It started out like any normal day. Then the fender bender happened. The guy I collided with drove an expensive car and was drop-dead gorgeous. Too bad he was also a total jerk. We argued over whose fault it was and any other thing that came out of his condescending mouth. Eventually, the police came and we went our separate ways. The insurance companies would have to figure things out. I had a job interview to get to anyway - one I was excited about. Though that excitement changed to disappointment the moment the person interviewing me walked in. The guy from the accident.

For Maleek Jones, hockey is his wife. Everything and everyone else is his mistress, an aside. When unexpected responsibilities land in his lap, the balance of his world is disrupted, changing the way he sees everything.

Getting dumped by her fiance right before the holidays was not how Meena imagined things would be. Embarrassed more than anything, she sucks it up and still visits home without her man, only to find out that her first love has been searching for her.

It’s that time of year again, and Zuriah Price is excited to go home to celebrate the holidays with her family. A native of Houston, Texas, Zuriah now lives in Chicago and is in her third year of internship to become an anesthesiologist, and things are going perfect. Great loft, an awesome career, and a doctor boyfriend, Zuriah has all she needs, and falling for another man is not on her Christmas wish list.

Life can be hard to navigate at times, but for Lazarus Mitchell, it’s been a constant battle. Marrying his high school sweetheart and putting his dreams on hold to help her fulfill hers, he kept pushing through life’s adversities in hopes of seeing better days. Throughout the journey, he realized that she didn’t have the tenacity he had or the wherewithal to look difficulty in the face and choose to overcome it.

Kaitlyn Collins has enough stress in her life without being forced to go to an educators' conference during her summer break, but she doesn't have a lot of choice in the matter. She's been struggling to figure out where her life is going, so she thinks maybe a weekend away may not be such a bad thing. A chance encounter and a warped sense of humor will shake her life up in ways she never saw coming. Taylor Ables thinks attending an educators' conference is a giant waste of time and money. She's happy with her life even though she's sworn off love after heart break a few years ago.

I never planned on returning to Alabama, but circumstances brought me here after years of being gone. Though Lawton Ridge is my hometown, I was hesitant to go back because of her - my sister’s best friend. The last time we were together, she was 18, and I was a broken soldier transitioning to civilian life. Gemma wrote to me while I was overseas and we developed a bond I hadn’t anticipated. I crushed her heart the day I left, something I’ve never forgotten. But now that her dad is my new boss, life just got way more complicated.

Songwriter, poet, and best-selling author Travis Hunter was named Author of the Year by readers of the Atlanta Daily World. In The Hearts of Men, a reformed player, a workaholic trying to overcome his past, and a faithful husband diagnosed with lung cancer all struggle to be the men they hope to be. But life and human frailty have a way of throwing stumbling blocks before the best of intentions.

In Kanai’s eyes, love was supposed to be simple. Quay mirrored the same sentiments, and once they revealed their true feelings for each other, they began to embark on a journey together. Suddenly, something they can’t quite comprehend happens leaving them lost, confused, and most of all saddened by their new reality. Words aren’t spoken, vacancies began to settle in, and resentment occurs, which causes the couple to live with unanswered concerns for years to come. Can Kanai and Quay push through the events that rocked their world...or will their love be lost forever?

Despite a tumultuous past, Sugar Alise Clark is determined to be successful. When she meets Dyna, owner and proprietor of Dymes Exotic Escort Service, she takes off down a path of easy money and fast living. Their friendship quickly sours when Sugar decides to branch out on her own. Sugar opens a gentleman’s club called Sugar Walls and becomes involved with a new love - who happens to be the father of her sister’s child. Sugar thinks she’s leaving her past behind to forge a better future.

After losing his wife to the streets, Roddy decides to move him and his family to Atlanta, Georgia. Swearing off love, he eventually falls for the beautiful socialite of Atlanta, Jia Love. With a combined three million followers across all her social media accounts, she’s that girl. Falling in love with her, he just wants to make her his wife, and a mother figure to his son and daughter. Except, Jia isn’t ready for all of that.

Eliana Barlow has spent years longing to be a mother. With six miscarriages, she is finally blessed with a beautiful baby girl through the loss of her best friend Porchea. The loss of her husband in the line of duty only two years later proves to Eliana that life can be cruel. Dealing with heartbreak in the midst of raising her daughter is no easy task, but Eliana manages to do it all with grace.

