Forsaking All Others
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Contractually trapped in a loveless, dead-end marriage, Seraphina is counting down the days until her son turns eighteen and she can divorce her husband.
When a gorgeous, successful, much younger professional athlete presses her to work for him as his personal chef, she is determined to keep things professional despite the slow burn of an intense mutual attraction.
When Seraphina's father-in-law, a powerful businessman, changes the terms of her contract, she has a choice to make: cooperate, or run. Either way, she'll lose her chance with Mateo, but to defy the business magnate is to lose her son.
The Battle Back Home
I've spent most of my adult life overseas, on one mission or another, and now that my enlistment is up I'm returning to nothing: no wife, no kids, no dog, no purpose. Just a small storage unit filled with whatever my ex decided I could have when she left me.
While I try to figure out my next steps, I decide to drive cross-country to visit my brothers and sister on the West Coast. We've all gotten closer with age and since I'm the only one who doesn't live there, I'm going to them. I haven't seen them for longer than I care to admit, since I'm just returning from a tour.
There's not supposed to be anything life-changing about the trip, but an innocent gesture in a diner turns into something bigger. Something with a woman I just can't seem to get out of my head, even though she makes it clear she wants nothing to do with me.
When I get back home, I throw myself into learning how to be a civilian. It's new to me, something I have to learn in my thirties when I should have learned it in my teens. But since I joined the Army as a kid, I've never known anything but brief snatches of civilian life. The times I returned home to visit my family or, eventually my wife, were like a vacation from my real life overseas.
A job lands in my lap, thanks to an old Army buddy who extends an offer of employment with his successful, expanding security company. The idea of being able to choose my contracts and potentially spend long stretches of time at home is intriguing, and it means it's time to develop some hobbies.
When I start volunteering with a pit bull rescue, I expect nothing more complicated than to spend time with dogs who'll soak up all the attention and care I can give. Instead, I discover someone else who does everything in her power to keep me at an arm's length: the woman I met in California, the director of the rescue. The irony is not lost on me, that the woman I met by chance on the other side of the continent lives in my new hometown.
I'm not big on fate. I'm a practical, analytical guy. But something about Harlowe keeps drawing me in, pulling me closer when it's clear I should be running in the other direction. She's closed off, guarded and cautious, and it makes her perfect for the dogs who face life in much the same way.
Harlowe is caring for an ailing mother on her own, since her sisters dipped out. She's carrying the weight of the world on her shoulders and she refuses to allow anyone else to help her shoulder the burden. There's no convincing her, either. She's gotten used to doing things her own way and keeping everyone at an arm's length.
I've seen some tough things, but for some reason I've made this woman my mission: the toughest one of my life. The problem is that I'm not sure she wants to be rescued; certainly not by me.
All the Days After
I don't know how to pick up the pieces after losing what I've known my whole life. Everything was in place: the girl, the house, the job...I almost had the family. And then, in the space of a heartbeat, I lost what kept me anchored for nearly twenty years.
My brothers and sister drop everything and rush to my side, because that's what our family does. We've had difficult childhoods and with age we've become inseparable. They try to understand that I'm struggling to regain myself, but I don't actually know who I am anymore, which makes the process ugly.
My oldest brother, Thomas, steps in to keep me on the straight and narrow, but it's not actually him who saves my life. It's the apparition that comes to me in dreams, a beautiful redhead who calls me Bear.
When I run into the woman herself, I can't stay away from her, and that fills me with guilt. It's too soon, and I'm still working my way through the grieving process. The last thing I need is to drag someone else into my problems, when it's clear she has plenty of her own.
Eve is a single mom, working herself into the ground to make up for her ex's many shortcomings. With an almost-teenage son, she's struggling to be mom and dad to the kid who clearly needs a decent guy around to teach him how to be a man. It's something his own father isn't doing, which becomes clear as time goes on and Eve allows me little by little into her life.
She accompanies me to California, to be with my brother who's experienced a terrible loss. It's then that she stops fighting me, finally pulling me closer instead of pushing me away and I'm blown away by the person she lets me see: caring, kind, loving and gentle. I want more of that--more of her.
When Eve thinks I've betrayed her, she cuts me out of her life, leaving a bigger hole than I could ever have imagined. Not only do I lose her, I also lose the boy who's come to mean something to me. Somehow I've come to think of them as my family and now I've lost what gave me hope during the darkest period of my life.
I can't fix this, because Eve won't let me, and I worry this loss might be worse than the last. How can I get her to understand; to see that I'm what she needs?
The Things I Can't Say
In business and in cage fighting, I've learned to become a skilled opponent through careful study, extensive research and tireless practice. Thanks to my dedication, I've eliminated my competitors one at a time and now, after years of planning and research, I'm ready to topple the empire of my biggest competitor, both personally and professionally.
