Tommy Sallow is onto better and brighter things. After working a small hometown beat in upstate New York, he's finally in sunny California. As expected, it's the same shit in a different town. Except, you know, now he's near the ocean and miserable NY winters are a thing of the past. So, it's cool. He thought finding love would be simple. The guy who's always there for everyone else just wants someone to meet him halfway and things are looking grim, to say the least. Never one to believe in fate, what he definitely didn't see coming was Amber, a small and complicated piece of home he's never quite been able to forget about. ~♡~ Amber Hill always dreamt of having the perfect family. She thought marrying her college sweetheart and starting a family with him would be her happily ever after. But when that picture perfect family breaks, she's forced to move back to her hometown in California with her daughter, Mia. Riddled with uncertainty over the future, Amber hopes to regain a shred of normalcy for her daughter and reclaim the pieces of herself that she's lost along the way. But starting over is never easy, especially when a familiar face from the past shows up. When fate seems to lend a hand after all, Tommy and Amber's worlds collide, challenging them both in ways they never imagined. Can they learn to walk through life together and find what they've been looking for? Or will it all fall apart?"

Cliff McAden hasn't been home in four years, and wasn't expecting to meet a woman as gentle and quietly beautiful as Annie Edwards when he finally came back. It's hard for him to believe anyone could be interested in a scarred, disheartened man like him--and thanks to the secrets he's keeping, it's impossible for him to believe he deserves it. * * * * * Being an ugly duckling isn't easy, and Annie Edwards knows that firsthand. Thanks to her new job in Red View, she's finally moved away from her hyper-critical family and is getting the hang of adulthood--but love, the one thing she's always wanted, still escapes her. She doesn't expect to fall head over heels for her best friend's older brother, the mysterious musician who's been away from home for years, and has no idea how to handle her new feelings. Cliff McAden hasn't been home to McAden Orchard in four years, not since he left the country for the most important audition of his musical career and ended up in an accident that left him permanently marred. By the time he comes home for his sister's wedding, the scars that litter his face and body have healed--but the emotional wounds are as raw as ever. Spending time with the orchard's newest employee Annie is the only thing that soothes the pain, and he wants her more than he's wanted anything in a long time. But if the truth about his accident is revealed, he doesn't think anyone will want him to stick around.

The sequel to The Love I Found. This book will contain major spoilers. Though it can potentially be read as a stand alone, I strongly recommend reading The Love I Found first. Go now, before you even read this blurb! Intended for a mature audience. Content includes foul language, explicit sexual content, and sensitive themes of addiction, abuse and trauma. Find out what happens next in Emilia and Cal's story, five years after we left them. As well as some of what happened during those five years. !!! Cover by the wonderful LNRoberts1. Check out her stories !!! ---------- When Cal Jones walked out of Emilia's life, he took her heart with him. After everything they went through together, Emilia finds it impossible to move on. She goes through the motions, she learns to once again smile, but she knows that the need for her questions to be answered will forever haunt her. Why did he leave her behind? Will the longing she feels for him ever go away? Emilia doesn't believe anything can hurt as badly as Cal's betrayal. Unfortunately, she finds out just how painful life can continue to be. Maybe her story was never meant to have a happily ever after. Or could it be that she just needs to start a new story? ---------- © LEIGH VANN 2023 ALL RIGHTS RESERVED If you are reading this book anywhere other than W A T T P A D or I N K I T T it's been stolen, and you're likely at risk of malware. To read safely, please search the above places for this book, and send me a message to let me know where you found the plagiarised copy. Thanks!

Book Two - Haven Series ALYSSA SLOANE, after facing down breast cancer, the death of her mother and being dumped by her fiancé, is at the end of her emotional tether. The silver lining to the dark cloud hovering over her lately is she's on the cusp of being reunited with her twin after six long years apart. Now Alyssa has to pick up all the pieces of her broken life and find out who she is and what she's really made of. ETHAN DAVIES is a figure of authority, respect, and after the shocking events of the summer, a hero cop to the islanders on Haven. He follows the rules, even if that means never stepping a toe out of line. Ever. As his soon to be sister-in-law, Alyssa is the last person he should be thinking about getting into bed. She's fire; wild, spontaneous and exciting as hell. Where his life has always been about following the rules, with her he wants to break them all. Even though he knows she's hiding something. Something major. Getting too close to Alyssa could get him burned. Both have scars that go deep. And some wounds never heal.

Christmas is always the time of year catching up with family, eating yummy food, and having a good time; but not for Millie Baker. Two years ago her mother passed away from cancer and her father is out of the picture. Now, Millie finds herself once again alone on the wretched holiday. But she isn't the only one alone on the holiday, her boss, Noah Turner, is too. What happens when two lonely people decide to spend Christmas together? Will they finally learn to re-love Christmas and find love themselves? Cover done by @a_winter_day

