The Broken Boys Series by Esme Taylor

Hettie⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀. I love a happy ever after, but I know I will not get one. Romance is for other people and I’m just a supporting extra. I made a pact with myself to avoid the opposite sex at all costs. I won’t let my heart be broken again. It was working fine until I met him. The Viking. But it’s hard to ignore someone who’s built like a mountain, has icy eyes you can drown in, and keeps unexpectedly coming to my rescue... moreHettie⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀. I love a happy ever after, but I know I will not get one. Romance is for other people and I’m just a supporting extra. I made a pact with myself to avoid the opposite sex at all costs. I won’t let my heart be broken again. It was working fine until I met him. The Viking. But it’s hard to ignore someone who’s built like a mountain, has icy eyes you can drown in, and keeps unexpectedly coming to my rescue. My heart tells me to run, but my body has other ideas about what it wants to do with him. Reid. I don’t do relationships. They never get inside my house or in my bed. I always make it clear that it’s a one-time deal, but they never believe me. They think they will be the one to change me. They’re always wrong. Because what would they think if they saw my black soul and icy heart? Now there’s her. In my house. I invited her in. But she needed me. What else could I do? I can do one night with her here, can’t I? I just have to stay awake. Breaking The Ice is a full-length standalone romance with steamy scenes and potential triggers. It's intended for readers 18+. Some other character's stories are continued in future books in the series. less

Lou. He stepped into the elevator, and everything changed. The pirate. I watched him fall apart. He whispered his secrets and showed me his soul. That night he walked away with my heart and my panties. I let myself believe that he could break my lifelong curse, but everyone left me eventually. Now he’s gone, and I don’t know how to set him free. Will he drown in his demons? Will I lose him forever? I would do whatever it takes, but I don’t know if there is enough time. Billy... moreLou. He stepped into the elevator, and everything changed. The pirate. I watched him fall apart. He whispered his secrets and showed me his soul. That night he walked away with my heart and my panties. I let myself believe that he could break my lifelong curse, but everyone left me eventually. Now he’s gone, and I don’t know how to set him free. Will he drown in his demons? Will I lose him forever? I would do whatever it takes, but I don’t know if there is enough time. Billy. I need space, air, room to breathe. In here there is none. She changed all that. Red. She silenced the demons they put in my head. She soothed the scars left on my body. Without her, I am suffocating, fighting again to survive. I promised her I wouldn’t leave, but I had no choice. They found a way to break me. Again. The walls are closing in and I don’t know how many more breaths I have left. less

- Melissa⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀. To the outside world, he’s a protector, capable of ‘fixing’ anything; to me, he’s a murderer. Then I get to see another side of him, a glimpse beneath his Ironman persona, and it changes everything. ⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀. But he’d been my dad’s best friend and is twice my age. So I walked away. ⠀⠀. Fate had other ideas, and he found me again. Twice. Now I'm standing here. His Queen of Hearts. ⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀. He offered me the world. Promised me a future. ⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀... more- Melissa⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀. To the outside world, he’s a protector, capable of ‘fixing’ anything; to me, he’s a murderer. Then I get to see another side of him, a glimpse beneath his Ironman persona, and it changes everything. ⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀. But he’d been my dad’s best friend and is twice my age. So I walked away. ⠀⠀. Fate had other ideas, and he found me again. Twice. Now I'm standing here. His Queen of Hearts. ⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀. He offered me the world. Promised me a future. ⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀. But then he was gone, leaving me to fight the monsters alone. ⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀. What will it take for him to realize that he doesn’t need to save the world? ⠀. And what happens when the one thing that threatens us the most is the one thing he can’t fix? ⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀. ⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀. - Thomas⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀. I met someone once. I promised to burn down the world to protect her, but she didn’t need me. She was strong, beautiful, fiercely independent… oh, and half my age. So I went back to doing what I did best; protecting the world from monsters. ⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀. Except fate had other ideas and I found her again. Twice. The second time holding the life of my best friend in her hands. ⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀. Lissa. My Queen of Hearts. ⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀. Can I keep her safe when the shadows from my past step up to claim her? ⠀⠀. My job is to protect people. I failed once, but I won’t let it happen again. I’ll do whatever it takes to keep her from them. No matter what. ⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀. But what if the thing that threatens her the most is out of my control and unfixable? ⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀. Did I wait a decade for her, only to lose her like this? less