Book picks similar to
Bed of Roses by Rita Herron


romance
suspense
romantic-suspense
contemporary

Turning Back Time: Sweet and Wholesome with a Fun Matchmaking Twist (Crestfield Inn, #1)


Elsie Davis - 2020
    He’s intent on filling in the missing links on his family tree. When they both end up researching the early 1800s, will history get in the way of the future?All Sarah’s life, stories had been told—handed down from generation to generation. Captain Tremont had gone to his watery grave committing a crime…bootlegging. But a message discovered in her grandmother’s trunk addressed to her great-grandfather six times removed, leads Sarah to believe there is another explanation.Blake is delivering a load of antiques to the local B&B when a gorgeous woman just about knocks him off his feet—literally and figuratively. An antique lamp gets broken and the air is rife with tension, but when they meet again at the library, Blake offers to team up in their research efforts by way of apology. Strictly business of course.But as they wind their way through history, it would seem there are some strange things happening when the resident spirit gets involved. Will the truth bring them happiness or drive them apart forever?

Tru: Guardian Group Security Team Book 1


Bree Livingston - 2021
    The truth could tear them apart.Desperate to prove herself, Kayleigh Kingston will do anything to keep her job at Beacon Art Gallery. When her boss gives her an ultimatum—retrieve an artifact and escort it back to New York safely, she’s determined to do whatever it takes to succeed.Thaddeus Tru hates lies, but his love of justice outweighs it. His newest assignment? Get cozy with a woman who’s smuggling relics and willing to murder if it means keeping her freedom. Sounds cut and dry—until he meets her.The lie becomes a tangled web when feelings begin to pull Tru and Kayleigh closer together. Once the truth is out, will the deception wither all hope for love, or will it be strong enough to build a future together?

Take Me Home


J.H. Croix - 2015
    Croix, a new contemporary romance series! A sexy Christmas romance set against the wilderness and beauty of small-town Alaska. Gage Hamilton is a smoldering Navy SEAL and a man on a mission. He’s returning to Diamond Creek, Alaska to resurrect his dream of reopening Last Frontier Lodge. Marley Adams moves back home hoping to find a sense of security and safety after it was stolen from her.Gage has spent many years successfully avoiding emotional entanglements. He is looking for nothing more than peace and sanctuary at his family’s old ski lodge. His new neighbor, Marley, was definitely not part of his plans. Marley is a brainy computer whiz and way too sexy for Gage’s own good. A man who prides himself on always being in control, Gage finds that he has little when it comes to Marley.Marley only wants to get her feet back under her after her world was turned upside down in Seattle. She’s been focused on little else beyond her work and is seriously out of practice with anything resembling romance…including the scorching hot attraction that sizzles anytime Gage crosses her path.Gage and Marley are powerless against the magnetic pull between them. Steamy and snowy nights weave a spell around them. While Marley thought she escaped whoever set out to hurt her in Seattle, she finds the threat of danger has followed her to Diamond Creek. Gage must face the depth of his feelings for Marley when he realizes he will do anything to protect her. Can Marley and Gage discover love in time for Christmas? The magic of a white Christmas is right around the corner.*All novels in this series are full-length standalone novels with an HEA.**Take Me Home is an updated title for Chrismas on the Last Frontier

Center Stage


Denise Grover Swank - 2016
    Ten years ago, Magnolia Steele fled Franklin, Tennessee after an incident that left her with hazy memories and a horror of the place where she had been born and bred. Though her abrupt departure destroyed most of her treasured relationships, she vowed never to return . . . until she has no choice. When Magnolia’s breakout acting role in a Broadway musical ends in disgrace, there’s only one place she can go. She finds herself on her momma’s porch, suitcase in hand. Drama follows Magnolia around like a long lost friend. She reluctantly agrees to help her momma’s catering company at a party for a country music star, only to find herself face-to-face with a sleazy music agent from her past. After a very public spat, Magnolia not only finds him dead but herself center stage in the police’s investigation. Now she must scramble to prove her innocence, relying on the help of acquaintances old and new. But the longer Magnolia stays in Franklin, the more she remembers about the big bad incident that chased her away. The past might not be finished with her yet, and what she doesn’t remember could be her biggest danger.

Ariel, Always Enough


Danielle Norman - 2017
    One woman would never be enough for one man. So I traded in men for a Harley. Nothing beats that kind of power between my legs. Then I blinked. And he was there. ~ Some things in life were inevitable; death, taxes, and badge bunnies willing to hop into my bed. The only problem is I’m a one woman kind of man. In my line of work, I’ve seen it all. Nothing bothers me until I find a woman’s wrecked body. When she blinked, My world changed. Forever doesn’t come close to giving me enough of her. From the author: Enough features my ideal hero, an Alpha-Beta. They are the type of men that will open the door for you during the day and put you up against it at night. Enough is comical, with just a hint of drama. It isn't politically correct and will have you searching your favorite sex toy store. Enough is a stand-alone novel with no cliffhanger. You will meet characters that will reappear in future books.

