Forced Proximity⎜There’s only one bed, let’s share!

Bitch must be crazy. Forced proximity romance book recommendations?
Really? Read the room!

Hey, I’m just saying, I’m one to enjoy ice cream in the middle of winter. There’s no wrong season for it and there’s no preferred time for book tropes either.

I know what you’re probably thinking, you’ve experienced enough forced proximity already. Why would you even subject yourself to (more) forced proximity in books when you’re actually living the thing?

You want to escape reality, you don’t want to read about folks stuck together into close quarters, I get it. The difference in these books is they’re not stuck homeschooling kids, cooking meals and doing house chores on a daily repeat. So hear me out a second, I promise you the fantasy you seek is there to be found.

So what forced proximity is about and why do I love this trope so much? 

Forced proximity isn’t as bad as it may sound, it’s not just about apocalyptic settings, the trope actually spans many romance subgenres, from romantic suspense to fluffly contemporary romance and even dark romance.

What I love about forced proximity is that it also covers a broad list of premises where the hero and heroine are forced to spend time together in a situation they can’t escape. Surely you’ve read some before. The heroine gets stranded in a blizzard and fortunately gets rescued by the very sexy, gruff owner of the very remote cabin where there’s only one bed and possibly no warmth source other than his hard, big… body. (Yasss)
In the romance genre, forced proximity is often used as plot device to bring our characters  take an interest for each other when they probably wouldn’t have in their everyday life.

  • Stranded together (in a remote cabin or an island or a planet)
  • Snowed In (when the elements work against the heroes… or is it in their favor?)
  • Trapped in a elevator / tight space
  • So there is only one room left and we must share the bed.
  • Captive heroine or hero (doesn’t have to be dark romance!)
  • Traveling together
  • Forced to work together or against each other
  • Reluctant roommates
  • Bodyguard romances
  • Arranged/fake or forced marriages

I love this set up in a romance story because it magnifies every little emotion between the characters, the average attraction becomes potent lust, a mere annoyance becomes frustration, the slightest tension becomes drama. I’m here for it. Especially when it crosses over tropes I adore like enemies to lovers, the antagonism yields into infatuation under their dome of close quarters. It’s the perfect opportunity to develop conflict between characters, I enjoy watching the characters squirm under the pressure and solve their issues at a quicker pace than normal. Characters are prone to act upon urges the would ignore in their normal lives.

I’ve read all the following books, I’m sure I must have read more but these are the ones that came to mind, feel free to recommend your favorites, I’d love to add them to this list and discover some new gems!

ALL BOOKS IN ONE GLANCE

Scroll down for details about all books!

ALL THE DETAILS!

WE’RE SHARING A CELL TOGETHER

Fast paced, action packed and perfectly leveled with swooning romance. It’s no wonder Pamela Clare is my favorite romantic suspense author. Her I-Team series is brilliant.

Breaking PointWhile investigating border violence in Ciudad Juárez, Mexico, Denver journalist Natalie Benoit is caught in a bloody ambush and taken captive. Alone in the hands of ruthless killers, she will need every ounce of courage she possesses to survive.

Betrayed by another operative, Deputy U.S. Marshal Zach McBride has endured a week of torture and interrogation at the hands of a bloodthirsty Mexican drug cartel. Ready to give his life if he must, he remains unbroken—until he hears the cries of an American woman.

Although Natalie is only a voice in the darkness of their shared prison, her plight brings renewed strength to Zach’s battered body. With her help, he overpowers their captors, and they flee through the desert toward the border, the attraction between them flaring hotter than the Sonoran sun.
But past loss and tragedy leave both of them reluctant to follow their hearts, even when the passion between them reaches its breaking point. Faced with feelings neither expected, they fight to stay ahead of the danger that hunts them as forces more powerful than they can imagine conspire to destroy them both…

ON THE RUN WITH THE EX-CON

Taken hostage by the man she gave her virginity to12 years ago is bound to make old feelings resurface… Sexy and suspensful it will keep you on your toes from start to finish!

Journalist Sophie Alton is investigating the disappearance of a young mother named Megan, recently paroled and now running from the law with her baby daughter. Sophie’s search leads her to Megan’s brother, Marc, a convicted killer–and the man she shared an unforgettable night with twelve years ago.

Condemned to life in prison, Marc uses Sophie to escape so he can find his sister and protect her from the monster who’s pursuing her. Sophie knows she should fear Marc. But the heat and hunger of his touch still lingers in her mind–and on her body–after all this time.

Together they will follow a dangerous trail, as people on both sides of the law do everything they can to keep Sophie and Mark from finding Megan–and a shocking truth about the past…

RESCUED AFTER NEAR DEATH EXPERIENCE

If the rescuing by the heartthrob park ranger doesn’t get to you, maybe the “teaming” to unveil a mystery will hook you up in the long run. Gabe’s protective instincts will have you swooning!

Naked edgeWhat do you do when desire drives you to the very brink?

The day Navajo journalist Katherine James met Gabriel Rossiter, the earth literally moved beneath her feet. Nearly killed in a rockslide while hiking, she found her life in the tall park ranger’s hands. Although she can’t forget him she thinks she’ll never see him again. She is crushed when she recognizes her rescuer among the law enforcement officers raiding a sweat lodge ceremony one night, throwing her and her friends off Mesa Butte, land they consider sacred.