Weak spots? I have none. No pets, no kids, no girlfriends, and very little personal life.
Except...for Olivia. I haven't seen her for ten years, since the night she rejected me and disappeared from my life, leaving a hole I've been trying to fill since.
When my CEO introduces me to our breathtaking new hire, I just know everything is going to fall apart; all the things I've worked so hard to put back together since she left.
Getting close to her is a dangerous thing, because it gives me hope, and that's something I've never been able to afford in my life. But this time, I'm going to fight for it. I didn't the last time, and I'm getting the impression she's never forgiven me.
I have to watch as the person I hate most tries to win her. Max has been trying to seduce Olivia since our college days, and the fact he started a wildly successful social media venture and has more money than God means he thinks it's inevitable he'll find his way into her bed.
I'm the one who has to work with her every day, and I can tell that I'm getting under her skin. She's never been able to resist me, and her memories of our youthful relationship are on my side--I hope. She knows how good we are together; I just need the chance to convince her that things can be different this time. Better.
The problem with the years standing between us is that mistakes and bad decisions have been made. At first I'm convinced that's entirely my fault, but when I discover Olivia's been keeping a terrible secret from me, it changes everything I thought I wanted.
They say you can't rewrite history, but here I am trying.
This time, the stakes are infinitely higher.
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When I Had Nothing
When my stepmother talks me into doing a favor for her new neighbor, it's clear she's up to something. She's been watching over me for years, quiet and protective, trying to save me from myself each time my life falls apart.
The neighbor in question is trouble, I know it the instant I lay eyes on her: she's beautiful, friendly, and unwittingly seductive. A woman like her could get a man into deep trouble, especially someone looking for a kind word or a hot meal, and Natalie willingly provides both. For someone who's been starved for human affection and home cooked meals for years, this makes the little dynamo my kryptonite. I want to hate her for it, and I put on a pretty convincing show.
There is no use in fighting Natalie: gorgeous, persistent, funny, and kind when I don't deserve it. Patient to a fault, she is quick to forgive my shortcomings. She's sunlight and happiness. Feisty and wonderful. She's always looking for the silver lining, and it takes a long time to realize there's more to her than meets the eye: she's holding some secrets of her own and holding them close.
I've had enough trouble in my life already, losing nearly everything I held dear, and many days I wonder what it is that keeps me going. I don't need Natalie complicating things, asking nosy questions, trying to pick apart all the secrets I can't begin to share.
I'm good at pushing people away with harsh words and because I don't know how to apologize, I find myself doing things for her instead. It allows me to be near the woman who's designated us friends, though I'm certain there's more there.
It scares me how much I want more.
When a project spirals out of control and I have to call in help, I begin to understand just what I stand to lose when I see her through the eyes of someone more desirable than me. Yet I continue to dig myself deeper...
On the other side of the country I have a life and a career, something I willingly left behind to save the things most important to me. But I'm formulating my comeback plan, building another arm for my empire, the one my ex-business partner is trying to run into the ground while I hide away in the middle of nowhere, Alabama.
As desperately as I want to trust Natalie, will she see me through different eyes once she knows who I really am?
Unexpected
If Tyler doesn't shut up about the stunning woman who made a wrong turn and found herself at the NSA guard booth this morning, I just might tie him up and leave him on I-95.
Since my wife walked out, Tyler's been playing matchmaker and somehow he's gotten it in his head that the tiny thing in the huge truck is the one for me. He's clearly engineering something, because when she joins our group for Boys' Night Out again and again, I can't keep enough distance between myself and the woman who's enchanting. Wonderful. The last words I'll ever say out loud.
Daphne is better than me when it comes to...well, everything. She's made a name for herself professionally, in addition to marrying a Congressman. She's got a better aim, drives a bigger truck, is weirdly knowledgeable about football, and the guys worship her.
I don't have time for the trouble she'll bring to my life: expectations, manipulation, guilt trips...vulnerability. I'm not here for any of it. But Daphne is relentless, insidious, and I crave what the woman has to offer as I struggle to provide proper care for my ailing father. The last thing I want is her help.
I'm known for being pig-headed and stubborn and even thought Daphne sees me through a crisis, I'm too caught up in my own issues to help her through the one I've caused. For the first time, something really good has happened to me and I've never worked so hard to lose it.
Unforgiven
My days in the Army are over and now, with child support payments and a mortgage, I'm dumping all my spare time, money and effort into getting my security company off the ground. It gives me focus and continuity in a life that's otherwise unfulfilling and frankly pretty empty.
