I never expected my best friend's little sister to become the one I craved, but it happened anyway. In the beginning, we were both young, then she was too young, and then suddenly...she wasn't. Unfortunately for me, things got complicated, so I took off, but this girl? She followed....

Dancing on bar tops means the night is going great. Exiting the bar hauled over the shoulder of Heston University's infamous hockey captain? Not my idea of a good time. But my would-be knight would have to do. I needed an escape route from my brother… his biggest rival. Easton Blake is the perfect reminder of why I avoid hockey players. Cocky. Frustratingly sexy. Accustomed to every girl in his orbit falling for his charm. With his sultry smile that tells me he knows all the ways to make girls come undone with his touch, I'm almost the next score on his stats.

Bastian Bishop. That’s his name. He’s rough, rugged, and utterly unpredictable. He’s not cautious or contemplative. He’s a volcano. Silent and steady one second, and a nightmare in the next. But that’s not the worst of it. This guy? He’s an outsider, and in my world outsiders don’t belong.

For years, I've dreamt of what college life could bring, and while some things changed, there was always one constant. It didn't matter how wild I allowed my imagination to run, it always led me to the same place in the end. It led me to him. My future was clear, and he was it. Until suddenly, he wasn't. Now there's a new man in my life, one who isn't afraid to go after what he wants, and what he wants...is me.

Lila James is my best friend’s little sister, and I’ve always looked out for her. She's five years younger than me, and when she left for college, she was just a kid. But now she’s home for the summer—and she’s definitely not a kid anymore.

When a chance encounter sparks an unlikely bond between rival murderers Sloane and Rowan, the two find something elusive—the friendship of a like-minded, pitch-black soul. From small-town West Virginia to upscale California, from downtown Boston to rural Texas, the two hunters collide in an annual game of blood and suffering, one that pits them against the most dangerous monsters in the country.

Zanders: Chicago hockey isn't complete without me—everyone's favorite player to hate. I know my role, and I play it well. In fact, I thoroughly enjoy spending the majority of my game time in the penalty box before leaving the arena with a new girl on my arm each night. What I don't like is the new flight attendant on our team's private plane. She works for me, not the other way around. But I'll be sure to remind her of that, and I can guarantee, by the end of the season, she'll be begging to quit her job.

The headline says it all, and my bosses are over the moon when the opportunity of a lifetime lands in my lap. Of course, they aren’t aware that I’ve already met Vince Cool at an all-star gala—and that we were at each other’s throats the entire time.

I’m a full time single dad. A former NFL player turned coach, tasked with turning around a college team full of kids who either don’t take it seriously or are determined to get injured. I will absolutely not be falling for my new neighbor.

Barrington University is home of the Lords, a secret society that requires their blood in payment. They are above all—the most powerful men in the world. They devote their lives to violence in exchange for power. And during their senior year, they are offered a chosen one.

When Ella Henshaw agrees to attend the annual Bite the Ice party at Laker House with her best friend, she knows it's a bad idea. Especially, since it’s a hockey party, and she swore off hockey players a long time ago. Enter Connor Morgan. Handsome. Confident. With enough persistence to wear down even the most stubborn heart, he’s determined to win over the girl he hurt in freshman year.

Logan and Taylor head to Hawaii for their own getaway. What happens there was supposed to "stay" there, but when James decides to disrupt the entire family with his latest scandal, all the secrets start coming out. Mason's getting a call. Nate takes a trip. There might be some dogs and alpacas involved too. Either way, it's a holiday to be remembered for the Fallen Crest family!

After failing my last semester of grad school, I decided to come back to my hometown and wallow in my boyfriend’s sympathetic arms. Instead, he proceeded to dump me...for being boring! Now, I'm not typically a spiteful person, but there's only so much I can take. Hence why I’m holding the box of his most cherished possessions...stolen possessions no less!

When I discover my boyfriend is cheating on me, I move out right away taking what I love most – my dog. As I fly out the door, I make sure to swipe the thing my ex loves best–the VIP tickets he won to a hockey game, complete with the chance to spend an evening with the city’s two biggest NHL stars. I can’t wait to snap selfies with my ex’s idols and rub it in his face.

I thought my invitation was a birthday present from my best friend. The dress, the limousine, the red carpet...I thought they were meant for me. That was mistake number one. Then my date arrives, all gleaming cufflinks and tousled hair, steely blue eyes, and a body honed to masculine precision. Arrogant. Charming. Panty-melting. And melt, they do. Hanky-panky with a rich hottie in the back room of the event I'm crashing? Don't mind if I do.

