Book picks similar to
Tuck by Jamie Bennett


sports-romance
single-parent
slow-burn
sports

The Jock


Tal Bauer - 2021
    Three years in, he has it all: he’s the starting tight end, team captain, and, according to ESPN, maybe the best college football player in the nation. But he’s been keeping a secret from everyone.Justin Swanscott has three certainties in his life: he’s gay, football is overrated, and he really, really doesn’t like cowboys. He should never have fallen into Wes’s open-range eyes or let his heart run wild when Wes gave him that shy little smile over summer. But he couldn’t stop himself.Everyone’s asking questions about Wes this season: How is he playing so well? Will Texas be undefeated this year? Will he take the team all the way to the national championship? What’s next for him?The truth? Wes isn’t dreaming about an NFL contract. His heart belongs to Justin, even though the world wants it to belong to football.Wes has stadiums packed with screaming fans, ESPN is all over him, and the NFL wants him badly. He’s living under a microscope, and the pressure keeps building as the team keeps winning. Everyone wants something from him, but all Wes wants is to love Justin.Something’s gotta give.

Trailer Park Heart


Rachel Higginson - 2018
    It’s my legacy. That’s how my mama lived. And that’s how her mama lived. It’s the life I was born into and it’s the life I swore I would leave the second I was old enough to make it out. Only legacies have a funny way of sneaking up on you. An innocent decision the night of high school graduation led to a series of complications in my plans to escape. Seven years later, I’ve resigned myself to this small town and the roots I’m tied to. Nothing could make me leave. And nothing could make me spill the secrets that keep me here. Until he walks back into town with a chip on his shoulder and a stupid hunch nobody else in town has been smart enough to follow. Levi Cole is my opposite. Born on the right side of the tracks with family money to spare, he’s the kind of black sheep that can afford to be rebellious—because his family will always pay for his mistakes. He’s also the only living heir to Cole Family Farms, after his brother Logan was killed in duty seven years ago. He sees something in my life that he thinks he has a right to. But he’s wrong. And obnoxious. And he needs to take his stubborn good looks and that intense way he looks at me and go back to wherever it was he came from. I know better than to trust men like him. I was born and raised in a trailer park, I know nothing good happens to girls like me—girls with trailer park lives and trailer park hearts. Especially from gorgeous, kind, pigheaded men like him.

Yesterday Is Gone


H.J. Bellus - 2018
    Just not for me. The small, one-horse town that gave me my roots, that made my soul thrive, is also the place I never wanted to set foot in again. I left everything behind and never looked back. Until now. With the death of the man who raised me, I’m forced to return to Boone. Old wounds resurface, and heartache and loss trump everything once more. Seeing the man who shattered my world the night of our high school graduation almost brings me to my knees. Jessie, my once best friend and love of my life, ruined it all for me…for us. I’m back in Boone…and my secret is about to rattle the tiny town.

Ride


Harper Dallas - 2017
    Player. Adrenaline junkie. Snowboarder Chase Austin has a reputation—and not just for being the world’s best extreme athlete. He’s as cold as the mountains he rides, loyal only to his crew . . . and panties drop wherever he goes.Photographer Brooke Larson knows better than to let him get through her emotional Kevlar. So what if she used to have his poster on her bedroom wall? She’s not a teenager with a crush anymore. Chase Austin is her key to the big time, and she’s getting his photo no matter what.Too bad the only place Chase wants her is in his bed.Men leave. Success is forever. Brooke knows the drill, and she’s not letting anyone get in the way of her career—or into her heart.But whether it’s on the slopes or between the sheets, riding with the best means risking it all.

5 Rounds


Nikki Castle - 2021
    The only problem is, she can't stand his arrogant, self-centered roommate, Tristan.Now, she has to figure out how to live in the same house with him for ten days while dealing with all the temptation that comes with… including punching Tristan’s smug face in. But when one night strips them of their masks and exposes the truth, they’re forced to reexamine how they really feel about each other.While Remy struggles with her attraction to this notorious womanizer, Tristan has to decide if his feelings for Remy are worth it, or if they'll just distract him from his longtime goal of becoming a world champion.Can Tristan and Remy drop their guards long enough to fall in love? Or will old prejudices deliver the final blow?Scroll up to dive into the world of Philly MMA today!