Riversong


Tess Thompson - 2011
     In the wake of her husband's tragic death, Lee is pregnant and one million dollars in debt to a dangerous loan shark willing to do anything to collect. Out of money and options, Lee seeks refuge in the small Oregon town where her mother's dilapidated home sits vacant, as desperate for a fresh start as Lee herself.With a baby on the way and a living to make, Lee opens a restaurant and begins to rebuild her life. But just as she catches her breath, and the eye of a local musician offering a second chance at love, she finds herself right back in the clutches of the debt collector with more to lose than ever.

Entangled


Barbara Ellen Brink - 2010
    One summer of her childhood is a mystery she intends to solve. But digging up her past also lays bare the skeletons of others, including her mother’s. Entangled between what she once believed and a new reality, will she be able to live with the consequences of full disclosure?

To Love Again


Lillianna Blake - 2015
    Her children recognize the defeat and sadness in her eyes and she knows that her kids deserve to see their mother happy. When Nicole follows the suggestion of a friend to go on a spa getaway during a time that her children are away with their father, she does so believing that it might lead to the self-discovery she is seeking. What she ends up finding at the Cielo Spa & Resort is much more than what she bargains for. What she ends up finding at the Cielo Spa & Resort is Gavin Bell. Gavin Bell is a successful businessman who only cares about his clients and getting the job done—it’s how he’s always defined his life and it’s also the thing that led to the downfall of his marriage. But he hasn’t found a good reason to change his ways—it helps him to ignore any hints of loneliness or regret about his past mistakes. When Gavin’s boss and best friend sends him away to a spa in the mountains for a break from work, Gavin is anything but pleased about it. He decides that he’ll spend the time in his room on his computer working, but while checking in, he meets a woman that he can’t get out of his mind. Both deceived about the Cielo Spa & Resort by well-meaning friends, Nicole and Gavin find themselves amongst individuals looking for love—a fact that neither of them is pleased about. They’ll make the best of a night—or two, if a shared meal convinces them that an initial spark just might be turning into something more. *** The Forty and Free series features women finding themselves and love again. Many of these women will overcome the obstacles, fears and pain brought on by past heartbreak. Others will undergo a shift within themselves as they make room for unexpected love in their lives. Forty and Free series: Book 1: To Love Again Book 2: To Trust Again Book 3: To Hope Again Book 4: To Try Again Book 5: To Thrill Again Book 6: To Dream Again Book 7: To Feel Again Book 8: To Live Again

Luck of the Irish


Liz Gavin - 2014
    She has just graduated from college and now she can go on that trip she has been planning to take for years. She is shy and she has never traveled alone but she feels her luck may be about to change when she meets a gorgeous bartender. Declan Slane is twenty-six and works as a bartender in Dublin. He hasn’t been very lucky in his love life but he isn’t looking for a girlfriend. So, he isn’t very happy to meet a certain breathtaking American who walks into his bar one afternoon. This is a story of firsts: Keira’s first trip abroad; the first time she visits her great-grandparents’ home country – Ireland; the first time she watches her favorite rock band play in their hometown – Dublin; the first time she considers giving herself to a man – Declan.

