Book picks similar to
Guarded Hearts by Louisa Keller
m-m
second-chance
lgbt
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Whispers of Home
April Kelley - 2015
After being bullied all his life for being gay, that’s exactly what he does. He loses all contact with everyone in the town of Pickleville, including his emotionally distant mother and the only true friend he ever had.When his best friend and mother of the child they share, get murdered he knows he must ask for help in the one place he thought he would never go back to. Coming back home isn’t easy and finding himself attracted to the town man-slut spells disaster. Travis Heath isn’t at all what his reputation suggests though.
Lust & Longing
E.M. Denning - 2020
First love especially.Unfortunately for Noah Davis, it doesn’t get easier as he gets older.Noah lost Ian years ago, when life took them in different directions. Not knowing how to let go, he relied on the friends he made while living in the city. His friends helped pull him out of his despair, but it was at a club where he found himself. He threw himself into his new identity. Being a Dom gave him the control he desperately needed and helped him put the pieces of himself back together.But time changes things. Noah left the club scene behind years ago. He’s back home in Silver Springs and suddenly Ian Osborn, the one who got away, is there, too. Love isn’t easier the second time around. Noah and Ian must reconcile who they used to be with the men they are now, and it won’t be easy, but nothing worth having ever is.
Breaking With His Past
James Lee Hard - 2016
But things are not that easy, especially when people can’t see past the ex-convict, and getting a job is harder than ever. Meanwhile, Kyle has finally come to terms with his own sexuality and does the hardest thing he’s ever done in his life: getting a divorce from his wife, Jessica, with whom he has a toddler named Ryan. He leaves both behind in a bid to rebuild his life and to become the father he dreams of being to his son. It’s in this hurricane of life-changing events that Logan and Kyle end up meeting each other by chance in a small town far away from their previous lives. The spark between them is immediate and strong, but they both try to fight it, coming up with excuses not to pursue it. While their friendship evolves, they find themselves even more attracted to each other. But will Logan trust he can find love with another man while his past is still so present? And is Kyle ready to invest in his first gay relationship at the same time as he’s fighting for his son’s custody? Set in a small town with quirky characters and all the peculiarities that only a small town can offer, Logan and Kyle embark on a journey that could change their lives forever. But will they feel free to follow through? WARNING This book contains explicit sexual scenes as well as some graphic language. It is intended for a mature, adult audience.
Dark Wind
Crista Crown - 2019
After a week on the run with this curse spiraling out of control, he’s started to wonder if it wouldn’t be safer if he didn’t exist. Gideon Ward thought having a secret super power was great when he was a kid. Now, it’s just kind of one of those things. But even an amazing gift seems pointless when there’s no villain to fight, no evil to undo. The most he uses it for is to reduce inflammation in his furry clients at the vet clinic. He can’t help but wonder if he’ll ever be accepted as more than the strange kid that Caspar and Theo adopted ten years ago. It’s random chance when Gideon is the one to help rescue Sage… or is it? When one of your dads can see the future, you never really know. Someone has to teach Sage to control his power, and that someone turns out to be Gideon. But Sage isn’t the only one who has something to learn. Before Gideon can find acceptance in his community, he has to learn to accept himself first, and to find joy in the magic that already exists inside him. This book is the first in a new series that picks up with the second generation of the pack you grew to love in The Outcast Chronicles. It can absolutely be read on its own, but you’ll get maximum enjoyment if you’ve read the first series as well.
The Mechanic
Max Hudson - 2018
He’s rich enough that he never has to work and he keeps dodging the engagement his family expects him to honor. Now in his forties, there’s no rush for him to get married to a woman he considers his friend. His life is quiet and he doesn’t think that he’s ever going to have to do what his family wants him to do. Then one of his tires blows and he finds himself face-to-face with a mechanic who takes his breath away. The man is half his age and there’s no way that Stewart could have a future with him, but he can’t help but ask him out. Before he realizes it, Stewart starts catching feelings for him. Henry seems to reciprocate, but the wealth gap between them becomes more and more of a problem as their relationship gets more and more intense. Stewart wants Henry to be part of his life for good. He wants to introduce Henry to the rest of his family and make sure Henry is part of his future. But when Henry meets his sisters, all of whom have different expectations for Stewart, he finds himself having to make a decision that will affect the rest of his life. He has to choose between the man he loves and everything he has known all his life, including his family. Please Note: This book contains adult language & steamy adult activities, it is intended for 18+ Adults Only. Novel, approx. 60,000 words in length. HEA (happy ever after ending). Does not end with a "cliffhanger."
