Lessons from a One-Night Stand

I have a fantastic family, great best friends, a job I love...and now I’m up for a promotion to police sergeant. I need total focus - not a flirty, dirty, irresistible, tattooed hottie riding into my town on his motorcycle. Can I arrest him for being too good-looking? When he kisses me senseless in the back of a waffle truck, it’s criminal, the things he makes me think about hot syrup and melted butter. One order of hot, fluffy hookup to go, please. But the next time I see him, it’s not for our date with benefits. He’s the guy who just rented the room above my garage.  

Luca Bianco is a jerk. There I said it. Men like Luca are good for one thing only - a one-night stand - not commitment. I don’t care if my friend did pay good money at a charity bachelor auction for me to go on a date with him, I refuse to do it. That is until Luca offers me a deal I can’t refuse, and I agree to be his pretend fiancé. The heat that’s simmered between us for a decade ignites and I’m not sure even Luca will be able to kickstart my heart after I call code blue.

Awkward? Maybe. But how else is a good girl going to find out if she likes being naughty? I might be sweet as cherry pie, but I'm also bold and damn curious. And Gabe is charming, trustworthy, aces at seduction (or so I hear) and - bonus! - willing to give me lessons. But to guarantee it won’t ruin our friendship, I have some specific requirements for his instruction. I want these classes to be hypothetical more than hands-on. So what if he’s hella sexy? I can handle that, no problem.  

Cristian Bianco has two things against him - he's a police officer and he's a police officer in the 18th District…meaning my dad is his boss. Growing up as the Commander's daughter and having his magnifying glass focused on everything I did was more than I could handle.

What happens when you attend a first responder's bachelor auction with your best friends? Well, if your name is Madison Kelly like mine is, your friends end up bidding on a date for you with your high school crush. One date. That's all I'm committed to. A few hours and I can tuck him back into that tattered old shoebox in my closet. As always, the universe has other plans. I never would've predicted that in a matter of days, he'd turn from my dream guy into my business partner - and that's when things got interesting.

Carter Sloane is famous for one thing: winning cases. He’s sharp, astute, and always gets his way. In his private life, he’s constantly fumbling his way around when it comes to raising his two nieces. When he moves into a new office, he just can’t take his eyes off the fiercely independent woman across the street. He'd love to touch and kiss that irresistible body.   

It all started with a sexy selfie. Texted to the wrong number. Oops. Not my finest moment - but I have nothing to be ashamed of. She thought I was no better, and I quote, than the knuckle-dragging douchebags she was never dating again. It was a stupid dare from a girl I’d met online, but since she’d given me a fake number, I didn’t feel bad that my interests were suddenly focused elsewhere - on the fiery and sharp-tongued Peyton that I found myself sparring with over text. The following day, my case of mistaken identity came back to bite me in the banana.

I swore off anyone remotely like my ex. On the top of that list? Attorneys. Everyone knows they can't be trusted. Now that I've moved back into my childhood home in Chicago, my focus is my daughter, my mom, and me. Then I see Reed Warner again. I push him away, but somehow he weasels his way into every part of my life, not willing to take "No" for an answer. In spite of my better judgment, I can't stop thinking about the way his designer suits fit his muscular frame. The problem? Not only is he a lawyer...he was the best man at my wedding.

Deacon Hunter is domineering, condescending, and infuriating. And yet I can’t seem to keep my panties on for five minutes when we’re alone together. He keeps melting them right off. With that sexy voice, those confident hands, the way he brings my body wildly to life, he’s proved my libido hasn’t gone into permanent post-divorce hibernation after all.

I’m the guy you call when you need to impress your overbearing family, your boss, or your ex. Yeah, I’m a male escort, but not just any escort, I’m the escort. The one with a mile-long waiting list and a pristine reputation that’s very well-deserved. I’m the guy who’ll make you feel beautiful, desired, and worshipped...all for a steep price. I’m hired to make you shine, and I always deliver. I’ll be whatever you want me to be for one night - except my true self. This is just a job, a role I play to earn a paycheck. But I’m not the guy who falls for a client.

Some women are just forbidden. Like - off the top of my head - my sister's lifelong best friend. Sis has made it patently clear that Vanessa is hands-off, as in keep my ladies' man paws far away from her clever, go-getter best friend who's ready for the real deal. That should be an easy guideline to follow, except Vanessa is deliciously flirty, easy to talk to, and laughs at my jokes. Translation - my libido has been craving her many, many years. So many that we might have stolen a kiss or two. Can you say pent-up, crazy, raw desire?

Turn-ons: party girls. Platinum blondes. Zero expectations. I used to think if you could combine all three into one female, you'd have the perfect woman. Then why the hell does Ava Pearson - an outdoorsy girl, a brunette, and a woman who screams stability and responsibility - seem to be the only woman on my mind lately? It's the cupcakes. It's gotta be the cupcakes she bakes that keep me coming back for more. After all, the way to a man's heart is through his stomach, right? Did I forget to mention she's my buddy's daughter?

Heidi and I have been trading hungry looks all year, and everything she does makes me smile. But I don't do girlfriends, and I certainly can't get involved with the league commissioner's daughter. I need shots on goal, not a hookup and a widely misunderstood paparazzi photo. Can I resist her, though? The way she teases me should be a game penalty for interference with my libido.

Losing It is a is a stand-alone first time romance with the perfect mix of heat, humor, and emotion. Find out why listeners say "no one writes broken bad boys like Crystal Kaswell".

I’m an all-or-nothing man - 100 percent focused on whatever has my attention. First it was serving my country in the Special Forces. Then it was building my business. Right now it’s the hot blonde at the bar who’s about to become another notch on my bedpost.