Julie Cannon

A brief detour to a ranch in the middle of nowhere doesn't lead to forever, does it? Olivia Martinez, forced to leave her high-power Manhattan job with no prospects, is at a crossroad. Not only is she a city girl down to the tips of her Jimmy Choos, she wants to stay close to her parents, who depend on her more than they'd like to. Generally not a risk taker, Olivia steps out of her comfort zone when her best friend, Elizabeth Sutton, asks her to temporarily lend a hand at the Red Sky Ranch. After all, what can a few months change, and New York City is just a plane ride--or three--away, right? Haunted by an hour that changed her life, Riley Mitchell escapes the memories and the guilt by riding motorcycles way too fast, skydiving, and running into burning buildings. She is good-looking, charming, and never wants for female company, as long as no commitment is expected. When Olivia returns to the Red Sky Ranch, Riley's carefully crafted safe world goes up in flames. Can they take a risk and cross the fire line to find love?

We live in a world defined by numbers. They are everywhere we go and define much of society. From the number on a scale to the number on a report card to the number of points on a scoreboard to the number of friends that liked a recent social media post to the number of dollars in a bank account to the number of direct reports to the number of years on the planet to the number of years single or married - the list is endless. As we begin this Bible study, I want to ask, "Are you allowing a number to define you?" People constantly try to portray success in numbers. Businesses report gains and losses, while churches count offerings and enrollment. I grew up as a preacher's kid and often heard the church approach to numbers called the "nickels-and-noses" mentality. Often, we allow our worst day to become the definition of who we are: the day the divorce was finalized, the day cancer was diagnosed, the day the dreaded birthday arrived, or the day the scale's reflection didn't meet our expectations. A number can help us meet a goal and be a healthy objective or leave us empty and depleted. We are all trying to reach the next number on our list. Perhaps the most important question is if we are looking and trusting in the numbers that are important to God. In my life, the pursuit of numbers has been an ongoing battle. The number I have often allowed to define me has been reflected on the scale. The drive to attain the perfect number also drove me to find comfort in majoring in health and exercise science. I enjoyed this major and sought solace in helping others on their journey. During this time, I taught aerobics, worked in cardiac rehabilitation, and found my place helping others through personal training. But recently, the number that haunts me is the number of days I am here without my mom and dad. My mom died in 2012, followed by my dad in 2014. With each passing year, that number gets larger and the loss greater. Throughout this book, I will share many raw experiences, and I hope these experiences will help you. Whether you are a teenager looking to find your identity or a post-partum mom dealing with hormone havoc, you will be reminded that your core is found in Christ. I pray you will allow God to work in your heart and life. I pray that you will see yourself anew as loved, chosen, accepted, redeemed, gifted, and appreciated. And I pray that the number you most readily identify with will cease to rule and reign over your thoughts, attitudes, and actions. The theme verses for this study are Isaiah 43:18-19: "Forget the former things; do not dwell on the past. See I am doing a new thing Now it springs up; do you not perceive it? I am making a way in the desert and streams in the wasteland." So, grab your Bible and get ready to start this journey. And as you begin, hear your heavenly Father say loudly and clearly, "You are more than just a number "

Kelsey Brunel knows exactly what the future holds: she'll one day inherit the Arizona dude ranch that has been in her family for three generations. She tells herself that the business and her good friends are all she'll ever want or need. Long-term relationships aren't in the picture, which after witnessing the devastation of her parents' failed marriage, is just fine with her. Elizabeth Sutton has grown up proving to her family that she's as capable and accomplished as they demand her to be, even if that means working for the family business. Her latest assignment, to turn a backwater ranch in Arizona into another link in their international chain of wellness centers, feels like a demotion and she can't wait to get it done and escape back to civilization. Two women from different worlds have nothing in common and every reason to wish they'd never met--except for the attraction neither can deny.

Winning the heart of your secret Valentine? These award-winning authors agree, there is no better way to fall in love. In I Met Someone by Julie Cannon: Hayes Martin shares everything with her BFF Claire Wheeler. Well, almost everything. Hayes has kept a secret from Claire for years, and she can't take it anymore. Tonight is the night she comes clean and risks it all to gain everything she's ever wanted. In Taking a Risk by Erin Dutton: Police officer Jo Forsythe thinks she could find the love and family she's been longing for with Kayla McC all. Kayla's focused on running her business, and if she was looking for love, it wouldn't be with Jo. Can Jo win the hearts of both Kayla and the small town that's so protective of her? In Bouquet of Love by Anne Shade: It's been twenty-five years since English teacher Alyssa Harris was on the dating scene, but romance is too old-fashioned for love in the digital age. Tennis coach Collette Roberts doesn't think so and sets out to sweep Alyssa off her feet.

