Book picks similar to
Guarded Heart by C.A. Harms


romance
cheating
new-adult
single-parent

Fall for Me


Heather Slade - 2017
    When his plane was shot down months later, right before the birth of their daughter, Liv’s world shattered. She returned to her parents’ isolated ranch in Colorado to raise her daughter alone. One year led into the next, and before she knew it, her daughter was grown and gone—leaving Liv bored and cranky. She finds herself spending too much time on social media feeds, cyber-stalking the hot guitar player she met at a concert over the summer.Ben Rice recognized her as soon as he saw her sitting at the bar. Liv, that was her name, and fate kept bringing them together. The first time he saw her, after his band CB Rice opened at Red Rocks, he watched her. She loved music—and she felt it. Not everyone did. She danced, she laughed, she smiled, she lived. That was why he remembered her name when he introduced himself at the end of the show. “I’m Liv,” she’d said. And he was ready to. He’d endured too many struggles in the last few years. He’d worked hard to keep the band going, and he wasn’t going to give up. With a new record about to be released, this was their year—he could feel it. Used to getting what he wants, Ben pursued the reluctant Liv. But knowing he wanted more from her than she was willing to give, she told him following a man around the globe wasn’t in the stars for her. Been there, done that, retired the t-shirt. She had her own stars to chase this time.When those stars fall around her feet, and Ben refuses to let her sweep them up alone, how could a girl not love him? And when she does, how can she let him go? A better question is how can she ask him to stay when she sees how bright his future could be without her?This is book can be read as a standalone with no cliffhanger.

The Sheriff's Baby Bargain


Susan Lute - 2020
    Marshal-turned-Sheriff Taylor James can trace her family back to the original thirteen Marshals appointed by George Washington. She’s good at her job, but once they find out she’s the local law, she can’t get even one of her dates to stay past the appetizers. Her plan? Convince good friend and hot neighbor Dr. Gabriel Adams to give her dating lessons since his dance card is always full.A survivor of childhood leukemia with no guarantee his remission will last, Gabe lives by two rules: Don’t get emotionally involved and don’t let his well organized life spiral out of control. When he’s given a baby, with his name on her birth certificate, he needs Taylor’s help. But dangling dating lessons in exchange? If that will get the dedicated sheriff to lend a helping hand, could it be a bargain worth making?

Young Annabelle


Sarah Tork - 2013
    Someone should have told me sooner…that falling for a guy like that…was not a good idea. At all. Just past the halfway mark on her summer from hell weightloss journey, seventeen year old Annabelle Simms has lost a grand total of nine pounds. Which should have been great, but not where her mother was concerned. According to her, nine pounds wasn’t good enough and ridiculously slow considering she counted every calorie Annabelle ate and burned. Already a star on the Royal Heights High School Baseball team, James Lawson wasn’t your average transfer student. Even with his ‘new guy’ status, he quickly becomes one of the ‘Kings of the Hallway’ and that alone should have been the red flag Annabelle needed to stay away from him. He’s arrogant, intense, rude and worst of all he seems like the kind of guy that usually gets what he wants. But the more time they spend together, it becomes difficult to stray away from those beautiful green eyes, especially with all the stress her mother is causing her. Will Annabelle wake up and see James for what her ‘common sense’ declares him to be or will she ignore everything and open her heart, allowing James to capture her…care for her…..body, mind and soul? Warning Contains Mature Scenes Recommend for ages 17+ This is not a standalone novel. Book 1 in Y.A Series

Elliot


Jenni M. Rose - 2018
    A hardworking contractor, his needs are fairly simple and when his grandmother’s house comes up for sale, everything seems to fall into place. Until his offer on the place goes up in flames when some out-of-towner drops a number he can’t even fathom, let alone match.Julia Hawkins is your average socially-inept, tech wizard on the verge of selling her multi-billion dollar website. Tired of the city grind and unable to handle the intricacies of being in the public eye, Julia retreats to a place no one will think to look for her: The Suburbs. But the place she's chosen as her own isn't quite up to par and she wants to make some changes. Big changes. If only she could get the local construction company to return her phone calls.What follows isn’t enemies to lovers. It isn’t insta-love. It’s two complicated people, with complicated problems, finding their forever in the most unlikely place. Right at home.***This series is a spin-off from The Freehope Series. We initially met The Williams Brothers in Book 3 of the Freehope Series, Confessing History. As Logan's cousins, they'll be attending Beth and Logan's beach wedding, and if you read this book, you will too!***

