Download or read book If You Want Me Close written by Skye Kilaen and published by Skye Kilaen. This book was released on 2022-05-10 with total page 240 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Step 1: Fall for your best friend. Step 2: Support him when tragedy strikes. Step 3: Figure out how you screwed up Step 2. Bisexual event coordinator Simon Novotny thrives on connection. He cherishes his large, queer-friendly family and his friends—especially his cute, brilliant work bestie, gay IT geek Ziah Holdaway. It’s taken forever for Simon to to coax Ziah out of his shell. Time and again people have let him down, especially those who should have loved him unconditionally. But Simon would do anything for Ziah: text him jokes when he's down, bring him homemade lunches, change his tire in the rain. Heck, if Ziah needs a kidney, Simon's got two. Minor crush? Maybe, but Simon's not a make-the-first-move kind of guy. So when an unplanned hookup with Ziah proves their chemistry is off the charts, it also shakes Simon to his core. Because for Ziah, it's not casual, it's love. Before Simon can fully process his feelings, a life-altering tragedy upends Ziah's world. Simon throws himself into helping and also rallies his family. But for Ziah, family means rejection, and Simon's uber-helpful clan sets off major alarm bells. Can they find a middle path through the storm, or will this crisis cost them both their romance and their friendship? A high-heat contemporary M/M romance novel with a guaranteed HEA. Tropes: friends to lovers, hurt-comfort, grief, nerds in love, bisexual disaster, single parent. Detailed content warnings are available in the book's front matter and on the author's website.

Download or read book Here If You Need Me written by Kate Braestrup and published by Little, Brown. This book was released on 2007-08-01 with total page 224 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Ten years ago, Kate Braestrup and her husband Drew were enjoying the life they shared together. They had four young children, and Drew, a Maine state trooper, would soon begin training to become a minister as well. Then early one morning Drew left for work and everything changed. On the very roads that he protected every day, an oncoming driver lost control, and Kate lost her husband. Stunned and grieving, Kate decided to continue her husband's dream and became a minister herself. And in that capacity she found a most unusual mission: serving as the minister on search and rescue missions in the Maine woods, giving comfort to people whose loved ones are missing, and to the wardens who sometimes have to deal with awful outcomes. Whether she is with the parents of a 6-year-old girl who had wandered into the woods, with wardens as they search for a snowmobile rider trapped under the ice, or assisting a man whose sister left an infant seat and a suicide note in her car by the side of the road, Braestrup provides solace, understanding, and spiritual guidance when it's needed most. Here if You Need Me is the story of Kate Braestrup's remarkable journey from grief to faith to happiness. It is dramatic, funny, deeply moving, and simply unforgettable, an uplifting account about finding God through helping others, and the tale of the small miracles that occur every day when life and love are restored.

Download or read book Last Lecture written by Perfection Learning Corporation and published by Turtleback. This book was released on 2019 with total page pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt:

Download or read book I d Like You More If You Were More like Me written by John Ortberg and published by NavPress. This book was released on 2017-10-03 with total page 321 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: I’d Like You More If You Were More like Me takes on one of life’s most important questions: How can I get closer to God and other people? We were created for deep connections. When people have deep connections, says John Ortberg, they win in life. When they don’t have deep connections, they cannot win in life. I’d Like You More if You Were More like Me offers help in overcoming one of the biggest obstacles to making deep connections: the fact that we’re so different. Different from God and different from each other. The good news is that connectedness is not based on similarity, but on shared experiences. When one person invites another to share an experience, they’re connected. It can be sharing a beautiful sunset or a meal, having a great conversation over cup of coffee, going for walk, or even teasing somebody. And when we share those same experiences with God, we get closer to him, too. God wants to connect with us—so much that he sent his son to live as a human being. God took on flesh and shared every human experience. So we don’t have to wonder what a close relationship with God looks like anymore. An intimate relationship with God and other people doesn’t have to be a cliché, it can be a daily way of life.