Haunted by the responsibility of caring for her troubled family, Maya Jacobs gave the only answer she could when Cameron asked her to marry him. Years later, entrenched in a soulless professional routine, she distracts herself from the lingering regret of her decision with a "work hard, play hard" lifestyle that guarantees no man will ever find his way into her heart again.

I'm a rescuer. It's in my DNA. Stray dogs. Stray women... But this one doesn't need rescuing. She needs something real, but I never keep the ones I rescue. I could let her go...but I can't watch her walk away. I'm an ex-Navy SEAL, and I never give up on a mission.

Mia Saunders needs money. A lot of money. She has one year to pay off the loan shark who has threatened her father's life and is coming after his unpaid gambling debts. One million dollars to be exact. Her mission is simple - serve as a high-priced escort for her aunt's Los Angeles-based company and pay monthly against the debt. Spend a month with a rich man whom she doesn't have to sleep with if she doesn't want to? Easy money. Unlucky in love with a spirit that never gives up, this curvy motorcycle-riding vixen plans to get in, make her money, and get out.

Determined to overcome a difficult past, Erica Hathaway learns early on how to make it on her own. Days after her college graduation, she finds herself face to face with a panel of investors who will make or break her fledgling startup. The only thing she didn't prepare for was going weak in the knees over an arrogant and gorgeous investor who's seemingly determined to derail her presentation.

Corbin: I loved my grandma, but I don't need her money. All I care about is keeping the house - the only place that's ever felt like home. That, and screwing over my dad, who wants to turn the property into a mall. There's only one catch: to receive my inheritance, I have to get married within six months. Me, the guy who's never dated a girl for more than six minutes. Now I need to find a woman I can trust. So when I'm rear-ended by a Prius, I figure it's a sign that I'm supposed to meet gorgeous, down-to-earth Teagan Monroe.

Presley Cabot has come a long way from the overweight, awkward college student who fell hard for the gorgeous track star, Nolan Banks, only to be humiliated after their one night together. Now, she’s one of the billionaire badass owners of LWW Enterprises and has everything she’d ever wanted in life, leaving her past behind. But when Nolan comes back into town and doesn’t even recognize the girl he once destroyed, she decides to invoke her own personal revenge. But she never planned on getting caught up in old feelings...and new promises....

Twenty-three year old model Charley Whitlock built a quiet life for herself after disaster struck four years ago. She hides beneath her beautiful mask, never revealing her true self to the world... until she comes face-to-face with her new photographer - sexy, possessive Jude Anderson. It's clear from the first time she meets him that she's playing by his rules. He says jump, she asks how high. He tells her to unzip her cream Dior gown; she knows she has to comply.

Evie and Leo met in foster care as children and formed a bond of friendship. As they grew, their bond turned to love, and they vowed to make a life together when they turned 18 and were no longer a part of the system.

Sex. That's all Noah Foster wants when Alexa Jackson shows up at his apartment. After returning from a semester in Paris, Alexa is back in her hometown of Boston and looking for anything but the drama that surrounds Noah. He's intense, gifted, famous, and a bastard through and through. Alexa doesn't take life too seriously. Noah doesn't do calm and easygoing. Their unexpected meeting sets them both on a course toward an unlikely connection.

From New York Times best-selling author Kim Karr comes a flirty new love story. The whole stethoscope-and-white coat thing isn't my cup of tea. I prefer a man with an artistic vein in his body and 9-to-5 hours. And I can definitely do without the half-lidded, sleepy bedroom eyes. (Okay, so those are kind of sexy.) Tall, dark, and handsome doesn't change the fact that he's arrogant, cocky, and rude. Not that I care, but he's made it clear he wants nothing to do with a quirky girl like me, which is why he said no. Turns out no isn't an option.

I think for sure it must've been a dream because there's no way a guy could look like that, touch me like that, and be so in tune with me on every known level and disappear, leaving me with nothing but a good story to tell my friends. When he walks into my bar three months later, everything I thought I knew and what we'd had disappears in the blink of an eye and the blinding light of the three-carat diamond on his fiancee's hand.

They say it happens when you least expect it. It did for me. It started the moment I saw the simple message pop up on my computer screen: Cameron’s Mac: Hi. And when I met the eyes of the gorgeous man messaging me from across the coffee shop, I never thought my reply would lead to the most intense, sexual, and passionate relationship of my life. We both agreed to check our bags at the door and put our future hopes and aspirations on the table. It worked. I fell in love with his no-holds-barred attitude, sexy smirk, and undeniably good heart...and for a while we forgot about our baggage.