Wild Irish Ride


Jennifer Saints - 2008
    Now he's back in Savannah with his highly successful security company to put the Weldon name on the right side of the tracks. Unfortunately, before he can even make a move in that direction, he runs into Alexandria Jordan and ends up making the same mistake he did before. He succumbs to her allure, but this time, he plans on getting her out of his system for good and walking away.Except for a few wild moments with Jesse at seventeen, Alexi Jordan has followed the life expected of her. But a Wedding Day betrayal from her blue-blooded fiancé has her running from her life and right into the arms of the man she'd never forgotten, Jesse. Yet as she forges a new future for herself amid the scandal of her aborted wedding, Alexi finds herself the target of a twisted killer and both her and Jesse's days are now numbered.Excerpt:"Still a virgin on the run after all these years, Lexi?" he drawled.  His voice, as steamy and seductive as Southern summer day, challenged her on an elemental level, a sensual one. "Almost," Alexi said, letting the last illicit picture she had of Roger fall from her grasp to the ground.  She'd only ever been with Roger and he didn't count.  Not anymore.  She sucked in air, latching onto Jesse's appeal.  The reporters encircled them.  Jesse lifted his hot gaze to her eyes and smiled. "Almost?"  Slow and sexual, his grin spread awareness over her.  "Sounds frustrating.  Interested in changing that?"  He ran his finger under her chin and she caught her breath. Yes, some part deep inside her shouted.  Yes, she wanted to change that.  Here was one situation her grandmother couldn't smooth over with a lie.  With the cameras rolling, Roger and her grandmother would get a clear picture that Alexi meant it when she said she wasn't marrying Roger ever. "Yes," Alexi said to Jesse, stepping closer to him.  Waves of his sex appeal washed over her.  Waves she had no trouble remembering, though she'd only been seventeen when she'd last dipped into them.  His nearness and touch sparked something inside of her that wanted to rebel against everything that had just happened to her.  "Kiss me," she demanded, loudly.Jesse arched his brow and asked softly, "What's your game Lexi?"  His slid an arm around her and pulled her flush to his chest, her breasts to his hard muscle.  Then his mouth covered hers.  She gasped at the desire shooting through her as his tongue entered her mouth, and his gaze dared her to respond. She wound her arms around his neck, pressed closer to him, and met his tongue with hers.  His eyes widened with surprise, telling her that he'd expected her to put him off rather than to take him up on his challenge.  After that first moment, he didn't hesitate in delivering a four-alarm kiss.  He bent her back over his arm, inserted his leg between hers and had one hand cupping her butt.  In one kiss he ravished her from the inside out and she burned for more.  By delivering a message to her grandmother, what message had she delivered to herself? He ended the kiss, but kept her captive in his embrace as he stared into her eyes.  The cameras continued to flash and the world swirled crazily.

Saving Grace


Sandy James - 2013
    The victim of a violent rape at the hands of a rich politician’s son, she must “disappear” to escape his constant attempts to recapture her. Moving from cattle drive to cattle drive as a cook, she avoids her tormentor for nearly twenty years. When she discovers that the brother she gave up for adoption after their mother died in childbirth was orphaned at an early age, she is frantic to verify that he’s safe. She tracks him to a cattle ranch in Montana.Widower Adam Morgan owns the Twin Springs ranch, but finds himself falling into a life of loneliness. Although he enjoys spending time with his grown daughter and the two men he rescued when they were living on the streets, he longs to meet a woman he can love. Living in the Montana territory where men greatly outnumber women makes finding a new wife difficult. Weary of working cattle, he is ready to make some changes in his life.Grace falls ill on her journey, but she manages to make it to the Twin Springs ranch where her brother is supposed to be living. Adam takes her in, concerned for her health and the reason she’s searching for one of his adopted sons. Their chemistry is immediate and intense, but can Grace heal from her past of pain and fear? When her secrets are finally revealed, can Adam forgive her deceptions and learn to love again?

3:AM Kisses Boxed Set


Addison Moore - 2017
    Once they finish up with their internship, she never wants to see him again. Piper James’ first year at Whitney Briggs is starting off great, new friends, a potential sorority, and plenty of guys to choose from. Once she secures a spot in Alpha Chi, she’ll have the greatest freshman year on record. But it just takes one look at the Alpha Chi “hit list” of things she needs to do to get in and she know there’s trouble—and trouble’s name is Owen Vincent. Taming a player sounds impossible. Owen is the only player she knows and he certainly fits the bill, cocky, too many notches to count on his bedpost, and an aversion to relationships. Making Owen believe she wants him is pretty low, even if this entire fling is just a means to an end. But now she can’t stop thinking about him. Yeah, he thinks he’s God’s gift to women, but now a part of her is kind of starting to agree. Girls are still dripping all over him like honey. Piper thinks there’s no way he’d be interested in a commitment with her. Maybe Alpha Chi isn’t what she wants. Maybe it’s Owen? It’s a brand new year at Whitney Briggs and things are about to get wild. Country Kisses (3:AM Kisses 8) I fell hard for Cade the moment I met up with those bedroom eyes of his, but it's not my heart I'm interested in gifting him. Cade James is my best friend's brother, well bred and well bed. To him I'm just another plaything, but I can't blame him for that. I'm not much to look at, and there's not a man on the planet that would be willing to make me his own. But Cade is pulling me deeper, asking questions, wanting to know what makes me tick--wanting to know who gave me the scar that takes up the landscape over half my face. Cade wants far more than what I'm willing to give him. If I let him in, let him into the most sacred chamber of my heart, I might end up with a wound far greater than the one that left that scar. The wound Cade James has the power to inflict could never heal. Forbidden Kisses (3:AM Kisses 9) Rex Toberman is obnoxious and pretentious. So what if he’s the star quarterback? So what if my father is dating his mother? I can’t wait until he’s out of my life for good. The day our parents announce their impending wedding becomes the worst day of my existence. Not only has Rex cemented himself in my social circle, but he’s about to cement himself into my family.I don’t trust his mother. And I don’t want anything to do with her egotistical, womanizing son, but deep down the only way to get rid of them both is to do something unimaginable with Rex himself. I’m playing with fire, dancing in the flames of his wicked grin, and soon enough I’m melting. The last thing I want is to become another victim of Rex Toberman’s egotistical, womanizing ways.But there’s something about those bedroom eyes, that lewd smile, that body made of steel I cannot resist. Yes, getting rid of my soon-to-be stepbrother is tougher than I ever imagined—especially now that I never want him to leave.