Download or read book Slow Down written by Nichole Nordeman and published by Thomas Nelson. This book was released on 2017-08-22 with total page 209 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The days are long, but the years are short. No matter if it’s your child’s first step, first day of school, or first night tucked away in a new dorm room away from home, there comes a moment when you realize just how quickly the years are flying by. Christian music artist Nichole Nordeman’s profound lyrics in her viral hit “Slow Down” struck a chord with moms everywhere, and now this beautiful four-color book will inspire you to celebrate the everyday moments of motherhood. Filled with thought-provoking writings from Nichole, as well as guest writings from friends including Shauna Niequist and Jen Hatmaker, practical tips, and journaling space for reflection, Slow Down will be a poignant gift for any mom, as well as a treasured keepsake. Take a few moments to reflect and celebrate the privilege of being a parent and getting to watch your little ones grow—and Slow Down. Nichole Nordeman has sold more than 1 million albums as a Christian music artist and has won 9 GMA Dove Awards, including two awards for Female Vocalist of the Year and Songwriter of the Year. Nichole released a lyric video for her song “Slow Down,” and it struck a chord with parents everywhere, amassing 14 million views in its first five days. She lives in Oklahoma with her two children.

Download or read book When A Heartless Thug Holds Me Close 4 written by Tya Marie and published by Sullivan Group Publishing. This book was released on 2018-06-24 with total page 303 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Zeus Townsend has always held it together for his brothers. Being the oldest of four, Zeus was not only their older brother, but a father figure after the jailhouse murder of their father nearly fifteen years ago. However, with the Assan Brothers gone for good, Zeus is able to start building the life he sacrificed for the sake of holding his family down. Three years later, he has done exactly that: his position as connect has brought him wealth, he has the woman of his dreams by his side, and for the first time since he was younger, he's happy. Unfortunately for the eldest Townsend Brother, happiness can only be short lived. In a twist of events, Zeus’ blissful existence is ruined by a secret that was supposed to be taken to the grave. Forced to move on without the love of his life, Zeus is convinced that he’ll never love again until he meets the mysterious Quincy Burton. She's the best thing he never knew he needed, yet their connection goes deeper than between the sheets. She's an Assan Sister and while her intentions are pure, her bloodline isn’t. While Zeus focuses on starting over, his brother, Hasani, and sister-in-law, Gia, are newlyweds maneuvering marital problems made for veteran unions. When it comes to remaining faithful to his fiancée, Hasani Townsend has come a long way from the remorseless adulterer he once was. Too bad for him, his history is known to someone who threatens to not only take down his family, but ruin his marriage before it even begins. One drunken night at his bachelor party is the first nail in the coffin of their dying marriage. Two fatal gunshots change the trajectory of their entire relationship, placing a deep crack in an already shaky foundation. Three years of relationship building is destroyed at a discovery made by Hasani, causing him to wonder if he wasn’t the only one sneaking and creeping. However, for all of their marital lows, Hasani and Gia remain connected through their ability to push aside their issues and be the rock each other needs when life gets tough. But with all of their secrets and lies coming out, Hasani has to decide whether he's going to tough it out and remain with the woman he loves, or if it’s best to walk away. Born into the Luchesi Crime Family, Gianna Luchesi was raised with access to guns, money, and power. Instead of relying on her family name to create her legacy, Gia goes to medical school and uses her position as a front for her real job, which is running a lucrative arms business from New York City. While her position as an arms dealer brings her joy, Gia is constantly at odds with Hasani when it comes to her future. Hasani is supportive in every way possible, but aside from his past transgressions, he wants her to play it safe when the life she has chosen for herself is anything but. However, when an enemy targeting the Townsend Brothers places a bullseye on her back, Gia has no choice but to insert herself and everyone bearing her notorious last name into a war for the ages. Gia remains strong on the business side despite her personal life suffering. Her marriage to Hasani has taken several blows over a short amount of time due to enemies who wish to see her suffer, but when Gia discovers that the fatal blow was delivered by someone who was supposed to have her back, Gia has to save her marriage before Hasani throws in the towel. When a Heartless Thug Holds Me Close 4, a true love story, is filled with earth shattering secrets, volatile lies, and a reminder that like ghosts, real grudges never die.