My friend Giulia has been pushing me broaden my horizons, and in typical Giulia fashion that means she's pushing me to start dating. She suggests dinner with her cousin, a woman I can confirm from photos is not hard on the eyes, and though it makes me a hypocrite, it concerns me that her cousin Mia is going through her second divorce.
The last thing I need to do is bring more drama home, because already I'm often in a courtroom, battling my bitter, angry ex for the custody of my teenage children. Kids that I left behind for years in order to save them from the mess I was, and returning to realize I have next to no relationship with them has been an unexpected blow. Since I have a past my ex preys upon, it's allowed her to control my interactions with my children for years.
When my daughter shows up on my doorstep, I'm overseas for work. I don't even learn she's run away from her mother's home for weeks, when Mia confesses she's taken her in and cared for her in my absence. Slowly, she peels away my daughter's layers of aloofness and bad attitude, and the secret she uncovers rocks the foundation of everything I thought I knew. My children have been in danger and I've been blind to it.
Mia's involvement with my kids is both heartwarming and terrifying, as I begin to understand that she is the caring figure we've never had. Suddenly it seems she's the thing holding us together. But everyone breaks sometimes and when she has a panic attack, it's Hannah who's there to help hold her together.
It's obvious we have to admit to ourselves we both have demons: mine are dead, but hers are living, and they threaten to steal away from us what might be our only chance to make something good.
Unwelcome
After facing the wrong end of an IED, the Army decides they're done with me when I fail a mental eval. Like that, twenty-five years of my life go down the drain. I have no choice but to pull Plan B out of thin air, so after numerous surgeries, evaluations and assessments, I find myself starting over in New York.
While growing up in Syracuse, I promised myself that if I ever got out I'd never come back. New York has nothing for me but bitter memories and regret and, as it turns out, a career with the FBI and something else completely unexpected: the stunning, relentless Giulia.
Giulia is a can of nitroglycerine just waiting to detonate, and she's everything I'm not: loud, flirtatious, seductive, intelligent, and extremely comfortable in her own skin. Something about the sinful combination makes me stupid, because when she's around I can hardly remember my own name.
When Giulia's job and her idiot boss put her in danger, I make a stupid move: I blur the lines further to get personally involved. The last thing I'm ready for is the wild woman who swept into my life like a tsunami. But she's more than meets the eye, devoted and courageous, and when I need someone to hold me up, she's there without questions or recriminations. She accepts my ugly past even as she slowly discloses secrets of her own.
She's a miracle, one I don't deserve.
Just when I've begun to understand I might have a chance at a normal life and actually being happy, I make a critical mistake and Giulia disappears without a trace. Not only do I know what I've lost, but I fear I've lost her to a group of ruthlessly organized individuals, the sort who require permanent silence.
Unstoppable
I've heard it said that you don't know what you've got until it's gone, but I'm not sure that's true. I know what it is I've never had the very instant I lay eyes on Lauren...
When my wife decides pursuing her career is more important than our marriage, I am angry with everyone--mostly myself--for all the time wasted.
I'm angry, lonely and suspicious of everyone when I meet Lauren, a provocative, brazen little tease. The woman is unlike anyone I've ever met, sensual and hypnotic, and she knows just which buttons to push. A true force of nature, she knows exactly what she wants and how to get it. That something is me and her attention is both terrifying and thrilling. Still, I try to keep her at an arm's length because she's forbidden fruit: I'm far too old for her and my life is too complicated to drag an innocent into my mess.
My parents adore her, my dog is violently in love with her, and when it turns out she has been hiding a complicated life of her own, I can't understand how she remains so open-hearted. She brings such light to everyone in her orbit that the thought of going back to what life was before is crippling.
When dirty laundry is aired, it's clear I can't offer anything of myself to the woman who's wormed her way into my life. I question who I am and how I'm supposed to move forward without her.
I thought I'd lost everything before I met Lauren, but it turns out I was just getting started.
Unrequited
What would you give to remake a single decision?
Lincoln has a secret...
Ava, the woman he ordered surveilled for years, has been accidentally befriended by his daughter, something Ava won’t find particularly endearing when she catches on.
Lincoln is much too old for his daughter’s new friend, but resisting her turns out to be nearly impossible. Especially when his daughter announces she needs a roommate and will be living with Ava.
Disfigured by a horrible accident, Lincoln has thrown himself into his work with the CIA. But when he’s put on administrative leave by an openly-hostile Acting Director, it sets off a chain of events that test just how far he’s willing to go, personally and professionally. This time, there are no clear answers and no matter what decision he makes, he stands to lose everything.
Undeniable
How far can you go without crossing a line?
