Book picks similar to
Down to Business by J.C. Alexander


new-adult
college
romance
contemporary-romance

His Reverie


Monica Murphy - 2014
    The only girl I could ever want.The only girl I could ever love.She is light.I am darkness.She is innocent.I’ve done too much.She is good.I am bad.She is my every dream.I should be her every nightmare.We come from different worlds. She’s…perfect. And I’m…Not.Somehow she wants me anyway. So we’ll grasp at what we can. We’re going to make this summer count. She’s my secret. And I’m hers.The problem with secrets is they never last for long. And when others discover we’re together, they’ll do whatever it takes to keep us apart. All I know is: I won’t let them.Because Reverie Hale? She’s mine.

Out From Under


Selene Chardou - 2013
    Freedom from the control of her parents, freedom from the motorcycle gangs she has had to put up with her whole life and freedom from a relationship that will trap her into the very life she has no wish to ever live.The day before she’s supposed to leave for Stanford University to pursue her dreams, her world is shattered. After a tragedy that tears her family apart, Trey, her cousin, Talia, invites her to L.A. Her life is all the sudden Hollywood stars and sunshine, late nights and wild parties.And then she meets him.Linx Carter isn’t looking for a relationship. He survived a dysfunctional marriage with his childhood sweetheart, which produced two sons, an inability to trust women and a multitude of lies. He merely wants to recuperate from a rough, six month tour Winter’s Regret just completed with superstar band, Scarlet Fever, and enjoy a little peace and quiet.Until he sees her.Trista and Linx fight their attraction for one another like war on a battlefield.She has a closetful of secrets and he would rather be single and pathetic than date a teenage girl who seems older than her years. However the passion between them is too much to resist and they realize in order to heal one another, they must destroy the walls they have constructed so tightly around their hearts.

If Only


A.J. Pine - 2014
    But now she’s off to spend her junior year in Aberdeen, Scotland, the perfect place to stop waiting for Mr. Right and just enjoy Mr. Right Now.Sexy, sweet (and possible player) Griffin may be her perfect, no-strings-attached match. He’s fun, gorgeous, and makes her laugh. So why can’t she stop thinking about Noah who, minutes after being trapped together outside the train’s loo, kisses Jordan like she’s never been kissed before? Never mind his impossible blue eyes, his weathered, annotated copy of The Great Gatsby (total English-major porn)…oh, and his girlfriend.Jordan knows everything this year has an expiration date. Aberdeen is supposed to be about fun rather than waiting for life to happen. But E. M. Forster, Shakespeare, and mistletoe on Valentine’s Day make her reconsider what love is and how far she’s willing to go for the right guy.

Matchplay


Dakota Madison - 2013
    So when her father drops her off at college to start her freshman year, his words of advice to his bookish daughter are to start acting like a young person and finally have some fun. The Guy: College senior, Aaron Donovan, aka Mr. Hot-and-Knows-It, is President of The Clubhouse, a social club for the college's most wealthy and popular guys. Aaron can have any girl on campus except the one who challenges and excites him the most--Rainy Dey. The Tournament: Every year, the senior members of The Clubhouse engage in a golf-inspired tournament to see who can sleep with the most freshman girls. When Rainy finds out about The Tournament, she believes Aaron's only interest in her is to score points by taking her V-Card. The Challenge: Can Aaron convince Rainy that his feelings for her are true and that she won't be just another notch on his tournament scorecard? This new adult romance contains language and content indented for adult readers (18+).

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?

