Book picks similar to
Common Ground by Wendy Smith


romance
contemporary
second-chance
amazon

Rescue


Kemmie Michaels - 2014
    The emptiness in her gaze he understands to his core, and he's instantly compelled to help this brown-haired beauty fight the source of her pain. Determined and intense, he needs to use his strength to help her find her own. Cam Foster, in that instant, becomes the dove he wants to free from her cage. From the first night, he needs her.Cruelly, the past refuses to let her go. The lingering manipulation holds her in that cage as the control she lived under continues to crush the woman she wants to become. Even though Ledger offers her heated passion and a safe haven, she can't find her way out.Desire and danger fight to pull her life in two directions…but those forces may crumble as Ledger fights harder than any barrier he and his dove face.

Out of the Mist


Lauren Giordano - 2017
    . .     Beaten and left for dead, Juliet awakens with no memory of how she ended up alone on an isolated road. After another attempt on her life, she's forced to rely on a man who's made it clear he doesn't trust her.   Hunting a ruthless drug deler, injured DEA agent Matt Barnes has seen just about everything in a decade battling the worst humanity has to offer. But he's never seen anything like Julie-- a beautiful blonde who reminds him more of sorority Barbie than a ruthless drug kingpin. But looks can be deceiving. He's got the bullet hole to prove it.    In a case going nowhere, Julie and her memory are all he has. To erase the worst mistake of his career, his team will use her to lure the most dangerous drug lord he's ever battled. But will the woman he's fallen in love with ever forgive him for making her the bait?

Someone Else's Fairytale


E.M. Tippetts - 2011
    It's the ideal fairytale... for most people. The last thing Chloe needs is public attention. It brings back dangers from the past that she's worked her whole life to escape.

Her Greek Inheritance (The Moustakas Book 1)


Amanda Horton - 2020
    Each book in this series comes with a guaranteed HEA and no cliff-hangers.***

Caught Up in Us


Lauren Blakely - 2013
    It was a mad, crazy love full of kisses all through the night—but he broke her heart and she had to move on. Five years later, Kat is finishing her graduate degree and building her business as a jewelry designer, when Bryan, head of his own successful company, walks back into her life. Bryan has been assigned to Kat as her new business mentor and the rules are clear. No hanky panky permitted. Kat can handle that because she's totally over him... right? Except, he still makes her laugh, and he remembers all the things she likes. Not to mention that he's even more handsome now than he was then. Then there's the spark between them—the simply undeniable chemistry, and the tender ways he shows he still cares for her. Can they resist each other the second time around or will first love trump all?

Country Heat


Cheyenne McCray - 2016
    She goes from being the head chef of an exclusive Los Angeles hotel to working as a cook on a ranch in Arizona. She couldn’t have picked anything more different. As a teenager, Kit was homeless in San Francisco, living on the streets with her mom and sister. Now she’s successful, has a full life ahead of her, and doesn’t want to relive old mistakes and relive the grief and losses of her past. She has secrets too painful to share. Carter McLeod is sure that the L.A. chef he hired as a cook won’t hang around for long. He’s concerned she won’t want to stay and prepare meals for a bunch of cowboys in the Arizona desert, but he’s hoping she will. The last thing he expects is to fall for the cute blonde. Kit has no intention of jumping into a relationship with any man, much less her new boss. But what happens between them—she couldn’t have cooked up anything more enticing than Carter. Kit’s hidden past comes walking back into her life and Carter may never trust her again.

Starr's Awakening & Hearths of Fire


Kennedy Layne - 2016
    Since learning he went MIA on a rescue mission abroad, she has existed more than lived. She's a shell of who she used to be. Restarting Red Starr HRT is a last-ditch opportunity to overcome her pain--and keep her husband's legacy alive. With a team of cherry-picked men, she must now decide if she's willing to set aside a years-old grief to begin a new life filled with the potential of fated dreams...or deadly peril. Hearths of Fire (Red Starr, Book One) Moving forward with his life... Neal Bauer tried returning home once before and he found that some things aren't meant to be. When Red Starr HRT, a paramilitary hostage rescue team, offered him a position that would use his specialized skillset that had served him well in the military--he jumped at the chance. The past has a way of returning... Charlotte Whitefall has made some really bad decisions in her life...leaving Neal Bauer standing at the altar tops the list. Growing up in Hearth, Missouri has taught her that when someone leaves their small town, they don't return. She saved Neal from a painful choice by moving on with her life and raising her sister alone. Coming home... When a local cult invades the town of Hearth, the citizens do their best to stay clear of the members. Everything changes when Charlotte's little sister is drawn into their way of life. There is only one man who has the connections to eliminate the dangerous threat. Can Charlotte persuade Neal to come home long enough to rescue her sister? More importantly, can she convince him that she made a terrible mistake all those years ago--and possibly rekindle their smoldering passion? Series Description: Red Starr HRT is a paramilitary hostage rescue team that was originally formed years ago by two retired Marine Master Sergeants. Upon the death of Catori Starr's husband, Brendan "Red" O'Neill, she took a much needed hiatus to deal with her guilt and all consuming grief. Two years later Starr is clawing her way back and ready to lead a fresh team of five cherry-picked former Force Recon Marines. Red Starr HRT takes cases the FBI and other agencies won't touch, from domestic assignments bordering on the grey edges to missions abroad against savage terrorist regimes. Follow along as Kennedy Layne conveys each of their stories as they work together on high risk rescues that lead them down perilous paths of passion, intrigue and suspense...