Saddle up for a wild ride The Lone Star Collection II has something for everyone If you enjoy romance, Kris Bryant and Dena Blake have penned hot contemporary stories in Heat and Horseplay, while Pins and Needles, by Julie Cannon, is a historical adventure. Annette Mori also contributes to the romance fare with a beautiful, enduring love story in Rainstorm. If you want sizzling erotica check out 50 by 50, from Renee MacKenzie. What would a collection be without fantasy, paranormal and swashbuckling adventures? Lured to the Rocks, a unique work of fantasy by Barbara Ann Wright. In The Devil's Backbone, Lacey L. Schmidt spins a thriller about overcoming evil and personal loss. MJ Williamz explores dark passion in Take Me All the Way. Del Robertson offers Return to Me a classic pirate story, and Yvette Murray tosses in the Ghostly Galleons.

Three stories of fun in the sun during one unforgettable summer. In Maui Magic, Addison Bradbury can build anything, but her love life falls apart before it even gets going. Erin Williams, the owner of Maui Magic Catamaran, is more interested in having fun with a woman than building a future with one. Addison is used to getting her way and Erin simply sails through life. There's no way they'll fall in love, right? In Bahama Breeze, Samantha Recker is not a stereotypical CFO. She's into Harleys, hang gliding, and living life on the edge. When she meets Teresa Tinsdale, Sam is completely thrown. She has met her match in more ways than one. Like magnets, they are pulled together and pushed apart, and there's no way they'll stay together, right? In Jamaican Haven, as an introvert, Cora Donaldson expects to spend her volunteer time quietly cleaning kennels and poop-scooping for a charity dedicated to rescuing stray dogs, until she spills her entire bucket of poo on beautiful, captivating Tyler Sanchez, the shelter's director. There's no way Cora is ever going to recover, right?

According to newly single Kelly Newsome, whoever came up with the idea of a lesbian resort located on a warm tropical island is a goddess. Kelly's bound and determined to experience everything, and everyone, the island has to offer. Matt Parker is on her first "real grown up" vacation since her wife died six years ago, leaving her to raise their young son alone. With no responsibilities to tie her down, Matt's not looking for anything other than a good time and toe-curling, no strings attached sex. Neither one expects to meet the woman who could give them their last first kiss.

Lowe Carter and Faith Williams could not be more different. Lowe comes from money, very old money. Faith scrapes by, living paycheck to paycheck, sending what little she has left to her mother and little sister. Lowe is just starting her obligatory two-week visit with her parents when she collides, literally and figuratively, with the beautiful Faith. What better way to spend two weeks of hell than in the company of a hot, sexy woman? The only problem is that employees like Faith are forbidden to fraternize with residents and their guests. Join Lowe and Faith as they sail on The Escape, the world's largest private residence on the water.

What would you do if being with the woman of your dreams meant sabotaging your career? That's the exact situation high-profile executive Leigh Marshall finds herself in when she falls hard for her golf pro, who also happens to be an ex-con. Her board of directors hasn't gotten the memo regarding workplace equality and who she sleeps with is still more important than her stellar qualifications. Peyton Broader has no interest in anything other than keeping her head down, reporting to her parole officer, and getting her life back. Oh yeah, and making up for nine years of celibacy. The last thing she needs is to lose her job or get sucked into other people's drama, no matter how hot and tempting the woman is. So why can't she stay away from Leigh?

Going to work never felt so good. Three office romance novellas from talented writers Julie Cannon, Aurora Rey, and M. Ullrich. In For Your Eyes Only by Julie Cannon: Dress for success takes on a very different meaning. CFO Riley Stephenson finds herself in a particularly difficult position when the stripper she's fallen for shows up at her office--as her new employee. In Lead Counsel by Aurora Rey: Attorney Elisa Gonzalez is happy working behind the scenes while still having time for a life. All that changes when her firm takes on a major case and Parker Jones, powerhouse litigator and her law school crush, is named lead counsel. In Opportunity of a Lifetime by M. Ullrich: Luca Garner is eager and hardworking, but her new boss is a total nightmare--snarky and uncooperative, not to mention an ice queen. VP Stephanie Austin doesn't mean to be unkind, but the last thing she wants is an assistant getting under her skin, especially one who is as attractive as she is kind.

What would you do if the woman sitting across from you at the negotiating table is the same woman you shared a bed with twelve years earlier? That's exactly the situation when Adrienne Phillips enters the offices of Foster McKenzie. Sloan Merchant, the opposing attorney, is a rising star in the world of corporate law with one of the premier companies in the world. Adrienne has never forgotten the thrill of desire in Sloan's eyes, the sound of her name whispered in the dark, the rising crescendo of the pleasure of her touch, and the heartbreaking loss when it was over. Sloan has the world at her feet and any woman at her fingertips so why does she dream of her college fling? And what in the hell is she going to do now with her sitting across the negotiating table in one of the biggest deals of her life?