Gabe long ago swore he would never again lose himself to a woman not even one with long dark hair and big eyes that seem to see right through him. But from the moment he first sees Kat, the attraction he feels is undeniable. Appalled by what he has been ordered to do, he’s determined to get to the bottom of recent events at Mesa Butte and to keep Kat safe.

But asking questions can be dangerous almost as dangerous as risking one’s heart. And soon Kat and Gabe’s passion for the truth and each other makes them targets for those who would do anything, even kill, to keep Native Americans off their sacred land.

SNOWED IN WITH HER RESCUER

Okay now this novella is pure catnip if you like single parents trope, tortured/scarred hero and forced proximity. Absolutely amazing!

Broken on the inside

Megan Hunter has worked hard to get back on her feet, leaving the nightmare of her teenage years behind. The last thing she wants or needs in her life is a man. But when she is attacked by someone from her past, a scarred stranger intervenes, saving her life and that of her little girl. Looks can be deceiving, for despite the man’s rough appearance, she feels safe with him. And for the first time in her life, she knows the stirrings of desire.

Broken on the outside

Nathaniel West paid a high price serving with the Marines in Afghanistan. He returned to his family’s ranch in the Colorado mountains to heal—and be alone. Disfigured as he is, he has put all thoughts of sex and romance aside. But something about Megan brings him back to life, heats his blood, makes him feel like a man again. As danger pursues her, and the truth about her past is revealed, he vows to protect her—and to heal her wounded spirit.

But confronting the past is never easy—especially when it’s carrying a gun. Megan will have to learn to trust Nate to survive and to claim a passion that is much more than … Skin Deep.

SNOWBOUND WITH A STRANGER AND HE COULD BE THE BAD GUY

Being trapped with a smoking hot guy in a remote cabin in the middle of a murder investigation… is he the heroine’s fantasy or her nightmare? Gripping and HOT. Must read!

From the #1 New York Times bestselling author of Seeing Red comes a suspense novel about a woman trapped in a remote cabin with a man who may be a serial killer.

Five women are missing from the sleepy mountain town of Cleary, North Carolina, and a blue ribbon has been left near where each woman was last seen. Lilly Martin has returned to Cleary to close the sale of her cabin. But when her car skids and strikes a stranger, Ben Tierney, as he emerges from the woods, they’ve no choice but to wait out a brutal blizzard in the cabin. And as the hours of their confinement mount, Lilly wonders if the greater threat to her safety isn’t the storm, but the stranger beside her….

STRANDED ON THE ISLAND WITH A SEXY JERK

Beautiful read. Enemies to lovers or is it opposites attracts? Whatever the case, Raine and Bastian are in this together. Shay Savage gave us one of the best anti-hero I’ve ever read.

As the captain of a schooner catering to the elite on the Caribbean Seas, Sebastian Stark does his best to avoid any human encounters. Interacting with people isn’t his thing, and he prefers the company of a bottle of vodka, a shot glass, and maybe a whore. There’s no doubt he’s hiding from a checkered past, but he does well keeping everything to himself…

…until the night his schooner capsizes, and he’s stuck on a life raft with one of the passengers.

Raine’s young, she’s cute, and Bastian would probably be into her if he wasn’t suffering from alcohol withdrawal. As the days pass, DTs, starvation, and dehydration become the norm. Even the most closed person starts to open up when he thinks he’s going to die, but when she realizes their traumatic pasts are connected, it’s no longer the elements that have Bastian concerned.

He has no idea how he’s going to Survive Raine.

SURVIVING THE ISLAND FOR A TEACHER AND HER STUDENT

As unconventional the age gap may be in this heartfelt and beautiful story, it was handled well. Just open the book and embark for a wonderful adventure of survival, friendship and love.

When thirty-year-old English teacher Anna Emerson is offered a job tutoring T.J. Callahan at his family’s summer rental in the Maldives, she accepts without hesitation; a working vacation on a tropical island trumps the library any day.

T.J. Callahan has no desire to leave town, not that anyone asked him. He’s almost seventeen and if having cancer wasn’t bad enough, now he has to spend his first summer in remission with his family—and a stack of overdue assignments—instead of his friends.

Anna and T.J. are en route to join T.J.’s family in the Maldives when the pilot of their seaplane suffers a fatal heart attack and crash-lands in the Indian Ocean. Adrift in shark-infested waters, their life jackets keep them afloat until they make it to the shore of an uninhabited island. Now Anna and T.J. just want to survive and they must work together to obtain water, food, fire, and shelter.

Their basic needs might be met but as the days turn to weeks, and then months, the castaways encounter plenty of other obstacles, including violent tropical storms, the many dangers lurking in the sea, and the possibility that T.J.’s cancer could return. As T.J. celebrates yet another birthday on the island, Anna begins to wonder if the biggest challenge of all might be living with a boy who is gradually becoming a man.

CAPTURED BY THE SEXIEST ANTI-HERO

100% captivating and beautiful, The Paper Swan is the ultimate enemies to lovers. I’d tell you more but I would spoil the story. Just dive in as blind as you can. Bonus, Leylah Attar’s writing is pure beauty.

