Reckless, an all-new sexy and playful standalone romance in the Mason Family series from USA Today bestselling author Adriana Locke is available now!
“How did you get in here?”
That’s not what you want to hear when you’re staring into the sea-green eyes of the hottest man you’ve ever seen. Yet I suppose it’s a fair question, considering I’m an uninvited stranger standing in Boone Mason’s kitchen.
If you think that’s bad—just wait. It gets worse.
This charming and wealthy playboy, who can’t pay his bills on time or find his way to the grocery store (but we all have flaws, right?), is sweet. Confident. Playful. He’s almost perfect. And, to make matters worse …
He’s smitten with me.
I know what you’re thinking. You’re rolling your eyes. You’re assuming this is some opposites attract situation—or that maybe we can be friends who turn into something more.
How can this be a bad thing?
Well, it’s simple. I’m not the kind of girl you fall in love with. Just to be sure, the universe reminds me of that in an unforgettable, in-your-face kind of way.
I might have broken into Boone’s house, but I won’t let him break my heart. I won’t break his either. There’s too much on the line to be that reckless.
Start reading today or read FREE in Kindle Unlimited! Amazon: https://amzn.to/3d2C2jg Amazon Worldwide: http://mybook.to/RecklessAddy
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About Adriana Locke
USA Today, Washington Post, and Amazon Charts Bestselling author Adriana Locke lives and breathes books. After years of slightly obsessive relationships with the flawed bad boys created by other authors, Adriana has created her own.
She resides in the Midwest with her husband, four sons, and two dogs. She spends a large amount of time playing with her kids, drinking coffee, and cooking. You can find her outside if the weather’s nice and there’s always a piece of candy in her pocket.
Connect with Adriana
Amazon: https://amzn.to/2Nf4JjE Instagram: https://bit.ly/36Xb76f Facebook: http://bit.ly/3d4UXeP Goodreads: https://bit.ly/3jCwPBo BookBub: http://bit.ly/3d4Vai7 Website: https://adrianalocke.com Stay up to date by subscribing to Adriana’s mailing list: http://bit.ly/NewsletterAddy
Two years ago, Reed Jackson betrayed Calliope Thorne and broke her heart. So she stole his most prized possession – a white mustang – and drove it into the lake for revenge. Now, Callie is stuck at a reform school while Reed is off at college, living his life without repercussions. Until he comes back. With him comes back all the feelings that Callie has been trying to bury: anger and heartbreak. But most of all, desire. At the sight of his beautiful but lying lips and his gunmetal gray eyes that still taunt and smolder when he looks at her. Whatever though. It’s not as if Callie is ever going to fall for her ex-boyfriend again. Or let him corner her in a bar one night and touch her, kiss her… Neither is she going to kiss him back. Or worse, sleep with him. Because that would make her naïve and foolish. Oh, and also pregnant. And there’s no way Callie is ever going to get pregnant at eighteen and with Reed’s baby, no less. The guy she hates. The guy who taught her all about heartbreak. Who might look like a gorgeous hero but really is the villain of her story. NOTE: This story is a standalone and does not contain cheating.
Saffron A. Kent is a USA Today Bestselling Author of Contemporary and New Adult romance.
She has an MFA in Creative Writing and she lives in New York City with her nerdy and supportive husband, along with a million and one books.
She also blogs. Her musings related to life, writing, books and everything in between can be found in her JOURNAL on her website (www.thesaffronkent.com)
M. Robinson is the Wall Street Journal & USA Today Bestselling Author crowned as the “Queen of Angst” by readers around the world.
Dive into her visionary world that will take you on a rollercoaster ride of emotions and leave you wanting more.
She writes everything from contemporary to suspense romance and is best known for her novel, El Diablo.
When M isn’t in the cave writing her next epic love story, you will find her shopping and living on a boat in Florida with her real life pirate, her lobster, her husband Bossman. Sipping on Starbucks and hanging out with their two dogs, a German shepherd mix and a gordito Wheaten Terrier reading a good book. Or spending time with her family, who she is extremely close with.
Above all, M loves her readers more than anything and loves to connect with them! She is on all social media platforms but you will find her in her happy place the most. Her VIP Reader Group on Facebook or her second favorite happy place, Instagram.