Tobin Parks has been described as a cross between Janice Joplin, Aretha Franklin, Joan Baez, Reba McIntyre, and a little bit of Elvis thrown in for balance. She s at the top of every chart, and with her sultry voice and bad girl image, she has no trouble attracting screaming fans to her concerts, women to her bed, and paparazzi to her doorstep. Kiersten Bradley is riding the wave of her dream. The inventor and CEO of ICE, a popular energy drink, Kiersten is having a phenomenal year of success. When Tobin Parks comes knocking on her door asking ICE to be the sponsor of her next guaranteed blockbuster tour, Kiersten passes. Linking her company s name to Tobin s is a public relations nightmare waiting to happen. Both professional and personal sparks fly when the two strong-willed, very public women meet. Kiersten will not risk everything she has worked for, even for the chance to make millions, and Tobin is determined to have ICE has her sponsor."

In the middle of a three-w eek fishing trip, commercial fisherman Roberta (Bert) Coughlin rescues Alissa Cooper from her burning yacht and has no choice but to take the pampered rich girl along. Alissa and Bert are from very different worlds. Bert struggles to succeed with the whims of Mother Nature. Alissa owns a successful advertising agency and is the epitome of high class and high fashion. When Alissa volunteers to help on the boat, Bert is more than a little surprised at how well she does. The attraction between them grow s, and one stormy night their pent-up desires crash together like the waves against the ship. When the ship returns to port, both women realize their lives are too different for anything other than their brief affair. They are simply too different. Their families are too different. Their lives too different. Then why do they keep coming back to each other?

Andrea Finley is the flight director for NASA s latest space flightto the moon. The mission is the first with a woman in charge, and Andrea will stop at nothing to ensure this is a textbook perfect mission. Her personal life is virtually nonexistent, and she has devoted her entire life to this, the pinnacle of her career. When the mission runs into serious trouble, Andrea has no choice but to call Kenner Hutchings, a brilliant twenty-something whiz kid from MIT with a reputation for living life fast and loose. Kenner is their last chance to save the lives of the seven astronauts entrusted into Andrea s care. Andrea doesn t trust Kenner to get the job done, and Kenner takes it as a challenge to break the reserve of her new boss. Can two strong-willed, powerful women overcome their differences to save the lives of seven others and begin a life they never imagined together?"

Barrett and Kelly, two complete strangers, shared a harrowing experience where they were completely dependent on each other for survival. When Barrett is rescued and forced to leave Kelly behind, she returns several months later to free her from their captors. After returning home, they go their separate ways and try to pick up their lives, but circumstances and feelings they didn't expect pull them together and threaten to drive them apart. Can love overcome feelings of guilt, obligation, gratitude, debt, and responsibility?

What happens when you can never forget the first kiss, the first touch, the first taste of lips on skin? When the first sigh of pleasure, first glimpse of soft, smooth skin, the slide of fingers through warm, wet folds burns into your memory? What happens when you know you will remember every single detail of a mysterious woman? Emery Barrett is under doctor s orders to rest while on a three-week cruise. Dana Worthington s only plan is to improve her tan and have her passport stamped in every port. Adventure, anonymity, and the idea that they will never see each other again propel Emery and Dana into twenty-one days of pleasure. Neither woman has any idea their vacation will be one to remember in more ways than one. But the biggest discovery awaits them when they return home."

What should be just business becomes much more when two women agree to a deal that changes their lives forever.

From the author of Truelove & Homegrown Tomatoes comes a heartwarming story of three generations of Southern women working to mend the rifts of the past and set paths for the future. It is summer in Euharlee, Georgia, and Imogene Lavender's garden is bursting with snap beans, okra, and tomatoes. The household -- made up of Imo; her daughter Jeanette and her new baby; and Lou, Imo's niece -- is about to grow as well. Imo's estranged mother, Mama Jewell, has begun to show signs of senility, and Imo has decided that it is her duty to take her mother in. Mama Jewell brings with her some secrets from the past, including the story of Lou's mother, a revelation that sends Lou in search of her ne'er-do-well father. For Imo, who is feeling the squeeze of being in the middle of the generations, Mama Jewell's temperamental nature stirs up long-buried memories of a difficult childhood. And much to everyone's surprise, wild Jeanette is so determined to find a husband that she joins the church choir to be closer to the handsome and enigmatic young reverend. 'Mater Biscuit is a wonderful evocation of small-town life in the South, a world where hard work and prayers unite the community. Life isn't always easy for Imo and her girls, but they have only to look as far as Imo's beloved garden to be reminded that all things change with the seasons.