Noun: A slang term meaning hockey season used exclusively by the Fulton University hockey team and their fans.
Saffron Briggs—Fulton University’s newest pitcher—hates me. I shouldn’t like that fact, but I do. Maybe too much. She claims I’m not her type, which is ridiculous. There’s a reason they call me Levi “Sexy” Sexton…I’m everyone’s type. And thanks to my dad, who just happens to be her softball coach, I’ll get my chance to thaw out the ice queen. I’m her new tutor, so she has no choice but to spend time with me. It may be Sweater Weather, but I’ll make time to show her what a god I am. On and off the ice.
Levi Sexton—captain of the FU hockey team and my new tutor—drives me crazy. The man has zero boundaries. He doesn’t care that I have a boyfriend, that I’m friends with his sisters or that I don’t like him. And I don’t. Not even a little. Not when he’s winking at me from the ice or when he’s telling me how good I look in his hockey sweater and especially not when he’s kissing me, which he absolutely should not be doing.
And definitely not when I find myself kissing him back.
I’m pretty sure Sweater Weather isn’t supposed to be this hot.
About the Author
Mandi Beck
Writing stories that are sexy, sassy and a little bad assy
USA Today Bestselling Author, Mandi Beck has been an avid
reader all of her life. A deep love for books always had her jotting
down little stories on napkins, notebooks, and her hand. As an
adult she was further submerged into the book world through
book clubs and the epicness of social media. It was then that she
graduated to writing her stories on her phone and then finally on a
proper computer.
A wife, mother to two rambunctious and somewhat rotten boys,
and stepmom to two great girls away at college, she shares her
time with her husband in Chicago where she was born and raised.
Mandi is a diehard hockey fan and blames the Blackhawks when
her deadlines are not met. Ask her who her favorite hockey player
Claire Contreras has revealed the cover for Until I Get You!
Releasing: April 6, 2023
My reputation at Fairview University preceded me. I was the projected number-one pick in the NHL draft and the fan favorite at the rink. People wanted to be me or be with me. Except for Lyla James Marichal. She didn’t look at me like I was her next meal. She eyed me with disdain. Instead of vying for my attention, she ignored me and pushed me away. She was completely unattainable, and I became obsessed with her. When I finally got her, it felt like I was on top of the world. I was going to help the team win another championship, going into the draft, and had Lyla by my side. And then, without warning, she left me. Vanished. It took me three bitter, angry, long years to find her, but I did, and now she owes me a lot more than just an explanation. Three years ago, she ruined my life. Now, I was going to become her worst nightmare.
Claire Contreras is a New York Times Best Selling Author who traded her psychology degree to write fiction. Don’t worry, she still uses her knowledge on every single one of her characters.
She’s a breast cancer survivor (x2), who was born in the Dominican Republic, raised in Florida, and currently resides in Charlotte, NC with her husband, two adorable boys, and French bulldog.
Her books range from romantic suspense to contemporary romance and are currently translated in over fifteen languages. When she’s not writing, she’s usually lost in a book.
Samantha Young has revealed the gorgeous cover for The Love Plot!
Releasing: August 29, 2023
There’s a magnetic attraction when a happy-go-lucky gig worker agrees to a fake relationship with a rich, uptight New Yorker in this steamy romantic comedy from New York Times bestselling author Samantha Young. Star Shine Meadows is all about freedom, thanks to the hippie parents who raised her. Juggling her jobs as a professional costume character actor and a line sitter, she believes in no expectations, no stressful ambitions, and no-strings-attached relationships. So when she meets a birthday girl’s grumpy uncle while working a princess party, she can’t help but needle him. She’ll never see him again, and honestly, he’s pretty hot. Rafe Whitman may be a veterinarian with a great bedside manner, but that doesn’t mean his patience extends to anyone with opposable thumbs. His family will not stop nagging him about finding “the one,” so when he runs into obnoxiously cheery Star again, he makes her an offer: He’ll pay her more than she would make doing her odd jobs if she’ll pretend to be his girlfriend at family gatherings. She can stop sitting in line waiting for someone else’s new phone, and he’ll get his family off his back. When the tension between them heats to a breaking point, Star’s desire for “no strings” is tested against Rafe’s staunch stability. They say opposites attract, after all….
Samantha Young is a New York Times, USA Today and Wall Street Journal bestselling author. She’s been nominated for several Goodreads Choice Awards. Samantha writes adult contemporary and paranormal romance, YA urban fantasy and YA contemporary fiction and is currently published in 31 countries. She resides in Scotland.
