American Short

In Crush, three of today’s hottest romance authors offer tempting tales about crushes that compel women to risk it all for love. In Wanted: You by Lutishia Lovely features a man receiving erotic letters at his place of employment that shock his assistant. In White Mocha by Michele Grant, a woman who’s normally conservative about romance gets all fired up after enjoying an eyeful of a handsome coffee shop owner. And Cydney Rax’s From One Lover to Another stars a woman who shows her badgirl side when her ex refuses to take no for an answer.

"In almost any culture, at any time, you can find food writing,” writes guest editor Mark Bittman in his introduction. “Food means growing and hardship, and health and medicine, and work and holiday. In its abundance it is a gift and a joy, and in its absence a curse and a tragedy. If a culture has writing, that culture has food writing.” The stories in this year’s Best American Food Writing are brilliant, eye-opening windows into the heart of our country’s culture.

Did she make a deal with the devil? Or will the forbidden fruit be worth every bite? RAYA: I thought I had finally put my troubled past behind me. Moving from Texas to Orange County, I reinvented myself and quickly became the star bartender at Sweet Cocktails, thanks to my secret recipe for raspberry martinis. But everything changed when an undercover agent revealed my secret ingredient comes from the private land of Maxwell Evans, a reclusive billionaire with dangerous ties to a drug cartel. Now, I'm caught in a web of deception, forced to spy on Maxwell in exchange for keeping my secret ...

A woman fleeing a horrible fate. A lonely man yearning for love. Brought together by a twist of fate, will they find a Christmas miracle? After her mother died, Pansy Robbins’ life changed forever. Forced to cater to the whims of her step-sisters, ignored by her step-father, and pitied by the servants and staff, she has no one to turn to. Neither mistress nor maid in their stately Savannah, Georgia home, Pansy lives caught in limbo. When an unwanted engagement is arranged for her, Pansy escapes Savannah to find a new home in Colorado. But when she arrives in the town of Hidden Pines, ...

All is well with longshoreman Uncle Eddie, kindhearted Aunt Beatrice and live-in niece Catherine until the secret guests from Italy arrive and Uncle Eddie turns from generous and welcoming to jealous, difficult and self-serving resulting in disastrous encounters and dark consequences, as a Greek modern tragedy. The story is set in working-class 1950s Brooklyn, in the Red Hook neighborhood with “a view from the bridge.” The book is the prose version of Arthur Miller’s 1955 play and it is perfect for a pleasant and intensive reading. It comes with an introduction, with notes and ...

Burri is a fashion designer and icon with a biochemistry background. Her latest pieces are African inspired and crafted to touch the heart. They enable wearers to absorb nanorobotic memories and recount the stories of Black lives and forgiveness. Wenda doesn’t buy it. A protest performance artist, Wenda knows exploitation when she sees it. What she’s going to do with Burri’s breakthrough technology could, in the right hands, change race relations forever.

As a former slave and civil war fighter, Tom Freeman knew nothing but violence. All his life he fought and was tired of it. He sought for peace in the wilderness of America away from civilization. When he goes to a Native American tribe to trade, he comes across them fighting a group of bandits and assists defending them. For his bravery, the chief offers him a place in the tribe and a wife. This short erotic interracial romance is 2,200 words long and is for mature audiences.

When Erica Shelton's dreams of a corporate promotion fall through, she makes an impulsive cross-country move and buys a run-down bed-and-breakfast-inn needing extensive renovations. She immediately clashes with the rugged local contractor she hires, Remy Wallace. But as attraction simmers below the sparring, Remy comes to Erica's rescue in a dangerous crisis. In nursing her back to health, secrets surface about Remy's past heartbreak that makes him resistant to love again. Can these opposites find common ground, forgive the past, and build a joyful future together in Erica's adopted small ...

Relentless is the fifteenth novella in the ongoing story of the Andersen family. Livia Andersen was a woman who held her family together with a quiet smile and an iron will. It’s been months since her death and her children and grandchildren she leaves behind continue to grapple with the shifting changes in their lives now that she’s gone. Some look back at what else has been lost to them. Chris Andersen is looking forward with anticipation to the future spread that's out in front of him…one that he didn’t expect. But he is also looking behind him at what was lost and never ...

What happens when everything around you seems perfect - your family, your health, your social status, your overall life - but all of a sudden something threatens to tear it all apart and rob you of what you've always known? This type of thing happens to many people, every day, from all walks of life. Some are able to get over it and go on with their lives. But others are not so fortunate. They find themselves stuck in their own meltdown of loss, hurt, and pain. Such is the situation in Marita L. Kinney's latest novel.

