steamycontemporary

A Shore Thing

by Emily Shacklette

Juliette Matthews has chased light across the globe—from the Andes to North Africa—but nothing throws her off balance quite like being back at her family’s Jersey Shore summer home. Especially when “temporary” starts looking a lot like staying… and Wesley Olson is everywhere she turns. Wesley never left Ocean City—and never forgot the girl next door who wrecked him in the best and worst ways. He’s spent seventeen years building a life that’s safe, steady, and entirely Juliette-free. That is, until, she shows back up on his front porch like the prettiest ghost he’s ever seen. Because one look at her, and suddenly the past isn’t so past. The summer is hotter, the tension thicker, and staying away? Not an option. Not when every shared glance feels like a dare—and every touch reminds them exactly what they lost. This summer, Juliette and Wesley will have to decide—were they destined to be nothing more than a summer fling…or have they always been a shore thing? [Read More]

The Sicilian Trap: A Grumpy Coach World Cup Spicy Soccer Rom-Com

by Mara J. Ova

He demands absolute control to win the World Cup. She is the sunshine that refuses to bend. Grumpy Meets Sunshine • Forced Proximity • Steamy Soccer Romance • Opposites Attract • Workplace Romance • Protective Hero • World Cup Stakes • Slow-burn With Sparkling Chemistry • Hilarious Banter • Found Family • Italian Vibes Vincenzo Messina is a tactical genius who demands absolute control to win the World Cup, but his new PR director is a walking distraction. Armed with weaponized sunshine, Sofia Hofer threatens his sacred locker room, igniting a fiery clash of wills and sizzling chemistry they both refuse to acknowledge. Arriving at the secluded Base Camp, Sofia's relentless optimism immediately collides with Vincenzo’s dictatorial temper. She treats football as a passionless branding puzzle to protect, while the volcanic coach fiercely shields his squad from the media. Bound by a lucrative Armani sponsorship, they are forced into thirty days of inescapable proximity within a secure compound and high emotion during the matches. As the grueling tournament progresses, their battle lines blur. Sofia discovers the devout heart beneath his melodramatic touchline theatrics, while Vincenzo realizes her efficiency actually protects his players, shattering his defenses. He engineered the perfect tactical trap on the pitch, but her weaponized sunshine cornered his heart. With the championship final looming, they must choose between maintaining their rigid professional boundaries or risking a catastrophic public scandal for a passion they cannot control. The Sicilian Trap is a standalone, fast-paced, steamy soccer romantic comedy by Mara J. Ova featuring grumpy-meets-sunshine and forced proximity tropes. It is a perfect read during the US-hosted World Cup, and the Italian vibes make it an ideal summer escape. Scroll up and look inside to experience the explosive chemistry and high-stakes tension. [Read More]

Room 002: Devoured and Desired

by Nyx Walker

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Emily came to Whispering Hollow for artistic inspiration and ended up with a roommate who howls at the moon. Caleb is gorgeous, guarded, and cursed: a loup-garou bound to the land, he storms out when his wolf threatens to get the better of him. Emily doesn’t flinch—she sketches him, teases him, and maybe stares a little too long. At the Specter Suites, where magic is just part of the décor, Nina—the hotel's owner and resident witch—offers a tea that coaxes truth from the heart. When she proposes a ritual to help Caleb gain control, Emily volunteers. What started as curiosity becomes connection. The ritual forces Caleb to see himself through Emily’s eyes; it forces Emily to decide how much of herself she’s willing to risk. The stakes are personal: a future he chooses, or a curse that keeps choosing for him. Part small-town charm, part dangerous heat, this novella is for those who aren't afraid of the big bad wolf. [Read More]

A Field Beyond Notions

by Atria J. Merian

Rosario My alchemy diploma is as useless as the men I’ve been dating. Blacklisted from the industry, I took the job nobody else would touch: glorified assistant to the Divine Executioner—God’s favorite assassin. He tortures with flair. Kills with a smile… but it’s his longing stares that leave me truly terrified. This gig is only temporary. Until I save up enough to start my own alchemy boutique. But the Executioner is a ruthless immortal beyond mortal laws, said to tally corpses and lovers in equal measure. I have a bad feeling he will never let me go. The Executioner Humans think I’m a psychopath. I don’t think about them at all. My routine keeps me sane. Seven days per prisoner. Feed on fear. Dispose. Paperwork. Repeat.
But ever since Rosario became my operations manager, I’ve been lovestruck. For the first time in centuries. I watch her sleep. I plan our life together. I hear the bells toll.
 Till death do us part is a wonderful notion… especially when you’re immortal. Content note: this is a paranormal dark romance. It contains mature themes that some readers might find very disturbing. Read at your own risk. A full CW list is available on the author’s website. Tropes: Icy Black Cat FMC x (Rabid) Golden Retriever MMC Stalking, Obsession, Intense Devotion Forced Proximity Revenge [Read More]