They say it takes 21 days to form a habit.
They lie.
For 21 days she held on.
But on Day 22, she would have given anything for the sweet slumber of death.
Because on Day 22, she realizes that her only way out means certain death for one of the two men she loves.

A haunting tale of passion, loss, and redemption, The Paper Swan is a darkly intense yet heartwarming love story, textured with grit, intrigue, and suspense. Please note: This is NOT a love triangle.

RELUCTANTLY SHARING THE MOUNTAIN MAN’S CABIN

If someone messing up a booking gets me on Max Holden’s doorstep, please be my guest and book my next vacation to Colorado! Perfect enemies to lovers read, heroine is full of sass and hero is 100% alpha man with a really sweet side.

Love is the greatest gamble of all…

Nina Sheridan desperately needs a timeout vacation. With a fiancé who can’t even remember how she takes her coffee, Nina wants some distance to rethink her engagement. Flying halfway around the world from England to a mountain town in Colorado should do the trick. But when she finds a gorgeous man at her rental cabin, Nina’s cold, lonely adventure suddenly heats up.

The owner of the house, Holden “Max” Maxwell is surprised by the beautiful woman who turns up at his door. But when Nina becomes ill, Max spends days nursing her back to health. A private man with a broken heart, Max finds himself drawn to the strong-willed woman. Soon it becomes impossible for Nina and Max to deny their growing attraction to one another. Yet even as these two wounded lovebirds think about taking a chance on a relationship, a dangerous secret from Max’s past emerges-and threatens to end their love for good.

STRUCKS A DEAL WITH THE EX-CON

This marriage of convenience has got to be the angstiest and sexiest ever written. Nothing says forced proximity like two strangers faking a happy marriage to create the perfect alibi for a revenge plot.

Ty Walker was wrongly imprisoned and for the five years he was inside, he honed his plan so when he gets out, he has nothing but vengeance on his mind.

But then he walks straight to stylish, leggy, beautiful, goofy Lexie Berry and he suddenly has something else to think about. He knows within seconds he wants her and within days he can love her but with the filth that was flung at him clinging; he also knows he can’t have her.

Since birth, Lexie Berry has been Lady Luck’s favorite toy and because of that, Lexie is cautious. But within a day, she senses Ty is something special. With her luck, however, she can’t trust it. Then she finds out what was done to Ty and she’s willing to do anything to make it right.
Even what Ty will never forgive her for doing.

Ty clings to vengeance and Lexie goes all out to give him back the time he lost. But Ty is battling demons within and they’re up against dirty cops and criminals who will stop at nothing to sway Lady Luck against them. All Ty and Lexie have is hope Lady Luck will finally swing their way.

STUCK IN A MANSION WITH A SEXY BARON… AND GHOSTS

The spook factor is very mild, this is a great KA romance with a light paranormal touch. Heroine and hero are forced to share a house to take care of their nephews and nieces.

Douglas Ashton is the cold and unfeeling owner of the gothic Victorian Mansion, Sommersgate House. Julia Fairfax is his stubborn American sister-in-law. After tragedy strikes, Douglas and Julia are forced to live together at Sommersgate and raise their newly orphaned nieces and nephew.

Douglas has no desire to raise his dead sister’s children nor does he want the distraction of the tempting Julia living under his roof. Julia is struggling with grief and trying to make a go in a new country without much help from impossibly handsome but even more impossibly remote Douglas. Not to mention, she has to deal with the active hostility of Douglas’s frosty, Attila-the-Hun-in-a-skirt mother, Monique.

Douglas decides the best way to give the children what they need, get his mother to behave and give himself what he wants is to marry Julia. When he tells her (yes, tells her) she will be his wife, Julia thinks Douglas is (probably) insane. And anyway, she’s decided if she ever has another husband (since the last one wasn’t so great), he was going to be short, balding, have a paunch and worship the ground she walks on (none of these characteristics define Douglas in the slightest).

One more thing, Sommersgate House is haunted by the ghosts of the man who built the house and the woman who was the love of his life. They both died mysteriously at Sommersgate months after it was finished. When they did, a curse settled on the house making it seem strangely alive. And the only way for the beautiful but frightening house to rid itself of this curse is for its owner to find true love.

MADDENING THE (ONLY) NEXT DOOR NEIGHBOR OF HER REMOTE CABIN

You want to experience the incredible building sexual tension between Lacey and Monroe—her gruff and sexy wolverine look-alike neighbor— as their friendship grows endearingly amidst hilarious and on point snarky banter!

Lacey Terwilliger’s shock and humiliation over her husband’s philandering prompt her to add some bonus material to Mike’s company newsletter: stunning Technicolor descriptions of the special brand of “administrative support” his receptionist gives him. The detailed mass e-mail to Mike’s family, friends, and clients blows up in her face, and before one can say “instant urban legend,” Lacey has become the pariah of her small Kentucky town, a media punch line, and the defendant in Mike’s defamation lawsuit.

Her seemingly perfect life up in flames, Lacey retreats to her family’s lakeside cabin, only to encounter an aggravating neighbor named Monroe. A hunky crime novelist with a low tolerance for drama, Monroe is not thrilled about a newly divorced woman moving in next door. But with time, beer, and a screen door to the nose, a cautious friendship develops into something infinitely more satisfying.