Hearing the disbelief from my best friend’s mouth makes the events of my failed date sting that much more.
I would like to make it known, I have a lot more swagger than what it seems. I don’t normally ask a girl out, have her fail to recognize it’s a date, and then give me a high five–as if I’m her wingman–and take off with someone else.
No. Normally I’m the one taking the girl home but with Stella, it’s been one failed attempt after another and frankly, I’m done trying.
But thanks to my best friend getting married in Hawaii right before the school year starts, I’m stuck on a tropical island, watching Stella parade around in what she claims is a bathing suit.
Unfortunately, that’s not the worst of it, just the tip of the iceberg. Because what I think is going to be a relaxing vacation, avoiding the one girl I can’t seem to make it work with, has turned into a spectacle of being recruited as Stella’s doting fake fiancé so she can save face with an old “friend” from high school.
Now I’m navigating through purgatory while trying not to get turned on by the way she holds my hand or kisses my jaw. It’s all fake, that’s what I keep telling myself, even though it feels entirely too real.
Excerpt:
“Do you want to sit next to Stella on the airplane?” Arlo asks.
“What? Fuck, no,” I say while turning up the game so I can hear the announcers over my tedious, wedding-planning best friend.
Arlo snatches the remote from my hand and turns off the TV. The room is silent for a moment before uproarious objections fill the air.
“Gentry is up next,” Gunner, my other best friend and former teammate, complains from next to me. “He’s three for three so far.”
“We need to talk,” Arlo says in that stern, alpha-like voice that won over his fiancée. Little does he know it doesn’t work on me.
I reach for the remote but he swats my hand with a resounding thud, causing me to yank my hand back. “What the actual fuck, man?”
When I decided to have the guys over to my loft, I assumed we’d tear up some wings, drain some brews, and watch the Bobbies game. Never in my wildest fucking dreams would I have pictured Arlo Turner, the grumpy curmudgeon of the Forest Heights English department, to roll in like a beaming bride, holding a wedding planning folder to his chest, and consume the night with questions about what he should wear and if coconut cake is too “Hawaiian-y” for his Maui destination wedding.
But here we are.
“Cut the crap, Romeo.”
“Cut what crap?” I reach over to the coffee table and pick up my almost empty glass of beer.
“I’m not about to have the Bickersons attend my wedding, so what the hell is going on with Stella?”
“Nothing is going on,” I answer, then take a small sip of my beer, making the liquid last so I don’t have to get up for a refill.
Gunner leans in and asks, “If we get to the bottom of the problem, can we turn the TV back on?”
“Yes,” Arlo answers.
“Then it was the baseball game he took her to.”
“Dude,” I say in protest while sitting up on the couch. “What the fuck happened to don’t say anything?”
Gunner unapologetically shrugs. “I really want to watch the Bobbies kill the Rebels in interleague play.”
“What baseball game?” Arlo asks. “Do you mean the game you took her and Cora to?”
“Yup.” Gunner pops a chip in his mouth from the bowl on the coffee table. “Except Cora wasn’t supposed to go. It was supposed to be a daaate,” Gunner drags out.
“You asked Stella out?” Arlo asks, shocked.
“Way to sell me out for a game, you dick.”
Not showing an ounce of remorse, Gunner stands from the couch and takes my glass from me.
“I’ll top you off. You’ll need it.”
Seething, I pass my hand over my head and say, “Yeah, I asked her out. She invited Cora. End of story.”
“That’s not the end of the story,” Gunner says from the kitchen, the open concept of my loft allowing his voice to carry to us easily.
When you think a friend is trustworthy and then they go and shock your fucking nuts right off by divulging everything you told them in secret . . . without even a blink of an eye. Gunner is dead to me.
You’re probably wondering why I didn’t say anything to Arlo about what happened, given he’s one of my best friends, right? It’s simple. Gunner got me drunk and I relished in the comfort of far too many cold beers and a listening ear. If it wasn’t for that, I’d have kept my mouth shut, because the entire incident was fucking humiliating.
