A short story that follows Ian and Riley at Christmas.Free short story for Carly Phillips's newsletter subscribers only.

    Working at a top financial bank brings her into contact with two men who are as different as night and day. Kent Plack, heir to Plack Industries, has no interest in being with a woman for longer than one night. A spoiled and lazy man-whore, he is completely content with his playboy lifestyle, and Beth is surprised when they form an unlikely friendship. Brian Burcham, a finance banker, is gorgeous and respectful. A man plucked from Beth’s dreams, he is definite husband material. Unfortunately, Beth has a hard rule against dating coworkers, but Brian is determined to change her mind. When a deadbeat mother and money problems follow her to Chicago, Beth is offered a solution that could fix everything. Marrying for money seems simple enough, but when lines become blurred, Beth faces difficult choices, making her realize that the easy way out just made her life even harder than before.

    I'm one of them. My name's Adam, and Celeste has been assigned to me. I have three days to show her the error of her ways and help her redeem herself before she's marked permanently Naughty. She'll fight me, she'll struggle, but in the end I will win. Even if I have to use every implement in my arsenal, Celeste will find her way to the nice list.

    "That woman has been on more wieners than ketchup." "Her legs open more than a refrigerator. " Yeah, the neighborhood slut, that's me. It drives some people crazy that I date and sleep with whoever I want. Men are allowed to do that exact thing without suffering the same judgment so I have no plans to stop living my life. Relationships are not for me. I just have to keep that in mind every time that sexy, bearded, construction worker tries to make me forget.

    Travel through six cities and fall in love with these enchanting love stories. L.J. Shen & Helena Hunting Just The Tip  It’s not every day you meet a stranger who knows how to jingle your bells… Corinne Michaels & Melanie Harlow Baby it’s Cold Outside My Christmas list did not include a broken heart, freezing temperatures, or my tree stuck in the door to my apartment building, but that’s what I got. Just when I thought Santa had failed me, I got something I never thought to ask for … Vi Keeland & Penelope Ward Kissmas in New York It was just supposed to be a simple kiss with a stranger.  I'd done it to prove a point--that I hadn't lost my sense of adventure. But you know what they say about the best laid plans. Maybe I'd get something in my stocking after all this holiday season... Sierra Simone & Kennedy Ryan The Christmas Crown Noelani, queen of Manaroa, has one mission on her diplomatic visit to the States: forge strategic alliances for her homeland. When she meets brooding security specialist Brock Grimsby, their unexpected alliance heats up the holiday. One night. No promises, but come Christmas, will either be able to walk away? Penny Reid & L.H. Cosway Songbird Two lonely souls find companionship in Dublin for one magical night. Broderick Adams doesn't mind his solitude, until she walks in. Ophelia Kelly sings to heal her heart, but has no idea he's listening. Sarina Bowen & Elle Kennedy EPIC Jamie and Wes are having a blast living and working in Toronto. Until a scout for another team swoops in to make one of them an offer that might complicate the life they've built together.

    even when it means faking it with the guy who broke your heart in high school. FenWhen the girl that got away ten years ago comes back to town and needs help, sometimes you have to throw yourself in her path in order to be seen. Even if it means pretending not to have any feelings for her. Oh yeah, and pretending to be blissfully married to her. Maybe while we’re busy pretending, I can show her what she really means to me and convince her to stay.FrancesI have no intention of settling back home in Love, Georgia. But when Granddaddy gets sick, I drop everything to take care of him. When I’m forced to marry someone to make him happy in his last days, I think twice but I do it anyway. Unfortunately, the only man willing is the guy that caused me to run away from this small town in the first place. And if I’m really being honest, pretending to be married won’t be simple when he’s easy on the eyes and sweeter than Granddaddy’s sweet tea.The Marriage Sham is part of the Lover's Landing novella series with seven other authors.8 romance authors. 8 couples. 8 chances to fall in love with... Love, GA.At The Next Table by Leanne DavisSweet on Love by Christina ButrumThe Long Route by Kiersten ModglinThe Marriage Sham by Marika RayPlaying For Keeps by Marie SavageHe Said, She Said by Savannah SloanFifty-Fifty by Kelsie RaeToo Close to Call by Mysti Parker

    So what’s the problem, I hear you cry? Gorgeous, naked man in my bedroom? Well, there’s the not-so-small, highly significant detail that he died six years ago. Yup. You read that right. And now he’s everywhere. I can’t even brush my teeth in peace. And did I mention that he never stops talking? I’ve missed him like crazy, every day of the six years he’s been gone. And with Christmas coming, the memories are even more acute. But this is getting beyond a joke. Ignoring a naked guy is a pretty tough task, especially when I’m the only one who sees him. So when he bops a complete stranger on the head with his dick in the middle of the coffee shop, I have to laugh. Anyone would, right? Except… there’s a look on the guy’s face that tells me he felt that. But… how could he? And now he’s looking at me like he’s expecting me to explain what just happened. Either he’ll call for the guys with the straitjacket… or this will be one of the most interesting conversations I’ve ever had….