Lacey has to make a decision about her long-term living arrangements, though. Should she take a job writing caustic divorce newsletters for paying clients, or move on with her own life, pursuing more literary aspirations? Can she find happiness with a man who tells her what he thinks and not what she wants to hear? And will she ever be able to resist saying one . . . last . . . thing?

FAKE RELATIONSHIP WITH A SILVER FOX AT HIGHSCHOOL REUNION

Sign me up for this premise —anytime really— silver fox offers shelter to a jilted heroine in exchange for her service as fake girlfriend at his highschool reunion. Older, wiser, hotter heroes. Yes please!

When forty-eight year old widower Mark Solomon arrives in Barefoot Bay for his high school reunion, he’s not quite prepared for the onslaught of memories or the attention from interested single women who’ve gathered for the annual event on the beach. He’s ready to ditch the whole thing and resume his life as an adventure-seeking world traveler until he discovers a woman sobbing on his doorstep…and has an idea.

By her own admission, advertising copywriter Emma DeWitt is jaded, jilted, and jobless, but she goes over the edge when she learns that the resort villa that was supposed to be the site of her romantic honeymoon is occupied by a single man. But when the sexy silver fox who’s staying in the villa surprises her with an irresistible offer to pose as his fake fiancée, Emma sees a way to have her week in paradise and begin healing her broken heart.

Mark believes every person has only one soul mate…and he’s met, married, and buried his. Emma believes that love is a marketing concept created to sell fairy tales and expensive weddings. What if they are both wrong…and completely right for each other?

BROODING RECLUSE GETS TRAPPED WITH BUBBLY HEROINE

Brooding and silent writer is taking some time off alone in his New York apartment when a perky housekeeper hired by his mother to bring Christmas holiday cheer stumbles in and he wants her gone. Too bad a snowstorm decides otherwise.

Hopeless romantic Eva Jordan loves everything about Christmas. She might be spending the holidays alone this year, but when she’s given an opportunity to house-sit a spectacular penthouse on Fifth Avenue, she leaps at the chance. What better place to celebrate than in snow-kissed Manhattan? What she didn’t expect was to find the penthouse still occupied by its gorgeous—and mysterious—owner.

Bestselling crime writer Lucas Blade is having the nightmare before Christmas. With a deadline and the anniversary of his wife’s death looming, he’s isolated himself in his penthouse with only his grief for company. He wants no interruptions, no decorations and he certainly doesn’t appreciate being distracted by his beautiful, bubbly new housekeeper. But when the blizzard of the century leaves Eva snowbound in his apartment, Lucas starts to open up to the magic she brings…This Christmas, is Lucas finally ready to trust that happily-ever-afters do exist?

FAKES MARRIAGE TO HER SUBWAY MUSICIAN CRUSH

Love unrequited glorioussness right here! I adored Roomies, so many tropes nested in one story: love unrequited, friends to lovers, marriage of convenience, roommates to lovers… Sigh it’s the delicious angstfest you’ve been waiting for. It’s sweet, it’s cute, it’s fun, it’s sexy and it’s heartfelt.

Marriages of convenience are so…inconvenient.

Rescued by Calvin McLoughlin from a would-be subway attacker, Holland Bakker pays the brilliant musician back by pulling some of her errand-girl strings and getting him an audition with a bigtime musical director. When the tryout goes better than even Holland could have imagined, Calvin is set for a great entry into Broadway—until he admits his student visa has expired and he’s in the country illegally.

Holland impulsively offers to wed the Irishman to keep him in New York, her growing infatuation a secret only to him. As their relationship evolves from awkward roommates to besotted lovers, Calvin becomes the darling of Broadway. In the middle of the theatrics and the acting-not-acting, what will it take for Holland and Calvin to realize that they both stopped pretending a long time ago?

RESCUED BY RANGER HOT BUNS

Getting rescued by the heartthrob parker ranger—aptly nicknamed Ranger Hot Buns— is just what Amy needed. Or not. Whatever the case may be, their extra time in the forest was just the little push needed to bring them together. Banter, sexy times and romance, yu’ve got a happy place book right here.

HER LOVE HAS COME ALONG…
Amy Michaels loves her new life in Lucky Harbor. A waitress in the local diner, she’s looking forward to her first weekend hike through the mountains. But when a wrong turn takes her off the trail, she finds herself up close and personal with forest ranger Matt Bowers. And even though she’s tempted to kiss that sexy smile right off his face, she won’t make the mistake of getting involved with the town heartthrob.

A former cop whose life went south, Matt doesn’t let anyone get too close. But something about the feisty beauty caught his eye the moment he first saw her in the diner. After a hot night under a starry sky, Matt can’t deny their attraction – or the fact that for the first time in a long time, he feels the stirrings of something more. Now it’s up to Matt to help Amy see that, no matter what is in their past, together they can build a future in Lucky Harbor.