"I-I think I'm in love with you." My eyes widened and my breath caught as those words left his lips. It was my worst and most beautiful nightmare coming alive. But I couldn't, I just couldn't. "I-I can't, I'm sorry." I started running away, wiping the stray tears that betrayed me and leaked, with the palm of my hand. I sniffed, feeling a growing pain in my heart. I clutched my chest, barely able to handle it. I kept running, but when I knew I was far enough, I fell to my knees, still holding my chest. That's when I heard it. The sound that shouldn't even be audible was so loud in the still silence that it swayed the trees. But maybe that was just an illusion. Maybe only I could hear it. The sound of my heart breaking. ______________________________________ Two people. Entirely opposite in only one manner. Noah's on his 'quest for love,' and Jade cowers from any such feelings. Hiding from love, she bumps into the playboy, himself, who's far from just mildly determined to make her cave into him. Will she be able to escape love...and its heartbreaking ways? Especially when it's Noah she's trying to hide from? ~*~*~* (trailer inside)

Rescued from a blind date from hell, a career woman's one night stand with her would be savior has unforeseen consequences. **** Up and coming New York apartment manager, Vanessa Torres' life is going perfectly according to her five year plan. Well, everything except in the love department, but that will come later. On cloud nine from her recent promotion, she agrees to go on a blind date arranged by her friend. Little does she know her squeaky clean life is about to turn upside down, following a one night stand with a handsome stranger, who saves her from the disastrous set-up. Reputable, lease up closer, Gabriel Tate, loves to live life by the game of chance, with no long term plans in mind. Blessed with Adonis-like looks and a charming personality he's used to getting what he wants when he wants until one flip of a coin changes his life forever. Their lives become entangled in a heated competition to fulfill rental contracts for their respective employers, not to mention running in the same social circles within the apartment industry. They soon realize change and compromise are necessary not only within their careers but also life and neither expected to find love during the chaotic and dysfunctional rivalry. Open Novella Contest 2023 Prompts: #5 Flip a coin and make a life choice with it. Two choices, one coin, and no turning back. Do you dare? #25 "If he smiled at you, he'll break your heart. If she winked at you, she'll rip you apart. #39 On a blind date with a complete mismatch, you're increasingly uncomfortable , but too polite to leave. Then an attractive stranger comes over and gives you an out. © 2023 LJRae

Shawna Roberts is the girl that every guy turns to when they need a fake date, a fake girlfriend, a fake fling to make some other girl jealous, a fake couple photo to send to their parents... Shawna's pretty much seen it all. But no matter what they pay her for, everything she does has one common factor: it's all fake. That doesn't make being their paid girl much easier, though. Adam Ferrell is the campus heartthrob with the appearance of a god, an ego the size of Canada, and worshiped by everyone to monumentally ridiculous proportions. In Shawna's mind, it's a miracle his head fits through his shirt every morning. Yet despite their instant dislike for one another, Adam and Shawna each need what the other can offer. When Adam unexpectedly pushes into Shawna's life with a business deal, she's torn between her feelings and her sense of duty, which protects a secret she has kept for years, from even those closest to her. And as the two begrudgingly get to know each other, masks start slipping and secrets come spilling out, forcing each of them to confront some of their darkest moments and deepest fears.

Years of heartache, healing, and learning to trust have led Becca and Craig to this moment. They're ready to create the future they've always imagined for themselves. A future that starts with a simple wedding. Authentic vows. A road ahead stretching out like an open country highway. Forever isn't built in one day, or one moment. It's spent drinking coffee while the sun comes up together. Talking until your eyes won't stay open on your front porch swing. Filling a family home with laughter. And every day afterward, when you choose each other again. Through blending families, chasing dreams long since forgotten, and beginning the journey of opening Becca's bakery, they will learn that marriage isn't the end goal-it's just the start of their adventure. Together. Made of moments, they'll learn healing doesn't mean forgetting the pieces of your past. It gives you the strength to find your future. Heartfelt romance, touching family, second chances, small-town vibes, and magic moments fill Choosing Forever. It's the emotional conclusion to Kate Brown's What Was Mistaken for Love trilogy. Because sometimes the best love story doesn't revolve around finding your soulmate... It's about choosing them over and over, for the rest of your life.

AMBY AWARDS TOP PICK 2024❤️ I can only see half of his face, reflected in the mirror at the front of the bus, and part of that is obscured by the peak of the black company-branded cap he's wearing. But I can see enough to glean that there's a strong jaw covered in scruff. A wide mouth that looks like it would be prone to smiling. He's wearing glasses with trendy light tortoiseshell frames, and I can't quite discern the colour of his eyes from my position . . . but some weird intuition is telling me that they'll be hazel, and I wonder when my brain is going to catch up. Because I *know* him, don't I? I'm almost certain of it. And he seems to know me, too. Or at least he thinks he does. The way he's glancing over at me lets me in on that. ~~~~~~~~~~~~ Mirren Shepherd has *many* pet peeves. Top of the list, though? Staycations . . . And surprises. So when her girls' trip abroad is cancelled at the last minute and she finds herself roped into a minibus tour of Northern Scotland instead, she isn't remotely happy. And when she finds out who their guide is . . . It's yet another reason for her to dislike surprises. Because Owen Sullivan wasn't so much the one who got away . . . He was the one who just didn't return. And, after she finally got over him, she never expected to see him again. Mirren would prefer to leave the past in the past, but Owen is determined to try to right his wrongs. Can she trust him? Can she trust *herself*? Maybe, just maybe, this surprise - and staycation - won't be as bad as Mirren thinks . . . ~~~~~~~~~~~~