Between the Glass: A Steamy Off-Limits Hockey Romance

by H.A. Laine

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Off the record: they are not supposed to want each other. On the record: they have spent an entire season pretending otherwise. A slow-burn athlete/journalist romance where the thing they can't say out loud is the truest thing either of them has. Ben Kowalski has been the funniest person in every room since he was eleven. One contract year left, one shot at the deal that keeps him in Portland, and the absolute last thing he needs is the new beat reporter who is the only person in the press room who does not laugh at his material. Renee Lavoie has been watching the people around her perform for six years and writing down what she sees in notebooks she does not share. Now she is credentialed inside the Wolves season for access that could rebuild what she lost, and the alternate captain keeps offering her the version of himself that does not make it into the press conference. Between the Glass is Book 2 in the Ice and Instinct series. Each book follows a different couple on the Portland Wolves. Interconnected standalones. They all play dirty. Amazon review is required for this ARC. Private feedback in PenPinery is welcome, but it does not complete the campaign unless the Amazon review is posted. Please post your honest review on Amazon here: https://www.amazon.com/review/create-review?asin=B0GRRC3NPY. If Amazon delays or rejects the review, save the text and note the Amazon status in PenPinery. [Read More]

Last Save: A Steamy Forbidden Hockey Romance

by H.A. Laine

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He notices everything. She was sent to find what the team is hiding. Neither of them planned for this. Milo Varga is twenty-four, the Portland Wolves' starting goaltender, and the most observant man in any room he walks into. He catalogs details the way other players read plays: quietly, completely, with nothing asked in return. He has spent his entire career being the youngest guy on the ice, the quiet one, the one nobody sees. Until a league attorney walks into the practice facility with a binder and a list of names, and Milo realizes she's the first person who has ever looked at him the way he looks at everyone else. Risa Kwon is thirty-seven, a senior league investigator, and the woman the Wolves hired her firm to bury. Her job is simple: trace the pattern of misconduct her predecessor refused to document, build a case that cannot be ignored, and protect the players who deserved better. She cannot be seen with anyone on the roster. She cannot let a twenty-four-year-old goalie rearrange her entire understanding of what she came to Portland to do. She definitely cannot fall for him. Last Save is Book 5, the series finale, of the Ice and Instinct series. Each book follows a different couple on the Portland Wolves. Interconnected standalones. They all play dirty. Amazon review is required for this ARC. Private feedback in PenPinery is welcome, but it does not complete the campaign unless the Amazon review is posted. Please post your honest review on Amazon here: https://www.amazon.com/review/create-review?asin=B0GX2ZSP4T. If Amazon delays or rejects the review, save the text and note the Amazon status in PenPinery. [Read More]

Last Change: A Steamy Single Parent Hockey Romance

by H.A. Laine

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He has been carrying her words for seven years. She does not remember saying them. Her seven-year-old sees everything they refuse to say out loud. A slow-burn, single parent hockey romance where a veteran who edits himself to survive and a producer who stages herself to stay safe discover that the person watching most carefully is seven years old and entirely unimpressed with their systems. Vince Mercer is thirty-four, a Portland Wolves veteran defenseman approaching his thousandth game, and a man who has learned to compress every true thing into the minimum viable sentence. Elara Vasquez is thirty-three, owner of Vasquez and Associates, and a single mother whose marriage taught her what happens when you disappear into someone else's schedule. She has spent three years building a life she controls entirely: color-coded binders, precise timelines, and a production vocabulary she uses on her own feelings. The Heritage Season is a celebration and an excavation. As Elara digs into the archive, she finds a memo proving the organization suppressed Vince's career-threatening shoulder injury for seven years. Last Change is Book 4 in the Ice and Instinct series. Each book follows a different couple on the Portland Wolves. Interconnected standalones. They all play dirty. Amazon review is required for this ARC. Private feedback in PenPinery is welcome, but it does not complete the campaign unless the Amazon review is posted. Please post your honest review on Amazon here: https://www.amazon.com/review/create-review?asin=B0GKHCX5NF. If Amazon delays or rejects the review, save the text and note the Amazon status in PenPinery. [Read More]