Download or read book Any Way You Want Me written by Yuwanda Black and published by Inkwell Editorial Publishing. This book was released on 2014-05-19 with total page 52 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: PROLOGUE "You know what your problem is?" Gatlin bit out. "You're too damn naïve. Not everything in life is all butterflies and sunshine Kylie." "And do you know what your problem is?" Kylie shot back. "You're too damn jaded. You wouldn't know happiness if it bit you in the ass," she continued. "You're content being miserable — and I'm going to leave you to that because it has no place in my world of butterflies and sunshine," she ended, storming past Gatlin. His arm snaked out and grabbed her. "Let go … of … me," Kylie bit out as she fought against her rising tide of passion. Gatlin's heat-seeking tongue melted her last bit of resistance. Kylie dug her hands into his thick, dark hair. Gatlin slowed his assault on her mouth, moving to the golden column of her neck. "No, no, no … stop. Stop Gatlin," her words slowly penetrated his aroused state. "This doesn't solve anything," she said, tears rolling down her cheeks. It's never been our problem … and it won't be our salvation." Shaking off his desire to focus as best as he could, Gatlin responded, "It's a damn good place to start," and reached for her again. "Gatlin stop!" Kylie yelled. "Don’t you see? This is just another way for you to not deal with your real feelings. … I'm looking for real, lasting, soul-connecting love; not some casual roll in the hay!" "You know you mean more to me than just a roll in the hay," Gatlin said. "I really care about you Kylie." "I love you Gatlin. And I know it's not something a modern woman is supposed to say so early in a relationship. But there it is. And I don't expect you to do anything or say anything. I just wanted you to know where I'm coming from." "In my world, love is not complicated. Difficult at times? Yes. But hard? No. You're absolutely right, I do believe in butterflies and sunshine. I believe in love — and I won't let anybody make me feel bad about that or take that away from me." "The thing is, I know you love me too. But you just won't let yourself trust that what we have is real. And I refuse to spend my life trying to prove it to you." ### "Stop hitting my mom!" Gatlin yelled, jumping in front of his mother to prevent his father from landing another blow. "This is between your mother and me boy!" his father said in his drunken slur. "Go to your room. I'm ok honey." "I'm not leaving you," Gatlin cried, his seven-year-old voice cracking with fear as he tried to drag his mom from the room. As his father prepared to land another blow, Gatlin kicked him in the groin. He doubled over in pain, shouting, "You miserable little piece of shit! I'll kill you for this!" Gatlin's mother ran to his side. "Honey are you alright? " she said, wiping blood from the side of her lip with one hand while she consoled his father with the other. ### Gatlin had mentally catalogued hundreds of these memories from his childhood. But this particular one stuck with him vividly. He realized why when Kylie said, "I believe in love and I won't let anybody take that away from me." When his mother had gone to his father to comfort him, instead of coming to him, a frightened 7-year-old, he realized the power of love. His mother had loved his father beyond all rhyme and reason — even beyond her child. He didn't realize it, but that had been the moment he'd stopped believing in love. Love hurt. It was cruel. It wasn't kind. It was loyal to the wrong people. ### Can Kylie trust that what's between them will blossom into everlasting love, or will Gatlin's painful past always be a barrier to their happily ever after? ### african american romance, contemporary romance, interracial romance, bwwm romance, multicultural romance, drama romance, short romance, steamy romance, suspense romance

Download or read book If You Want Me to Stay written by Michael Parker and published by Algonquin Books. This book was released on 2005-09-16 with total page 200 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: When Joel Dunn, Jr.'s mother leaves and his father fades into insanity, he and his little brother, Tank, set off on a journey to reunite with their mother, but as they become caught between the idealism of childhood and the realities of adulthood, they find that one sure thing may be right by their sides all along.

Download or read book Slightly Spellbound written by Kimberly Frost and published by Penguin. This book was released on 2014-05-06 with total page 322 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: With two kinds of magick at odds inside her and two gorgeous men vying for her attention, Tammy Jo Trask is used to being pulled in opposite directions. But in the latest Southern Witch novel she’ll have to make some serious decisions—like how she intends to stay alive. Tammy Jo’s romance with the wizard Bryn Lyons is on hold while her ex-husband is in town trying to remind her of the good old days. Choosing between them isn’t easy, and it doesn’t help that a skeletal creature is spying on her, a faery knight is hunting her, and she just made friends with Evangeline Rhodes—a rich witch who thinks her own family is trying to kill her. When Evangeline disappears under suspicious circumstances, Tammy Jo is determined to find out what happened. As she uncovers a secret more dangerous—and personal—than she could have imagined, she also discovers that, in both love and magic, you can’t stay neutral forever.