Surviving Regret


Megan Smith - 2016
     Landon Hayes, an all-star wide receiver, is spiraling out of control after one shattering night that altered everything for him. He has one shining star left in his life but he knows he doesn’t deserve it. Macy Thomas, a college sweetheart trying to find her way, is holding on to the boy who stole her heart. She’s stuck on the sidelines watching as he throws his life away though. The guilt is pulling him into the blackness threatening to take her and everything he has going for him along with it. When the heartbreaking reality sets in, can Macy still be Landon’s guiding light or is the past too cloudy to help them find their way back to each other? ** This was previously released as Forever Light in October 2014. Surviving Regret has a new cover, has been fully reedited from cover to cover and over 20,000 words have been added.

Lost Love


Kelly Elliott - 2017
     But, here I stand … in front of my high school girlfriend. A beautiful, confident woman has replaced the young girl I once knew and loved. Hell. I’m still in love with her. Yep. Paxton Monroe was my first love and the one girl in town who now hated my guts. So much so, Paxton swore her revenge on me if it took her until the day she died. The last words she spoke to me were a vow to cut my dick off and shove it down my throat. The fight between my heart, my head, and last, but certainly not least, my dick starts tonight. Because all I can think about is how I want to be buried so deep inside Paxton she won’t remember how I broke her heart, or how I left her when she needed me the most. But who will win? My heart is too broken to listen to my head. And my dick, yeah it’s not listening to anything or anyone. Not until it gets what it wants and what it wants is Paxton Monroe. Lost Love is book one in the Cowboys and Angels Series.

Dark McKenna


Shayne Ford
    He doesn't believe in second chances.When Vivian Mason, a college freshman who has no family left and struggles to survive, runs into a broody, handsome man one November night while fighting a cold rain on the streets of Manhattan, she has no idea who he is.A man of a few words, a body made of steel and eyes brimming with fire, the mysterious stranger saves her life more than once.Soft and delicate and a moving target, she falls for the broad-shouldered man, although his identity remains a secret to her.Fate pulls him away from her before one morning, she finds herself and her best friend in the boardroom of a multi-billion corporation, waiting for the company's owner to commence his speech when the door opens, and a tall, dark-haired man wearing a high-end suit walks in.She stares at his back for a few moments before he slowly turns, and then her heart stops.NOTE:The enigmatic male lead makes an appearance in Golden Heir Series.Spoilers of Shade's story (the lead man in the Golden Heir Series) are present in the Shades of Love Series.This book ends in a CLIFFHANGER.Three books in this series. All available.

Out of the Red


Arell Rivers - 2021
    Well, maybe he does—he’s never encountered a riff he couldn’t handle, a treasure he couldn’t score, or a woman he couldn’t conquer. No one, especially not a buttoned-down rule-follower like the band’s new tour accountant, is going to change him. Accountant Sara Anderson is an unabashed stickler for the rules… Sara’s worked nine long years to make partner, and only one thing stands between her and her goal—Hunte. Now she’s going on their tour to whip the band into financial shape. So long as she gets them out of the red, the promotion will be hers. Those bad boys of rock will be tamed, no matter how yummy their lead singer is. When rebellion confronts discipline, fireworks explode. Passions collide, and lives are permanently altered, in this enemies-to-lovers, slow burn standalone romance set in the mid-1990s—when grunge ruled the airwaves and women partners were as uncommon as those new mobile phones.

