Not What I Expected by Jewel E. Ann
After four kids and an unfortunate but fateful end to her twenty-two-year marriage, Elsie Smith meets the new guy in town.
Kael Hendricks is … a little younger, a lot sexy, and too confident for his own good. He also doesn’t believe in marriage and all that goes with it.
And …
He’s just opened a new business that threatens the livelihood of Elsie’s family’s store—just in time for the holidays.
The problem?
There’s an undeniable attraction that leads to out of control situations, a loss of inhibitions, and a lot of small town gossip.
As Elsie tries to redefine herself and convince her family she isn’t having a midlife crisis, she’s forced to answer the biggest question of all …
Can she love an enemy who will never surrender?
Layla by Colleen Hoover
From #1 New York Times bestselling author Colleen Hoover comes a novel that explores life after tragedy and the enduring spirit of love.
When Leeds meets Layla, he’s convinced he’ll spend the rest of his life with her—until an unexpected attack leaves Layla fighting for her life. After weeks in the hospital, Layla recovers physically, but the emotional and mental scarring has altered the woman Leeds fell in love with. In order to put their relationship back on track, Leeds whisks Layla away to the bed-and-breakfast where they first met. Once they arrive, Layla’s behavior takes a bizarre turn. And that’s just one of many inexplicable occurrences.
Feeling distant from Layla, Leeds soon finds solace in Willow—another guest of the B&B with whom he forms a connection through their shared concerns. As his curiosity for Willow grows, his decision to help her find answers puts him in direct conflict with Layla’s well-being. Leeds soon realizes he has to make a choice because he can’t help both of them. But if he makes the wrong choice, it could be detrimental for all of them.
You Had Me at Hockey by Kelly Jamieson
Josh
I am a warrior. That’s been my motto since I recovered from a near-death accident when I was younger. Now I enjoy my nice, settled life in Dallas playing pro hockey—a boring life is better than being dead. I’m not a party guy or an adventurer; I like my routine and peace and quiet. So being traded to New York is the worst possible change that could happen. And meeting unfiltered and fascinating Sara Carrington throws my life into even more chaos.
Sara
I’ve been considered weird my whole life, which is why I’m still a virgin, but I’ve turned it into a career with my YouTube videos. Who knew people would love watching me talk about my zits, taste-test meatless burgers, and try to learn TikTok dances! Now I’m launching a podcast. Getting hockey star Josh Heller as a guest will help gain listeners for sure. I expect a bearded jock with no teeth and nothing to say, but I get a hot as H-E-double-hockey-sticks grouch with a surprisingly dirty mind. My mission to make him laugh is successful, but I want to know why he’s so uptight underneath that panty-dropping smile. Maybe I can teach Josh to have some fun . . . and maybe he can teach me a thing or two along the way. . . .
Steele by Sawyer Bennett
A second chance may be just what James Steele needs…
I might be one of the older players on the Arizona Vengeance, but I like to think that also makes me one of the wisest. Or at least I used to.
Turns out, I’ve been a bit selfish. I’ve been married to hockey and my team for years, which hasn’t left much time for my actual wife, Ella. Now I’m juggling a separation I never wanted, the pressure of being a single dad to our teenage daughter, and the career I sacrificed it all for.
While my game on the ice might be on fire, the game in my personal life is clearly lacking, as evidenced by the fact I just saw my wife on a date with another man. If I have any hope of saving the family I love, I need to re-prioritize, and fast. So it’s time for me to get back to fundamentals, just like I did when I learned how to play hockey. I’ve never backed down from a challenge, and romancing my wife is a challenge I am very much looking forward to.
Time to put on my game face, because I’m in it to win it.
The Pass by Rebecca Jenshak
I’ve been in love with her for two years.
The first time around, I screwed things up. I hesitated and the moment was gone.
I passed when I shouldn’t have.
Not a total loss. I gained a best friend instead of whatever we might have been.
Sydney is hands down the best thing that’s ever happened to me, and I’ll do anything to keep her in my life. Even bury my feelings deep inside.
But one hot summer together at the lake filled with lots of teeny-tiny bikinis and I’m ready to risk it all for a second chance.
It’s time to take my shot.
Stay For Me by Corinne Michaels
From New York Times Bestselling author Corinne Michaels comes the final poignant standalone love story in the Arrowood Brothers Series.
