It can also be an exchange, a betrayal, an assault, a promise, a hope...or it could be a goodbye. The intimacy of a kiss cannot be denied. Whether shared, stolen or simply dreamed of, its recipient will be affected. Thirty-one stories by authors from around the world will tease your imagination as you anticipate ‘The Kiss’ in each weird or wonderful tale. This cross-genre anthology contains stories by Kate Aaron, Saxon Andrew, Jacques Antoine, Alison Blake, E. B. Boggs, Shirley Bourget, Ben Cassidy, Jason Deas, Sharon Delarose, Meghan Ciana Doidge, Suzy Stewart Dubot, Corrie Fischer, Brandon Hale, Traci Tyne Hilton, Colleen Hoover, Mona Ingram, J. L. Jarvis, Elizabeth Jasper, Anna J. McIntyre, Jess Mountifield, C. A. Newsome, S. Patrick O'Connell, Suzie O'Connell, Jeanette Raleigh, J. R. C. Salter, Molly Snow, Holli Marie Spaulding, Cleve Sylcox, Robert Thomas, Chris Ward and George Wier. 130,000 words

    She was ecstatic, but her joy was short-lived when she came face to face with the great man. Cold and forbidding, he proved to be a hard taskmaster. She felt her dreams can be coming true... but would she be tough enough to work under such and exacting taskmaster?

    The world knows Ford Malone as the heir to a real estate fortune.But to me he’ll always be my best friend.The guy who saved me from my bullies back in school.The man I’ve secretly loved for years.When he needs me to be his plus one at a family event, I agree without hesitation.Imagine my surprise when he announces our engagement.As usual, I’ll play along.Nothing has to change except the way we behave–the way we touch–in public.But his private touches change everything.Soon the crush I’ve hidden for so long is threatening to swallow me whole.If I tell him how I feel, it could ruin our friendship forever.But if I don’t, the lie will ruin me instead.

    After he smears her article on his show, nearly costing Macie her job, she devises a plan to masquerade as a modern-day Cinderella and get her revenge on the infuriating Texan.All Ross wants is a woman with old-fashioned values to be his housekeeper and role model for his troubled teenage daughter. When the perfect woman shows up, Ross is relieved—until he finds himself drawn to his gorgeous, red-stiletto-wearing new employee. “Martha Jane” is opinionated and sexy, and Ross is intrigued…and more than a little turned on.Macie thought Operation Cinderella was foolproof, but Ross, with his rugged good looks and southern charm, proves to be as perfect behind-the-scenes as he does in public. But when she finally uncovers a secret that could destroy Ross's reputation, she faces losing her job or losing the fairy-tale ending she didn't even know she wanted.

    The only place he's ever thought of as home now belongs to a woman who doesn't want it, and he must keep her there for thirty days—or it will be lost to them both.

    She’s returned from college, bent on raising Quarter Horses under the wide South Dakota sky and nothing is going to distract her from that goal. Not a narcissistic ex-boyfriend, her brother’s fantastically successful dude ranch or a her desire for a place to call her own.Craig Lynch has come home too. Now a widower with a ten-year-old daughter, he has to reestablish a life as a rancher after traveling all over the world. Not such an easy task, but when he sees Quinn, he knows life is going to get much more complicated. Last he saw her she was ten, but now she’s an incredibly sexy woman and the attraction is too strong to ignore.Falling in love, however, has more complications than either bargain for. A reluctant daughter, the jealousy of an ex-boyfriend, and the shadow of Craig’s late wife nearly destroy everything, but Craig is determined to convince Quinn that love can overcome anything.

    Imagine her surprise when her current customer turns out to be her old high school flame, Grayson Montgomery. And the woman he plans to seduce is Cara.Gray plans to collect on an old promise Cara made back in high school. But his plans don't end with one night. Somehow he has to convince her he has staying power, that he will still be there in the morning, and for the rest of her life. Not an easy task when Cara has been left by every man in her life so far.Satisfaction Guaranteed is a single novella, 13,000 words.

    Not only does she catch her boyfriend, the man she hoped to marry, lip-locked with another woman, she also receives the gut-wrenching news that her grandfather, the man who raised her, is dying. His last wish? To see her happily married. Heartbroken, Becky seeks inspiration in the pages of the Holy Scriptures. And finds it in the story of Isaac and Rebekah. If love couldn't keep his parents together, Luke Masterson wonders what will make a marriage last. He decides to steer clear of all women—especially crazy ones like Becky Sawyer, who employs a friend to find her a husband. But when he feels the dogged promptings of the Holy Spirit to move across the country and marry a complete stranger, it seems love has little to do with it anyway. With commitment their only foundation, and love constantly thwarted, can an arranged marriage find happiness in the twenty-first century?

    She is devastated when her boyfriend dumps her after sleeping with him and she vows to herself that she won't be used again. She decides that the next guy she dates and sleeps with, will be her one true love.Zane Beaumont is the mysterious and snooty guy that comes into her diner every Friday night with a different girl. He's the type of guy she's learned to avoid: carefree, fast, handsome, rich, and sarcastic. Unfortunately, she can't stop thinking about the devilish gleam in his eyes.When Lucky's car breaks down one night after a party, it is Zane who comes to her rescue. As Zane attempts to sweep Lucky off of her feet, she soon realizes that nothing is as it seems and that Zane may very well be the guy for whom she changes the rules. That is until she meets Braydon.