Between you and me, I’ve liked Stella Garcia, the Spanish teacher at Forest Heights, for a while now. Far too long actually. I can’t quite pinpoint when it happened, but all I know is over the three years I’ve known her, I’ve been pining after the girl for the majority of the time.
Fucking bold, quick-witted with a sharp tongue, loves sports, shy when it counts. Flat-out gorgeous with her long, wavy brown hair and fascinating green eyes that have a ring of brown around the pupil. She’s had my attention for a while and last year, I decided to finally make a move.
Enough was enough. We shared too many dinners together as friends. She’s pressed her lips to my beer glass without a second thought way too many times. The moment presented itself, I grew a pair, and asked her out to a baseball game knowing she loves watching the sport as much as I do.
But fuck did it backfire.
“What’s the end of the story?” Arlo asks, growing agitated. His patience runs thin, which is surprising, given his profession of educating the youth.
He’s not going to drop it.
Arlo’s relentless when he wants to know something.
Dragging my hand down my face, I say, “It was supposed to be a date.” Gunner sits next to me and hands me my refilled glass, which I gladly take. “She invited Cora. Which was fine. We had a good time, I still sat next to Stella, and we shared jokes even if there was a third wheel. But it was what happened afterwards that—”
“That gutted him,” Gunner finishes for me. When I snap a look at him, he smirks. “That’s what you told me. Just thought I’d help tell the story.”
“I wasn’t gutted.”
Maybe I was a little.
Hell . . . I was humiliated.
Gutted isn’t a strong enough word for what happened.
“What the fuck happened after? Christ. Why are you taking so damn long to get to the point?” Arlo practically growls.
“Go easy on our guy.” Gunner grips my shoulder. “He was embarrassed, man.”
“It’s fine, I’m over it now,” I say in a passive-aggressive tone.
“You’re clearly not if you and Stella can’t even be in the same room together. I don’t want anything ruining this trip for Greer, and your constant arguing with Stella is driving everyone fucking crazy.”
“Great, then I just won’t talk to her. Simple.”
“Just tell him,” Gunner says, nudging me.
Christ.
Staring down at my beer, I quietly say, “She went home with someone else that night.”
The room falls silent.
They don’t have to react for me to know what they must be thinking. They know I’ve liked Stella for a while. They know I’ve been trying to figure out a way to ask her out.
And this . . . hell, this was an epic fail on my end.
It wouldn’t be as bad if I weren’t already carrying a chip on my shoulder about the way I was forced to twist my life around.
Five years ago, everything changed.
Five years ago, I was stripped of the one thing that brought me life.
A ruptured Achilles tendon ended everything for me.
I never got the chance to appreciate my last game.
I never had the opportunity to sit on the field and say goodbye.
Instead, playing professional baseball was stripped from me and I was forced to fall back on my teaching degree I earned while playing in college.
To say I’m bitter, resentful, and fucking angry . . . yeah, that’s an understatement.
I live with regret daily and harbor more animosity than anyone should.
So, when I took Stella to the game, on a date, hoping to tell her how I feel, and she went home with someone else, it fucking stung.
Do you know what stung more, though?
The fact that she looked right past me and instead went for a rookie on the Bobbies.
Why go out with a washed-up baseball player turned phys ed teacher with a slight limp in his walk, when you can go out with an unmarred professional baseball player?
Yeah. There’s resentment for a reason. She chose the star. That’s who she wants.
That’s who I’ll never be.
And that’s why I plan on staying as far away from Stella Garcia on this trip as I can.
And when we get back to Chicago and the school year starts, everything will go on as planned.
Avoid. Avoid. Avoid.
Too easy, right?
3.5 Stars
Earn Your Extra Credit features, Romeo and Stella, who readers met in See Me After Class. Don’t worry, you don’t need to read that one to read this one, but it definitely helps in getting a deeper connection to everyone.
I was really looking forward Romeo and Stella’s book – this two have quite the interesting relationship. They have been coworkers for quite awhile and even close friends after working together for so long. They watch baseball games together and compete on the faculty league team.
At some point, things became strained between them and nothing has been the same since. Romeo and Stella, along with their other friends, are all now in Hawaii for their best friends’ wedding. But that’s not the only problem, they both find themselves fake dating because Stella has some point to prove.