Hollywood taught me everything I know about relationships—except how to be in one. As an actor, I became an expert at faking it. Faking that I wasn’t affected by my childhood. Faking that I was okay. Faking that I knew how to save the day, the girl, the whole damn world.
But I’ve always known the truth—I’m no one’s hero.
Until I’m forced to move back to Sugarloaf for six months, and Brenna Allen offers me a chance to prove otherwise. She’s everything I never knew I wanted, but can’t have. Her broken heart, perfect face, and adorable children turn my world upside down. Instead of preparing for my next leading role, I’m directing a middle school play for this small-town single mother.
All to make her smile.
The more time I spend here, the more I want to stay. Build a life in this town that I swore I’d leave—for her.
But when the world comes crashing down around us, I’m forced to decide if staying for her is the right choice or if leaving is better for the woman I love.
Courting Trouble by Kerrigan Byrne
Doctor Titus Conleith emerged from his time as a battlefield surgeon with a mysterious fortune, a lethal secret, and a demon on his back. Ruthlessly intelligent, he was able to lift himself from his beginnings as coal-stained bastard through merciless discipline and inexhaustible skill. Alone by choice, he swore never to open his heart to another. Not after Honoria Goode. The heiress who shattered his hopes and then tread upon the shards of his heart with her bejeweled slippers. The beauty with whom he shared his first taste of passion, before she gave her hand to another.
The woman whose life he just saved from bleeding out on his table…
Honoria’s life as a Viscountess has been nothing but a misery she’d brought upon herself with her own cowardice. Trapped for years in a loveless marriage to a cruel rake, she has been widowed by the consequences of his villainy. Now, she must face the man with the blazing golden eyes of the boy she once worshiped, and the dark past they both share.
As their passion reignites with the same fervor of their youth, Honoria can’t help but begin to wonder…
Will he allow her the second chance she doesn’t deserve?
In for a Penny by Melissa Foster (Live 12.9)
Friendships and family abound during a week of love, laughter, and happily ever afters. Catch up with your favorite characters and enjoy Bones and Sarah’s wedding while falling in love with the newest Whiskey-world couple, Penny Wilson and Scott Beckley in this Whiskey series novella.
When everything you want is right in front of you, but it’s still out of reach…
Penny Wilson has a successful business, more friends than a girl could ask for, and a boyfriend she’s madly and passionately in love with. Scott Beckley is honest, loyal, hands down the best lover on the planet, and absolutely gaga over his nieces and nephews. Scott’s a keeper…as long as Penny doesn’t ever want to hear those three magical words that would take their relationship to the next level. Scott escaped abusive parents at seventeen and was forced to find his way alone in the world. Even though it’s been more than a decade and he’s reunited with his estranged sisters and built a good life in Peaceful Harbor, Maryland, he’s still tortured by his past. Penny knows he loves her with everything he has, but for a girl who wants a family and a guy who is afraid of having one, love might not be enough.
Floored by Karla Sorensen (Live 12.9)
If you’ve ever had a steamy one-night stand with a British football player and then find yourself pregnant with his baby, you know how Lia Ward feels.
To be fair, Lia didn’t know who Jude McAllister was when they met.
Studying abroad for her master’s program, all she knows is that she’s a little lonely and he’s very charming, even as they have an epically sexy argument about which type of football is superior.
In Jude’s mind, shagging the feisty American girl is exactly what he needs. He’s been fighting the clock of his long-standing football career and the younger players primed to take his position. Proving that he can feel like his old self again—something he’s been trying to do with everyone in his life—should be easier after blowing off steam with Lia.
But oh baby, when a plus sign pops up on Lia’s pregnancy test, that ‘one night’ becomes a whole lot more.
Now Lia and Jude have to navigate their impossible-to-ignore chemistry, and prepare for the parenting game, something neither of them know how to play.
The Romantic Pact by Meghan Quinn (Live 12.10)
I haven’t seen her in three years.
I haven’t talked to her since the kiss.
So why am I on a plane, flying across the world to spend a week with her in Germany?
One word: Pops.
My life’s a mess.
My possible football career is hanging on by a thread.
I’m driving the roads of Germany in honor of Pops with the one girl I can never have.
And I’m sharing a bed with her, the girl I’ve measured everyone else up to, while desperately trying to not to touch her.
We made a pact growing up, never to get romantic with each other – never fall in love.
And I’m about to break that pact. For good.