Some men are just off-limits. Like your ex-boyfriend’s father.
But when I met the sexy, powerful older man shortly after my business school graduation, he was simply the seductive stranger I wanted to notice me, and he sure did.
Fast forward a few months later, when my college ex – now a good friend – introduces me to the person he looks up to most…his father.
The man I spent that one hot night with.
I should stay far away from the commanding business mogul. But my ex and I are planning a charity fundraiser that involves late nights at his dad’s penthouse in Manhattan.
Nights where he can’t stop looking at me with desire in his eyes that matches my own.
I try to resist him, playing the good girl in the city…mostly.
He’s the perfect gentleman…until he comes knocking on my door and tells me exactly what he wants to do to me.
And I say yes.
Stealing nights with him like this is supposed to be wrong, but it feels so right. And when he saves the day to protect his son at the fundraiser, my heart wants him as much as my body does.
Can we ever be more than just a tryst?
THE TEASE
Every rule-following girl knows some men are just off limits. Like, say, your dad’s best friend.
I’m a rules girl, so I haven’t even dared to fantasize about the enigmatic, gorgeous man I’ve known for years.
The man has taken trips with my family. He attended my brother’s wedding with his wife.
Then she leaves him, and I desperately want to say she never deserved you.
A good girl wouldn’t say that though. And she wouldn’t say please do bad things to me.
But when I receive an invitation one night to an exclusive, private party that caters to my after dark desires, I find him there, looking at me with sin in his smoldering eyes.
Time to break all my good girl rules…
NOTE: This book will likely release in September rather than November!
About Lauren Blakely:
A #1 New York Times Bestselling, #1 Wall Street Journal Bestselling, and #1 Audible
Bestselling author, Lauren Blakely is known for her contemporary romance style that’s
sexy, sweet, and witty. She also writes USA Today bestselling LGBTQ romance.
With fourteen New York Times bestsellers, her titles have appeared on the New York
Times, USA Today, and Wall Street Journal Bestseller Lists more than 100 times, with
more than 60 titles on the USA Today Bestsellers list alone. She’s sold more than 5 million books. A Brown University graduate, Lauren likes dogs, cake and show tunes and is the vegetarian at your dinner party.
That’s true unless your new husband – who is much younger than you by the way – doesn’t actually want a divorce when you both sober up.
Or, of course, if you get pregnant – the last thing you need right after becoming the new GM to a failing pro hockey team.
I guess you could say this year won’t be easy.
Especially for me, the owner.
About the Author:
Xavier Neal is a best-selling romance author who enjoys hopping from sub genre to sub genre like a game of Hopscotch she can’t resist.
In between writing, she loves to read (everything from romance to self improvement books), watch movies (old and new), eat too much Tex-Mex (her Chuy’s t-shirt collection is out of control), and watch AHL hockey games LIVE (preferably against the glass whenever possible).
She currently resides happily in Texas with her bearded husband “Lumberjack” and their two fur babies.
Title: The Rules of Dating My Best Friend’s Sister
Authors: Vi Keeland & Penelope Ward
Genre: Standalone Contemporary Romance
Cover Design: Sommer Stein, Perfect Pear Creative
Photographer: Ashraf El Bahrawi
Model: Giorgos Mavrogiannis, @gio_mavrogiannis
Release Date: April 3, 2023
BLURB
From New York Times bestselling authors Vi Keeland and Penelope Ward comes a new standalone romance.
Rule number one for dating your best friend’s sister: Don’t.
Just don’t do it.
Especially when your best friend is dead and the last thing he made you promise him was that you’d keep an eye on his little sister, but not too good of an eye.
As a musician whose longest committed relationship was six weeks, I, Holden Catalano, was the last guy on Earth who should’ve been messing around with Laney Ellison.
The super smart girl whom I affectionately dubbed Lala since childhood was always off limits.
Though that didn’t stop me from thinking about her over the years, especially those times when the two of us would sneak out onto the roof and talk for hours after my buddy fell asleep. It was innocent, but I’d always held a torch for her.
After Ryan passed away, I vowed to always protect Lala. That included protecting her—from me.
Now all grown up and a scientist, Lala needed a place to stay when she accepted a temporary research position in New York. I thought I did the right thing by offering her an apartment in the building I co-owned with my three friends.
Except having her close by reignited all of those old feelings.
And things started to get complicated.