I want to say so much more, but I hate when reviewers talk about scenes in reviews or give away plot points, accidentally. But there is a lot that goes on this on this book – growth, acceptance and moving forward.
Yea – not sure what to say about this one, to be honest. Did I enjoy the book? Yes. But, it dragged for me. Stella annoyed the hell out of me, a lot. Her antics, while entertaining, just became annoying after a bit. Romeo – the man has the patience of a saint.
It kills me to say this because I truly love Meghan, the characters she bring us and their stories. But this book was right down the middle for you. While I enjoyed it, it was not my favorite. But I am definitely in the minority on this one. I would still recommend this book to others because while it wasn’t a 5 star for me, I know that other readers will enjoy it.
About the Author:
USA Today Bestselling Author, wife, adoptive mother, and peanut butter lover. Author of romantic comedies and contemporary romance, Meghan Quinn brings readers the perfect combination of heart, humor, and heat in every book.
Claire Contreras has revealed the cover for The Heartbreaker!
Releasing: May 6, 2021
Cover Designer: Hang Le
Photographer: Miguel Anxo Photography
Models: Sergio Carvajal
They say you never forget your first.
Jagger Cruz, the popular, gorgeous, athletic, heartbreaker, was my introduction to college flings.
Over the years, I’ve tried to pay no attention to every wicked rumor I heard about him, even though deep down I knew they weren’t just rumors. Unable to face the consequences of what we’d done, if we were ever in close quarters, I ran in the other direction. If we were coincidentally put in the same class, I dropped it.
Avoidance was the name of the game and so far I was winning.
That is, until we’re assigned the same apartment.
Living with Jagger during my last semester was definitely not in my plans, but I’m determined to make it work. As long as I don’t look at him for too long or let his innuendos get under my skin, I should be fine, right? I have to be.
They say hooking up with your roommate can be messy, and losing my heart to Jagger would be disastrous.
Claire Contreras is a New York Times Best Selling Author. Her books range from romantic suspense to contemporary romance and are currently translated in seven different languages.
She was born in the Dominican Republic, raised in Miami, and now lives in Charlotte, NC with her husband, two adorable boys, and French Bulldog. When she’s not writing, she’s usually lost in a book.
Carrie Aarons has revealed the cover for Foes & Cons!
Releasing April 30, 2021
Sawyer Roarke was my best friend.
Growing up, our families were inseparable. We spent summers vacationing at the beach. In the school yard, it was us against the world. Then puberty hit, and we skated the thin line of staying buddies, or becoming more.
Until I accidentally found the pros and cons list he made about whether or not to date me. And there were definitely more bullet points on the no side. Acting out of rage and hurt, I embarrassed him in the most public way possible. Now, we’re enemies.
We’ve spent the last two years tearing each other to pieces. Everyone knows that Blair and Sawyer hate the ground the other walks on, and unfortunately, I got the unpopular end of the stick while he became Mr. Prom King.
Until senior year starts, and I’m tired of running scared. For the first time ever, I stand up to the golden boy with the whip-smart tongue. As the challenges and dares pick up speed, hearts start to fall and feelings get entangled. Despite my initial discovery, I wonder if being caught by each other wouldn’t be so bad.
Except Sawyer has no idea what I found all those years ago. And if the truth comes out about why I pitted us against each other, not only will he add one more con to his list … but he can add my broken heart as well.
Author of romance novels such as Fool Me Twice and Love at First Fight, Carrie Aarons writes books that are just as swoon-worthy as they are sarcastic. A former journalist, she prefers the love stories of her imagination, and the athleisure dress code, much better.
When she isn’t writing, Carrie is busy binging reality TV, having a love/hate relationship with cardio, and trying not to burn dinner. She’s a Jersey girl living in Texas with her husband, daughter, son, and Great Dane/Lab rescue.
From the USA Today bestselling author of Inseparable and When Forever Changes comes another emotional, angsty, new adult romance that will rip your heart apart before mending it again.
Say I’m the One, the first in the all-new All of Me Duet from USA Today bestselling author Siobhan Davis is coming April 30th and we have the gorgeous cover!
