Book picks similar to
The Last Encore by Julia Butler


romance
contemporary-romance
erotica
fiction

All the Lies We Tell


Megan Hart - 2017
    They’d grown up on a remote stretch of Quarry Street, where there were two houses, two sets of siblings, and eventually, a tangled mess of betrayal, longing, and loss. Tragedy catapulted Allie and Ilya together, but divorce—even as neighbors—has been relatively uncomplicated.Then Ilya’s brother, Nikolai, comes home for their grandmother’s last days. He’s the guy who teased and fought with Allie, infuriated her, then fled town without a good-bye. Now Niko makes her feel something else entirely—a rush of connection and pure desire that she’s been trying to quench since one secret kiss years ago. Niko’s not sticking around. She’s not going to leave. And after all that’s happened between their families, this can’t be anything more than brief pleasure and a bad idea.But the lies we tell ourselves can’t compete with the truths our hearts refuse to let go…

Enemies and Playmates


Darcia Helle - 2009
    Lauren Covington's family maintains a grand facade that belies the life they live behind closed doors. Alex Covington, Lauren's father, keeps a tight rein on his family through dominance, abuse, and obsessive control. Consequently, Lauren doesn't believe she could ever trust a man, much less fall in love with one. When Lauren meets Jesse Ryder, her carefully constructed protective wall shatters. She falls hopelessly and completely in love. It's only fitting that Jesse is a private detective who had once worked for her father, had defied him, and was now the subject of Alex Covington's wrath. Amidst devastating loss, betrayal, and her father's destructive pursuit of Jesse, Lauren finds the trust and love she had always longed for.

Sing Your Heart Out


Crystal Kaswell - 2015
    She aces her classes, excels at her part time job, and carefully avoids trouble--no drinks, no drugs, and especially, no boyfriends.Rock star Miles Webb doesn't do "boyfriend." He skips over intimacy and love in favor of easy distraction--a beautiful woman under him, screaming his name. Meg is drawn to the pain in his gorgeous, tortured voice. But the man she hears on the radio is nothing like the player she meets at a mutual friend's house party. When she walks in on one of his trysts, she's embarrassed enough to die. His merciless teasing leaves her blushed and frustrated, but she's intrigued by his wit, his confidence, his casual offer to give her a night she'll never forget.Neither of them wants a relationship, so they strike up an arrangement: They'll be friends with benefits, nothing more, nothing less. There are only three rules: no secrets, no feelings, no falling in love.Only neither one of them can quite abide by the terms.***Sing Your Heart Out is a full-length, standalone new adult romance in the Sinful Serenade Series.***

Promises, Promises


Josie Bordeaux - 2013
    Keeping her secrets guarded closely, she finds solace with a man who is caring, warm, and loving, the complete opposite of what she left behind. Zander can’t trust love. He has a string of bad relationships as proof, and it leaves him wondering if Isabella is just one more temptress who will break his heart. A troubled past threatens the budding relationship between Isabella and Zander. She can’t shake the eerie feeling of her ex lurking in the shadows ready to end her newly found happiness. Unfortunately, she’s right.e that she’s always searched for? Or will he ruin the love that is finally just in her grasp?

Love, Lies, and Deception


L.P. Dover - 2013
    What made it even better – or so she thought – was when her path crossed with the alluring Alec Holden. Unable to stay away from him, Marissa experiences a love like no other, and falls into his world of passion and intrigue. However, things begin to shift when this path takes a deadly turn.Her trust is put to the test when hidden dangers unfold before her, revealing secrets that have been buried for years. Secrets that were meant to stay hidden. Murder, lies, and betrayal … will Marissa figure it all out in time and escape with her life intact, or will she be too late and fall into the trap of deception?

Four Week Fiancé


Helen Cooper - 2015
    What if the offers were so spicy, so naughty, so scandalous that you wouldn’t even want to tell your best friend? If you were me, you would say yes. There are three things you should know. His name is TJ Walker. He’s 28, hot as can be and he’s my brother’s best friend. TJ asked me to be his fiance for four weeks. I’m hoping to make the engagement real. I know. I can’t believe it either. What am I thinking? There are so many things that could go wrong by accepting to be TJ’s four week fiance? But, I can’t stop thinking that there are also so many things that could go right.

