Book picks similar to
Vacant Hearts by D.J. Larkin


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Bait


M. Mabie - 2014
     She was the best kind of trouble. The kind that was so wrong, it felt right. I’ve tried and failed to stay away from him. I’ve done everything in my power to make her mine and keep her. He’s almost impossible to say no to. She never tells me yes. We’re always fighting. When we’re not fighting, we’re… well… making up. He makes me laugh so hard. I miss her laugh the most. I'm a liar. She knows the truth, but won’t admit it. Sometimes, I wish I'd never met him. I wish we could meet all over again. I'd do better. His girlfriend knows. The guy she’s with is a fool. I’ll never love anyone like I love him. She doesn’t love me enough to choose us. It was the wrong place. It was the wrong time. It should have been him. It will always be her. This book contains adult situations and is recommended for adult readers.

A Beautiful Lie


T.E. Sivec - 2013
    They shared in each other's joy during graduations, promotions, and engagements. They consoled one another through heartache and loss.When one of the friend's life is tragically cut short, it's up to the two left behind to pick up the pieces and find out the truth - no matter the cost. As they slowly start to uncover the nature of his deception, and the very powerful people behind it, they begin to question everyone and everything, even themselves.Everyone has secrets - some do it for love while others do it for power. Those secrets can change perceptions, alter reality and sometimes destroy lives.What do you do when you find out your whole life has been a lie?

Can't Hold Back


Molly McLain - 2014
    For Dan, a self-assured attorney, this means indulging in the all-consuming intimacy of marriage wherever and whenever his new wife will have him.But CPA Maddie doesn’t want to be in charge. In fact, there’s something she craves and there’s no one she trusts more than Dan to give it to her. But is it too much, too soon for their new marriage? The last thing she wants is to make her husband regret his vows before the honeymoon is even over.

Fatalism


L.K. Collins - 2013
    She protects her heart by controlling everything around her and living her life according to a strict set of rules. For years, she has lived behind a wall, not allowing anyone into her heart. That is, until she meets Vincent, a man she can't get out of her head no matter what she tells herself. On the outside, Vincent Mileski appears to be a confident, no nonsense attorney. A prodigy in the field of law, he has just won the biggest case of his career. Needing out of the spotlight, Vincent moves back to his home state of Colorado to get some time alone to heal from a previous betrayal. He hasn’t had a woman turn his head in years, that is, until he meets Alexa. After only knowing her name and the sweet taste of her kiss, she is torn from his arms. Will fate bring these two back together, or will they spend an eternity searching?

Secrets Exposed


Lisa Renee Jones - 2004
    Her enemy is her passion, her passion is her enemy.Lindsey Paxton was once the number one defense attorney in New York. She fought for those who were innocent, but charged. Her instincts were her lifeline, never failing her, as they guided her in her choices of who to defend. Or so she thought. Until she won a case she would forever wish to have lost. Her client, an accused rapist, kills and rapes a woman only a day after being set free. Destroyed by her role in the woman's death, Lindsey blames her father's controlling ways for what she has become, and runs from her career and life. Years later - the past becomes the present . . . Her father has cancer, and Lindsey is forced to leave her career with the Washington branch of the FBI. She finds herself facing the responsibility of running her father's law firm with the reluctant help of hotshot attorney Mark Reeves, a man who sparks her temper while also managing to tempt her body, her mind, maybe even her heart. With his help she finds herself fighting the emotional battles of the past, tempted to trust both him and her instincts. Now, faced with a case inherited from her father so similar to her career-ending one, she now must decide if her instincts will lead her down the path to saving an innocent man or setting free another killer. But while she fights her own battles, someone watches, wanting from the past what he had failed to get the first time . . . Lindsey.NOTE: Previously released as Hidden Instincts. Title change to indicate prelude to the new TALL, DARK, AND DEADLY trilogy coming in late 2011. I wrote this in 2004 and it was published by a library publisher and is in hardback in many libraries. You will meet the first Walker Brother-- Royce

Slow Burn


E.B. Walters - 2011
    She pretends to have moved on, is a successful artist and photographer, until the morning she opens her door to a stranger she assumes is a model and asks him to strip to his briefs . He wants to expose the truth.... Wealthy businessman Ron Noble has the body, the jet, the fast cars and the women, but he hides a deadly secret. His father started the fire that killed Ashley’s parents. Now someone is leaving him clues that could exonerate his father and they lead to Ashley’s door. Blindsided by the blazing attraction between them and a merciless killer silencing anyone who was there the night of the fire, Ron dare not tell Ashley the truth. Yet the answer he seeks may very well tear them apart. While a demented arsonist...SLOW BURN(s)...and plots his ultimate revenge.