I’m head over heels in love with my best friend. Although, I can’t pinpoint exactly when Reeve Lancaster became my entire world.
Was it when we were little kids, practically brought up together, after Reeve’s mom died during childbirth and his dad subsequently fell apart? Or when I doodled his name in my school journal at age ten? Maybe it was when we became boyfriend and girlfriend at fourteen or when we shed our virginity at sixteen, pledging our forever?
I was there as his star ascended—like I’d always known it would—and there wasn’t a prouder person on the planet. As the only child of Hollywood’s golden couple, I’ve lived my life in the spotlight enough to know it wasn’t what I wanted for my future. But I sacrificed my own desires, because Reeve’s happiness meant everything to me.
Until he crushed my heart into itty-bitty pieces, forcing me to fly halfway around the world just to escape the gut-wrenching pain.
The opportunity to study at Trinity College Dublin came at the perfect moment, and I jumped at the chance without hesitation. If I’d known fate was meddling in my life, perhaps I would have chosen differently, but my future was cemented the instant I laid eyes on him.
Dillon O’Donoghue was Reeve’s polar opposite in every way, and perhaps, that’s why I felt drawn to him. He was the dark to my light. The thorn in my side, irritating me with his cold disdain, wild recklessness, and a burning rage hidden deep inside him that spoke to a silent part within me. Yet Dillon showed me what it was like to truly live, opening my eyes to endless possibilities.
What happened next was inevitable, and I only have myself to blame. He warned me, and I knew my reprieve was temporary, because there is only so far I can run.
Especially when fate hasn’t finished messing with me yet.
USA Today bestselling author Siobhan Davis writes emotionally intense young adult and new adult romantic fiction with swoon-worthy romance, complex characters, and tons of unexpected plot twists and turns that will have you flipping the pages beyond bedtime!
Siobhan’s family will tell you she’s a little bit obsessive when it comes to reading and writing, and they aren’t wrong. She can rarely be found without her trusty Kindle, a paperback book, or her laptop somewhere close at hand.
Prior to becoming a full-time writer, Siobhan forged a successful corporate career in human resource management.
She resides in the Garden County of Ireland with her husband and two sons.
Penelope Ward is a New York Times, USA Today and #1 Wall Street Journal bestselling author of contemporary romance.
She grew up in Boston with five older brothers and spent most of her twenties as a television news anchor. Penelope resides in Rhode Island with her husband, son, and beautiful daughter with autism.
With over two million books sold, she is a 21-time New York Times bestseller and the author of over twenty novels. Her books have been translated into over a dozen languages and can be found in bookstores around the world.
Vi Keeland is a #1 New York Times, #1 Wall Street Journal, and USA Today Bestselling author. With millions of books sold, her titles have appeared in over a hundred Bestseller lists and are currently translated in twenty-five languages. She resides in New York with her husband and their three children where she is living out her own happily ever after with the boy she met at age six.
Football club lawyer, Santino Rossi is known in the locker room as the two-month chump. For years he’s been on a mission to find someone he can share his basil plant with and cure him of his former playboy ways. So when he ends up stuck in an elevator with the one that got away, he thinks a replay is a great game plan. Download now or read in Kindle Unlimited
Anyone can fall for their brother’s best friend…Tilly Logan fell for her brother’s enemy.
Football club lawyer, Santino Rossi is known in the locker room as the two-month chump. For years he’s been on a mission to find someone he can share his basil plant with and cure him of his former playboy ways.
Tilly Logan is a fiery, Scottish lass who didn’t bat an eye five years ago when a smoldering Italian pulled her into a nightclub bathroom. He was dark, dangerous, and exactly the good time Tilly was looking for—even if he worked for her over-protective brother’s team.
But a lot has changed and when Tilly returns to London five years later only to find herself trapped in an elevator with the smoldering Italian, it isn’t a happy reunion. Especially because her brother blames Santino for her high tailing it back to Scotland in the first place.
Tilly doesn’t want a replay of past mistakes and reconnecting with Santino is playing with fire.
But if they keep their relationship a secret, it could be worth the burn.
