Where I come from, there's no forgiveness for a whistleblower, even if I saved countless lives. Unemployed with a wrecked reputation, my only option is a pity job as a leadership consultant for a secret, government-employed team of assassins. After moving clear across the country, I thought I'd feel safe from the ones who want revenge for my so-called valor, but then I met him. Linc. The ghost in the shadows, who will never be seen for the hero he is.

When my father passed away, I assumed my grieving would be as simple as closing a book and starting another. Only he had other plans. Leaving me his beloved tattoo shop, I’m stuck to figure out what exactly to do with it, all while being constantly reminded of him.

The ruthless mafia king is no stranger to violence, but when he lays his eyes on my bruised and battered face, he's furious. I thought my makeup was thick enough to cover the beating I suffered until my inappropriately flirtatious boss noticed. As a cocktail waitress in his casino, I've always been on Mr. Salvato's radar, but now he's obsessed, demanding to know who hurt me and why, intent on making them suffer.

One of the cardinal rules of matchmaking I was positive I'd never break. That is until Nathan Wilder walked into Love Moore Matchmaking Agency, needing my help to find him the one. A tall order to ask since he was the most hated man in the NHL. Broody. Crude. Abrasive. The man was a six-foot-three walking red flag. Right off the bat, every fiber of my being told me he'd be trouble. He wasn't looking for love. It was all a PR stunt to clean up his image so he could keep playing for the Boston Guardians. But there was something in his sad, soulful eyes that just pulled me in.

Wallowing in grief for too long can be hazardous. It's why I allowed my brother to talk me into accepting a new client. Our security firm needed the money, and the endorsement from a famous director could steer our company to new heights.

Amazon Top 25 and International Bestselling Author Kathy Lockheart delivers an unputdownable romance series where desire and danger collide. Two standalones, interconnected by a deliciously dark thread of romance, action, mystery, and shocking twists… Included in the collection: Deadly Illusion (Book One) and Fatal Cure (Book Two)

Royce Blackstone has one rule: Never get personally involved with his clients. As the owner of Harper Security Ops, Royce is well aware of everything and everyone inside his building. When he’s about to go in after the biggest lead on latest case that’s landed on his desk, Royce didn’t expect he’d have to abort the mission early. It might have seemed like Tarryn Hendrix was simply looking to learn some new skills, but dedicating two years of her life to training her mind and body is all part of Tarryn’s plan.

For almost two years now, Kiera’s boyfriend, Denny, has been everything she’s ever wanted: loving, tender, and endlessly devoted to her. When they head off to a new city to start their lives together - Denny at his dream job and Kiera at a top-notch university - everything seems perfect. Then an unforeseen obligation forces the happy couple apart. Feeling lonely, confused, and in need of comfort, Kiera turns to an unexpected source - a local rock star named Kellan Kyle. At first, he’s purely a friend she can lean on, but as her loneliness grows, so does their relationship. And then one night everything changes....

There was right, there was wrong, and then there was the in-between. The place where normal people reside, understanding that there are two sides to every coin. People that do bad things for good reasons. People that do bad things for bad reasons. First, I knew that Shasha Semyonov was a bad man. One that did bad things for bad reasons. That didn’t mean that I was rational when it came to him.

When Jamie Andrews moves in with a house full of firefighters, things start heating up fast. Battling the wilderness of rural Montana, these guys are always charging into danger—for a living, for duty, for the rush—and since Jamie is a psychiatric nurse, they fascinate her analytic mind. She can’t help but fixate on Calvin, a grumpy, enigmatic smoke jumper ten years her senior. She makes playfully tormenting him her pet project, trying to get him to open up. It turns out he gives as good as he gets.

My whole life, I've come out on top. One of the finest players ever to grace the NHL? Check. Most prolific playboy with an enviable reputation between the sheets? Check. Award for the cockiest athlete in America? Also, check, and well deserved I'd say. So why does my life feel anything but the perfect image I project? And why won't the one woman who came crashing into my life and knocked me on my six-foot-four ass take me seriously?

I wasn't looking for love, especially not in the small mountain town where my brothers and I relocated our security firm. One look at my River of Dreams was all it took to know I'd found the other half of my soul. She wasn't ready for me or my crazy family, so I offered friendship. When tragedy shook her very foundation, there wasn't a force on Earth that would stop me from finally making her mine.

How did I accidentally sleep with someone, right? I know what you’re thinking. Whoops! I slipped and inadvertently inserted Tab A into Slot B. That’s not quite how it went. But my yoga instructor is really, really skilled with Tab A, if you know what I mean. Slot B never had it so good. What am I supposed to do now, as I walk into my yoga class and find the guy I ghosted this morning… there, in front of the class, perfectly aligned and grinning at me like he remembers touching all my chakras. He's perfect. Too perfect. He's so perfect he's ruining my job.

My guilt and his misconceptions made it so much harder. When he delivers my twins—our twins—that one icy night seems to seal our fate forever. I once drew hearts around his name. We pushed the boundaries of our fine lines, but he was my brother's best friend—off-limits and out of reach. Years later, the story hasn't changed. Derek is an OB-GYN at my new hospital, as sexy and self-assured as ever. Our stolen moments aren't just a PR nightmare. My heart isn't the only one I need to protect. And I refuse to be a pawn in a lovers' game.

One look. One touch. One sound of her beautiful voice and I’m hooked. Like a dream I never want to wake up from, she pulls me in and wraps me around her. Consumed. Driven with need. Fueled by an unrelenting desire to make her mine. One night, I take more than she has ever given before, which only leaves me wanting more. Needing more. Craving more. She’s the one I’ve waited for my whole life.