Not Another Soldier


Samantha Holt - 2014
    I was going to divorce him and now he’s dead."After five years as a military wife, Sienna is moving on. She’s keen to leave behind the misery of her marriage to Rob but for some reason the past won’t let her go. It doesn’t help that her closest friend, Nick, is also a soldier. Unfortunately Sienna is struggling to deny her attraction to the sexy marine, even knowing there can be no future in it. When the injured soldier admits he wants her just as badly, and has always wanted her, the fight to control her feelings becomes harder. And now she’s learning things about her late husband that surprise even her. When the secrets of Rob’s life come to light, Sienna finds herself involved with some very nasty people and Nick is determined to protect her, no matter what. As the danger grows to both her heart and her life, Sienna needs to decide if it was the army that was the problem or her late husband. Is Nick worth the heartache of being a military spouse again? And will he be able to protect her from the ring of drug dealers slowly closing in?

Untamed


Victoria Green - 2014
    That is, until she spends one hot night in the arms of sexy, unbridled Dare Wilde.She's a girl trapped in a rigid world she desperately wants to escape, and he's an untamed artist with an attitude, hell-bent on freeing her—body, mind, and soul. But Reagan's life is not her own, and Dare is not welcome in it. She can't include him in her carefully-controlled, extremely public lifestyle...and yet she cannot give him up.Will a shared passion for art—and, increasingly, each other—be enough to keep them together? Or will it be the thing that ultimately tears them apart?

Under My Thumb


Abby Reynolds - 2014
    Leaving behind London is difficult for her, but not because she fears she’ll be homesick. She’s never coming back. And her brother has no idea.After she arrives, she performs one of her first shows. But little does she know, an admirer sits in the audience. She hypnotizes him and draws him in, making him immediately smitten. The obsession starts.Cash is determined to be alone with this girl. After extreme lengths to share a quiet whisper, they agree on a spring fling. After the horrible break up Prudence had with her boyfriend, she doesn't want to be hurt again. Cash’s reasons are still a mystery.They spend the summer together, but their romance takes different avenues that Cash didn't predict. He has a very strict set of rules with his women and he never breaks them...until Prudence.And Prudence didn't think she could trust someone as much as she trusts Cash. There isn't just a strong physical relationship between them. For the first time, she’s not afraid of another lie being fed to her, another sleepless night, or wondering where he’s been. It’s the only stability she’s ever had.After making her way into his heart, Cash struggles with his feelings. He’s been hurt before but can he risk being hurt again? His obsession for his musician grows stronger every day. The idea of her being with anyone but him is soul-crushing. And he doesn't understand what’s happening to him. Has he fallen in love? Is that possible?A gripping romance that will make your heart flutter, Under My Thumb is a classy tale of love coming from unlikely places.Warning: Cliffhanger

Three Days


J.S. Cooper - 2014
    What happens at the private club stays at the private club! When Meg Riley lost her job as an attorney, she never thought she'd end up working for a private club. But when she met the handsome and elusive, Greyson Twining, she knew she couldn't turn the job down; even though she didn't really know what the position entailed. Greyson Twining is the owner of the private club and he knows that it's a mistake to hire, Meg. However, there is something about the way she smiles at him that makes him forget his own reservations. And then there's the call from, Brandon Hastings telling him not to hire Meg. A call he should have listened to more closely. As, Meg and Greyson embark on day one of training, neither of them realize that there are secrets about to come out that will completely alter both of their lives.