“Sei bellissima stasera,” I growl, sliding my hands into her loose, straight locks as I press my lips to hers for a quick kiss. I drag the backs of my fingers down her pale cheek and add, “Beautiful.”
She grips my arms, her eyes wide and challenging. “How did I never know you spoke Italian?”
“I’m a man of mystery.” I dip my nose to the area below her ear, inhaling her intoxicating scent of honey and citrus. After spending the night making out with her a few days ago, I haven’t been able to stop craving her scent. She arches into my touch, and the motion causes my cock to stir inside my jeans. Pulling back, I stare at her lips. “And no one said I spoke good Italian. I might have just told you that you look like a beetroot.”
Her hands slide up the short sleeves of my shirt, her fingers biting into my biceps. “I love beetroots.”
“Nobody loves beetroots.” I laugh and tilt my head with a smug look. “Hai delle labbra così deliziose…Vorrei tanto baciarti.”
Her jaw drops. “What did you just say?”
Smiling, I lean in and whisper against her lips, “I said your lips are so delicious…I would really like to kiss you.”
Without pause, I fuse our mouths together and tease my tongue along her lush lips. She tastes minty, and that, coupled with her honey scent, has me deepening the kiss even further. Her hands move from my arms to my waist as she fists my T-shirt. When I thrust my tongue deep into her mouth, she inhales sharply, and her faint moan vibrates against my lips. Moving my hands down to her arse, I pull her into me so she can feel the effect she’s having on me.
“Okay, Sonny Corleone, no need to get cheeky.” She breaks our kiss, her face adorably flushed as she glances around nervously and finger combs her mussed locks. “We’re in public, after all.”
I shove my hands into my pockets. “It’s been a long time.”
“It’s been a few days.”
“Give or take five years.” I wink playfully, causing her to roll her eyes.
Amy Daws is an Amazon Top 13 bestselling author of sexy, contemporary romance novels. She enjoys writing love stories that take place in America, as well as across the pond in England. When Amy is not writing in a tire shop waiting room, she’s watching Gilmore Girls, or singing karaoke in the living room with her daughter while Daddy smiles awkwardly from a distance. For more of Amy’s work, visit: http://www.amydawsauthor.com
And what I must be is a flawless daughter, a skilled socialite, and the perfect prize to the man who signed along the dotted line.
Not that I’m complaining.
I’m all for a contractual agreement, a quick and clean catapult into the next phase of rich girl life. One that takes little thought, less effort, and zero devotion.
It’s exactly what I want.
An impassive life.
A calculated future.
Or, it was until the lights went out, darkness took over, and I learned what it meant to live.
To feel.
To fall.
But everyone knows what thrives in the night burns in the light and flames were among us.
There is no escape.
No turning back.
No ending within my control.
My mother always says our choices determine our consequences.
I hate it when she’s right.
__
This is an all-new 103k word standalone romance about a rich girl and the trouble she finds herself in when she catches the eye of a guy unlike the ones in her world.
Meagan Brandy is a USA Today and Wall Street Journal Bestselling Author of New Adult and Sports Romance books.
Born and raised in California, she is a married mother of three crazy boys who keep her bouncing from one sports field to another, depending on the season, and she wouldn’t have it any other way.
Starbucks is her best friend and words are her sanity.
Blurb:
Don’t fall for your roommate…especially when it’s only temporary.
Nolan Brooks is off limits.
Sure, he’s insanely attractive and funny and I might have almost gone home with him one night to relieve a little stress.
Big deal.
It was all just a momentary lapse in judgment…just like the kiss we shared.
He’s my temporary roommate while I wait for my new apartment to be ready. That’s it.
He’s doesn’t do relationships, and he doesn’t do attachments.
So what if I have a crush on him? We’ll only be there for two months.
Surely I can survive that long.
About Teagan:
TEAGAN HUNTER is a Missouri-raised gal but currently lives in South Carolina with her Marine veteran husband, where she spends her days begging him for a cat. She survives off coffee, pizza, and sarcasm. When she’s not writing, you can find her binge-watching various TV shows, especially Supernatural and One Tree Hill. She enjoys cold weather, buys more paperbacks than she’ll ever read, and never says no to brownies. For more information, please visit
www.teaganhunterwrites.com.