Unassisted: A Forbidden Slow-Burn Hockey Romance

by H.A. Laine

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She speaks in diagnoses. He's learning her language. They call it the Translation Game. A slow-burn, forbidden hockey romance where two guarded professionals can only tell each other the truth in code. Declan Rourke has spent a decade being the man everyone on the Portland Wolves can count on. The captain who never misses a shift, never shows weakness, never lets anyone close enough to see what holding it all together actually costs. He learned the price of being seen as a rookie, when a teammate sold his story to the press. So when a torn shoulder threatens to end everything, the last thing he needs is a therapist who treats his silence like a symptom. The trouble is, he doesn't want to flinch from her. He wants to learn her words. Elena Marlowe doesn't trust athletes, institutions, or men who smile like they're hiding something. She weaponizes clinical terminology the way other people use small talk. Posterior capsule. Capsular adhesion. Safe, precise words for things she refuses to feel, the armor she built the year an institution decided she was the problem. The captain is the one variable she cannot diagnose. He doesn't back away from her vocabulary. He leans in, asks what each term means, and turns her defenses into a private language only the two of them speak. Amazon review is required for this ARC. Private feedback in PenPinery is welcome, but it does not complete the campaign unless the Amazon review is posted. Please post your honest review on Amazon here: https://www.amazon.com/review/create-review?asin=B0GRNLLZ3L. If Amazon delays or rejects the review, save the text and note the Amazon status in PenPinery. [Read More]

Blue Sky Black

by Lea Vale

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Zelda never stopped loving Ari. She just got better at pretending she was over him. Then she ran into him again on the last normal morning in America. By the end of the day, he was missing. Now Zelda is searching the wreckage of September 11th for two people: her best friend, Charlie, and the man she thought she'd lost long before the towers fell. *** As teenagers, Zelda and her best friend Charlie had been trying to escape Philadelphia for as long as they could remember. Ari was never part of that plan—until he walked into the pawn shop where Zelda worked and refused to leave her alone. They fell in love too young. They fell apart too fast. Six years later, September 11th puts them face to face on a Manhattan street, hours before the world changes forever. When the towers fall, Zelda survives and realizes Charlie and Ari were both inside and are missing. She has to find them both. Blue Sky Black moves between Zelda's desperate search through the aftermath of September 11th and the years that made her: a lonely, furious girl learning the value of things in a back-room pawn shop, falling in love for the first time, and losing everything she wasn't ready to hold. Perfect for readers who love: - Emotionally devastating love stories - Second chance romance - Slow burn with heat - Dual timeline - Found family - Female ambition Steam: Open door emotionally driven intimacy with explicit detail. Content Warning: Depictions of September 11, 2001, Grief, Loss [Read More]

Shattered Edges

by Marion Thomas

A contemporary dark romance about forbidden love and ambition in elite competitive figure skating and what happens when survival leaves no safe choices. (warning: contains graphic, explicit language and mature themes) Richard Hale has spent his life on the ice, chasing precision, relevance, and a career that refuses to wait for anyone. When his skating partner walks away he’s left staring down the quiet, humiliating end of everything he’s built. His younger sister Holly faces the same erasure when her partner’s injury ends her season overnight, leaving her suddenly expendable. The solution is obvious, dangerous and unthinkable. Forced to skate together by circumstance and desperation, Richard and Holly form a partnership that some think shouldn’t exist. On the ice, their connection is undeniable. Off it, the pressure fractures restraint, blurring lines they were never meant to cross and leaving them scrutinized by a world eager to judge what it doesn’t understand. As Nationals loom, obsession threatens to eclipse reason, and desire threatens to destroy the very thing they’re fighting to save. [Read More]

In Every Other Way

by Clementine Hart

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Elsie Morgan has two problems, and she's fairly sure they're unrelated. The first is her boss. Joshua Larsen is meticulous, maddening, and impossibly self-contained — the one man Elsie has spent two years being scrupulously, exhaustingly normal about. The second is @plaintext: the anonymous true-crime obsessive she's been arguing with online for eight months, who somewhere along the way became the person she tells everything. Including, lately, far too much about the boss. They are the same man. Elsie has no idea. Joshua finds out by accident, and it stops him cold: the woman he stays up talking to every night is the colleague he's been so carefully keeping at arm's length. And now he's the only one who knows. So he says nothing — and has no idea how long he can keep it that way. A slow-burn, dual-POV workplace romance for readers of Ali Hazelwood and Sarah Adams. [Read More]