Especially since she was engaged.
And especially since, lately, I’d noticed something more in her eyes. Desire.
Lala didn’t exactly look at me like the platonic brother figure I was trying so desperately to be, even though I wanted her more than I’d ever wanted anything.
Yet, I was being good—on my very best behavior.
But you know what they say…all good things must come to an end, right?
Vi Keeland is a #1 New York Times, #1 Wall Street Journal, and USA Today Bestselling author. With millions of books sold, her titles are currently translated in twenty-seven languages and have appeared on bestseller lists in the US, Germany, Brazil, Bulgaria and Hungary. Three of her short stories have been turned into films by Passionflix, and two of her books are currently optioned for movies. She resides in New York with her husband and their three children where she is living out her own happily ever after with the boy she met at age six.
Penelope Ward is a New York Times, USA Today and #1 Wall Street Journal bestselling author of contemporary romance.
She grew up in Boston with five older brothers and spent most of her twenties as a television news anchor. Penelope resides in Rhode Island with her husband, son, and beautiful daughter with autism.
With over two million books sold, she is a 21-time New York Times bestseller and the author of over thirty novels. Her books have been translated into over a dozen languages and can be found in bookstores around the world.
NYT Bestselling Author A.L. Jackson has a sneak peek of her upcoming single dad, fake fiancée romance, Promise Me Always. Coming January 30th!
EXCERPT:
“Go, go, go!” Tessa jumped up and down, rooting on Remy who’d thrown the Frisbee and was currently rounding the bases.
I scooped Scout into my arms, and he and I raced toward the Frisbee that’d rolled out the right side of the baseball field.
Scout was bouncing all over, his laughter filling the air, my little guy kicking my sides like I was a horse. “Hurry, Dad, hurry, Remy is so really fast, and we gotta catch her before she gets all the way to home base.”
I dipped down to snag the Frisbee, holding tight to Scout as I tipped him upside down, making him holler and laugh uncontrollably while Tessa was shouting, “You’re almost there, Remy! Whoop, whoop! Team Remy-T Wreckers coming in for the win. Yeah, baby!”
Scout’s eyes went wide. “Go, Dad! We gotta catch her. Rocket speed!”
I shifted him, tucking his side to mine so he could stretch out his arms like he was flying, and I was supplying the rocket propulsion as we bounded back the opposite direction, a bunch of sounds bubbling out of my mouth as I found a lightness I hadn’t felt in a long, long time.
Remy rounded third base.
Tessa jumped up and down on the pitcher’s mound, waving her hands in the air and cheering on my kid. “Go, Remy, go!”
Both their faces were red.
Joy radiated all around.
Guessed it was my joy, too.
This feeling in the air that might have been the best thing I’d ever felt.
Scout kept himself rigid, still zooming through the air. “After burners, Dad!”
I increased my speed a fraction.
Remy screamed and laughed as she ran for home, my daughter soaring free when her steps were often laden with reservation.
Her load too heavy.
I made sure that we just missed her as she stomped onto the base.
“Ahh, dang, you’re too fast.” I feigned the grumbled complaint while my little girl squealed in victory and shouted, “I did it! I did it!”
Tessa ran her way, her arms in the air. “You did it! You are a rockstar, Remington Hendricks!”
They jumped, high-fiving each other with both hands.
“Oh, man,” Scout whined. “We got a tie. How do we even know who’s the best?”
I pressed my lips to the top of his head. “Means we’re all the best, little man.”
“That’s Rocketman to you,” he told me.
A chuckle got free, and Tessa was giggling nonstop, her smile so bright, happiness this glow of warmth that surrounded her.
She poked Scout’s belly where I’d shifted him upright. “Pure awesomesauce, I tell you.”
He jumped out of my arms and into hers.
She caught him like she was completely accustomed to pint-sized shenanigans. “There’s my Rocketman! You’re off to Mars!” she sang as she swung him around.
Peals of his laughter rang in the air, and Remy moved to hold my hand, grinning in a way I hadn’t seen her do in so long that I’d almost forgotten what it looked like.
God, I wasn’t even sure how to navigate through it when I kept getting struck with an urge to capture it.
Hold it and protect it forever.
“Okay, I think that’s my favorite game.” Remy was almost shy to say it, though it was adrenaline and glee rushing all over her face.
“So fun!” Tessa agreed.
Everyone was panting with the exertion, sweat slicking our skin, and we moved back to where we had the blanket set up in the shade.