Eraser


Megan Keith - 2013
    Mysterious. Dangerous. Brooding. Sexy. Once a week he frequents the bar where Mackenzie works. He orders the same drink, scotch on the rocks, and he sits back on the same lounge chair, quietly watching… waiting… He has money - that much is obvious. He wears his tailored suits well. He smells divine, of expensive cologne, and orders his scotch from the top shelf. He drinks alone, but he never leaves that way. With a snap of his fingers, a flick of his eyes, a glimmer of a smile, he gets the attention of the most attractive women in the bar. This time his focus is on Mackenzie. Instead of feeling nervous Mackenzie is enthralled, intrigued… and aroused.Please Note: This was originally written as a stand alone short story but after numerous requests for more, it has recently been turned into a series. This novella contains explicit sex scenes (including BDSM) and is for mature 18+ readers only.

Breathless


Eve Carter - 2013
    Except lately, it has been bad impressions. Frustrated and wounded, he surrounds himself with women, booze and drugs, until one day, he finds himself in a world of trouble. Kicked out by his brother, he relocates to California for the summer to help his uncle open Rookies, a local sports bar. In Santa Monica, Jesse meets the one woman who can lead him back on the right path, the beautiful 22 year old, Niki Milani. Only problem, she is not interested. Niki has her own demons to fight. A past that left her emotional abandoned by her own blood, her father. She keeps her heart guarded and finds it difficult to trust a man again. Especially not a bad boy player who is even more messed up than her. However, Jesse never backs down from a challenge. Blinded by a sizzling attraction, he is determined to prove to Niki that there is more to him than what appears on the surface. That he is the one who can heal her heart.The story of Jesse and Niki is a New Adult Romance that will leave you breathless.

Lost


Nadia Simonenko - 2013
    Now, in her final semester of college, she still struggles against paralyzing fear just trying to speak up in class, and the terror and helplessness linger on in her nightmares.Across campus, Owen sees his scars in the mirror every morning while he gets ready for class. They remind him of the broken home he left behind, the father he hates and fears, and the little sister he couldn't protect. Now, in his final semester of college, he's scared that he may have to return to the hell he called home after staying away for almost five years.When Owen becomes a teaching assistant for one of Maria's classes, they find themselves irresistibly drawn to each other. As the two learn each other's secrets and grow closer, they realize that although they may be lost, they're not alone anymore.This new adult contemporary romance is recommended for ages 17+ due to heavy subject matter.

The Businessman's Tie


Deena Ward - 2013
    He seduces her with a sizzling introduction to the thrill of submission. As the days pass, she can't forget him or the way he made her feel, so she seeks him out and soon finds herself at a BDSM club. There, she meets Michael Weston, a handsome, charming playboy who's keen to seize the reins left dangling by the absent Businessman.Nonnie's ready to take chances ... perhaps too ready.*Warning: adult material. Only purchase if it is legal for you to do so. This book contains explicit language and scenes of a sexual nature, including exhibitionism, S&M by secondary characters, and consensual domination and submission, which some readers may find objectionable.*Approximately 42,000 words, 150 print pages~~~~~~~~~~~~"The Power to Please," a four-part, BDSM erotic romance seriesNonnie Crawford journeys into the alluring but sometimes dangerous realm of BDSM. She yearns to submit herself to a powerful, dominant man and two Doms vie for that submission, the enigmatic Businessman and the charming Playboy.Knowing who to trust is always a challenge, and the odds of making a mistake are multiplied when gripped by new, intoxicating desires. Nonnie's choices prove the difference between perfect bliss and devastating ruin. Truth and trust. She'll need both as she struggles to move past her mistakes, earn indestructible love, and to claim the ultimate power to please.Warning: adult material. Contains explicit language and scenes of a sexual nature, including exhibitionism, multiple-partner scenes, S&M, bondage, consensual domination and submission, and other activities which some readers may find objectionable.Titles in the series should be read in order:1 - The Businessman's Tie2 - The Playboy's Proposition3 - His Name Is Sir4 - The Submissive's Last Word

Crossed


Lacey Silks - 2015
    Dating has proven tiresome and worthless, so she’s decided to put her efforts into her work at the salon she owns.In search for evidence against a crime family, Hunter Reeve stumbles upon a woman who may be the key to solving the case. Except she’s unaware of the lurking danger. His growing attraction to the spunky hairdresser complicates the relationship further.As enemies weasel into Grace’s life, Hunter is forced to make a choice between his work and Grace. And the wrong choice could have consequences neither one is ready for.Warning: Intended for mature audiences