True friends are hard to come by, and even when you find them, it can be an all-or-nothing situation. Jada battles with being the glue that holds her group together, and she finds herself continuously stuck in the middle of her four girlfriends’ family and relationship drama. Together, the girls witness life and death, sticky situations, and the pros and cons of relationships. Their true dedication to their friendship is tried again and again, but there’s only so much a chick can take. Once each girl has reached her boiling point, there’s no telling who will get burned.

Kasim Moreland was totally unprepared to deal with Giselle Braxton. Not only was she out of his league, but the woman was brilliant. Every time Kasim thought he finally was ahead of her, she showed him that he wasn't. Checkmate. Giselle Braxton isn't looking for love or help. The 25-year-old multi-millionaire is simply focused on expanding her empire. In this self-titled novel from national best-selling author Nako, experience a woman who has everything but at the same time nothing at all.

Kennedi Westbrook has beaten all odds. Statistically, she was destined to be a failure. However, she proved statistics wrong by becoming a sought-after psychiatrist and owner of Healthy Minds, a counseling and psychiatric practice in downtown Atlanta. To many, she is the personification of a perfect woman, only because no one knows of her greatest affliction...her mental illness.

Milan Brooks, a fashion buyer with a chip on her shoulder, has been through her share of cheating, disrespectful men. In most people’s books, she’d be rated a true dime, but she still hasn’t been lucky enough to find a loyal man. When a chance encounter with a childhood friend turns into a promising relationship, Milan thinks things might be different this time. Unfortunately, her younger sister steps in with plans of her own.

Songwriter, poet, and best-selling author Travis Hunter was named Author of the Year by readers of the Atlanta Daily World. In The Hearts of Men, a reformed player, a workaholic trying to overcome his past, and a faithful husband diagnosed with lung cancer all struggle to be the men they hope to be. But life and human frailty have a way of throwing stumbling blocks before the best of intentions.

In Married But Still Looking, a handsome young bachelor struggles to give up his appetite for casual sex when he finally proposes to the woman of his dreams.

Expect the unexpected. That's what they say, but it's easier said than done. How do you expect a change so huge it rocks you to your core? How do you prepare yourself for an event that will alter your life forever? One breath. One second. One minute. One hour. One day at a time, you learn to live with your unexpected reality.

When I said, "I do," I meant it for life. When he said, "I do," he didn't mean it at all. Divorced and single, I'm ready to find true love. When a business deal requires me to create an online dating account, I find myself drawn to Mister_Mystery. He's not looking for love. I'm not looking for another lie.

The night Jennifer Monroe meets Vance Etienne, the father of a young woman in her life, she knows he's her one. But somehow, she finds herself thinking of the past with her ex-husband more often than she should. There's no doubt about what Vance and Jennifer feel for one another. Can they let the hurt of the past go to focus on their future? Will their pasts be willing to release them from its grasps to pursue an intentional and all-consuming love?

Momma's Baby Daddy's Maybe is an Essence best seller by popular author Jamise L. Dames. This steamy tale revolves around the lives of the three Jacobs siblings: wild Kennedy, corporate Simone, and handsome Derrick.

Aja James hasn't had it easy. She has kept a close watch over her siblings ever since tragedy robbed them of their parents. Tired of carrying the weight of the world on her shoulders, Aja is ready for a change. Her best friend, Roxie, knows just what to do - she sets Aja up on a date with one of the most sought-after bachelors in town, handsome sportscaster Charles Clayton. Charles is everything Aja has ever dreamed of - sensitive, sexy, and charming. But "happily ever after" isn't that simple.

When Dwight Wilson is offered a big promotion, the wrinkle is he must move from Florida to Maryland. Although Dwight accepts the job, his wife Tracey decides to remain in their new Florida home. Try as they might, their relationship ends in divorce, and Dwight eventually marries co-worker Alicia Dixon. And that’s when Tracey comes back into the picture—with some rather surprising news.

I’ve kissed a lot of frogs, just to be covered in warts. I’ve been lied to, cheated on, and used more times than I can count. I don’t have it in me to keep going. I need a break from it all. I need time for the wounds to heal, and the scars to fade. Wouldn’t you know it’s my luck to meet a gorgeous man after declaring my self-imposed break? He’s charming, sexy, and determined to change my mind.