10 Romance reads that prove life doesn’t end at 25

10/5/2018

Ever get sick of all the heroes and heroines in romance who are just kids? I know I sure do. Sometimes I just want to read about mature heroes and heroines who have a little bit more mileage on them. (And I don’t mean that in a dirty way. Get your minds out of the gutter, people!) So, for all my fellow “mature” romance lovers out there (because we’re not old, damn it, we’re mature), here are some awesome romance reads that prove life doesn’t end after college. Enjoy!

We Own Tonight by Corinne Michaels

I’m not a one-night stand kind of woman. I’m especially not the woman who has a few drinks at a concert and ends up in bed with my childhood celebrity crush, Eli Walsh.

However, that’s exactly where I find myself.

What’s a girl to do after a drunken mistake? Run. I grab my clothes and get away from the powerful, irresistible, and best-sex-of-my-life superstar as fast as I can. His gorgeous green eyes, rock-hard body, and cocky smile have no place in my world. My life is complicated enough.

Someone forgot to tell him that.

Eli is relentless. Pushing his way into my heart, wearing me down, proving he’s nothing like I assumed, and everything I need. But when my world shatters to pieces, he holds the broken bits together. Unwillingly, I fall desperately in love with him.

He made me think we’d have forever . . . I should’ve listened when he said we could only own tonight.

Games of the Heart by Kristen Ashley

From the balcony of his house, Mike Haines can see the quiet, commonplace beauty of the Holliday farm. But what he remembers is Dusty, the little sister of his high school girlfriend, who grew up there. As a teen, Dusty had gone off the rails but when she was a kid, she was sweet, she was funny and she had a special bond with Mike. After high school, she took off and Mike never saw her again.

Tragedy strikes Dusty’s family and she comes back to town. Mike thinks she hasn’t changed back to the sweet, funny girl he knew but instead continued to be selfish and thoughtless, leaving her family alone to deal with their mourning. He seeks her out and confronts her in an effort to understand what went wrong and to force her to sort herself out.

He finds out quickly he’s wrong about Dusty Holliday. Very wrong. After Mike discovers that, the bond they had years before snaps back into place in ways he would never suspect.

But Mike Haines had a bad marriage and then played games of the heart for a good woman...and lost. In order to protect himself and his kids, he’s cautious, he’s careful to read the signs and he’s not interested in finding a woman he has to fix.

When he learns what happened to Dusty, he thinks she needs to be fixed.

He swings, he misses and in this new game of hearts, Mike just got strike three.

Soul Deep by Pamela Clare

Rancher Jack West knows what it means to love a woman with all his heart and to lose her far too soon. A widower for seven long years, he thinks love and romance are a thing of the past, nothing more than cherished memories. He devotes himself to his grown son and his family, the horses they raise, and the land that has been theirs for three generations. He doesn’t know that life has a surprise in store for him in the form of Janet Killeen, the lovely FBI agent he threw off his land last winter.

The bullet that left Janet Killeen seriously wounded also tore a hole through her life. All she wants is a little peace and quiet in the mountains, a chance to feel like herself again. That chance comes to an abrupt end when she goes off the road in a snowstorm and winds up stranded alone in a ditch. The last person on earth she wants to see is that arrogant jerk Jack West, no matter how handsome he is. But from the moment Jack finds her and offers her his hand, she realizes there’s far more to this gruff cowboy than she had imagined.

But trouble is brewing at Cimarron Ranch. A deranged man with an inscrutable motive is moving in for the kill, threatening to end Jack and Janet’s romance before they can claim a love that is … Soul Deep.

Absolution by Kaylea Cross

A lifetime of regret...
After legendary CIA contractor Luke Hutchinson unknowingly trained the man who would become the world's most dangerous terrorist, he has no choice but to hunt him across the globe. Driven to complete that final mission, he fears his enemy has targeted the only woman Luke has ever loved. Unfortunately for him she's his ex-wife, and already facing another deadly threat he can't protect her from.

A lifetime of pain...
Emily always hoped Luke would find his way back to her, but she's finally given up on that impossible dream. Now that she's fighting her own life and death battle, the last thing she wants is to get entangled with the man who ripped out her heart and left her to raise their son on her own.

One final chance at absolution...
Undeniable sparks fly when they're forced to share a roof, but unless Luke can get Emily to trust him, they won't get the second chance they've waited over two decades for. And time is running out. The monster Luke created is on the move again, bent on destroying him and anyone who gets in the way.

Resisting the Boss by Whitney G

Claire Gracen's life is picture perfect. Her career as a marketing director is on the brink of being legendary, and her marriage to her high school sweetheart has never been stronger. No, wait. It has. It used to be amazing and fulfilling, but one day Claire realizes that she's been living a lie and her best friend and husband have committed the ultimate betrayal.

Broken and depressed, Claire is in need of something new—new city, new job, new friends.

When she happens to attract the interest of the sexiest man she's ever met, a man significantly younger than her, she immediately turns him down—only to later discover that this man is Jonathan Statham, self-made billionaire and CEO of Statham Industries. Her boss.