The Second Chance Summer

by Rose Graceling-Moore

Anabel Newsome spent ten years on her dream career. It took one email to destroy it, and now she is willing to do anything to get it back. Even work with Luca, the grumpy-but-gorgeous painter who broke her heart ten years ago. The plan is simple: Agree to a three-month leave of absence for the “burnout” she swears she doesn’t have. Return to the sunshine-soaked coast of Italy, find her supposed bliss, and convince her boss she’s ready to come back to work. What isn’t in the plan is discovering that the hostel she loved in her twenties is falling apart. Maybe it’s because that’s something she and the building have in common, or maybe it’s just because she’s incapable of taking a break, but Ana is determined to save it. And Luca, as the hostel handyman, is going to help. Whether he likes it or not! Between renovations that go sideways, a new summer fling that complicates things, and a decade-old wound she never quite let heal, Ana’s carefully planned trip is quickly going off the rails. But the beach vacation she never wanted might just be her second chance to make the right choice. [Read More]

Vanilla (with Sprinkles)

by Rosemary Victus

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Sam is so comfortable around Kalie because there is no way she's into him… Sam is wrong. Kalie left the west coast a year ago after a viral video blew up her whole life. She’s done wallowing and trying to take baby steps towards rebuilding herself. Sam was dumped by his girlfriend of five years. He's now that guy you know who talks about his ex way too often. As a chubby retail clerk nearing 30, trying to meet someone romantically seems futile. Kalie meets Sam at a New Year's party and settles for friends after a failed hook up attempt. Kalie can’t tell her new friends about her past; she has to at least pretend to be a sane person. Sam does whatever he can think of to conceal his growing crush. However, unbeknownst to Sam, his new friend, Kalie, is still trying her level best to bang the chubby retail clerk. [Read More]

The Rival Hearts

by Anne Nikolaiken

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A steamy Married in Vegas Formula One romance featuring Rivals to Lovers. The race weekend plan didn’t include waking up married to the rival rookie driver. What happens in Vegas, stays in Vegas, right? Ethan Ethan St-Pierre is used to living in his brother’s shadow, but now he has no other option but to shine on the racetrack...and keep the St-Pierre legacy alive. Sharing his rookie season with his biggest rival shouldn’t be that difficult. They only have to interact on racetracks–and that’s plenty, thank you very much–but now sponsors are suggesting joint photoshoots with Maggie. Their rivalry is fuelling sales, sparks are flying, and Ethan wonders if there’s something more behind their shared, sizzling glances captured in photographs. Maggie Maggie Hoffsommer is the first female race car driver with a chance to win the Drivers’ Championship and prove her critics wrong. Her surprise debut at Kestrel Racing caused a media frenzy; her repeated pole positions and podium finishes created turmoil in the paddock, but the greatest shock is the one Maggie experiences when she wakes up married to Ethan St-Pierre in Vegas… and he suggests they give it a go? He’s the steamy distraction on track, putting everything she’s worked for in jeopardy. How can she consider staying married to him? This season, they have nothing left to lose but their hearts. Will Maggie and Ethan’s competitiveness put what they desire most at risk? [Read More]

Her Heart's Wish

by Dawn Baca

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Can a woman who built her life around everyone else finally choose love? Leila Durand has spent years being exactly who her family needed: a devoted mother, a doting grandmother, and the steady heart of the farm that saved her after loss. But when Yuri Petrova asks her to come to Saint Petersburg, the quiet life she has carefully built begins to feel less like safety and more like a beautiful cage. Yuri has always been a man of stars, students, and solitude—until one unforgettable Frenchwoman makes his orderly world feel suddenly incomplete. From their first meeting at a family wedding, Leila’s warmth, strength, and laughter unsettled him in ways no equation ever could. After three years of calls, letters, and longing, he is ready to stop loving her from a distance. Leila is falling for Yuri, but loving him means facing the grief, guilt, and fear she has buried beneath decades of devotion. Yuri is falling just as hard, but winning Leila’s heart may mean leaving behind the life, career, and country that have defined him. When distance, family ties, and old wounds threaten to keep them apart, Leila must decide whether being wanted is worth the risk of finally being seen. Will she cling to the life that made her feel necessary—or open her heart to the man who makes her feel chosen? Her Heart’s Wish is an emotional later-in-life romance about second chances, found family, healing after grief, and the brave, terrifying joy of beginning again. Perfect for readers who love mature heroines, patient heroes, slow-burn longing, complicated families, European settings, and love stories where the biggest battle is learning to believe happiness is still allowed. Read Her Heart’s Wish today and fall in love with a romance that proves it’s never too late to choose your own happily ever after. [Read More]