Detective Eve Bennet takes a steadying breath as she enters the main bedroom of the Tanners’ modest home in the tight-knit town of Hilldale. Mrs Tanner’s high-collared nightgown and her long plaited blonde hair are soaked in blood. Next to her, Mr Tanner’s hands are clasped together in a final prayer.

I lie to one of the city's most ruthless men—and it feels so good. Deception is a drug, and I'm quickly becoming an addict. Each time we speak, Zuko has no idea it's me. The lie tastes sweet leaving my mouth. I couldn't stop now, even if I wanted to—which I don't. He thinks our conversations are more than just sex. He's wrong. The intimacy he feels is all a facade. Until the day an embodiment of my darkest fantasies walks into my bar, and his unmistakable voice sends a shiver down my spine. It turns out I'm not the one in control.

I have a simple plan. Finish Royal Elite School and get into my dream university. One glance from the school’s king blows my plan up in smoke. One glance and he suffocates my air. One glance and he issues his death sentence. His first words spiral my life into irreparable chaos. “I will destroy you.” Everything about Aiden King is black. Black mind. Black heart. Black soul. I should’ve remained quiet and endured the time I have left. I didn’t. I made the irrevocable mistake of provoking the king on his throne.

The Men of Inked Heatwave series is filled with protective men, sassy women, and lots of heat. Get lost in the wildly popular family saga featuring tattooed bad boys, rowdy and lovable bikers, family dinners, and so much more.

Tasha Taggart isn't a spy. That's her sisters' job. Tasha's support role is all about keeping them alive, playing referee when they fight amongst themselves, and soothing the toughest boss in the world—their father. Working for the CIA isn't as glamorous as she imagined, and she's more than a little lonely. So when she meets a charming man in a bar, she decides to give in to temptation. The night was perfect until she discovers she's just slept with the target of their new investigation. Her sisters will never let her hear the end of this.

I watched him in high school; I knew his reputation. I knew he was wealthy, privileged, and mean. He ran the show back then, a partier and a player. Then he came back from college, back to the town I never left. He’s different now. He comes into the bar, and I know his routine. I know which stool he’ll pick. I know his favorite drink. I know which sports team he’ll want on the television screen. And I watch as he gets hit on. Sometimes he leaves the bar with a woman. Sometimes he doesn’t. But I’m always there, tending to his drinks. He gives me a smile and a polite nod back.

He walked into school on his first day and owned it. I guess that's what happens when you're a prick, rich, and you're best friends with the ruling school's king. Also didn't hurt that he's drop-dead gorgeous. That's all fine. I mean, I have nothing to do with them. I'm a loner, invisible, and that's how I wanted it to be. I was even proud of it, until I wasn't. His name is Blaise Devroe. My name is Aspen Monson. He only knew how to get, command, and demand attention. I knew how to do everything but that. And this is our story.

Charming, captivating, seductive—and a cold-blooded killer. I married the Pakhan of the Russian Bratva anyway. I had to, it was part of the deal. Now, I’m faking marital bliss as I tremble with fear, and I cannot wait to be out of the clutches of this ruthless man.

After a horrible marriage, Haggard has zero plans of ever finding a woman again. One-night stands not counting, he adores his life as a single man. There are no expectations. No "where are yous" and "are you coming homes". The life he chooses to live is a simple one. Until he makes a huge mistake, and he steps over that line between "daughter’s best friend" and "a woman he desperately wants". Before long, he can’t stop thinking about her. Can’t stop wanting her. Can’t stop feeling things for her that a man 20 years her senior should never feel for a girl he watched grow up.

Wes Silver wasn’t looking for love, but when July Mayson literally knocks him on his ass during their first encounter, his world is turned upside down by the quirky blonde, and every moment with her makes him more determined to protect her. July Mayson doesn’t understand the pull she feels toward bad-boy biker Wes Silver, but she knows being with him is like nothing she’s ever felt before. Now all she has to do is tell her overprotective father, Asher Mayson, that she’s found her boom.

The problem with Wake was that he was understandable. He was the type of villain who literally scared the absolute shit out of you because you knew that under the right circumstances, you could end up exactly like him.

Nick Hudson has a dangerous reputation. That's what I need if I'm going to survive. Desperation makes me seek out a ruthlessly powerful billionaire. I need protection. He demands my virtue as payment. I’m falling into a world of luxury and sin. With every twist and turn, I need more. Except this is not a man to love. This is a man to fear. His obsession grows. So does the threat, until I'm trapped in a world of depravity. I'll need more than Nick's strength to survive. I'm going to need his heart.

Belles and Mobsters were never meant to be together. And I still fell in love with him, only to be torn apart. Lesson learned.

I specifically told the agency I wanted a male dog walker. She’s way too leggy. That’s the problem. And young. And naïve. I got no business letting her stay in my guesthouse, especially the way my blood runs south whenever she’s near. In another lifetime, I might’ve pursued her but I suck at relationships.

Navy SEAL Calvin Cooper is on his way to Silicon Valley to purchase a drone from a backyard inventor. He has an almost-encounter in Monterey with Libby Brownlee, who has taken a semester off from grad school to tour the Monterey Bay Aquarium.