Jonathan Statham is unlike any man she's met before. He's used to getting whatever he wants—whenever he wants, and he isn't about to take no for an answer.

Bet Me by Jennifer Crusie

The beloved New York Times bestselling novel, now with an exclusive letter from Jennifer Crusie in celebration of its tenth anniversary
This is New York Times and USA Today bestselling author Jennifer Crusie's novel about long shots, risk management, true love, and great shoes. . . .

Minerva Dobbs knows how to work the odds.
Calvin Morrisey always plays to win.
But when they face off, neither one is prepared.
Because when real life meets true love, all bets are off. . . .

Minerva Dobbs knows that happily-ever-after is a fairy tale, especially with a man who asked her to dinner to win a bet, even if he is gorgeous and successful Calvin Morrisey. Cal knows commitment is impossible, especially with a woman as cranky as Min Dobbs, even if she does wear great shoes and keep him on his toes. When they say good-bye at the end of their evening, they cut their losses and agree never to see each other again.

But fate has other plans, and it's not long before Min and Cal meet again. Soon they're dealing with a jealous ex-boyfriend, Krispy Kreme doughnuts, a determined psychologist, chaos theory, a freakishly intelligent cat, Chicken Marsala, and more risky propositions than either of them ever dreamed of. Including the biggest gamble of all---true love.

Open Season by Linda Howard

Seamlessly blending heart-pounding romance and breathless intrigue, New York Times bestselling author Linda Howard writes a masterful, stylish, and provocative suspense novel that absolutely defies readers to put it down.

Daisy Minor is bored. Worse than that, she's boring. A plain, small-town librarian, she's got a wardrobe as sexy as a dictionary and hasn't been on a date in years. She's never even had a lukewarm love affair, let alone a hot one. So when she wakes up on her thirty-fourth birthday, still living with her widowed mom and spinster aunt, she decides it's time to get a life.

But can a lifelong good girl turn bad? No, not exactly.

But she can pretend, right?

One makeover later, Daisy has transformed herself into a party girl extraordinaire. She's letting her hair down, dancing the night away at clubs, and laughing and flirting with men for the first time in, well, ever. With a new lease on her own place and her life, it's open season for man-hunting.

But on her way home late one night, Daisy sees something she's not supposed to see. Suddenly the target of a killer, she's forced to put her manhunt on hold. But the very moment she stops looking might be the moment she finds what she's wanted all along. Trouble is, before he can share her life, he might just have to save it.

The Sweetest Thing by Jill Shalvis

Two Men Are One Too Many . . .

Tara has a thousand good reasons not to return to the little coastal town of Lucky Harbor, Washington. Yet with her life doing a major crash-and-burn, anywhere away from her unfulfilled dreams and sexy ex-husband will do. As Tara helps her two sisters get their newly renovated inn up and running, she finally has a chance to get things under control and come up with a new plan for her life.

But a certain tanned, green-eyed sailor has his own ideas, such as keeping Tara hot, bothered . . . and in his bed. And when her ex wants Tara back, three is a crowd she can't control-especially when her deepest secret reappears out of the blue. Now Tara must confront her past and discover what she really wants. If she's lucky, she might just find that everything her heart desires is right here in Lucky Harbor.

Lukas by Carian Cole

A thirty-six year old mother of two finds out life isn't over after divorce when a sexy as hell twenty-four year old tattoo artist kisses her senseless under a shooting star.

Ivy thought she had it all—married to her high school sweetheart, two great kids, and a beautiful house. But her world comes crashing down when she catches her husband with another woman.

When her best friend gives her a gift certificate to a local tattoo parlor to cheer her up, Ivy gets a helluva lot more when inked-up Lukas Valentine—renowned tattoo artist, violin player extraordinaire, and extreme hopeless romantic—captures her heart.

Lukas is an old soul with a heart of gold. When Ivy walks into his shop, he's instantly drawn to her shy smile and down to earth personality. Tired of the dating scene, Lukas is ready to settle down, and he's hell-bent on making Ivy believe they can have the happily ever after they both dream about - with each other.

Despite their age difference, the chemistry and love they share is undeniable. Lukas is everything Ivy never knew she wanted in a man, but can she trust her heart with a much younger man, and can they overcome the hurdles that life keeps throwing in their way?

Fisher's Light by Tara Sivec

Fisher,
I guess this is it, huh? After fourteen years together, starting a life of our own on this island, five deployments and countless letters I’ve written you through it all, I finally go out to the mailbox and see something I’ve always dreamed of: an envelope with your handwriting on it. For one moment, I actually thought you’d changed your mind, that all the awful things you said to me were just your way of coping after everything you’d been through. I was still here, Fisher. I was still here, holding my breath, waiting for you to come back even though you told me you never would. You always said you’d find your way back to me. Out of all the lies you’ve told me, this one hurts the most. Enclosed you will find the signed divorce papers, as requested.
I hope you find what you’re looking for. I’m sorry it wasn’t me.
Lucy

To get the ending they want, Lucy and Fisher will have to go back to the beginning. Through the good and the bad, they’ll be reminded of why they always made their way back to each other, and why this time, one way or another, it will be the last time.