Tales From The Crib


Jennifer Coburn - 2006
    She and her husband Jack have been trying to get pregnant for years throughout their rocky marriage. But before she can tell him the big news, Jack has something he needs to announce – he wants a divorce!Rather than split up, Lucy and Jack decide to live together as friends. This way, they can share expenses and parenting responsibilities. Co-parenting is a fine deal for Jack who is back in the dating scene by Lucy’s third trimester of pregnancy, but is a frustrating one for Lucy who has unfulfilled sexual fantasies about every man from restaurant delivery boys to puppeteers. Meanwhile, Lucy’s mother is taking over her life. The grand dame of Planet Earth, Anjoli frequently visits her daughter to share her own brand of maternal wisdom. As Anjoli leaves her Drama Queen bookstore to “help” Lucy with baby Adam, the new grandmother has an affair with baby’s pediatrician, hosts two weddings (including cousin Kimmy’s wedding to herself), and constantly frets about which kind of pie to serve guests. With a cast of family and friends from Lucy’s Jewish aunts to Junior League neighbor, Candace, Tales From the Crib is the story of how one baby can bring people together – so they can drive each other nuts!

What's Left of Me


Amanda Maxlyn - 2013
    He is persistent, and he knows what he wants. Me.He doesn’t treat me like I’m fragile.But he doesn’t know, and I’m not ready to tell him.What if it changes everything?Tragedy found me when I was seventeen.Love found me when I was twenty-one.My name is Aundrea McCall, and this is my journey.

Sweet Seduction Sacrifice


Nicola Claire - 2013
    I promise you that."With a loser ex-boyfriend threatening her dream business, Sweet Seduction, Genevieve Cain is forced to go to a lawyer to finalise things once and for all. Gen knows she's only good for one dream in her lifetime, so when she meets senior partner, Dominic Anscombe, in the foyer of the law firm's building, she dismisses any delusional ideas her mind creates involving his very fine body. But Dominic is intrigued by Gen's run-away mouth and if there's one thing to say about Dominic Anscombe, he knows what he wants and when he finds it, he sets out to take it, claim it and possess it - completely.Kidnappings, shootings, dream-shattering moments, hot investigators and just as hot lawyers, everything comes to a head when Genevieve sacrifices something so precious for something even more so. And it wasn't the sacrifice she thought she'd make. The sweetest of sacrifices, the most worthy offering. But can she believe Dominic has fallen as hard for her as she has for him in such a short time? And can she allow herself a second dream in her life, by letting him in?Love at first sight has never been so dangerous and so very delicious at the same time.

She Belongs to Me


Carmen DeSousa - 2011
     Charlotte police officer Jordan Monroe is used to being in control. Ever since his father died, he has provided for his mother and sisters and even hired his two brothers-in-law to help run his successful construction company. On a chance business trip, however, he meets the one person who throws his life into a whirlwind--Jaynee.Jaynee has lived a tragic life and has sworn off all men. That is until a rugged southern gentleman lands in her seating area, refusing to take no for an answer. From the moment they meet, Jordan sweeps her off her feet, assuring her that happiness exists. But can she really escape her past?Five years later, Jordan finds Jaynee on their back porch with a gunshot wound to the head. While Jaynee lies in a coma, Jordan has to go back to their beginning and figure out what went wrong. Did he push his wife to the edge, or has her past come back to haunt them? ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ "You'll be swept off your feet along with Jaynee as she discovers the man of her dreams. You'll be drawn into the drama. And you'll flip the pages fast as Jordan must desperately figure out the truth in time. I was and did!" -- New York Times bestselling author Jaime Rush⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ "SHE BELONGS TO ME is definitely a good suspenseful read. Ms. DeSousa is a talented author and I had no problem in connecting with the characters. The story displayed a realistic relationship between Jordan and Jaynee." -- The Romance Reviews

Save


Ella Col - 2013
    Falling in love is the last thing on her mind, now that Bree has the chance to start over. That is…until she meets her neighbor, Josh. Josh oozes sexual charm. He’s confident, talented, and he adores her. Bree finds everything about Josh hard to resist right down to his decorated body of tattoos, piercings and shag haircut. Don’t forget about those damn green eyes. Josh has endured his own personal hell and meeting Bree has triggered emotions he thought were buried deep. Can they SAVE each other from their chilling pasts and begin the fairytale both so desperately want?