FORCED TO INVESTIGATE WITH HER CRUSH

Kylie and Joe kissed. A while ago. They just decided to leave it be and ignore their incredible chemistry. That’s until Kylie needs Joe’s help to recover a precious heirloom belonging. Forced to work together on their nightly hunts brings back the inevitable, Kylie and Joe are bound to happen. Love how the fun of the chase balanced the emotional and heartfelt backstory Shalvis shared about her characters. And of course it gets steamy 😉

When love drives you crazy, the best thing to do is enjoy the ride… When sexy Joe Malone never calls after their explosive kiss, Kylie shoves him out of her mind. Until she needs a favour, and it’s a doozy. Something precious to her has been stolen and there’s only one person with unique finder-and-fixer skills that can help – Joe. It means swallowing her pride and somehow trying to avoid the temptation to throttle him – or seduce him.

No, Joe didn’t call after the kiss. He’s the fun time guy, not the forever guy. And Kylie, after all she’s been through, deserves a good man who will stay. But everything about Kylie makes it damned hard to focus, and though his brain knows what he has to do, his heart isn’t getting the memo.

As Kylie and Joe go on the scavenger hunt of their lives, they discover surprising things about each other. Now, the best way for them to get over ‘that kiss’ might just be to replace it with a hundred more.

LIVING AND WORKING WITH A SEXY AGENT

Sharing your personal space with a stranger is bound to make things awkward… Especially in this old house with no locks on the bathroom door. Bahtroom shenanigans, anyone? Hottest shower scene ever in this Shalvis book. All I Want was a great mix of romance, suspense and feel good times.

Pilot-for-hire Zoe Stone is happy to call Sunshine, Idaho, her home base. But her quiet life is thrown for a loop when her brother’s friend Parker comes to stay with her for a week. The U.S. Fish and Wildlife special agent is a handsome flirt with a gift for getting under her skin. And the situation only escalates when Parker hires her to fly him around the area while he collects evidence on a suspected smuggler.

Now she has to live and work with the guy. But when they’re in the air, she sees another side of him. He’s driven, focused, and sharp. And while he enjoys giving commentary on her blind dates, she quickly realizes with a shock that it’s Parker who gets her engines going…

STRANDED ON THE ISLAND WITH A BILLIONAIRE MANAGER

Not just another billionaire book. Other than being a wonderful happy feels romance, Stranded With A Billionaire was sexy and smart. (The whole series is worth a good read 😉 )

Billionaire Logan Hawkings needs a vacation. He’s had a rough time after the death of his father and the betrayal of his fiancée. But with a visit to a recent business acquisition – a private island resort in the Bahamas – he has a chance to mend his broken heart.

Bronte Dawson, a waitress from the Midwest, is stranded with the hotel’s domineering yet sexy manager Logan. What’s the harm in a little fling when it’s just the two of them, alone in paradise? But she soon discovers there’s more to Logan than he’s told her…a billion times more. Now, Bronte’s caught in a whirlwind affair with one of the world’s most powerful men. But can their love endure their differences or will it all just blow over?

STUCK AND BLACKMAILED BY THE BILLIONAIRE IN A REMOTE CABIN

Opposites attracts for the win! Throw in some unrequited love and I’m a goner. Billionaires tropes are often one dimensional, however I love how Clare flawlessly writes entertaining yet fairly predictable romances with multi-dimensional characters.

Audrey Petty’s always been the responsible one. The good twin.  Successful, dependable, and trustworthy–that’s Audrey. She’d be the perfect girlfriend for her childhood crush, billionaire Cade Archer…except that she’s pretty sure she’s not even on his radar. But when fate (and her chaotic twin) come together, Audrey finds out that she’ll be spending the next month with Cade at his remote cabin retreat. It’s a dream come true…

Until she meets her worst nightmare.

Billionaire playboy Reese Durham is used to seducing women to get what he wants. But when stiff, too-proper Audrey bursts into the private mountain lodge and scares his companion out the door, it’s time for a little revenge. It’s clear that Audrey’s in love with his buddy, Cade…and it’s clear to Reese that blackmailing Audrey with this information can get her to agree to just about anything. Like furtive kisses in the dark, or a secret rendezvous in the woods. Audrey may think she knows what she wants, but Reese is determined to show her what she needs.

And as Reese discovers the volatile minx behind the buttoned-up exterior, he starts to think maybe she’s just what he needs, too.

STUCK WITH HER BILLIONAIRE ENEMY DURING A BLACKOUT

The drama! A fast paced enemies to lovers/fake engagement that will sure make you feel aggravated!

In the dark, he kisses her…

Not knowing she once betrayed his best friend.

When a blackout hits Chicago, billionaire Darius King makes the most of it with an irresistible stranger. But then the lights reveal the woman in his arms as his best friend’s widow—and his sworn enemy! His new plan: trap her into marriage to protect his friend’s legacy. But wild attraction and explosive secrets could make that arrangement very inconvenient…

TWO STRANGERS STUCK IN A ELEVATOR / LOVE IN A ELEVATOR

This short story has nothing to envy to full novels. Laura Kaye delivers a sexy, tragic and poignant romance. It’s a MUST READ. There’s a sequel if you need more of McKenna and Caden.

Two strangers…

When accountant Makenna James finds herself stranded in a pitch-black elevator, she can’t help but wonder about the stranger stuck with her. All she noticed about him before the lights went out was a dragon tattoo; all she knows now is his sexy, gruff voice in the darkness.