Misjudged


Sarah Elizabeth - 2013
    One night of pure intimacy, with a guy she knew nothing about, that couldn’t have prepared her for the next chapter in her life. But will it be for better, or for worse?Eighteen year old Alexis Harper is a smart, attractive and ambitious young woman with great friends, a doting father and a scholarship at one of Washington State’s most prestigious Performing Arts Colleges.When the mysterious stranger makes his arrival in her life, she’s captivated by him. She’s intrigued by his past and more so by what the future could possibly hold for them.Meet Brandon Taylor. A damaged and confused twenty year old who is grieving for the life he once had.He didn’t think for one moment that he could ever find happiness, and he didn’t want to. He was happy living within the high walls he’d barricaded around himself. It felt safe.When Alexis and Brandon’s worlds collide, nobody could have prepared them for the emotional rollercoaster they were about to board together.With love, loss, deceit and betrayal abound, it’s pretty hard to trust even those closest to you, as both Brandon and Alexis are soon to find out.***Suitable for 18 years + due to language and sexual content***

Finding Our Way


Ahren Sanders - 2015
    Schoolgirl Crush. Complete Adoration. All of these words describe the way I’ve felt about Bryce Randolph since the day he walked through my door. I was twelve and he was my brother’s best friend, but he never treated me as the pesky little sister. As the years went on, my feelings grew stronger. The day I turned eighteen was supposed to be the best day of my life, instead it became the worst. Heartbreak, Devastation, Anguish. With the right amount of time and distance, the ache lessens. My new life has no room for the endless tears I cried for months. Emotionally, Bryce betrayed me and caused a deep heartache I never thought I’d overcome. Now, I’m stronger, more focused, and extremely guarded. Moving on helped me find clarity and build a new path for my future. Just as things seem to fall into place, Bryce finds me. He’s a man on a mission and I’m the mission. His determination and persistence becomes hard to ignore. Is it possible we may just have the future I always dreamed about? Due to graphic language and sexual situations, this novella is recommended to readers 18+

Calling California


J.P. Grider - 2014
    She has a lot on her plate - her father is dying, she's working to help pay the rent, and she's two-years behind in college.Griffin Brooks is rich. He has not a care in the world - he's acing his engineering courses, his hobby is restoring his fifty-thousand dollar classic car, and he has a different girl on his arm every week.When Cali sees Griffin on her first day of class, she's immediately smitten and thinks she's found the perfect guy. When Griffin sees Cali at the bank, he immediately forgets the blonde he was with that morning. Then they meet, and their worlds collide.Cali doesn't belong in Griffin’s world, and he doesn't understand hers. But just when Griffin convinces Cali that their two different worlds can blend, a secret is revealed that tears them apart.Is their love strong enough to bring them back together, or will their worlds drift further apart?

With Every Heartbeat


Melody Grace - 2013
    The city of young lovers, dark secrets, and intoxicating new desire… I thought I knew what I wanted in life. I thought my destiny was set. Then I met him, and everything changed. Raphael is bold, passionate, and seductive. He sees something in me I never dreamed possible, and now he's determined to show me a world beyond rules -- a dance without limits. I want to trust him, but I'm scared. Because I know once I fall, there'll be no going back. An innocent dancer. A mysterious stranger. As Annalise is drawn deeper into the sensual delights of Rome, she'll question everything she believed about her future. But with opening night looming, can she find the strength to risk it all? And will she be forced to choose between her one true love, ballet, and the new passion in her heart?** This book contains adult content. 17+ **

What Endures


Katie Lee - 2013
    But their hopes for a ‘happily-ever-after’ are dashed by tragedy.A horrific car accident wipes out most of Jason's memories. Unable to recall anything from the last fifteen years of his life, Jason is suddenly adrift, his once charmed life now in ruins.Megan finds herself in the untenable position of having to deal with the fact that the man she’s helping to rebuild his life may look, and even act, like her beloved fiancé, but in reality, isn’t any longer.Trying to protect herself, as well as Jason, Megan fights the attraction between them. . .to no avail. As their potent connection inevitably draws them closer, Megan wonders,With the memories of their relationship gone, can love endure?

Star Struck


Amber Garza - 2013
    He makes me want to take a risk. I just hope he decides to take a risk on me too.