Pick Me, Handsome


C. Morgan - 2020
    I’d rather work with my hands than spend the billions my father left behind. The only thing that interests me is the apple orchard he left me. The old thing needs work, and I plan to make it beyond successful. What I didn’t expect to find between the rows of juicy red apples was a yearning for more. A beautiful single-mom teacher shows up to take her kiddos on a tour of the orchard and I feel things I haven’t felt in a long time. Mine. Every cell in my body wakes up with a desire for the strong, independent woman that I want to rock my world. She’s not into rich guys at all. Fine by me. I look like the gardener anyway. My secret is safe. For now.

Divided


Livia Jamerlan - 2013
    A great job, amazing friends, and a loving fiancé. Traveling to Las Vegas for her bachelorette party, she never expects to come across someone who rocks her world the way Ryan Kraft does. Though they only share a few hours together, the connection she feels with him is undeniable. Thinking that her feelings for him may be cold feet she brushes it off and attempts to focus on her fiancé and their impending nuptials. Heartbroken by her fiancé only days before their wedding, she finds herself needing to escape, needing to hide from reality. Though Alani knows that Ryan lives in Grand Forks, North Dakota, she never thought their paths would cross again while she is there.Their friendship changes to something more with a good night kiss. Needing to be with Ryan, she leaves her old life in New Jersey behind and moves halfway across the country. As they journey together in a new relationship Alani has to adapt to life in a new city, new job, as well as dealing with Ryan's ex-girlfriend Stephanie, who is waiting for the perfect moment to get Ryan back. But will her fiancé let Alani walk away from him without a fight? Will Alani's love for Ryan be enough for her to stay with him through turmoil? Or will Stephanie’s secret tear them apart?

Undisputed


Aaron L. Speer - 2018
    As much of a gentleman as one can be having an undisputed record with every win by a knock out. People LOVE him.Overworked barista Tegan Holland doesn't know he exists. Not until ten minutes before her friend Fiona drags her to the biggest cage fight Sydney has ever seen. By the time he heads back to his training camp in the States, she'll never forget him. But should she let him forget her? He's chasing his dream. He doesn't have time for her. Does he?For Owen, the hits just keep coming. Trash talking opponents, sensationalist media, and someone's out to ruin him for good. He can't put Tegan in the middle of it. Can he?Soon, will any of it matter? Cause life has other plans, and NOTHING hits harder than life.

Making the Play


Robin Bielman - 2019
    She’s just as career-focused as he is and has resolved to never succumb to the notorious charmer no matter how handsome or quickly they click. But then Chloe lets her guard down one drunken night and confesses she’s cursed. All her boyfriends meet their true soul mate when they date her, so she’s given up dating for good.Star baseball player Finn Auprince isn’t looking for romance, especially with his smart and sexy new media manager. She’s a distraction he can’t afford, but when Chloe confesses her secret, Finn’s competitive side emerges, and he can’t resist the challenge…or Chloe. One date is all he needs to prove that he and Chloe can have a good time without his soul mate popping out from around the next corner.It’s game on…but can they play the game of love and both come out on top? First Published as Heartthrob