Four hours…

Caden Grayson is inked, pierced, scarred on the inside and out—and terrified of the dark for reasons he’d rather not remember. Trapped in his worst nightmare, only the sweet voice of the red-headed beauty distracts him from his fear. And, oh, man, as the hours pass and the darkness heats up, that’s nothing compared to her touch.

One pitch-black elevator…

He’s all rough edges and she’s pin-striped skirts, but in the darkness they open up and reach out without any preconceptions to hold them back. But as attraction grows and sparks fly, will they feel the same when the lights come back on?

BOUND BY A BLIZZARD

They meet on a plane but heroine’s connecting flight gets grounded by blizzard. Sexy stranger from the plane invites her home. Why not? Plenty of fun and banter in this novella, if like Paris you need a swift escape, get in.

I don’t care which city.
I don’t care which flight.
I just need to get the hell out of here…

Paris Weston is tired of all the broken promises her boyfriend has given her over the years. Instead of showing up to their “secret” engagement party, she shows up to the airport–ready and willing to go wherever the next flight is bound.

Determined to get away and start again, she’s certain that a week or two away will solve all of her problems.Until she never makes it to her final destination. Until the sexy, dirty-mouthed stranger who sits next to her on the plane changes everything. Until the unintended layover leaves her never wanting to go back home.

UPGRADED TO FIRST CLASS WITH A SEXY STRANGER

Amazing read right here! Look no further if you want something cute, smart and meaningful. Also, bonus, all the Marvel and geek references, this book is an ode to all nerds with a romance streak. This book is absolutely the best.

As the dress-bearer for her mother’s wedding, comic book artist Laney Hudson has a lot more baggage than the bulky garment bag she’s lugging from New York to Hawaii. Laney is determined to prove she’s capable of doing something right, but running chores for her mom’s fairytale nuptials is proving to be a painfully constant reminder of her own lost love.

So when she’s mistaken for the bride and bumped up to first class, Laney figures some stress-free luxury is worth a harmless white lie. Until the flight crew thinks that the man sitting next to her is Laney’s groom, and her little fib turns into a hot mess.

The last thing Noah Ridgewood needs is some dress-obsessed diva landing in his first-class row. En route to his Vegas bachelor party, the straight-laced software designer knows his cold feet have nothing to do with the winter weather.

When a severe storm leaves them grounded in Chicago and they find themselves booked into the last available honeymoon suite, Laney and her in-flight neighbor have little choice but to get better acquainted. Now, as her bridal mission hangs in the balance, perhaps the thing Laney gets right is a second chance at love.

UPGRADED TO FIRST CLASS NEXT TO A SEXY JERK

There’s worst than being upgraded to first class on a plane next to sexy jerk. There’s being upgraded to first class on a plane next to a sexy jerk that is your potential new boss. Love this book!

It started off as a battle of wits. Me: the ordinary girl with a big mouth against Him: the sexy bastard with a big…ego.

I thought I’d hit the jackpot when I was upgraded to first class on my flight to London.

That is until HE sat next to me. Gabriel Scott: handsome as sin, cold as ice. Nothing and no one gets to him. Ever. He’s a legend in his own right, the manager of the biggest rock band in the world, and an arrogant ass who looks down his nose at me.

I thought I’d give him hell for one, long flight. I didn’t expect to like him. I didn’t expect to want him. But the biggest surprise? He wants me too. Only in a way I didn’t see coming.

If I accept his proposal, I leave myself open to falling for the one man I can’t manage. But I’m tempted to say yes. Because the real man beneath those perfect suits and that cool façade just might be the best thing that’s ever happened to me. And I just might be the only one who can melt the ice around his heart.

Let the battle begin…

HATE AT FIRST SIGHT OVER A FIRST CLASS SEAT

Enemies to lovers are great but hate at first sight is even better. Especially when you’re forced to share your space with a bear. A sexy and Scottish one but a bear nonetheless. The antagonism between the main characters was the perfect playground for blazing chemistry. Super entertaining read!

The universe is conspiring against Ava Breevort. As if flying back to Phoenix to bury a childhood friend wasn’t hell enough, a cloud of volcanic ash traveling from overseas delayed her flight back home to Boston. Her last ditch attempt to salvage the trip was thwarted by an arrogant Scotsman, Caleb Scott, who steals a first class seat out from under her. Then over the course of their journey home, their antagonism somehow lands them in bed for the steamiest layover Ava’s ever had. And that’s all it was–until Caleb shows up on her doorstep.

When pure chance pulls Ava back into Caleb’s orbit, he proposes they enjoy their physical connection while he’s stranded in Boston. Ava agrees, knowing her heart’s in no danger since a) she barely likes Caleb and b) his existence in her life is temporary. Not long thereafter Ava realizes she’s made a terrible error because as it turns out Caleb Scott isn’t quite so unlikeable after all. When his stay in Boston becomes permanent, Ava must decide whether to fight her feelings for him or give into them. But even if she does decide to risk her heart on Caleb, there is no guarantee her stubborn Scot will want to risk his heart on her….