Loving Noah
Kenna Knight - 2017
When his parents sent him away in our junior year of high school, they didn’t even let us say goodbye. It tore my heart to shreds. Years later, I still drink myself to sleep on the anniversary of his departure. Until now. I met someone online, and although he is guarded and mysterious, he makes me feel again. He is the first person since Noah that I can imagine a future with. Noah Growing up, Liam was the only bright spot in my life. If it weren’t for his friendship and protection, I wouldn’t be here today. He couldn’t be with me all the time, though, and one afternoon during our junior year of high school, a group of bullies decided I needed to be taught a lesson in the form of fists to my face and hurtful words spray painted on my car. My dad refused to accept that I was gay. Without a goodbye to my friends, he sent me to live with an aunt I never knew. I never contacted Liam after that. It was too humiliating. Now, after all these years, I may have found him, and we are meeting in person. But he doesn’t know me anymore. Will he love me when he sees what I have become? **Loving Noah is the first novel in Kenna's "Loving Series" This is a stand-alone full length Gay Romance with a HEA and no cliffhanger**
Bounty of the Heart
Cody Ryder - 2016
His heart and his trust wounded, Roy struggles to redefine his views on life and love, believing he’ll never love again. Everything changes when, at a local farmer’s market, a vendor selling fresh vegetables turns out to be someone from Roy’s youth—the only boy he’d ever loved.
“It was like every plant that grew was healing me, giving me life again.”
Dakota Heart has dealt with hardship his entire life. He lost his mother as a child, and after his father passed away, he decided to put all of his energy into one project: The Heart Lifespring Gardens, a permaculture food forest spanning the entire half-acre of his suburban backyard. He always viewed the gardens as his source of healing and love, but he never thought that his fruits and vegetables would bring him back face to face with his high school sweetheart—the one who got away.
“This whole thing has just gotten me all turned around.”
The two former lovers find passions quickly rekindling, but Roy needs healing, and Dakota doesn’t know if he can let himself fall in love with him again. It may be up to Rosie, Dakota’s clever border collie and sole emotional companion, to quietly keep the two men together. But can one dog, the healing power of nature, and the warm memories of a past love keep fragile hearts from pulling apart? Bounty of the Heart is a steamy contemporary M/M gay standalone story set in Southern California, and features a feel-good HEA ending with no cliffhangers!
Country Cop, City Boy
Mia Terry - 2018
He’s excited to be part of a rural community, even knowing that eligible gay men are going to be thin on the ground.Giving up his love life is one thing, but he doesn’t expect the outright hostility he receives from the local police officer. Jai can’t help but wonder if he made a mistake taking a job so far from home. Sgt. Luke McClain definitely doesn’t want to desire Jai. Luke long ago decided being gay wasn’t an option as long as he was a country cop in a small town. It’s easier to be rude to the attractive radiographer—until some painkillers and a slip in Luke’s tightly held control reveal too much. Jai decides the closeted cop needs a friend who knows his secrets. With no other likely candidates around, Jai pushes his friendship on prickly Luke. When friendship turns to something more, both men have to decide whether their histories and fears for their futures are worth giving up hot sex and possibly love. Country Cop, City Boy is a 72,000-word m/m romance with its own happily ever after. It contains a sexy use of satin pillowcases, a trip to Sydney’s Mardi Gras, and a hot Australian cop.
Waiting on Life
Parker Williams - 2020
In fact, he usually got too serious before they were ready. One day, upon returning home from work, Toby finds a young woman kneeling to pick up mail she’d apparently dropped. Taken with her red hair and slender body, he says hello as he grabs his own mail. The woman jumps and bangs her head against the open door, then lets loose with a string of expletives. She turns around and Toby discovers…the person he’s been ogling isn’t a woman at all, but a man.Kyle Roga’s heard it all before. High school was filled with taunting classmates who could tell Kyle was far too fabulous to be straight. And now, here he was, being pawed at by a man who stole Kyle’s breath away. He ticked every box Kyle had, and a few he didn’t even know he wanted ticked. The problem? Kyle’s been burned before by straight men who think you’re good enough for sex, but not for a relationship. He’s been bitten way more than once, and he doesn’t want to go down that path again.Two men, each with a different way of looking at love, find themselves having to reexamine what they always believed about themselves. Will it be enough to bring them together? Will each discover what they’ve been doing isn’t living, but waiting on life?
Undeniably Yours
Brittany Cournoyer - 2020
But when there was no hope of Brody feeling the same way, Solomon took his place in the friend-zone and stayed there for thirteen years.Serial dating was only ever a sport to Brody, but even then, he sucked at it. No matter who he went out with, something was always missing. Perhaps what he’s missing is the man who’d been standing beside him for the last twenty years.
Feelings can only stay buried so long before they surface.
Were Brody and Solomon always meant to be together? Or will giving into their feelings transform their friendship completely?Undeniably Yours is a contemporary gay romance. It has adult language, and situations meant for an audience over eighteen years of age.