For the first time in my life, I'm living for myself - not for my parents and their ridiculous expectations. I gave up on my MBA, dropped out of the Ivy League, and moved to Portland to pursue my dream of becoming an artist. And what's the first thing I do? Get knocked up. For a tatted-up sex god, Braxton Henley seems way too eager to "be there for me". Is this guy serious? Maybe. He sure is patient. Because he won't back down until I admit what I know in my heart: that our one-night stand might've led me to the one.

As one of the big names at his family's gym, Legends, MMA star Rory Kavanagh is used to being in the spotlight - until a gruesome leg injury knocks him out of the cage. Rory is left feeling sidelined in more ways than one, battling the inner demons that come with losing the one shot at his dreams. Then Clare walks into his life and gives him a new dream: winning her heart. There aren't many new faces in Woodlawn these days, but this tough, beautiful stranger makes Rory want to get his life back into fighting shape.

Kady Dresco and Colton Brooks click on a level that defies logic. There are only two problems. One, he's her older brother's irritating best friend, and two, they're bidding on the same military security services contract. When the competition heats up, Colton is torn between wanting to strangle Kady (and her annoying brilliance) and kissing her into submission. Which is a bad idea for a million reasons, because Kady's submission is exactly what he craves.

Fake. That's what we are. That's what we agreed to be. So why does it feel so real? I thought it would have been harder, convincing everyone our school's star receiver was mine and mine alone, but I was wrong. We played our parts so well that the lines between us began to blur until they disappeared completely. The thing about pretending, though, is that someone's always better at it, and by the time I realized my mistake, there was no going back.

I'm a Monet. A chameleon. And what I must be is a flawless daughter, a skilled socialite, and the perfect prize to the man who signed along the dotted line. Not that I'm complaining. I'm all for a contractual agreement, a quick and clean catapult into the next phase of rich girl life. One that takes little thought, less effort, and zero devotion. It's exactly what I want. Or, it was until the lights went out, darkness took over, and I learned what it meant to live.

Bastian Bishop. That’s his name. He’s rough, rugged, and utterly unpredictable. He’s not cautious or contemplative. He’s a volcano. Silent and steady one second, and a nightmare in the next. But that’s not the worst of it. This guy? He’s an outsider, and in my world outsiders don’t belong.

From USA Today and Wall Street Journal best-selling author Meagan Brandy comes an all-new stand-alone romance set in college about a hotshot pitcher and the girl he never saw coming.

"Girls like you aren't exactly welcomed at a place like this, so keep your head down and look the other way." Those were the exact words of my social worker when she dropped me in my newest hellhole, a place for "troubled teens". I didn't listen, and now I'm on their radar. Too bad for them, I don't follow rules. Too bad for me, they're determined to make sure I do. Inconceivably attractive and treated like kings...these are the boys of Brayshaw High.

They say to keep your enemies close, but "they" never had to deal with the likes of Alec Daniels, the broody bad boy next door who loved to make my life a living nightmare...up until the day he disappeared. See, Alec was a thief. He stole my happy. My sanity. My first kiss. I told myself I was glad the day he went away, and I'm reminded of why not five minutes after his sudden and unexpected return. Now he stands before me with a heavy glare and hard body. But those greedy green eyes, they're darker than I remember, and brimming with a secret....

I never expected my best friend's little sister to become the one I craved, but it happened anyway. In the beginning, we were both young, then she was too young, and then suddenly...she wasn't. Unfortunately for me, things got complicated, so I took off, but this girl? She followed....

"You will go to Rathe University, live among the giftless and those of light magic. You, Knight Deveraux, will learn to coexist." I've never heard more wasted words in my life. Then again, the gifted counsel never did have much to say that wasn't. The only members amongst them who speak a thing worth listening to are my parents, the king and queen of the Stygians, the people of Dark magic. Unfortunately for me and my brothers, they've chosen to play nice instead of sinking their talons into anyone who dares demand a thing from their heirs. In this instance at least.

I didn't mean to star in a sex tape, okay? It was just one of those unexplainable things. Like Stonehenge, Police Academy 2, and morning glory clouds. It just happened. Now, my ball-busting father is sentencing me to six months of celibacy, sobriety, and morbid boredom under the roof of Boston's nerdiest girl alive, Sailor Brennan. The virginal archer is supposed to babysit my ass while I learn to take my place in Royal Pipelines, my family's oil company. Little does she know, that's not the only pipe I'll be laying....

New York Times best-selling authors Vi Keeland and Penelope Ward bring you three sexy short stories to heat up your holidays: "Sexy Scrooge", "The Merry Mistake", and "Kissmas in New York".