THE INMATE AND LIBRARIAN SECRET CORRESPONDENCE

Possibly the hottest letters I’ve read in a book. Cara McKenna writes the most unique settings and charaters in romance and erotica, Annie and Eric relationship growing under the bounds of their illicit letters was excruciatingly satisfying. All the details from Eric’s letters to Annie… Sigh. This book is brilliant, you need some Eric Collier in your life.

My pounding heart went still, eerie as birds fallen silent in the wake of a gunshot.

He was big. Tall frame, wide shoulders-but not burly. His near-black hair was due for a cut, curling under his ears. Dark brows, dark stubble, dark lashes and eyes.

And he was handsome. So handsome it broke your heart.

A deck of cards was split between his hands, paused midshuffle. Some of the men wore navy scrub tops and bottoms, some navy tee shirts, a few white undershirts. This man wore a tee, with COUSINS stenciled on the front, above the number 802267. Those digits imprinted on my brain, burned black as a brand.

He watched me. But not the way the others did. If he was trying to picture me naked, his poker face was strong, though his attention anything but subtle. His entire head moved as I passed through his domain, but his eyes were languorous. Lazy and half-lidded, yet intense. A hundred looks in one. I didn’t like it. Couldn’t read it. At least with the horny jerk-offs, I knew where I stood.

I wondered what the worst thing you could do and still only get sent to a medium-security prison was. I hoped not to ever learn the answer.

And I hoped to heaven inmate 802267 hadn’t signed up for any of the day’s programs.

CAPTURED BY THE VILLAIN WITH AN HEA

Being held captive and forced into marriage by a dark and tortured hero cannot possibly be the best thing to happen to Farah? Well… You must read this suspensful and sensual historical romance to find out. Kerrigan Byrne is amazing.

STEALING BEAUTY
Dorian Blackwell, the Blackheart of Ben More, is a ruthless villain. Scarred and hard-hearted, Dorian is one of London’s wealthiest, most influential men who will stop at nothing to wreak vengeance on those who’ve wronged him…and will fight to the death to seize what he wants. The lovely, still innocent widow Farah Leigh Mackenzie is no exception—and soon Dorian whisks the beautiful lass away to his sanctuary in the wild Highlands…

COURTING DESIRE
But Farah is no one’s puppet. She possesses a powerful secret—one that threatens her very life. When being held captive by Dorian proves to be the only way to keep Farah safe from those who would see her dead, Dorian makes Farah a scandalous proposition: marry him for protection in exchange for using her secret to help him exact revenge on his enemies. But what the Blackheart of Ben More never could have imagined is that Farah has terms of her own, igniting a tempestuous desire that consumes them both. Could it be that the woman he captured is the only one who can touch the black heart he’d long thought dead?

STRIKING A DEAL WITH THE DUKE

There’s no better playground to forced proximity than a good marriage of convenience trope! And when it’s a rom-com/historical by Tessa Dare you know you’re in for funny banter and all the swoons. 

Since his return from war, the Duke of Ashbury’s to-do list has been short and anything but sweet: brooding, glowering, menacing London ne’er-do-wells by night. Now there’s a new item on the list. He needs an heir—which means he needs a wife. When Emma Gladstone, a vicar’s daughter turned seamstress, appears in his library wearing a wedding gown, he decides on the spot that she’ll do.

His terms are simple:
– They will be husband and wife by night only.
– No lights, no kissing.
– No questions about his battle scars.
– Last, and most importantly… Once she’s pregnant with his heir, they need never share a bed again.

But Emma is no pushover. She has a few rules of her own:
– They will have dinner together every evening.
– With conversation.
– And unlimited teasing.
– Last, and most importantly… Once she’s seen the man beneath the scars, he can’t stop her from falling in love…

STUCK IN A CARRIAGE DURING A SNOWSTORM

Unrequited love, friends to lovers, virgin hero and forced proximity? Here’s another winning trope combo, penned by the one and only Tessa Dare. Her Historical Romances are uniquely witty, fun and sexy. Note to self: I need to make a list about virgins heroes.

A snowstorm hath no fury like a spinster scorned!

Miss Elinora Browning grew up yearning for the handsome, intelligent lord-next-door…but he left England without a word of farewell. One night, inspired by a bit too much sherry, Nora poured out her heartbreak on paper. Lord Dashwood Missed Outwas a love letter to every young lady who’d been overlooked by gentlemen—and an instant bestseller. Now she’s on her way to speak in Spindle Cove when snowy weather delays her coach. She’s forced to wait out the storm with the worst possible companion: Lord Dashwood himself.

And he finally seems to have noticed her.

George Travers, Lord Dashwood, has traveled the globe as a cartographer. He returned to England with the goal of marrying and creating an heir–only to find his reputation shredded by an audacious, vexingly attractive bluestocking and her poison pen. Lord Dashwood Missed Out, his arse. Since Nora Browning seems to believe he overlooked the passion of a lifetime, Dash challenges her to prove it.

She has one night.

SHARING A CARRIAGE BY DAY AND A BED BY NIGHT

Light, hilarious, smart and sexy as hell, A Week To Be Wicked was a definite page turner and reinforced my love for anything Tessa Dare. The heroine’s practical, sensible and logical manners are being challenged by the greatest rake ever during the most hilarious road trip ever read in Historical Romance. 