Waiting on the Sidelines


Ginger Scott - 2013
    Named after a baseball legend, she enjoyed being the Tomboy, her closet filled with her brother’s hand-me-downs, cut-off jeans and soccer shorts. But when her first trip to high school results in a broken heart from the first boy to ever make her heart flutter and cruel words from an older girl she once thought a family friend, Nolan starts to question the very person she thought she was and wonders if her humble upbringing can compete with the afforded luxuries of her privileged peers.Throughout the next four years, Nolan struggles to maintain herself throughout her path of discovery, learning just how cruel teenagers can be through the pressures of underage drinking, sexuality and class. And despite how life seems to continue to work against her, she still manages to listen to her heart, falling deeper and deeper for the guy the entire town adores, even if he only sees her as a friend. Can Nolan strike a compromise between her own integrity and the boy she loves? And can she make him notice her before it’s too late?Reed Johnson came to Coolidge High School with a lot of fanfare. The son of a hometown football legend and the brother of a local football hero, Reed wore all the pressures of carrying a town without hope into the spotlight. Thankfully, he had the talent to back it up. But when he meets a girl who makes him think twice about exactly what being a hero means, he starts to wonder if following in his brother’s footsteps might be all wrong. Nolan Lennox was everything that was opposite of expected. She didn’t flirt, she didn’t drink and she didn’t sleep around. Nothing about her was easy, but something about her made Reed want to try harder. Though she didn’t look the part, she seemed to be spending a lot of time in Reed’s thoughts, and he wondered if she could be the one who made it all worthwhile. But could Reed handle letting her down? And would breaking her heart break him beyond repair?Waiting on the Sidelines explores young love to its fullest, exposing how real young heartbreak and passion is and how important it is to discover yourself and hold onto your own identity. The story follows two young characters as they deal with mature situations, including the prevalence of bullying and promiscuity in today’s high school setting. Ultimately, Waiting on the Sidelines is a story of hope, honesty and those powerful, first true loves—the ones worth holding onto at any cost.

Baking With A Rockstar


Jasmin Miller - 2019
    Desperate for a break from the fast-paced life of fame, he retreats to the one place that has always been home.Brooksville, California. It's the same place where Charlie has taken refuge, trying to build a life for herself and her young daughter. The quiet, small-town atmosphere and her new bakery venture are exactly what she needs to pick up the pieces of her shattered past.As they spend more time together, neither of them is prepared for the effect Charlie has on Hudson, and how important she would become for his career.

Room for You


Beth Ehemann - 2013
    Ever since her ex—the girls’ father—vanished four years ago, Kacie’s sworn to keep her head in her studies and her heart out of trouble. Moving back home to her mother’s bed-and-breakfast had seemed like the best way to start over.But when hockey star Brody Murphy washes up on the front steps of the Cranberry Inn during a raging storm, he awakens a hunger in Kacie that she’s long forgotten…and he opens her eyes to a life she never thought was possible. With so much more to lose this time around, can Kacie trust her heart to make the right decision?***Room for You is the sweet, tantalizing first novel in bestselling author Beth Ehemann’s heartwarming Cranberry Inn series.

Axel


Samantha Whiskey - 2019
    But I’d never leave the Swedish Hockey League— Not while raising my little brother. But now he’s grown and the Carolina Reapers show up with my greatest weakness: Langley Pierce, their new head of PR. I’ve never been able to say no to her. She’s fierce, independent, and the sexiest woman I’ve ever met. She also has a stubborn streak wider than my entire country. One comment from her smart mouth about never dating again, and I propose. No, really, I actually propose: A six-month marriage contract in exchange for signing with the Reapers. I want to date this woman so badly that I’m going to marry her first. I’ll use each day to show her how a queen should be treated. Our wedding day started a countdown I’m powerless to stop, And the faster the months fly, the harder I fall. She’s sworn she’ll never choose a man over her career, And I promised never to ask her to. Until I’m forced to. How can we move forward when we started this whole thing backwards? If I can’t convince her this marriage is anything but fake— The next document we sign will crush us both. Welcome to the Carolina Reapers, Samantha Whiskey’s newest hockey series where the chill of the ice meets sultry southern nights.