The Tourist
Clare London - 2011
It's just what I do. Not that I mind, though. It's not a bad thing, you understand, to find yourself in someone else's body, stepping into a hot shower stark-naked and sporting a decent-sized morning wood.Ace is a tourist. A spirit who spends his time visiting the lives of others for entertainment and sexual satisfaction. He can't make anyone do anything they aren't willing to do-but he is able to push them to their personal limits.He's currently visiting Dan and his lover, Ricky-a couple struggling with jealousy and words left unsaid. Emboldened by Ace, Dan becomes more sexually aggressive, a pleasant surprise for Ricky. But when an abusive ex threatens their newfound happiness, how far will Ace want to get involved? Will his fascination with the couple's sexual games tempt him to protect them from a very real physical danger?
Blow Me
Mari Thorne - 2020
That was, until he kissed me at my graduation party and I freaked out, ran away, and didn’t come back for three years. Now I’m home, conflicted about my future, and determined to repair our broken friendship, though it seems he’ll never forgive me for hurting him.Aaron: Three years ago, I made a huge mistake. I kissed my friend at his graduation party. My very straight friend that I had a huge crush on. Because I couldn’t keep my lips to myself, he ran away and ghosted me. Oh well, his loss, right? Since then, I’ve moved on with my life, or so I thought.Brady’s back in town, and I don't want anything to do with him. Then, he kisses me, leaving me reeling once again. But that doesn’t mean I plan on forgiving him. I didn’t think I’d find myself in a position to need his help, though. When he steps up to help my brass band out, he’s in my life again whether I want him there or not.Blow Me is a 55,000 word friends-to-lovers novel about finding your soulmate through music, the unbreakable bond of high school band, forgiveness, and choosing what makes you happy. It features a bisexual awakening, humorous moments, steamy scenes, a small-town brass band, a pug named Petunia, and trumpets.
Royal Affair
Preston Walker - 2017
Cast out by his father, young omega wolf shifter, Keiran Smith, is sold to slave traders. After only a short time in the slave caravan, Keiran and the other shifters are rescued by a group of alpha wolves, lead by Jace Culvers. As Keiran tends to the needs of the injured shifters, he captures Jace's eye and interest. Heir to the throne of Head Predator, Jace always goes after what he wants. This time, he wants Keiran as his servant, sealing his fate. As the two men grow closer, they realize that there's more than just a physical attraction. Their hearts are on the line. But after an attack on Predator, nobody is safe as a civil war threatens the land. As sides are being decided, only one thing is certain: Jace and Keiran are in this together. But how much must they risk for a chance at peace and love? In this 60,000 word gay, paranormal romance, two men battle all that threatens to destroy their future. With explicit sexual content and steamy scenes, this novel will have you clawing for more. But when one man reveals that he's pregnant, his prince will stop at nothing to give him his "happily-ever-after."
Just Be You
M.E. Parker - 2018
Of all the songs he’d written, why did it have to be that song? Over ten years had passed since he’d written the song and even more since Scott had become obsessed with Marshall Donavan, his brother’s best friend. It didn’t matter that Scott hadn’t seen Marshall in years. Nor did it matter that Marshall never belonged to him or even that Marshall was straight. Scott never managed to stop thinking about him. When Scott got a call from his manager asking him to submit a song for a movie and a call from his brother Abe informing him of Marshall’s engagement to Julia Sterling on the same day, Scott took it as a sign. It was time to say goodbye and forget Marshall Donavan forever. Submitting ‘Just Be You’ to the movie executives was supposed to be Scott’s way of letting go—of forgetting, of saying goodbye. But his plan backfired when the movie became a box office success overnight and his song was nominated for a Grammy. There was no way he’d ever be able to forget. The song would follow him for the rest of his life and so would his unhealthy obsession with Marshall Donavan. It didn’t help things when he found himself face to face again with the man who had consumed his thoughts for years. No, it didn’t help at all when he saw the still very sexy and very straight Marshall Donavan for the first time in eight years. It didn’t matter what would happen between them. As soon as he saw Marshall again, he knew that giving up his obsession wasn’t an option… Just Be You is a standalone, full-length, ‘brother’s best friend’ romance novel. It has ‘gay for you’ and ‘first time gay’ themes, is stocked full of STEAM, heartache, laughter, and has a guaranteed happily ever after ending.
Blurred Lines
L.C. Davis - 2020
I don't just play by the rulebook, I've devoted my life to it as a law student--much to the chagrin of the alpha males around me. When my twin falls for a heavily inked alpha who runs a tattoo studio alongside his equally disreputable brother, James, my buttoned-up world is turned on its head. I'm planning a tattoo of my own, but having just one is different, isn't it?Beautiful yet stuffy Shan and I have never gotten along. When he shows up at my studio and shocks me by announcing he's there for a tattoo, I end up being the one to leave my mark on his skin--and after a reckless one-time encounter, he leaves a mark on my heart that I'm afraid will never fade...Blurred Lines is a short and sweet novella prequel to the Inked & Marked series, which revolves around inked alpha males and the omegas who keep them in line. Blurred Lines features a snarky, driven omega and a gentle giant alpha who helps him learn to embrace his wild side.Themes Include: Mate marking, surprise baby, enemies-to-lovers romance, and a guaranteed HEA.