverie is the first book in the Aveline Series, a collection of inspirational romantic stories with quirky, lovable characters, set in a fictional lake town in California. Perfect for fans of Jan Karon, Katherine Center, or Elizabeth Berg.

Off The Grid


Ruth Hartzler - 2015
    Marshal who works in WITSEC, the federal witness protection program. After an attempt on her life, her boss sends her to live in a small Amish community until the mole in the agency is found. Will Kate, who is used to the ways of the world, be convincing as a sweet Amish woman?When a murder is committed in the community, how will Kate assist the handsome police officer heading up the case without revealing her true identity?And will Kate be able to leave behind her English ways as she finds herself off the grid in more ways than one? In this 3 book series: 1) Off the Grid2) In Plain View - Out now!!3) Safe Hearts - Coming soon!

Deep Under


Lisa Renee Jones - 2016
     Kyle, one of the alpha men of Walker Security, is hot, bothered, and intense, and when Myla lands in his line of fire, she'll soon learn her secrets, and her passion, belong to him. Myla is beautiful, a dove with clipped wings, captive by the wolf, a rich and powerful man. One look into her eyes and Kyle could see the pain, the fear... the desperation. Or so it seems. He's been fooled before by a woman and it cost him everything and everyone he loved. He won't be fooled again.

Edge of Peril


Christy Barritt - 2018
     After hearing about a string of murders in a Smoky Mountain town, journalist Harper Jennings realizes a startling truth. She knows who may be responsible—the same person who tried to kill her three years ago. Now Harper must convince the cops to believe her before the killer strikes again. Sheriff Luke Wilder returned to his hometown, determined to keep the promise he made to his dying father. The sleepy tourist area with a tragic past hadn’t seen a murder in decades—until now. Keeping the community safe seems impossible as darkness edges closer, threatening to consume everything in its path. As The Watcher grows desperate, Harper and Luke must work together in order to defeat him. But the peril around them escalates, making it clear the killer will stop at nothing to get what he wants.

Summer's Desire (Cowboy Seasons, #1)


Kathleen Ball - 2013
    No woman alive would deny the Doc was as handsome a specimen as the sleek, hard-bodies horses he rescued. And that included Summer Fitzgerald, the voluptuous, honey-haired young woman who applied for the job, and was stunned to find her three charges ranged from 12 to 18 – charming, immature, irresponsible, and capable of winning a piece of her shattered heart. With his stubble, his six-pack and his tousled hair, she thought Holden was sexy as hell. But she’d sworn off men after being implicated by her former boyfriend in a hideous murder that had badly wounded her – and her reputation. He had sworn off women because his lousy judgment had endangered his family. The fact was: he found Summer totally irresistible, and more vulnerable than vicious -- despite the warnings: “She’s real good with that innocent act, but don’t let her fool you…. She’ll end up behind bars soon enough. ”…. Would the past catch up with both of them? Who killed the bar owner – and why? What was the real reason Holden had moved? How would the Doc and the nanny deal with their passionate attraction, crippling rumors of savage scandals, and shocking, long buried secrets? Will brother be pitted against brother? When does true love exact a price too great to pay? And – when is a life-threatening risk worth taking? Saddle up for one of today’s most tempestuous romances – laced with a dazzling double mystery, and surrounded by more hunky cowboys than you can wave a lasso at….

Targeted for Murder


Elizabeth Goddard - 2016
    Heeding his urgent warning to disappear and trust no one, Hadley flees into the Oregon wilderness, but she can't shake the string of hired killers on her trail. So when a fearless and too-handsome wilderness guide comes to her rescue, Hadley has no choice but to put her life in Cooper Wilde's hands. The former Green Beret vows to protect her, but beyond steep gorges and treacherous terrain, a ruthless man will stop at nothing to see her dead.

Identity Crisis


Eliza Watson - 2018
    She learns they were placed in the Federal Witness Security Program when she was five years old. Her father was involved in an art forgery ring and testified against the mob. Brought up not to trust anyone, Olivia has a difficult time relying on U.S. Marshal Ethan Ryder to protect her, and to keep her secret. She fears her father may have continued his life of crime through her art gallery. She has little choice but to depend on Ethan when she realizes someone is now after her. Olivia’s search for the truth leads her and Ethan across the country to a family and a past she doesn’t remember. At the age of ten, Ethan witnessed a brutal murder. He vowed that when he grew up, he’d protect people in danger. Protecting Olivia is difficult when she won’t trust him. He soon realizes his desire to protect her goes beyond doing his job, but if his judgment becomes clouded by emotions, her safety could be jeopardized. Can Ethan and Olivia learn to trust each other when they uncover secrets that will change their lives forever? *This book was originally published under the name Eliza Daly.

Rewrite


Stephanie Rose - 2017
    They lived happily ever after. But our story was never that simple. I loved Josh with all I had, right until the day he left. Now, all these years later, he was back—and wanting me the way I’d always longed for him. Except now, I belonged to someone else. Someone who never left me the way Josh had. I figured that was the end of our story. I couldn’t alter the past. I didn’t want to rewrite my future.Brianna was always more than my best friend. She was the shining light in my black hole of an existence, and I loved her with every cell and bone in my body. I wasn’t good enough for her, though—more the villain than the hero in our fairy tale. When I had to leave, I vowed to come back a better man—for her. But when I finally did return, she wasn’t waiting for me anymore. She had someone new, her very own Prince Charming. Did that mean our story was over? I couldn't change our past.It was time to rewrite our ending.

Rest In Pieces


Katie Graykowski - 2015
    She’s a feisty, single mom living in the small town of Lakeside, Texas where money does buy happiness and keeping up appearances is much more important than the truth. Six months ago on her thirtieth birthday, her husband decided that married life, fatherhood, and his job as the Lakeside Chief of Police weren’t as exciting as a permanent vacation to Grand Cayman with his mistress and a million dollars in diamonds he stole from the police evidence lockup. Mustang is a pariah in a Lakeside full of piranha. But she refuses to leave—this is her home, and she figures that if she can’t join them, then she’ll beat them at their own game. With a little luck, some intimidation, and the help of her good friends Monica and Haley, Mustang presides over her own little slice of Lakeside, the Bee Creek Elementary Parent Teacher Organization. All is quiet in Lakeside until Molly Miars, the kindergarten teacher, is found dead. According to the new police chief, she overdosed on heroin. That doesn’t explain why her head was the only body part to make it to her funeral. Mustang and her follow PTOers don’t buy the heroin overdose for a second. Vowing to do right by Molly, the PTO decides to investigate. Quickly they find that Lakeside isn’t the quiet, sleepy town it appears to be. There is a dark side—money laundering and drug trafficking. When Mustang’s name turns up on a contract killer’s hit list, things go from bad to worse. Can she and the PTO stay alive long enough to find out who killed Molly Miars?

The Rival Bid


Reese Ryan - 2019
    So when the opportunity arises to acquire an abandoned block of homes and a school in her neighborhood of Southlake Park, she’s ready to take on the challenge. But she'll need the help of her former crush and frequent real estate rival.Mekkai Arrington builds luxury homes in urban communities. Increasingly, he and preservationist Camilla Anthony clash over gentrification. But when Kai reluctantly agrees to participate in a charity bachelor auction, Camilla vies for him and wins. She proposes an alliance that will benefit both of their companies while salvaging a historic neighborhood in their childhood community. But will the fiery passion that erupts between them during their beach getaway blow up their deal?