Falling for Mr. Wrong Series: Books 1 - 3


Jenny Gardiner - 2019
    WrongIf lusting after him is wrong, she doesn’t want to be right…Harper Landry sometimes feels like she’s turned into a professional dater. Which might not be such a bad job if it didn’t involve having to spend so much time with a succession of truly undesirable men who were obviously still single for good reason. So she’s elated when she ends up on a blind date with the charming and handsome Danny Greevy, a man who seems too good to be true. But Harper’s starting to think that too good to be true might be downright perfect for her. Particularly when the man who launched her man-drought shows up unexpectedly to throw a wrench in her life yet again.Noah Gunderson is back in town after traveling the world for the past several years. Forced to return home after promising his mother on her deathbed to save the beloved inn that she’d nearly run into the ground, he’s planning to get far away from Verity Beach just as soon as he’s got the inn back in the black. And he’s determined not to let the distraction of Harper Landry, the one that got away, keep him here a moment longer.Falling for Mr. MaybeIf it swells, ride it…Georgie Childress moved to Verity Beach to lick her wounds after her controlling fiancé pulled a runner mere weeks before the wedding. Jobless and desperate to flee his turf, she sought solace in the quietude of the ocean, happily escaping into her own thoughts while surrounded by diving dolphins and cacophonous seagulls. Only when she accidentally runs over some random—and super sexy—surfer dude’s surfboard does she start to wonder if she needs to bring her head out of the clouds and start paying attention to life again.Spencer Willoughby long ago fled his rigid upbringing, shunning the familial expectations of an Ivy League education and Wall Street career in favor of the sun, sand and surf along North Carolina’s Outer Banks. Give him a surfboard and he’s a happy man. That is until some nutty lady with a penchant for fender-benders backs into his beloved hand-crafted wooden surfboard, snapping it in half. It’s enough to make a man crazy—crazier still because the kooky blond is making his blood run hot.Just when he finally gets the woman out of his head, Spencer is unwittingly paired off with her at a wedding as a favor to a friend, forcing him to make nice with his board-murdering nemesis who he might just want to ride off into the sunset.Falling for Mr. No Way in HellTaking the plunge…Lacy Caldwell’s mermaid gig at a cheesy roadside beach bar provided much-needed income while she pursues her graduate degree. That is until the beloved owner dies and her greedy nephew announces he’s cashing out by closing the bar and selling the property to a developer who’s going to replace the kitschy charm of the Mermaid’s Purse with ocean-view condos.Cameron Sanders can’t believe his good luck. Struggling financially, he’s thrilled to find out some random, ancient aunt he hardly knew died and left him an inheritance that’ll help take the money monkey off his back. He’s ready to go to the mat in battle when some annoying mermaid from the bar tries to throw a wrench in his plans. But things get complicated when he realizes that she’s a woman he’s started to have feelings for.

Almost Never


Amy Lamont - 2018
     Son of an aging rock star, Declan Cooper is considered royalty on the Warren College campus. When he meets petite freshman Harper Warden, he dismisses her as just another groupie. He realizes his mistake pretty quickly, but despite his near-obsession with the premed student, he keeps his distance. The last thing she needs is the notoriety that comes along with being connected to his infamous family. Getting blown off by the sexy and popular King of Campus is the kiss of death for the new life Harper hoped to make for herself at college. Her only goal now is to get into medical school so she can leave her past, and Declan Cooper, far behind. But when the plans Harper made are threatened, Declan might be the only person who can help. All she has to do is trust him with a few small things—like her heart and her future.

Hope Eternal Ranch Romance: Three Sweet Contemporary Western Romances


Elana Johnson - 2021
    You'll get HOPEFUL COWBOY, OVERPROTECTIVE COWBOY, and RUGGED COWBOY, all of which feature a cowboy looking for a second chance at life, love, and happiness. These redemptive romances will have you swooning, sighing, and remembering that everyone deserves a second chance to make things right.Hopeful Cowboy: He's struggling to step into his new role as a single dad. She's trying to keep her ranch operational and her heart intact. Can Nate and Ginger build forever out of heartache?Overprotective Cowboy: Can Ted and Emma face their pasts so they can truly be ready to step into the future together? Or will everything between them fall apart once the truth comes out?Rugged Cowboy: He's a cowboy mechanic with two kids and an ex-wife on the run. She connects better to horses than humans. Can Dallas and Jess find their way to each other at Hope Eternal Ranch?Almost 600 reviews on the individual books!From Hopeful Cowboy, Book 1:★★★★★ "Once again, Elana Johnson delivers a spellbinding story full of hope." ~BradTL3, Amazon reviewer★★★★★ "Fantastic book: Elana Johnson starts this series with a very heartwarming story about a participant in a residential reentry program. The plot has enough intrigue and twists to hold your interest and makes one wonder how the characters would work things out in the end. The growth shown in the main characters with trust issues was definitely worth reading." ~Sandy, Amazon reviewer★★★★★ "Simply a great read! I loved this book! I felt as though I was right there on the ranch with them." ~Lynne, Amazon reviewer