Book picks similar to
Force of Nature by Melissa Toppen
contemporary-romance
melissa-toppen
5-star
parent-pregnancy
Secrets Kept
Allie Everhart - 2018
So the next night at her catering job she pretends not to be interested when Gavin, a hot guy with a great smile who attends the very exclusive Moorhurst College, asks her out. Unable to resist his charm, she agrees to have dinner with him.After their first date, Kate’s convinced Gavin’s too good to be true. Funny, sweet, smart, and easy to talk to, he’s nothing like the losers she’s dated in the past. But maybe her luck has changed. Maybe Gavin’s the guy she’s been waiting for.As their relationship grows, Gavin proves he really is the guy Kate’s always wanted but didn’t think existed. She’s even started thinking about a future with him. But those plans come to an abrupt halt when Kate sees something she shouldn’t. Something dark and disturbing. Something that could get her killed if she ever told anyone.Kate’s desperate to tell Gavin her secret but can’t. Even if she did, he’d never believe her. Still, she can’t keep something this big from Gavin, especially when he’s involved in it. Will she risk her life and tell him the truth? Or risk their relationship and keep this secret from the man she loves?(Book one of a two-book story)
The Fable of Us
Nicole Williams - 2016
At least that’s what Clara Abbot finds herself hoping when she runs into Boone Cavanaugh less than an hour after returning to Charleston.As kids, Clara and Boone had been each other’s firsts, and no one or nothing could stand in the way of their forever. But all kids have to grow up sometime. The troubled son of the town drunk winding up with the firstborn daughter of the local royalty was a happy ending even the most imaginative of fairy tales couldn’t make believable.Their fable came to an end as most do: tragically. Boone might have done the leaving, but it was Clara who got away and made a new life for herself in California. But after seven years of dodging her hometown, she’s only back in Charleston for seven days to celebrate her sister’s wedding. She won’t let her overbearing family or her run-in with Boone rattle her—though rattling her is obviously Boone’s primary objective.Boone is her past and her past is behind her, a mere speck in the rearview. So why does she feel it coming back every time she looks at him? Why does she see it every time he looks back?Just when Clara’s life can’t possibly get more complicated, the ground shifts, and she discovers just how far her family was willing to go to keep the wrong boy out of her life. Was it really Boone who left her? Or was it Clara who left him?The truth will be hard to face. Especially when she discovers most of her life has been built on lies.
Hate: A Love Story
Laurel Ulen Curtis - 2014
Love and Hate wrestled with my life day after day, year after year, and the only way to stop it was to let one of them win.Which one?I fought to love harder. But I loathe my love story.Warning: This standalone novel contains explicit language, sexual content, and potential triggers.
The Summer Remains
Seth King - 2015
The first is that due to a quickly worsening medical condition, she faces a risky surgery in three months’ time that may or may not end in her death. The second is that she would like to fall in love before then.As spring sinks into her namesake season on the Florida coastline, Summer plays the odds and downloads a new dating app - and after one intriguing message from a beautiful surfer named Cooper Nichols, it becomes clear that the story of what may be her last few months under the sun is about to be completely revised. All she has to do now is write something worth reading.Tender, honest, devastating and triumphant, The Summer Remains explores a very human battle being waged in a very digital age: the search for a love that will outlast this temporary borrowing of bones. In an era when many feel compelled to share and re-share anything about everything, prepare to feel a love so special, you will want to hug it close and make it yours forever.
The Forbidden
Jodi Ellen Malpas - 2017
Annie has never experienced the 'spark' with a guy-the kind of instant chemistry that steals your breath and blindsides you completely. Until a night out with friends brings her face to face with the wickedly sexy and mysterious Jack. It's not just a spark that ignites between them. It's an explosion. Jack promises to consume Annie, and he fully delivers on that promise.Overwhelmed by the intensity of their one night together, Annie slips out of their hotel room. She is certain that a man who's had such a powerful impact on her and who could bend her to his will so easily, must be dangerous. But she's already in too deep. And Jack isn't only dangerous. He is forbidden.
Park Avenue Player
Penelope Ward - 2019
Then the fender bender happened. The guy I collided with drove an expensive car and was drop-dead gorgeous. Too bad he was also a total jerk. We argued over whose fault it was and any other thing that came out of his condescending mouth. Eventually, the police came and we went our separate ways. The insurance companies would have to figure things out. I had a job interview to get to anyway—one I was excited about. Though that excitement changed to disappointment the moment the person interviewing me walked in. The guy from the accident. Whoops! Yeah, so I didn’t get the position. The problem was, I really wanted it. No, I needed it. Anything to get me out of my current career and back into working with kids. So, even though Hollis LaCroix was as intimidating as he was devastatingly handsome, I went back to see him and begged for a chance. To my surprise, he gave me a shot taking care of his troubled niece. At least my attraction to him wouldn’t be able to go anywhere. I wasn’t about to jeopardize my job or the strong bond Hailey and I formed. But resisting the magnetic pull between us wasn’t that simple. (Then there was our little underwear game—don’t ask.) We continued to flirt without crossing the line—until it finally happened. This is the part of the story where we fall in love and live happily ever after, right? Well, life has a way of throwing some major curveballs. Ours was one I didn’t see coming.