Sidelined from the special forces by his injuries, Adam’s days as an RN on a life flight in his small town are quiet. It puts a roof over his head, providing a simple existence.
That is, until Madelyn comes back. His best friend’s little sister, who should be off-limits.
Madelyn's job has always been her top priority, and after being gone for months on an assignment, she's fallen in love with someone else. He can't admit he wants more, because she lets him in on a secret that destroys all hope.
Putting a ring on her finger solves a problem, but it also puts him in her bed. He knows what he’s doing is wrong, but he can’t help but hope she'll fall in love with him.
◆ All books in this series are written as stand-alones, but readers will find some character overlap between stories. ◆
Unrecognizable
What would you do to save your marriage?
Michael's two-year deployment turned into three when an operation went sideways, and he's spent years trying to unwind the things that are destroying his marriage of three decades.
Claire spent the better part of a year believing she'd lost the other half of her heart. Michael's return was a miracle she hadn't dared hope would occur.
With their children grown, Claire has lost hope. Without something to bind them together, she and Michael live largely separate lives, coming together several times a week for therapy sessions that have yet to pay off.
When Claire decides that cutting Michael loose is the only way to save him, both of them struggle to establish their identities as individuals. The struggle is more than either of them expected, and their children watch worriedly as their parents fall apart.
Can Michael make peace with his demons, or will Claire accept that the man she loves with all her heart will never be more than a roommate?
◆ All books in this series are written as stand-alones, but readers will find some character overlap between stories. ◆
Unconditional
At this point in Gerald’s life there are no restarts, do-overs or second chances. He’s settled, locked in as a field office director for the FBI after a long military career. His daughters are grown and starting lives, jobs and families of their own and the one area of Gerald’s life that should be settled, his marriage, is dissolved when his wife stuns the family with an announcement over Thanksgiving dinner.
Feeling lost, Gerald runs into Emerson again and again, and he discovers an easy, warm relationship with someone who’s a complete mismatch to his stern, serious personality. It irks him to realize they make no sense together, yet he can’t stay away from the sarcastic loner with a smart mouth.
As he learns about her past, he begins to understand why Emerson’s always kept people at an arm’s length, and just when he admits to himself that he’s fallen hard, catastrophe strikes, threatening the fragile thing the two of them have just begun to build.
Can Emerson get out of her head and out of her own way, or has Gerald already moved on without her?
Unforgettable
When Gemma envisioned the perfect man, he wasn’t seven years old…
Haunted by empty, mercenary relationships and nonexistent family ties, Gemma’s nearly lost faith in finding a man who views her as more than a pretty possession.
James has his own past of betrayal and manipulation, and he guards his heart–and his seven-year-old son–from the people who seek to trade on his family’s name.
It’s James’s son Nathan who facilitates an introduction to the beautiful woman he's seen around town, and when he finds himself in a pinch, Gemma steps in to lend a hand. Watching his son fall in love with the warm, vivacious woman threatens the walls he's put up and, with tenderness and care, Gemma unwittingly chips away at them.
Gemma’s past is dark, capable of shattering the fragile bond they’ve formed, and some of her ghosts are still very much alive.
In the struggle to overcome their demons, James’s trust is betrayed when Gemma puts herself in harm’s way for his sake, and he’s furious to learn of her dangerous sacrifice. What if he can’t get past her ugliest secret?
Something Lost
When the Senator said he’d send an aide to draft a counter to the proposed pipeline that would bisect his ranch, the last thing Mark expected…was Lana.
The woman who arrives from Washington knows things he’s certain aren’t a matter of public record.
The pull to her is stronger than he’d like and for the first time in years he’s glimpsed a second chance at happiness.
Lana’s past is shadowy, something Mark suspects is to blame for her obsession with security and the fact she’s always looking over her shoulder. He wonders if it’s the reason she wants to leave D.C.
When a tragic accident results in a terrible misunderstanding, both of their lives are torn apart. Mark realizes the hard way that there are people who don’t want them together. Yet is it possible the biggest obstacle between him and happiness…is himself?
Something Broken
His sister's best friend wasn't supposed to upend his life like this...
Ashley was a thunderbolt to Travis's quiet, steady routine: eat, sleep, tend the ranch and grow the family assets. She found her way under his skin and when she left three weeks later, she took his heart with her.
Travis has never felt a connection to anyone like he's felt with Ashley, but he allowed time, circumstances and a foolish decision to tear them apart. Now there are decades between them, thousands of miles, and though life has led them in very different directions, Travis's sister engineers a second chance.
Ashley has never forgiven Travis for what he did, but as she helps him overcome the loss of his wife and loves his twin boys like her own, it's becoming clear that Travis isn't the problem at all.