Weddings Can Be Murder


Christie Craig - 2008
    Will seeing her wedding planner murdered and getting herself locked in the dark with a sexy PI do the trick?Hired by Houston's elite wedding planner to investigate some missing brides, the last thing bad-boy Carl Hades wants is to be shackled with another man's soon-to-be wife. Especially when the gorgeous redhead stirred emotions he'd avoided for years. Now, avoiding her sounds like a genius plan, especially when her future wedding goes the same the way as her engagement ring—down the toilet—making Katie available. . . and a hell of a lot more tempting. But when the missing brides come up dead, Carl suspects that Katie might be next, which makes avoiding her impossible and improbably, especially when being with her is a whole lot of fun.

The Girl with the Cat Tattoo


Theresa Weir - 2012
    A little bit of mystery, a whole lot of whimsy. When a matchmaking cat takes it upon himself to find his young mistress a new mate, he accidentally stirs up memories better left forgotten.Melody’s husband was murdered by what seemed a random act of violence. Two years later, the killer hasn’t been caught, and Melody is coping in unhealthy ways. During the day she’s a mild-mannered children’s librarian, but at night she’s a party girl, hanging out in bars, drinking with new friends, and often bringing home strange men. Although acquaintances have tried to keep in touch, Melody has cut herself off from most of the people in her old life. Max, her eccentric cat, doesn’t approve of her new friends, he’s tired of the parade of losers, and he finally takes it upon himself to find Melody a new man.

The Billionaire's Sub


M.S. Parker - 2015
    It'd worked for my older sister. I just hadn't realized how much until she shared her darkest secret with me. When twenty-one year-old Hanna Breckenridge moves across the country to take a job as her sister's business manager, she has no idea the culture shock she's in for. When billionaire Cross Phillips approaches her, she's flattered, only to find out that he'd been interested for reasons far different than anything Hanna would've imagined. When things take a dangerous turn, she's forced to decide just how much she can trust this gorgeous man. Don't miss the steamy standalone The Billionaire's Sub by USA Today’s best-selling author, MS Parker.

Close to Home


Suzanne Ferrell - 2012
    I’m Lorna Doone. Yep, spelled just like the cookie and I own the Peaches ‘N Cream Café here in Weston. You might think nothing much happens in a small mid-western town, but as my friend Harriett says, things aren’t always what they appear. Take our girl Emma for example…”Emma Lewis has a lot on her plate. The single mother of two precocious twin boys and an aging mother who is having trouble getting through each day, the last thing Emma needs is a man in her life, especially a doctor. So when the town’s doctor goes on vacation and his handsome nephew takes over, Emma is shocked to not only find him standing in her bedroom, but accusing her of being a neglectful parent.Clint Preston came to Westen for the year to fill in as the town doc while his uncle took a long needed vacation. Clint also needed a sense of peace and calm to try to find his passion for medicine burned out by long shifts in an urban hospital’s ER. Angered to find two boys in his clinic with broken wrists and no accompanying parent, he is determined to confront their mother. The feisty redhead he meets quickly dispels his belief that she’s a neglectful mother, but he can see her situation is more critical than she wishes to face and finds himself volunteering to help care for her sons and the remodeling of her home.As Emma and Clint forge a relationship among the slightly off-beat characters that inhabit Weston a menace from Emma’s past threatens her and her sons. Clint and Emma join forces to prevent the loss of either boy and the love they’ve discovered in each other’s’ arms.