Sweetheart
Sarah Mayberry - 2021
But when they moved away together, I put Beck out of my mind and my heart. But now he's back, and roasting the best coffee in Vermont. I need to convince him to supply the Busy Bean. And I need more of those kisses we accidentally shared outside the coffee shop. He still makes my heart race faster than a triple shot of espresso. She should be off limits, but instead she's pushing mineHer sister burned my life to the ground, so Haley Elliot is the last woman I should bring into my bed. Although our business relationship is giving way to something more than a fine grind. Neither of us can help ourselves. And what’s worse, I think I’m falling for her.But it’s a small town, and ours is a big secret. And when her sister blows back into town, suddenly the coffee isn’t the only thing brewing...Content note: this fun and sexy romance contains a secondary character with mental health challenges. While that story is merely a small part of the book, we mention it out of an abundance of caution.
Reasons to Leave
Lisa J. Hobman - 2015
Aged eighteen she thought she would be with Jason forever. Everything between them was perfect until the night of the leaver's ball when he disappeared without trace. Ten years on, can Stevie ever learn to trust again enough to give her heart? Or are the ghosts of her past determined to stop her from ever finding true love?
Hate Loving You
Aubrey Wright - 2019
Now he's back in town for my big brother's wedding. And we're stuck in this chapel together. Still the same ol' Carter. Cool with a capital "C". Enough swagger to charm the panties off every cheerleader. Well, my panties aren't going anywhere. What he did to me was unforgivable. Or so I thought. He's still my enemy. But maybe we can be... frenemies?
Perfect Lie
Teresa Mummert - 2013
That’s why Brock and I never had a chance. I had to start my life over. College was my chance to become someone new. I changed everything about myself to fit in, but one person saw through my facade. The attraction between Abel and I was undeniable, but I still hadn’t healed from the painful secret I carried around with me. Abel struggled to get me to face my past in order to move forward. In doing so, he revealed a secret of his own; one that changed everything I thought I knew. A secret that would bring Brock back into my life and force me to face the truth of what really happened the day I lost him.
Play
Piper Lawson - 2016
Just another twenty-something girl, living the dream. That’s what I tell myself every morning. That I’m successful, self-aware, and well-balanced. It's just a tiny fib. I would be all of those things, if I had friends who didn’t work with me at the bank. And if I made it to pilates more than once a quarter. And if watermelon slushies weren't the main source of nutrients in my diet. It wouldn’t hurt if I’d had sex in the last year, either. (My best friend insists Jorge the Nightstand Boyfriend doesn’t count.)But when you know where you're going, you don’t need to enjoy the ride. Right?Even if some teeny part of me did want to fool around, Max Donovan would be the last guy I’d call. Sure, he made the indie video game that broke the internet. And yeah, his eyebrow piercing’s sexy, in a ‘what-are-you-in-a-band?’ kind of way. And fighting with him gets me going faster than Jorge on bezerker mode…He’s still colder than a cactus and twice as prickly. And I’m not talking about his face, because the guy’s barely old enough to shave. It’d really be best if we just ignored each other. Which is a problem, because Max Donovan is my new biggest client.So what happens when the girl who lives to work meets the guy who was born to play?Game on.
Without You
Jennifer Van Wyk - 2020
Without her, I was better off.I knew it the second she walked away and realized how much happier I was.Knew it the day I interrupted her wedding reception to show her what she was missing and locked eyes with someone I hadn’t seen in years.Those eyes.Her smile.Everything about her turned something around inside me that had been quiet for years. But I’m not the only one who noticed.How do I, a grease monkey, compare to what a Nashville star has to offer?Easy.Because without her, none of what I’ve taken years to build matters.Now I get to prove it to her. Without You is a complete standalone small town romance filled with friendship, love, and second chances.
Thicker Than Water
Dylan Allen - 2017
Her book, Throw Away the Key has taken the country by storm. And now it’s being made into a movie. After years of chasing it, she can finally taste freedom. Reece Carras is one of the most powerful men in Hollywood. Handsome, rich and generous, he’s everything girls like her aren’t supposed to dream of. But dream she does. And in his strong arms she finds a freedom she never even knew existed. Falling in love was the easy part… Cruel twists of fate and torn loyalties will make staying together seem impossible. Sacrifices will have to be made. And they will learn that blood may be thicker than water, but nothing is more powerful than two hearts that beat for each other.
5,331 Miles
Willow Aster - 2019
Just a few things on that list:*Climb the Eiffel Tower.*Visit every zoo in the world.*Eat peanut butter every day.But all the promises he made dissolved into dust, so when he comes around years later wanting to go live out our list, I want no part of it...or him. The universe seems to agree with me because everything we try is a disaster.The heart though—it's a tricky beast; I'm just not sure mine is strong enough to survive Jaxson one more time.
Cruel Money
K.A. Linde - 2019
Linde's new billionaire romance Cruel Trilogy.She was supposed to be a one night stand.A way to sate my sexual appetite.I let her glimpse the man I am. The face that I hide behind my carefully cultivated life. But she ripped open that divide—and there’s no going back.Now, she’s here. In my city.I don’t care that I’m Manhattan royalty and she’s the help.Only that she’s living in my summer home. With me.And I want more.