Download or read book I Don t Care if You Like Me I Like Me written by Bernie Mac and published by Simon and Schuster. This book was released on 2022-05-24 with total page 384 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Listen up y’all. Bernie Mac is back, and this here is his page-a-day prescription for a better life and career. You wanna be successful, don’t ya? All you gotta do is read one page a day. So come on, let’s start your edumacation right now. Are y’all ready to get yourself together? It’s time for you to start livin’ your best life, and all you gotta do is read one got-d*mn page a day. You think you can handle that? Sure you can. You can do anything you wanna do, but you never gonna hit a home run if you ain’t steppin’ up to the plate. You got yourself a dream? You got a vision? There ain’t no sugarcoatin’ it. The only one who’s gonna make it happen is you, but this book is gonna help. It’s alright—we all need a little help once in a while. I Don’t Care if You Like Me, I Like Me is 365 days of Bernie Mac tellin’ it like it T-I-Iz. You gonna be gettin’ some of his best advice, his personal stories showin’ y’all that what he’s tellin’ you works, and some commentary from Rhonda ’cuz that woman knows what's up. We’re talkin’ about bein’ your best self, gettin’ better in your relationships, findin’ your place in the world, and openin’ up that door to plentitude. So, the choice is yours. Are you ready to be the best sumb*tch you can be? You wanna be happy and successful? You got somethin’ more important goings on right now? Quit procrasternatin’ and do it. “Bernie Mac had a way of telling it straight that made you listen and made you think. He was genuine, always positive, and truly cared if you were okay. I Don’t Care if You Like Me, I Like Me is an undeniably funny and poignant strategy for reaching your fullest potential one day at a time.” —Courtney B. Vance, Multi-Award-Winning Actor of Stage and Screen “I’ve never seen anything like I Don’t Care if You Like Me, I Like Me. This book is self-help, Chicago-style. It’s the perfect combination of comedy and truth, just like you’d expect from Bernie Mac.” —Sherri Shepherd, Award-Winning Actress, Comedian, and Talk Show Host “I Don’t Care if You Like Me, I Like Me is some straight-talking truth from the no-holds-barred Bernie Mac. His self-help approach makes you want to do exactly that—help yourself! His raw honesty will make you laugh, cry and possibly rethink your entire life.” —Kym Whitley, American comedian and actress

Download or read book Bark If You Love Me written by Louise Bernikow and published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt. This book was released on 2001 with total page 232 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: A single city woman meets Mr. Right-he has amber eyes and a wily heart. There's only one catch . . . he has four legs and a tail. Relatively indifferent to the natural world, allergic to dogs, and happily independent, writer Louise Bernikow never had a pet and knew nothing about caring for one. But one day while running along Manhattan's Hudson River, she came across an abandoned boxer. He had a gimpy leg and a dim past, but Bernikow instantly, bewilderingly, did the one thing her mother always warned her not to do-she brought the strange male home. Here is the comical and offbeat story of their first year together. Libro, as she comes to call him (for "book," in Spanish), introduces her to the curious world of dog runs and dog people, and to a local dive where the bartender pulls pints from the tap and dog biscuits from the drawer. Bernikow, in turn, introduces Libro to the eccentric neighbors and to life as a media hound. When they meet a handsome man and his equally handsome dachshund, life takes an unexpected turn for both of them. Wonderfully written and captivating to the last, this is a remarkable tale of companionship.

Download or read book If You Love Me written by Ciara Knight and published by Defy the Dark Publishing, LLC. This book was released on 2021-07-27 with total page 189 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Ex-Army sergeant, Drew Lancaster demands order, but when he’s thrust into small-town politics involving crazy elders and a manipulative mayor he finds himself submerged in chaos. His only hope to navigate the strange rules of the town comes from a distractingly beautiful, mess of a woman - Carissa Donahue. As a small town girl, Carissa lives her life on a whim and a prayer. Even in the kitchen she never uses a recipe, yet her sweets are known as the best throughout the South. She has no desire to be a part of Drew’s show, but she knows it’s the town’s best option to increase tourism during a troubling economic time. If there wasn’t an upturn, she’d have to close her bakery. She can’t lose it. Owning a bakery has been her lifelong dream, and her focus since her best friend ran away with her fiancé. The icing on the project for Drew is that a colleague has promised him a spot working at a real film network if Drew can spend time with Carissa and not fall in love. Drew isn’t sure he can resist the one person he’d never date under different circumstances, nor is he sure he wants to. Can Drew convince Carissa she can trust him enough to open her heart?

Download or read book One Step Closer written by Evelyn Adams and published by Evelyn Adams. This book was released on 2023-03-31 with total page 165 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: An grumpy sunshine starting over story from NYT and USA Today bestselling author Evelyn Adams about about a woman who's working to put her life back together and the man who helps her get started. I thought I’d be married forever, just like my parents and grandparents. But then my happily-ever-after imploded. I’ve spent the past year struggling to hold my small family together. Putting the kids first because they didn’t deserve what happened. I didn’t deserve it either. Now I’ve got eight days to myself, while the kids are safe and having fun with my parents. Eight days to hide the cat in my no pets allowed vacation rental. Eight days to ignore the rental’s grumpy owner who looks like someone off a sexy handymen of the northeast calendar. Eight days to sleep and dream and breathe. Eight days to find the broken pieces of myself. I knew exactly how lost I was. I didn’t know his touch would help me put myself back together. Warning: Grace’s story is grumpy/ sunshine because despite everything, sunshine is her nature, with a hot growly contractor who is very good with his hands. It includes an escape artist cat whose purr conquers his growl, a private plane ride, and enough heat to knock the chill off the New England spring. It does not include a happily-ever-after. I scout’s honor pinky swear promise Grace will get hers, but when your first HEA crashes and burns, you take a little extra time with the next one.