Tessa flopped down onto her back on it, Scout still held in her arms. Remy flopped right down beside her.
Tessa rolled her head in Remy’s direction so they were staring at each other where they lie on their backs. “Thank you for being on my team.”
“Best team ever.” Timidity might have filled Remy’s voice, but joy shined in her eyes.
They just sat there for a second, smiling at each other, something special moving between them.
Scout climbed off Tessa, and he crawled to the cooler and tossed open the lid. “I spy with my little eye a blue Popsicle.”
Like he hadn’t spotted it earlier when we were passing out sandwiches and fresh-cut fruit.
He reached for one.
“You’re supposed to ask first, little man,” I told him.
“Is it okay, Tessa?” He beamed at her. I was pretty sure those full lips would be enough to swindle the last dollar out of a starving man’s hand.
I blinked at him. “Excuse me? What am I, chopped liver?”
Scout shrugged. “Tessa’s got my back.”
Tessa sat up, pressing her fingertips to her mouth like she was trying to keep back her laughter.
“What are you giggling about?” I asked, voice low as I climbed down onto my knees at the edge of the oversized blanket.
“I think I found myself a couple of new besties.” Her smile softened, pure affection as she glanced between the two of them.
Remy smiled, too, and fuck, my chest tightened.
I loved to see my little girl happy.
“I’ll be your best friend because you brought me a Popsicle,” Scout supplied as he grabbed a handful of them and started to pass them out.
“One for Daddy-Doo, one for Remy-Roo, one for Tessa-Too.”
My kid, he was a poet.
“Dad, you better kiss her if you’re gonna marry her,” Scout said so nonchalant as he peeled the wrapper and stuck the blue bullet into his mouth. “Because in a minute, she’s gonna have blue lips, and that’s gross.”
I knew we were going to have to get these displays of affection right, but my nerves decided it was a fine time to short-circuit.
To go zapping and zinging in all those places she kept bringing to life.
Shaking me down and tightening my guts in a flurry of want as I looked at the woman who watched me with such a tenderness that my spirit groaned.
“You’ve got love, Dad,” Remy whispered.
Soft encouragement that cut me to the quick.
My child’s belief filling me full after I’d lost it.
Warily, I crawled forward on my knees, already towering over Tessa where she sat on the blanket.
My friend.
My friend.
Curling my hand around the back of her neck, I drew her closer.
Fire flashed.
That feeling rising that I had to keep at bay.
But those blue eyes, they were so intense and deep and filled with this trust that spread like fingers through my senses.
The girl a lure.
Her lips barely parted as we sat there with an inch of space separating us.
Hovering.
Hesitating.
Unsure.
My heart thundered too loud, and I finally drew her the rest of the way in and pressed my lips to hers.
A.L. Jackson is the New York Times & USA Today Bestselling author of contemporary romance. She writes emotional, sexy, heart-filled stories about boys who usually like to be a little bit bad.
Her bestselling series include THE REGRET SERIES, CLOSER TO YOU, BLEEDING STARS, FIGHT FOR ME, CONFESSIONS OF THE HEART, FALLING STARS, and REDEMPTION HILLS novels. Watch out for her upcoming stand-alone, PROMISE ME ALWAYS, releasing January 30th!
If she’s not writing, you can find her hanging out by the pool with her family, sipping cocktails with her friends, or of course with her nose buried in a book.
Be sure not to miss new releases and sales from A.L. Jackson – Sign up to receive her newsletter https://geni.us/ALJacksonBookClubB or text “aljackson” to 33222 to receive short but sweet updates on all the important news.
I’ve got a list of people I absolutely don’t ever want to be stuck with on a boat, or a plane, or a train, and it starts and ends with the broody, grumpy, too-sexy-for-my-own good Axel Huxley.
Also known as this romance novelist’s number one nemesis.
The man is legendary for his mighty pen and his even mightier scowl. I tried to work together with the cocky thriller writer once upon a time, but the two of us are like vodka and good decisions. We don’t play well together.
Only now, our publishers are sending us on a joint trip across Europe to mingle with our most devoted readers on an old-fashioned luxury train. And thanks to a booking snafu, we have to share a sleeper car.
You guessed it–there’s only one bed.
I’m not sure I can survive the next seven days and nights with my dangerously sexy enemy and all our fiery tension.
Which explodes one night in a desperately needed hate bang.
But the bigger plot twist is this – the more time we spend together, visiting the most romantic cities in Europe by day and discovering each other at night, the more I’m forced to face our past.
