Katherine Center

She’s got his back.
Hannah Brooks looks more like a kindergarten teacher than somebody who could kill you with a wine bottle opener. Or a ballpoint pen. Or a dinner napkin. But the truth is, she’s an Executive Protection Agent (aka "bodyguard"), and she just got hired to protect superstar actor Jack Stapleton from his middle-aged, corgi-breeding stalker.

He’s got her heart.
Jack Stapleton’s a household name—captured by paparazzi on beaches the world over, famous for, among other things, rising out of the waves in all manner of clingy board shorts and glistening like a Roman deity. But a few years back, in the wake of a family tragedy, he dropped from the public eye and went off the grid.

They’ve got a secret.
When Jack’s mom gets sick, he comes home to the family’s Texas ranch to help out. Only one catch: He doesn’t want his family to know about his stalker. Or the bodyguard thing. And so Hannah—against her will and her better judgment—finds herself pretending to be Jack’s girlfriend as a cover. Even though her ex, like a jerk, says no one will believe it.

What could possibly go wrong???
Hannah hardly believes it, herself. But the more time she spends with Jack, the more real it all starts to seem. And there lies the heartbreak. Because it’s easy for Hannah to protect Jack. But protecting her own, long-neglected heart? That’s the hardest thing she’s ever done.

A Novel

The Bodyguard

From the author of Happiness for Beginners comes an unforgettable love story about finding joy even in the darkest of circumstances. Margaret Jacobsen is just about to step into the bright future she's worked for so hard and so long: a new dream job, a fiancé she adores, and the promise of a picture-perfect life just around the corner. Then, suddenly, on what should have been one of the happiest days of her life, everything she worked for is taken away in a brief, tumultuous moment. In the hospital and forced to face the possibility that nothing will ever be the same again, Maggie must confront the unthinkable. First there is her fiancé, Chip, who wallows in self-pity while simultaneously expecting to be forgiven. Then, there's her sister Kit, who shows up after pulling a three-year vanishing act. Finally, there's Ian, her physical therapist, the one the nurses said was too tough for her. Ian, who won't let her give in to her pity, and who sees her like no one has seen her before. Sometimes the last thing you want is the one thing you need. Sometimes we all need someone to catch us when we fall. And sometimes love can find us in the least likely place we would ever expect. How to Walk Away is Katherine Center at her very best, a masterpiece of a novel that is both hopeful and hilarious; truthful and wise; tender and brave.

How to walk away

"The story’s message, that people should choose joy even (and especially) in difficult and painful times, seems tailor-made for this moment. A timely, uplifting read about finding joy in the midst of tragedy, filled with quirky characters and comforting warmth."—Kirkus (starred review) From the New York Times bestselling author of How to Walk Away comes a stunning new novel full of heart and hope. Samantha Casey is a school librarian who loves her job, the kids, and her school family with passion and joy for living. But she wasn’t always that way. Duncan Carpenter is the new school principal who lives by rules and regulations, guided by the knowledge that bad things can happen. But he wasn’t always that way. And Sam knows it. Because she knew him before—at another school, in a different life. Back then, she loved him—but she was invisible. To him. To everyone. Even to herself. She escaped to a new school, a new job, a new chance at living. But when Duncan, of all people, gets hired as the new principal there, it feels like the best thing that could possibly happen to the school—and the worst thing that could possibly happen to Sam. Until the opposite turns out to be true. The lovable Duncan she’d known is now a suit-and-tie wearing, rule-enforcing tough guy so hell-bent on protecting the school that he’s willing to destroy it. As the school community spirals into chaos, and danger from all corners looms large, Sam and Duncan must find their way to who they really are, what it means to be brave, and how to take a chance on love—which is the riskiest move of all. With Katherine Center’s sparkling dialogue, unforgettable characters, heart, hope, and humanity, What You Wish For is the author at her most compelling best.

What You Wish For

Hello, Stranger

Talked into a wilderness-survival course after her divorce, a 32-year-old woman embarks on a three-week stint in the Wyoming mountain wilderness, where she learns unexpected lessons about standing up for herself and confronting her fears. Original.