Download or read book If You Love Me You Will written by Michael Gonzales and published by WestBow Press. This book was released on 2019-02-01 with total page 162 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: If You Love Me, You Will ... examines how the Bible defines love and applies that understanding to human behavior—and especially to Christians. Author Michael Gonzales shares true stories from his life to illustrate the theme of love and provide examples that all of us can appreciate and relate to. Those who have been confused by the world’s definition of love will find much illumination for their relationships with God, those around them, and even themselves. Men and women alike will benefit from the principles contained in If You Love Me, You Will ... for the good of all their relationships.

Download or read book The Golden Box written by Frances Crane and published by Open Road Media. This book was released on 2022-10-04 with total page 268 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: A grande dame is buried—but the truth must be unearthed: “The solution of the mystery is neat and satisfactory, and the story makes pleasant reading.” —The New York Times Thanks to an illness in the family, Jean Holly is staying in her hometown of Elm Hill, Illinois, for a bit. Her cousin just happens to live next door to Fabian House, home of Mrs. Lake, the richest and most powerful woman in town. When Mrs. Lake dies suddenly, it’s ascribed to a known heart condition. But Patrick Abbott, passing through Elm Hill on his way to Washington, becomes suspicious when one death is followed by another—this time, the hanging of the Fabian House maid . . . Praise for the Pat and Jean Abbott Mysteries “Well-plotted and mystifying.” —Saturday Review “Amusing and sophisticated.” —The Star (London)

Download or read book How to Fall in Love with Anyone written by Mandy Len Catron and published by Simon and Schuster. This book was released on 2017-06-27 with total page 211 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: “A beautifully written and well-researched cultural criticism as well as an honest memoir” (Los Angeles Review of Books) from the author of the popular New York Times essay, “To Fall in Love with Anyone, Do This,” explores the romantic myths we create and explains how they limit our ability to achieve and sustain intimacy. What really makes love last? Does love ever work the way we say it does in movies and books and Facebook posts? Or does obsessing over those love stories hurt our real-life relationships? When her parents divorced after a twenty-eight year marriage and her own ten-year relationship ended, those were the questions that Mandy Len Catron wanted to answer. In a series of candid, vulnerable, and wise essays that takes a closer look at what it means to love someone, be loved, and how we present our love to the world, “Catron melds science and emotion beautifully into a thoughtful and thought-provoking meditation” (Bookpage). She delves back to 1944, when her grandparents met in a coal mining town in Appalachia, to her own dating life as a professor in Vancouver. She uses biologists’ research into dopamine triggers to ask whether the need to love is an innate human drive. She uses literary theory to show why we prefer certain kinds of love stories. She urges us to question the unwritten scripts we follow in relationships and looks into where those scripts come from. And she tells the story of how she decided to test an experiment that she’d read about—where the goal was to create intimacy between strangers using a list of thirty-six questions—and ended up in the surreal situation of having millions of people following her brand-new relationship. “Perfect fodder for the romantic and the cynic in all of us” (Booklist), How to Fall in Love with Anyone flips the script on love. “Clear-eyed and full of heart, it is mandatory reading for anyone coping with—or curious about—the challenges of contemporary courtship” (The Toronto Star).

Download or read book Poetry2Lyrics MEMOIRS m1 I Cry No More Pain written by Christina Brown and published by Lulu.com. This book was released on 2012-01-19 with total page 115 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This autobiography is a memoir of poetry and short stories depicting the personal triumph over tragedy and the life of Christina M. Brown. She gives personal accounts of the experiences in her life; taking you inside her mind as she struggled and battled many storms and strongholds. Many of these challenges directed her down dangerous paths. However, she goes on to tell of how she found the light and through it all would weather the storms and survive.She is passionate about uplifting and edifying the souls of others. With great detail she encourages the reader to fight for life and realize they are not alone. If she can beat the odds, so can you. The riveting and deep poems and stories are sure to reach inside your soul to find the will to make it and find your purpose.