To let go of the hurt.
To see the man he’s become.
And when I do, I wonder if it’s too late to write a new happy ending for us?
About Lauren Blakely:
A #1 New York Times Bestselling, #1 Wall Street Journal Bestselling, and #1 Audible
Bestselling author, Lauren Blakely is known for her contemporary romance style that’s
sexy, sweet, and witty. She also writes USA Today bestselling LGBTQ romance.
With fourteen New York Times bestsellers, her titles have appeared on the New York
Times, USA Today, and Wall Street Journal Bestseller Lists more than 100 times, with
more than 65 titles on the USA Today Bestsellers list alone. She’s sold more than 5 million books. A Brown University graduate, Lauren likes dogs, cake and show tunes and is the vegetarian at your dinner party.
From New York Times bestselling author Penelope Ward comes a friends-to-lovers story spanning more than a decade…
At first, I thought I’d hate spending the summer with Archie Remington—the conceited son of my parents’ friends.
What I knew about Archie: he was gorgeous, pre-law, and had always treated me like I didn’t exist when we were younger.
When our families bought a house together on an island in Maine, he and I were forced to share a bathroom.
The boy I remembered was now a full-grown man—but with the same attitude.
After a rough start, Archie and I unexpectedly started getting along one day and eventually became friends. We shared secrets and bonded during our morning jogs. I discovered that Archie had a wild spirit and that he struggled to conform to his father’s expectations.
Things were cool until I had to go and ruin it, getting drunk one night, and blurting out my fantasy—involving him.
I took it back, but it was too late. Archie had heard me loud and clear. After that, we never quite knew how to toe the line.
When that summer came to an abrupt and shocking end, I headed back to college, unsure if anything would ever be the same again.
Across the miles over the years, he and I stayed in touch as friends, but fate and timing always kept us from becoming more.
You know the saying: If two people are meant to be, they’ll find their way back to each other?
Let’s just say Archie came back into my life in a way I would’ve never expected.
And this time, my heart would really be put to the test.
Penelope
Ward is a New York Times, USA Today and #1 Wall Street Journal bestselling
author of contemporary romance.
She grew up
in Boston with five older brothers and spent most of her twenties as a
television news anchor. Penelope resides in Rhode Island with her husband, son,
and beautiful daughter with autism.
With over two
million books sold, she is a 21-time New York Times bestseller and the author
of over twenty novels. Her books have been translated into over a dozen
languages and can be found in bookstores around the world.
Kristen Proby has revealed the gorgeous cover for Chapel Bend!
Releasing: May 16, 2023
Cover Design: Hang Le
Photographer: Wander Aguiar
From New York Times bestselling author Kristen Proby comes Chapel Bend, an enemies to lovers, small town romance in her beloved series, Huckleberry Bay!
There’s a fine line between love and hate.
In Huckleberry Bay, Oregon, everyone knows that when it comes to Juniper “June” Snow – what you see is what you get. When you hire her construction company to do a job, it’s done right, on time, and on budget. When she’s your friend, she’s a ride-or-die who will support you no matter what. And when you’re her enemy…well, she can hold a grudge.
And she’s never forgotten how the tall, dark, and delicious Apollo Winchester hurt her so many years ago.
In a small town, it’s impossible to ignore someone who greets you with a death glare every time you meet. Apollo can’t recall why June hates him, but it doesn’t stop him from stirring her up every chance he gets. There’s something about her stubborn, “don’t mess with me” attitude that keeps him coming back for more. But June is his sister’s best friend and permanently on the “off-limits” list.
June puts aside her war with Apollo and hires him to work on her most important project, the renovation of a chapel into her dream home. She wants the best…and Apollo is the best . . . on the job site and in her bed. He won’t turn down the chance to spend more time with June, especially when it’s clear that she wants him as much as she hates him. Proximity leads to opportunity, and opportunity leads to steamy times between the sheets.
But a mystery threatens June and Apollo will protect her and their growing connection, no matter the cost.
Kristen Proby has published more than forty titles, many of which have hit the USA Today, New York Times and Wall Street Journal Bestsellers lists. She continues to self publish, best known for her With Me In Seattle and Boudreaux series, and is also proud to work with William Morrow, a division of HarperCollins, with the Fusion and Romancing Manhattan Series.
Kristen and her husband, John, make their home in her hometown of Whitefish, Montana with their two cats and dog.
Saucy Southern Readers 