Loved You Once


Claudia Y. Burgoa - 2020
     After a week off the grid, I finally get reception and the first voicemail I hear stuns me.“You’re summoned to Baker’s Creek by the late William Tower Aldridge.”Twelve Years. It’s been twelve years since the last time I heard from the Aldridge family. That one voicemail changes everything—I need the money the late William offers.In exchange, I have to live eighteen months in Baker’s Creek.I’ve survived cancer, the jungle, and the plague. This should be easy compared to all that, right?Or so I think until...I see him.Confident, charismatic, bitter, sexy as hell, Doctor Hayes Benjamin Aldrige. My first love, my first kiss—my late husband’s brother.He hates me.He still hasn’t forgiven me for walking out on him, and I can’t blame him. It’s been over ten years, and I still have feelings for him.But I faked it once and I can fake it twice. I can survive eighteen months and that’ll be the last time I see the Aldridge brothers.Isn’t it?The Baker’s Creek Billionaire Brothers series is a romantic comedy saga packed with the perfect mix of angst, tears, and laughs. If you like strong heroines & alpha males, steamy romances and witty love stories, this series is for you!

Ice Breakers


Heather C. Myers - 2020
    He looks just like he did three years ago, tall, blond, and every inch a Viking.This isn't a social call.Eric has gotten himself into some hot water. A woman is going to publicly accuse Eric of rape and he needs Mika to prove his innocence. With pressure from her father - who happens to be the head coach of Eric's NHL team - and smarmy defense attorney, Ryan King, Mika has her work cut out for her. When feelings for Eric - feelings she buried a long time ago - start to resurface, her job of finding the truth no matter what gets increasingly difficult to do.Despite the fact that Mika has connections with the police department - including the arrogant Detective Alex Beech - the answers aren't black and white. Evidence reveals that Eric and the victim were together, but it turns into a heated he-said, she-said. It doesn't help that Eric has been keeping things from Mika, things he should have disclosed before she agreed to take his case.With the help of Beech, Mika must determine whether or not Eric is innocent before the court of public opinion finds him guilty and his entire life is ruined.

Drawn to You


Serena Grey - 2014
    However, he’s so sexy. And it’s just one night… What harm can there be in giving in to the desire to lose herself in his touch? She’s never going to see him again, even though he has given her the most intensely pleasurable night of her life.Landon prefers his women beautiful and sophisticated, with no desire for commitment, so when his brother ignores his protests and sends him a hooker on his birthday, he’s surprised at how willing he is to continue paying for her services. It should be easy, except she’s no hooker, and she has no intention of letting him into her life.However, as the billionaire owner of the Swanson Court hotels, Landon is used to getting what he wants, and Rachel is not going to be an exception.

Wicked Games


A.D. Justice - 2013
    When the trail led her into a dangerous web of lies, she was forced to choose between destroying the man she loved and giving up her entire life to enter WITSEC. After three years of living as someone else, everything changed when her true identity and location were discovered. Noah “Reaper” Steele created a successful business in Steele Security, but he never fully recovered after he lost Brianna. He shared his bed with other women but they never had his heart. Noah's life solely revolved around his work. Everything changed the night he caught an intruder in his house and learned it was actually his long-dead love, Brianna. With their reunion, they discovered the passion that fueled their relationship was still alive, burning hotter than ever. However, even Noah’s love couldn’t erase the sting of her betrayal, and he wrestled with allowing her back in his life. Brianna was the only woman he’d ever loved, but he wasn’t sure he could forgive her treachery. For both to survive, Noah and Brianna had to band together, uncover the truth, and reveal the real threat before it was too late. In his fight against the wicked games that surrounded him, would he end up losing her all over again?Recommended for readers 18+ due to language, violence and sexual content.