Golden Lies


Barbara Freethy - 2004
     Every family has secrets -- some too intriguing to resist ... some too dangerous to ignore ... A novel about three remarkable families -- the fifty-year-old promise that once bound them together, the fiery betrayal that tore them apart, and the ancient bronze dragon that could destroy their future ... Riley McAllister, Paige Hathaway, and Alyssa Chen come from very different worlds. Tough guy Riley has overcome the hard knocks of a working-class upbringing. Paige struggles to define her place as the heir to a famous antiques emporium. And Alyssa feels trapped by the restrictions of her family's old world attitudes. Now this unlikely trio of strangers must come together to follow an elusive trail through the streets of San Francisco -- from glittering Pacific Heights to colorful Chinatown to trendy south of Market. Each will have to make the impossible choice between romantic love and family loyalty, between sheltering lies and revealing truth. Once the door to the past is opened, there's no turning back ... Reviews for Golden Lies ... "Golden Lies is an absolute treasure, a fabulous, page-turning combination of romance and intrigue. Fans of Nora Roberts and Elizabeth Lowell will love Golden Lies." Kristin Hannah "Freethy's smooth prose, spirited storytelling and engaging characters, are sure to send readers on a treasure hunt for the author's backlist books." Publishers Weekly "A priceless Chinese artifact, an ancient curse, and a decades-old betrayal set the stage for this gripping story, which unites the grandchildren from three diverse, yet strangely linked, families and sweeps them from the rarified world of high-priced antiques to the fragrant alleys of San Francisco's Chinatown on an urgent quest to unravel the past's secrets. Multidimensional characters at all levels (especially the strong-willed hero and heroine), realistic and sometimes funny dialog, and a well-constructed plot that Freethy unwraps with such consummate skill that the conclusion is at once surprising and totally logical result in a rich and compelling tale." Library Journal "The lives of three families collide and intersect in this wonderfully intriguing new drama by bestselling author Freethy." Romantic Times Magazine OTHER ROMANTIC SUSPENSE TITLES Lightning Strikes Trilogy (Romantic Suspense) #1 Beautiful Storm #2 Lightning Lingers #3 Summer Rain Romantic Suspense Novels All She Ever Wanted Don’t Say A Word Golden Lies The Sanders Brothers Romanic Suspense Duo #1 Silent Run #2 Silent Fall The Deception Romantic Suspense Duo #1 Taken #2 Played

The Groomsman


Marcia Lynn McClure - 2018
    Although she had not had a good, solid look at him, she could sense he was very handsome. His voice alone revealed he was—the deep, rich nature of it. In truth, his voice made her feel—well, it somehow whisked her back—whisked her back four years, bathing her in memories of another supper and a voice she’d heard that night—a voice as deep and rich, as warm and wonderful as molasses taffy. “It seems we cross paths again, Miss Ambria Blanchard,” the man said. And she knew then. Ambria knew that the voice and the man were not simply similar to the voice and the man that had changed her life four years before—but that the same man himself was sitting next to her. Thinking of the worn photograph she still cached in a secret space in her wallet, Ambria turned and nearly fainted with euphoric shock when she found herself gazing into the blue, blue, bluest eyes of the most gorgeous, beefcaked, super-stud lady-killer she’d ever seen.

Rescued


Stephanie St. Klaire - 2016
    Klaire comes the shocking beginning of a 5-star series, McKenzie Ridge. Dawson and Sam kick off this standalone romantic suspense series that you won’t want to put down...until you’re ready to binge read the rest. All FIVE books are available now!It isn’t just love on the line, it’s lives too…Dawson and Sam agree on one thing...relationships are more work than they’re worth. But in their darkest hour they couldn’t deny their attraction to each other and now that he's in her life, he'll do whatever he can to stay there.Dawson can’t shake the feeling that they are being watched and soon learns their small town has a fatal secret when it becomes clear Sam’s car crash was no accident — someone is trying to kill her…He’s in a race against time to protect her from a stalker determined to finish their task. They won’t need to look far to find what they’re searching for as they walk right into the cross fires of a crime that’s anything but random and brings their community to its knees.Secrets and lies are revealed when tragedy strikes putting everything on the line, including lives, as a deranged criminal hides in plain sight.Love, fear, and impossible choices have him charging to her rescue, but will it be in time…