by Marie Force (2011)
In a drunken stupor, Brandon O'Malley has terrorized his brother Aidan's girlfriend, enraging his brother and the rest of his family. Aidan offers Brandon the choice of rehab or jail, and Brandon reluctantly enters treatment. While in rehab, Brandon confronts the lifetime of secrets and resentments that fueled his spiral into alcoholism, and these revelations have a major effect on his entire family. When he returns home expecting to resume his supervisory role in the family's construction business, Brandon learns his father has retired and put his younger brother in charge. Brandon is unhappy to be given the job of renovating an apartment building where he loses his heart to an adorable five-year-old tenant named "Mike." After he falls hard for Michaela, Brandon becomes involved with her mother Daphne, who is running from a past that will later test his sobriety and his mettle as a man.
edited and with a story by Stephanie Perkins
Summer is the perfect time for love to bloom, and these short stories of teenagers facing the confusing maze of first love will have you dreaming of sunset strolls by the lake. The selections range from heartfelt to outlandish, as the characters find passion in some very unexpected places.
Bobbi Smith
He was heir-apparent to a ranching fortune, but Rick Peralta craved freedom. He found it in his disguise as El Cazador, a notorious gunman with a fast flight, a fleet horse - and the company of a woman whenever he pleased. But when he sets eyes on Jennie McCaine among his compadres, there's only one woman he wants. The rancher's daughter may be sheltered, but he can see that Jennie has a free spirit to match his own...No fantasy of romance had yet rivalled Jennie's love for the wildness of the land. And when she's kidnapped by a gang of desperados, she swears she'll die before giving herself to any man. But there is something about the rugged El Cazador that captures her attention in a way that thrills, frightens, and awakens her. Now she will have to decide whether to trust him, and herself.
Renee Andrews
Part-time college student and full-time single mom Jessica Bowman returns to Alabama to raise her little boy, Nathan, in the only home she's ever known. The last person she expects to see is Chad Martin, her first love. He doesn't know that Jessica's been keeping a secret from him. What he does know is that he never stopped loving her. But Jessica realizes that her silence stands in the way of their reunion. If she takes a leap of faith and reveals the truth, will she find that love and forgiveness are the sweetest Valentine gifts of all?
Shana Galen
Tired of being wooed for her dowry, Lady Madeleine Castleigh has given up on finding true love. But on her way to elope with a boring but honorable philanthropist, her carriage is seized by a nobleman on the run. Maddie is alarmed, especially when she catches sight of Jack Martingale, Marquess of Blackthorne, exactly the sort of wickedly attractive man she's sworn to avoid. Chased by a powerful duke with revenge on his mind and a private army in tow, Jack has no choice but to confiscate Madeleine's carriage. He promises to take his leave once they arrive at the wedding in Gretna Green but doesn't count on his growing desire for the blue-eyed beauty. When the unexpected appearance of Maddie's father and the mistakes of a drunken priest alter everyone's plans, Maddie is furious—until she discovers that Blackthorne's kisses arouse a passion in her she'd long ago stopped praying for.