Minerva Highwood, one of Spindle Cove’s confirmed spinsters, needs to be in Scotland. Colin Sandhurst, Lord Payne, a rake of the first order, needs to be…anywhere but Spindle Cove.

These unlikely partners have one week to

• fake an elopement
• convince family and friends they’re in “love”
• outrun armed robbers
• survive their worst nightmares
• travel four hundred miles without killing each other

All while sharing a very small carriage by day and an even smaller bed by night.
What they don’t have time for is their growing attraction. Much less wild passion. And heaven forbid they spend precious hours baring their hearts and souls.
Suddenly one week seems like exactly enough time to find a world of trouble. And maybe . . . just maybe . . . love.

BLACKMAILED INTO MARRIAGE BY HER IMAGINARY FIANCÉ

A nerdy heroine gets stuck with her made up sweetheart… Except he’s not all that sweet, he’s a brutish highlander in the flesh! This one was a delight to read, once again Tessa Dare delivers all the fun and witty moments, the swoon and the STEAM. 

On the cusp of her first London season, Miss Madeline Gracechurch was shyly pretty and talented with a drawing pencil, but hopelessly awkward with gentlemen. She was certain to be a dismal failure on the London marriage mart. So Maddie did what generations of shy, awkward young ladies have done: she invented a sweetheart.

A Scottish sweetheart. One who was handsome and honorable and devoted to her, but conveniently never around. Maddie poured her heart into writing the imaginary Captain MacKenzie letter after letter … and by pretending to be devastated when he was (not really) killed in battle, she managed to avoid the pressures of London society entirely.

Until years later, when this kilted Highland lover of her imaginings shows up in the flesh. The real Captain Logan MacKenzie arrives on her doorstep—handsome as anything, but not entirely honorable. He’s wounded, jaded, in possession of her letters… and ready to make good on every promise Maddie never expected to keep.

MATING AN ALPHA TO ESCAPE… AN ALPHA

If you haven’t read Suzanne Wright yet and like PNR books with shifters, then you must read Feral Sins. She write crazy hot books about hella strong heroines being chased by domineering alphas.

When female wolf shifter Taryn Warner first encounters Trey Coleman, an alpha male wolf shifter with a dangerous reputation, she’s determined to resist his charms. After all, Trey—who was only fourteen when he defeated his own father in a duel, winning the right to be alpha of his pack—can’t have anything to offer the talented healer besides trouble, or so she thinks.

Taryn finds herself drawn in by Trey’s forceful demeanor and arctic-blue eyes, and she eventually agrees to enter an uneasy alliance with him. If the two succeed in convincing their respective packs that they’ve chosen each other as mates, Trey will win valuable political allies, while Taryn will escape an odious arranged mating.

But there are a lot of potential pitfalls to this plan—including the very real possibility that the wolf shifters, overwhelmed by their growing attraction to each other, will be unable to maintain the clear heads needed to pull off the deception.

MARRIED TO THE ENEMY

Forced marriage, marriage of convenience, hate to love you tropes in a fantasy world setting, this book is perfect for seekers of adventure, magic and romance. Finally a fantasy romance that is not YA! 

After three long years of war, starkly handsome Wynter Atrialan will have his vengeance on Summerlea’s king by taking one of the man’s beautiful, beloved daughters as his bride. But though peace is finally at hand, Wynter’s battle with the Ice Heart, the dread power he embraced to avenge his brother’s death, rages on.

Khamsin Coruscate, Princess of Summerlea and summoner of Storms, has spent her life exiled to the shadows of her father’s palace. Reviled by her father, marriage to Wintercraig’s icy king was supposed to be a terrible punishment, but instead offers Kham her first taste of freedom—and her first taste of overwhelming passion.

As fierce, indomitable Wynter weathers even Khamsin’s wildest storms, surprising her with a tenderness she never expected, Kham wants more than Wynter’s passion—she yearns for his love. But the power of the Ice Heart is growing, dangerous forces are gathering, and a devastating betrayal puts Khamsin and Wynter to the ultimate test.

CLAIMED BY A BARBARIAN KING

Suspend all disbelief and dive into this brilliant PNR, with characters inspired by GoT. Beautiful, violent, sweet, this is an fantastic story.

After three long years of war, starkly handsome Wynter Atrialan will have his vengeance on Summerlea’s king by taking one of the man’s beautiful, beloved daughters as his bride. But though peace is finally at hand, Wynter’s battle with the Ice Heart, the dread power he embraced to avenge his brother’s death, rages on.

Khamsin Coruscate, Princess of Summerlea and summoner of Storms, has spent her life exiled to the shadows of her father’s palace. Reviled by her father, marriage to Wintercraig’s icy king was supposed to be a terrible punishment, but instead offers Kham her first taste of freedom—and her first taste of overwhelming passion.

As fierce, indomitable Wynter weathers even Khamsin’s wildest storms, surprising her with a tenderness she never expected, Kham wants more than Wynter’s passion—she yearns for his love. But the power of the Ice Heart is growing, dangerous forces are gathering, and a devastating betrayal puts Khamsin and Wynter to the ultimate test.

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