Happiness for Beginners

The Rom-Commers

Therese Plummer

Things You Save in a Fire

Leaving her family, her friends, and her home behind to follow her husband across the country with her three small boys while he attends graduate school, Lanie begins to believe that something is missing from her life and launches a campaign to find herself--without destroying everything else in the process. 35,000 first printing.

Everyone Is Beautiful

After the sudden loss of her husband, Libby Moran, falling on hard times, gets an unexpected chance to start over when an estranged aunt offers her a job and a place to live on a goat farm where she and her children discover that country life isn't quite what they expected--but is just what they need. Original.

The Lost Husband

Jenny Harris always expected that she'd fall in love, get married, and have a baby--in that order. Now, very pregnant and not quite married, she actually doesn't mind that she and her live-in fiance, Dean, started their family earlier than planned. But th

The Bright Side of Disaster

It’s a thin line between love and love-hating.

Katie Vaughn has been burned by love in the past—now she may be lighting her career on fire. She has two choices: wait to get laid off from her job as a video producer or, at her coworker Cole’s request, take a career-making gig profiling Tom “Hutch” Hutcheson, a Coast Guard rescue swimmer in Key West. 

The catch? Katie’s not exactly qualified. She can’t swim—but fakes it that she can. 

Plus: Cole is Hutch’s brother. And they don’t get along. Next stop paradise!

But paradise is messier than it seems. As Katie gets entangled with Hutch (the most scientifically good looking man she has ever seen . . . but also a bit of a love hater), along with his colorful Aunt Rue and his rescue Great Dane, she gets trapped in a lie. Or two.

Swim lessons, helicopter flights, conga lines, drinking contests, hurricanes, and stolen kisses ensue—along with chances to tell the truth, to face old fears, and to be truly brave at last.

The Love Haters

After an inappropriate email causes Sarah Harper to lose her job, she goes home to Houston to spend Thanksgiving with her sister, Mackie. After years of trying, Mackie has given up on having children. As Mackie prepares to sell the nursery on eBay, Sarahgets an idea that may fix everyone's problems.

Get Lucky

The Girl in the Plane

The Guy at The Wedding

An Award-winning AuthorMargaret Jacobsen is just about to step into the bright future she's worked for so hard and so long: a new dream job, a fiancé she adores, and the promise of a picture-perfect life just around the corner. Then, suddenly, on what should have been one of the happiest days of her life, everything she worked for is taken away in a tumultuous moment. In the hospital, Maggie must confront the unthinkable. But sometimes the last thing you want is the one thing you need.

How to Walk Away

Guardaespaldas / the Bodyguard

Uma guarda-costas viciada em trabalho. Um astro de Hollywood recluso. Quatro semanas fingindo que estão apaixonados. Hannah Brooks parece mais uma professora de jardim de infância do que alguém que poderia te matar com um abridor de vinho. Ou com uma caneta esferográfica. Ou com um guardanapo de pano. Mas a verdade é que ela é uma Agente de Proteção Executiva (também conhecida como "guarda-costas") contratada para proteger um astro de Hollywood que está sofrendo nas mãos de uma stalker de meia idade obcecada por ele (e por corgis). Jack Stapleton era um dos atores mais conhecidos do mundo, mas largou o estrelato depois de uma tragédia familiar e agora leva uma vida praticamente anônima. Mas quando sua mãe adoece e ele precisa visitá-la, Jack se vê obrigado a contratar uma guarda-costas pra não colocar sua família em risco. No entanto, ele tem um pedido peculiar... Para evitar que sua mãe se preocupe, ele quer que Hannah finja ser sua namorada. Apesar de ser uma mulher centrada e objetiva, Hannah começa a confundir o que é vida real e o que é fingimento. E é aí que está o grande problema. Porque, para ela, cuidar da segurança de Jack é fácil. Mas proteger seu próprio coração? Essa vai ser a tarefa mais difícil da sua vida. Esse livro é divertido demais! Perdi a conta de quantas vezes eu ri enquanto lia. É a comédia romântica feel good perfeita – Helen Hoang, autora de Os números do amor

Katherine Center

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