    Thinking back to the prior evening’s events, I decided it was definitely the naughty one. There had to be a mistake —I was always on the nice list. But the gorgeous, naked man snuggled next to me seemed to suggest I had a lump of… something waiting for me. Maybe the nice list was overrated. Or maybe naughty girls really did end up with coal in their stockings.GrantI was now on the ‘every-other-weekend and alternating holiday schedule' with my kids —one more thing about divorce that I detested. Attending my law partner’s Christmas Eve party seemed like a better alternative to drinking alone in my boring beige condo, staring at my new pipe-cleaner tree with its new, shiny ornaments. The last thing I expected was to be propositioned by a former PTA President. Or to wake up Christmas morning not wanting to leave her bed. But you don’t get to be our age without plenty of baggage. The question was, did ours match?This sexy, feel-good second chance romance will have you cheering for Paige and Grant to finally find their happily ever after together. But not before they discover that dating —at any age —isn’t so easy.

     Unwrapped is published in Holiday Bad Boys Christmas Bundle! This exclusive edition has a brand new bonus chapter, deleted scenes and never before love scenes! Steven Maxwell After four long years in the sandbox, I was finally going home for Christmas. I expected Christmas trees, hot toddies and more cookies than I could eat. But when I went to visit my old pal Rick, I got more than I bargained for when Ruby, his little sister, answered the door. Ruby "Brace Face"— only now she's all grown up and I can't keep my mind off of her — or my hands. I know it's wrong. I'm breaking every bro code there is. But I can't help myself. I want her. Ruby I wasn't looking for a hero, but when Steven Maxwell showed up on my parents front porch, it was just in the nick of time. After my worst holiday season in history, Steven was just the distraction I needed to get me through New Years in one piece. As long as my brother didn't find out, we were safe. Which shouldn't be that hard, except one night turns into two and gets me wishing I didn't have to return to my catastrophic life back in New York. But that would be crazy, wouldn't it? Unwrapped is a novella-length forbidden romance with a sexy Navy SEAL, no cliffhanger and a very happy ending. Intended for readers 18+ due to Kindle-melting scenes and other mature content. For a limited time, Northern Lights - A Novel is also included in this Kindle edition for your reading pleasure! Enjoy! xoxoxoxo

    At least, it should. Unfortunately, Dixon Penn failed his Spellcraft initiation. Instead of working in his family’s shop, he’s stuck delivering takeout orders in his uncle’s beat-up Buick.Winning a Valentine’s Day contest at the largest greeting card company in the tri-state area would be just the thing to get his life back on track—but something at Precious Greetings just doesn’t add up. And despite numerous warnings to quit pestering them about his contest entry, he just can’t stop himself from coming back again and again.It doesn’t hurt that the head of security is such a hottie. If Dixon had any common sense, he’d be scared of the big, mysterious, tattooed Russian.To be fair, no one ever accused him of being too smart….Quill Me Now originally debuted in the Bad Valentine collection, with Love Magic by Jesi Lea Ryan, Hidden Hearts by Clare London, and Temporary Dad by Dev Bentham.

    Having refused to sign with the Titans unless they brought on his triplet brothers, Miles and Mason, Max expected to have a few more years with his brothers to raise their 15-year-old twin sisters. Max’s job is to protect the quarterback from his blindside, but Max is unable to protect himself from being blindsided when his brothers are traded and cut from the team. When a striking woman purchases a date with him at a benefit auction, he knows his life is about to change. Rosemary White, a columnist with the popular sports’ tabloid The Daily Sun, is given the assignment to purchase a date with the strapping NFL football star Maximillian Moore with the anticipation of uncovering his dark secrets in a sensational exposé. She needs her job to keep her family from losing their home, but when she finds herself falling in love with the handsome football player, her obligations to her family and employer are put to the test. Will she write the family secrets she’s uncovered, or will she choose to trust that Max’s love will protect her own heart from being blindsided?

    Acting as the short-term nanny for a single dad should have been an easy way to make some extra cash. Until I show up for my first day and face off with a demon disguised as a seven-year-old girl wearing a red tutu and matching glitter slippers.Oh, and her father? My temporary boss? Maddox Holiday. The same Maddox Holiday I crushed on in high school. The same Maddox Holiday who didn’t even know I existed. And the same Maddox Holiday who hasn’t set foot in Montana for years because he’s been too busy running his billionaire empire.Enduring seven days is going to feel like scaling the Himalayas in six-inch heels. Toss in the Holiday family’s annual soiree, and Christmas Eve nightmares really do come true. But I can do anything for a week, especially for this paycheck, even if it means wrangling the naughty, impressing the nice, and playing the nanny.

    Now, her life revolves around Love and she’s happy. Content, even.Until she meets Connor Bennet.From their first meeting, he’s turning her life upside-down and making her want things she thought she no longer needed.So, she does what she thinks is best and pushes him away. Putting trust in that useless organ in her chest has led to nothing but heartbreak, and she won’t make that mistake again.There’s just one problem: he might just be the man of her dreams.

    With Christmas approaching, she realizes she might want even more from her sexy, damaged artist, but the boundaries around their relationship make anything deeper than sex impossible.Matt was the rising star of the art world, but he hasn't painted since a tragic accident two years ago. His passion for Carrie finally inspires him, but first he must convince her that the heat between them is far more than just sex. Originally published as part of the Love for the Holidays bundle.

    Not that she cares, though. This holiday season, like all the ones before it, she plans to spend curled up with her laptop, visions of pound signs dancing through her head. When a blizzard traps Janna in the country with handsome Alistair Randall, CEO of the UK's biggest Christmas tree supplier, Janna must either embrace the holiday spirit or risk losing her PR firm's biggest client. Can Janna muster up some Christmas cheer, or will her bah humbug attitude cost her dearly?