Focused


Karla Sorensen - 2020
    requited. That day was bad enough, but things just got worse.Noah Griffin turned himself into one of the best football players in the country and a transfer to the Washington Wolves— the team I work for—lands him on my doorstep. The timing couldn't be worse, because my boss just handed me the opportunity of a lifetime. And that promotion rides squarely on Noah's big, muscular, condescending shoulders.He wants nothing to do with me, and the feeling is so very mutual. But for the sake of my career, I can ignore all those things about him that drive me insane. His eyes. His mouth. His big, big … hands. Until one day, we can’t ignore them anymore.You know what they say about the line between love and hate though? They’re so very right.

Not Your Hero


Anna Brooks - 2015
    He lives his life just the way he likes it - no regrets and no promises.Courtney Gallagher is a single mom doing her best at raising her young son. She longs to feel wanted again, to receive the touch of a loving man. Even though her heart is fragile, she has hope there’s someone out there for her and her son.Courtney rents a place from Sam, and their relationship becomes complicated. Sam is willing to let her in his bed, but not his heart. Courtney feels a pull towards Sam, but learns that trust is definitely something to be earned.*Contains Adult Content**Standalone*

Squeeze Play


Kate Angell - 2006
    Whenever she broke up with someone, she could call him, and wherever he was, he'd show up for a few days to "console" her.Years later, Risk, now a team captain of a World Series-winning baseball team, returns to their hometown of Frostproof, Florida, for a benefit. He has seen eccentric Jacy every six months or so for years, and he now plans on asking her to marry him. Jacy has never had anyone in her bed but Risk, her true love. All those boyfriends were just a way to keep him in her life. But now she is afraid of changing the status quo.No fan of the genre should miss Angell's surefire romance, and all readers who enjoy light fare will like this amusing and sexy tale and its terrific, likable characters.

The Guy on the Right


Kate Stewart - 2019
    College. The place where all bets are off, and I’ve managed to redeem myself.There’s only one problem, my new roommate, Troy, is football royalty and looks like he stepped off the set of an Abercrombie shoot.Doesn’t matter, I cook a mean breakfast for his panty parade, and we get along well.And anyway, this year I got the girl. And she’s perfect.That’s right. Theodore Houseman, former band geek, now marching band rock star has finally landed the girl of his dreams.Everything is perfect.That is, until Troy takes a good look at her.I’m not going down without a fight. As a matter of fact, I’m not going down at all. As glorious as these days may be for my all-star roommate, Laney is my end game. I may not know much about play strategy, but I’ve been the good guy my whole life. I’ve been listening and I know exactly what women want. Framed in a picture standing next to me, Troy may seem like Mr. Perfect, but he’s underestimating the guy on the right. Spoiler alert: In this story, the underdog is going to win.

On a Tuesday


Whitney G. - 2017
    Became best friends, then lovers, on a Tuesday. And everything fell apart on a Tuesday... Charlotte Taylor has three automatic strikes in my book: 1) She hates me. She also claims that I'm a "domineering jerk with a huge, overbearing ego." (I do have something huge. It's not my ego, though.) 2) She takes our mandatory tutoring sessions way too seriously. 3) She's sexy as hell...And a virgin. At least, those were her strikes before our study sessions started lasting longer than they were supposed to. Until one innocent kiss became a hundred dirty ones, and until she became the first woman I ever fell hard for. Our future together after graduation was supposed to be set: Professional football for me. Law school for her. But she left me at the end of the semester with no explanation, and then she completely disappeared from my life. Until tonight.We met on a Tuesday. Became everything, then nothing, on a Tuesday. And now it's seven years later, on a Tuesday... **This is a full length second chance romance, inspired by Adele's "When We Were Young"**

The Ninth Inning


J. Sterling - 2020
    If he doesn’t get drafted this year, he’ll be forced to hang up his cleats for good. It's not something he’s ready to do. To prove he’s serious about his final season, he’s given up girls. No more casual hookups, dates or one-night stands. But there's one girl who has always refused to give up on him. One girl who has been there since the start of Freshman year. One girl he stupidly assumed would always be waiting for him when he got off the field, no matter how long it took. Christina's had enough of Cole pushing her aside for baseball. She’s grown tired of waiting for him to see what she’s known since they were freshmen… that they are good together. She’s finally moved on- for good this time. Cole has other ideas, but she refuses to cave. It’s not her problem if he wants her now. Too little too late. There comes a point in your life when you have to stop the incessant merry-go-round and just get off the ride, right? Try telling that to Cole.