Lily of the Valley


Sarah Daltry - 2013
    If dirty talk, bedroom toys, and threesomes offend you... this is not your book. There are also no billionaires, strippers, or virgins. This is just the story of typical college kids trying to connect to each other. "No one tells you about pain. They tell you that it hurts, that sometimes it's consuming. What they don't tell you is that it's not the pain that can kill you. It's the uncomfortable numbness that follows, the weakness in your body when you realize your lungs may stop taking in air and you just can't exert enough energy to care. It's the way taste and color and smell fade from the world and all you're left with is a sepia print of misery. That's when the shift starts - the movement from passive to active. I fall asleep, hoping that the morning will bring back the pain. At least the pain is a thing."Plagued by a dark past, Jack sees college as a way out. Desperate to escape the area where he grew up, the people who know his secrets, and his own family, he deals with his problems through alcohol and meaningless sex. When he first sees Lily, she's the epitome of everything he hates. Yet something about her makes Jack rethink everything he knows and assumes about other people. Now, with the help of his best friend and lover, Jack has to decide if he wants to pursue something that he knows will only end badly.Can Lily be one of the few people who can see Jack for who he really is - or will his darkness be too much for her to handle?

Love and Relativity


Rachael Wade - 2012
    Stranded on Sanibel Island, Florida, she works at a nursing home by day and spends her nights dodging the island's infamous bad boy, Jackson Taylor, at her favorite karaoke bar. Trying to heal from the loss of her sister and a failed relationship she rerouted her life for, she's ready to graduate and finally leave Florida behind.When a run-in with Jackson and his rowdy crew goes sour at the bar one night, sparks fly and irreversible damage is done. It’s no secret that Jackson loves to get underneath her skin, but this time he's gone too far. Now all he wants is to earn her forgiveness before she's gone for good, but their ideas of closure—and the future—are enough to keep them worlds apart.This is a stand-alone title but coordinates with The Preservation Series:Preservation (Book One, Available Now)Reservation (Book Two, Coming March 6, 2013)Declaration (Book Three,TBA)

Never Let Go


Scarlett Edwards - 2013
    I go and screw mine up by meeting the most gorgeous guy I've seen in five years while talking to my cat. But Andrew Crowner is far from judgmental. By the end of our interaction, he has me smitten by his easy manner and kind smile. And from the way his eyes linger on me before he leaves, I start to think that maybe I’ve caught his attention, too. I let myself believe that luck may finally be on my side. That is, until I stumble on my roommate, and her overnight guest: Spencer Ashford. Lean, tattooed, and sexy as sin, Spencer is exactly the type I need to avoid. I would have no trouble with that... were it not for his swift and inexplicable interest in me. Suddenly, I go from a girl with next-to-no experience with boys to one caught in the crosshairs of two completely different men. Andrew's interest is wholesome and sweet. Spencer's is edgy and raw. My choice should be easy. But there are always complications, and sometimes, matters of the heart take the least expected turns.

Addicted to Him


Lauren Dodd - 2013
    I had a huge secret and I was trying to run away from it as fast as I could. I managed to get myself shipped a thousand miles away for the summer to my estranged father and perky new stepmother’s house. Nobody knew me there and that’s the way I liked it. I didn’t have to be the screwed-up girl with the terrible secret anymore; I could be anybody I wanted to be.Being sequestered at Dad’s house turned out to be amazing. I started wondering if somehow I could convince him to keep me forever and then I might have a shot at a normal life for a change. Enter hot, mysterious, moody Seth and my desire to become a permanent resident of Colorado just quadrupled.I had never met anyone like Seth. I trusted him more than I had ever trusted anyone. I craved his lips, his body, and his touch. It didn’t take long for me to become totally addicted to him. The way he could get my body to respond was incredible. Before long I was spilling every dark secret I had to him never dreaming that he would someday use that knowledge against me.I should have known my fairy tale wouldn’t last forever. Secrets that I prayed would never see the light of day were soon exposed, changing my life forever. I couldn’t run anymore. I had to decide if I wanted to stay the same girl who never fights for herself, or try to find the strength inside myself to live the life I knew I had always deserved.This is a complete novel at 75,000 words. Content warning- This novel contains adult situations and may not be appropriate for readers under eighteen.