Trapped in the clutches of a Zombie apocalypse, the City of Chicago, the murder capital of the U.S., unleashes the ultimate weapon, capitalism, by paying $1,000 for every Re-Killed Zombie brought to city hall, ushering in "The Great Zombie Gold Rush". Zombies never have a chance in a world where people realize 75 Zombies pays off their student loans, 40 Zombies buys them a Tesla, 5 Zombies wipes out their Visa debt...

Previously published as Deadly Secrets: Hidden Guilt by Madalena Melchior. SECRET GUILT London, 1905. Under the pretext of retrieving some books he has left behind at Number 221B, Sherlock Holmes temporarily trades his small farm upon the Downs, five miles from Eastbourne, and his beehives, for Baker Street. Before he has time to unpack his Gladstone, however, there's already a client at the door asking for his help with a case. So much for retirement...

What would Christmas be without a little Seduction? Two complete strangers enter a whirlwind of mind-blowing sex leading up to Christmas. Hot, steamy, and all so sensual is what you will get as these two strangers ignite a burning flame within. What happens when a gift neither of them expects arise? Will they make the best of the situation or will one of them run scared from what could be the best Christmas gift ever?

★★ Fall in love with clean, wholesome, and cozy small-town romance, filled with delightful characters and brimming with joy! ★★ Savor the magic of romance in the complete collection of Josie Riviera’s 1-800 home-flipping series. SIX clean, sweet, and wholesome contemporary romances—exclusively in one giant collection. Small-town romance at its best. Cozy up with your favorite beverage and lose yourself in these delightful stories. This collection includes the following 6 books:1-800-CUPID A house flipper looking for quick profit. A survivor with a dream. Can two broken hearts ...

Nursing a broken heart days before her cousin wedding leaves Aurora questioning her worth. It's a good thing her best friend has her best intentions at heart. While on this trip, they encounter miscommunication of their lips. What happens at the reception indeed stays at the reception, right? Well, Malcolm has been in love with his best friend for over a decade. While her ex tries to sneak his way back into her heart, he takes his chance. Will their forbidden relationship be tested during the holiday, or will they return to being friends for a happily ever after? This holiday novella is a ...

A boy searches for his father, a prison guard, on Sakhalin Island. In Barcelona, a woman is tasked with spying on a prizefighter who may or may not be her estranged son. A samurai escorts an orphan to his countrymen in the Edo Period. A formerly incarcerated man starts a new life in a small town in upstate New York and attempts to build a family. The Hive and the Honey is a “virtuosic” (Vanity Fair) collection by celebrated author Paul Yoon, one that portrays the vastness and complexity of diasporic communities, with each story bringing to light the knotty inheritances of their characters.

An incident at a TSA security check point sows chaos and rumors, creating a chain of events that impacts twelve young Asian Americans in a crowded and restless airport. As their disrupted journeys crisscross and collide, they encounter fellow travelers—some helpful, some hostile—as they discover the challenges of friendship, the power of courage, the importance of the right word at the right time, and the unexpected significance of a blue Stratocaster electric guitar.

A Lover's Embrace 2 by Skyy: Rayne has a new attitude. After taking six months to travel, Rayne is coming back to Memphis with a new job, a new love, and a new outlook on life. But coming home means coming back to the reality that she left behind. Can she stay strong in the presence of the man who turned her world upside down? Or will she fall back into the disastrous routine that made her run away to begin with?

Following in the footsteps of its successful predecessors, Around the Way Girls Seven showcases three popular Urban Books authors and their versions of some very tough, street-smart girls. Nina and Mouse are a couple just trying to survive the hater nation. Only problem is Nina's a little paranoid when it comes to other women, and Mouse is usually guilty as charged. Fed up with Mouse's cheating, Nina begins to creep a little herself, but will her revenge blow up in her face?

The Last Defender of Camelot is a collection of breathtaking stories that showcase the incredible abilities of several authors. Edited and with an introduction by award-winning author Robert Silverberg, it includes such tales as For a Breath I Tarry, and Halfjack. It also features the Hugo Award-winning 24 Views of Mt. Fuji, by Hokusai, Permafrost, and Home is the Hangman. From Publishers Weekly Though SF "master of prose technique" and "paragon of the storytelling art" (in the introductory words of Robert Silverberg, himself a certified luminary) Roger Zelazny died in 1995, collections of ...