    Her annoying ex-husband, Simon has been "displaced" after forgetting to pay his rent and has nowhere to go. As much as she seethes at the sight of him, Elizabeth can't turn her back on the man who was once the love of her life. After all, they were happily married for two years before "the incident" ripped them apart. There's just one teensy problem. Elizabeth's fiance, Austin, has no idea that she was previously married. Nor is he aware that Simon is bunking with his future bride. Elizabeth must keep the two away from each other until she is ready to come clean about her marriage and divorce. This proves exhausting in close quarters while planning a wedding. As Elizabeth and Austin prepare for their upcoming nuptials, it gets more and more difficult to hide the truth from Austin. Especially, when Elizabeth is starting to have doubts about what the truth really is.

    ONCE UPON A TIME, there was a beautiful princess, Flicka von Hannover, who lived an enchanted life. She jetted around Europe staging charity events with friends, had married a handsome prince in the most spectacular royal wedding of the 21st century, and should have lived happily ever after. But then she found the handsome prince in bed with a duchess. And then a coffee shop barista. And then her own goddamn secretary. Finally, the beautiful princess had had enough of the cheating prince, and she ran away. The prince didn’t want to let her go. He couldn’t take his throne without her and sent henchmen to take her back to the castle. Her worried royal brother sent people to look for her, too. The prince threatened her. He said that if the princess contacted her brother or any of her friends for help, he would kill her brother and her brother’s new, pregnant wife. So the princess ran to the only person she could trust, a man who was frankly not a handsome prince. Dieter Schwarz had been Flicka’s bodyguard for years. He had protected her from assassins, kidnappers, and high school dates who got too handsy after a few drinks. He was a sharp-witted, sharp-jawed, hard-muscled former Swiss Special Forces operator who had started his own private security firm, Rogue Security, and had no past that he spoke of.No one knew that he had been her first lover and had broken her heart.And he’s the only person who can save her.

    One case of self-denial. One hunky best friend who wants a lot more.Watching the man she thought she'd marry tie the knot to someone else spurs small-town waitress, Mandy Mattson, to finally pursue her dreams of opening her own restaurant. But she can't do it alone. . .Mandy's going to need the help of her sexy, long-time best friend, Frankie Smith. He has everything she needs--and more. She fell for him years ago, but has never allowed their friendship to evolve into something more. After all, he's "Frankie fall-off-the-tower Smith," and she has no intention of giving her heart to a dare devil like him. But what happens when Frankie asks Mandy to take the biggest dare of all?

    Broken and wounded after the devastating loss of her parents, she’s tried to navigate her way alone. Earning a lucrative contract in the modeling industry, she puts her past behind her. Until everything comes crashing down. Now she lives a quiet life out of the spotlight. When her best friend Hazel pulls her back, she tries to fight the attraction she feels for Gabe, a charming bachelor who wants more than friendship. Gabe has been relegated to the friend zone when he so clearly wants more. But he has secrets of his own—their past that links them together has the power to force them apart. Other titles in the series: The Billionaire's Conflict Excerpt from this book: "The moon shone bright still, highlighting the silk of his black hair. They moved to the ship’s rail again. Paige, leaning her arms to peer at the water, Gabe standing behind, not touching her. But she could still feel his electric pull. The air buzzed with static that begged contact. She ignored its call and thought of the inevitable. She would need to leave Tino’s. A clean break would be best. She knew from experience, those wounds healed the fastest. She started her sentence before the words would be too hard to speak. “I’m recognizable. I’m taking a big risk working at Tino’s. The paparazzi would have a field day if they knew. I left that life for a reason. I need to stay out of the spotlight.” The words sat heavy in her throat. He closed the gap, wrapping his arms around her, pulling her close. The connection sent instant sparks shooting through her veins, just as she knew it would. As it had countless times tonight. “I hope you know you can always trust me.” His breath was hot on her skin and it made her insides do too many things she wasn’t prepared for."

    Her heart heavy, she prepares to meet her future husband-the man whisperers in his royal kingdom call The Beast of Hajar……and the Scarred Sheikh…Concealing his disfigurement from public scrutiny, Sheikh Zahir rules his country from within the castle walls, allowing no one in. Until duty demands he carry on the Hajar family dynasty and allow his new bride to cross the threshold.Zahir expects Katharine to flee at first sight. Yet her unflinching gaze fires Zahir’s blood, and their attraction burns hotter than the scorching desert sands…

    (Except Alex. He's a womanizing manwhore. And maybe Stratton, because he's wicked hot, but super awkward around girls.)Barrett English, aka "the Shark," is the fair-haired, first-born of the English brothers, and the CEO of the oldest, most prestigious investment banking firm in Philadelphia. He rules the boardroom with an iron fist, refusing to take no for an answer and always getting his way.Emily Edwards, a first-year doctoral student at the University of Pennsylvania, grew up in the gatehouse on the outskirts of Barrett's childhood estate. The daughter of his family's gardener and housekeeper, she was always looking through the window of privilege, but forced to remember her place at the very periphery of the kingdom.When business partners suggest that a fiancee might soften Barrett's image over business dinners, he approaches Emily for the "job" of fiancee. And while love wasn't necessarily on Barrett's radar, he begins to realize that Emily always has been. But will his take-no-prisoners boardroom tactics work on the heart of the woman he loves.____________________________*All books in The English Brothers series are approximately 200 pages. The RWA classifies this as "Mid-length Contemporary Romance."