It was a heat-of-the-moment agreement scribbled onto the back of a crinkled gas station receipt nine years ago. "If neither of us is married by age 30, we'll marry each other." Haha! So funny! Cash moved to a city 500 miles away, built his billion-dollar empire, and made a name for himself. Me? I stayed in our gossipy hometown, working a simple job and living a simple life. And we never discussed the marriage pact again. But I just turned the big three-oh, and Cash showed up at my door in the middle of a freaking rainstorm.

I'm Karli Brighton, reigning Queen of Epic Screw-Ups. With twelve med school rejection letters burning a hole in my back pocket, I'm back in my quirky hometown for the summer. Grumpy and shame-faced, I'm not exactly in the mood to make new friends. Having a wild one-night stand with the charming pretty boy I meet at a local bar to feel better about myself? Probably not the smartest idea. But I take comfort in knowing that I'll never see the gorgeous stranger again. Until he strolls into my family home one hour later.

When I charged up those courthouse steps to stop Sera's wedding, I didn't exactly have a plan. But there was no way I was letting my best friend's little sister marry some no-good tool who didn't deserve her. Let's just say things got out of control. Fast. Now, the wedding is off. And Sera is crushed. And I'm just trying to be a good friend. "Come stay at my place until you're back on your feet." "Have some tequila; it'll ease the pain." And "What're a few much-needed orgasms between friends?"

I should have fired Eliza Jenkins the night she overstepped her qualifications in a high-profile client meeting. Or the time she called me stuffy, uptight, and grumpy to my face. But it's her luscious mouth, her chocolate eyes, and her voluptuous curves that really drive me crazy. So I send her packing, pink slip in hand. My company is better off without the mouthy firecracker anyway. At least, that's what I've been trying to believe. Except now, a multi-million dollar deal is on the line, and she's the only one who can help me save it. I've got a new assignment for Ms. Sassy. Be my fake wife.

You want to know the secret to everlasting happiness? Never fall in love. That was the wisdom my father imparted to us James boys after our mom died, and it’s a piece of advice that’s served me well. Until dear old Dad asks me for a favor over Sunday brunch. No big deal, right? I love making my old man happy. Except this “favor” is a lot more complicated than picking up his dry cleaning. Dad wants me to marry and provide a few heirs for the James empire, and he’s even done me the courtesy of handpicking my bride-to-be. Lucky me.

From the first time I meet Leo Montgomery, I know I'm in trouble. His dark, heated gaze skittering down my body sets my skin on fire. A rare sighting of his elusive, heart-stopping smile and - dear lord - I think I just ovulated. But then, he hires me to babysit his adorable little troublemaker after school, and now, my maternal instincts are working overtime.

It was supposed to be a regular day out. Three couples celebrating the last days of summer. When tragedy struck. I thought I was going to marry her. Instead, I was burying her. I blamed the world for my pain. I buried it all. I became a man I didn’t even recognize.

Six years ago, Maria Romano got her birthday wish—a kiss from Enzo Costa. A man she could never take her eyes off, but who seemed as haunted as her favorite book boyfriends and strictly off-limits. Just one unforgettable moment in the dark and then he was gone. Now Maria is a divorced single mom, moving on and open to romance again. Fatefully, it’s with the new head chef at her sister’s restaurant: Enzo. A gentler man than the one she remembers, yet fire still burns. And a warning still lingers: don’t get too close.

Whip King cannot be the man for me. Cocky, pierced firefighters are perfect for late-night rom-coms, but in real life they’re nothing but trouble. Especially when you find out they work for your dad—after you’ve already slept with them. Moving to my parents’ small town was supposed to be the fresh start I was looking for. When a disastrous Valentine’s Day leads to an unexpected encounter with a sexy stranger, and ends with the hottest night of my life, I didn’t think I would ever see Whip again.

Someone is stalking Audrey Young. And she has no idea why. Complicating matters is her landlord and new neighbor, Josiah Haven. She doesn’t usually go for the big, surly lumberjack type. But there’s something about that broody man. He intimidates her a little, but she kind of likes it. She could totally handle the mess that is her life, except the strange feeling of being watched is just the beginning. Next thing Audrey knows, she’s a target, and she doesn’t know who’s behind it or why. For Josiah Haven, none of that makes her his problem.

I’ve been in love with Bridger Blackwell for as long as I can remember. He’s a smoke show, kind, and gives the best hugs in the world. But best of all? He’s everything my sorry excuse for a father wasn’t. Now, I’m back in Bitterroot Valley, living across the street from Bridger and his adorable daughter. It doesn’t take long for all those old feelings to come rushing back, and every cell in my body knows that I belong with them. That they’re mine. Bridger’s arms are where I feel safest. They feel like home. I’m growing to depend on him, to truly love him and his daughter.

I’ve always been a wild card–the first to start a fight on the ice, and the life of the party off it–but appearances can be deceiving. Being traded to the Boston Rebels could not have come at a better time. With serious family obligations to fulfill and a contract renewal with a new hockey team on the line, I have no time for anything else. I return to Boston knowing I need to buckle down and focus on what really matters.

Demi Crawford was Magnolia Falls royalty. I was the boxer from the wrong side of the tracks. She was the epitome of everything good, while I was broody and rebellious. We couldn’t be more different. Her family was enemy number one which made her guilty by association. I despised her before I even knew her. It was easier that way. But now she’d moved in next door to me, and she was everywhere I turned. I couldn’t avoid her no matter how hard I tried. She was beautiful and honest and sweet. Everything I knew I shouldn’t want. Shouldn’t need.

It didn’t take long for news to spread that Tagger Grange was back in Peachtree Pass. I found out even faster when I fell right into his arms—not by choice. The barstool wobbled under me when reaching for a cheddar biscuit. They’re my weakness. Much like he used to be. Rolled up sleeves and tailored pants have replaced the boots and jeans my brother’s best friend once wore. But it’s not just the clothes that have changed. His shoulders are broader and he’s broodier. Somehow, he's even more handsome than ever.

Unhinged. Charming. Dangerous. The brother of the man I’m prosecuting and now my stalker. I didn’t know Eoghan O’Rourke was a lawyer for the Irish Mob when I tried to put his brother in jail. And I shouldn’t have gotten drunk and yelled at him. I certainly shouldn’t have gone home with him. But I needed to get rid of my V-Card and a gorgeous mafia man who would never fall for a curvy womanlike me is the perfect one and done. Boy, was I wrong. Eoghan turns obsessed, jealous, and unhinged. I’m a prosecutor. He’s a criminal. We have nothing in common.