Books by C A Szarek

Secrets make old lovers into enemies... Nico "Gio" Giovanni has always been the black sheep, especially since he abandoned the family business-a lucrative casino on the Las Vegas strip-to become a cop. Now his dad is sick and his sister begs him to end their estrangement before it's too late.Chasing fugitives is what U.S. Marshal Madison Granger does best. She juggles single motherhood with her job, which sends her back to Sin City due to an unwanted relocation. Even worse, her current case lands her smack dab in the middle of the opulent Giovanni Casino-and ups her chances of running into her old flame.Gio has enough on his plate; he doesn't need the woman that got away messing in his family's affairs. His father has never been involved with organized crime, no matter the gossip.Maddie is petrified he'll discover her secret. Gio won't let his dad go down for something he didn't do. When they take the gamble, the cards are laid on the table and all bets are off.

Colliding on the path to catch a killer…Special Agent Taylor Carrigan takes “control freak” to the extreme. Her need for structured rigidity rules her life—and her job at the FBI. She doesn’t do emotion, so when her fiancé is murdered, she doesn’t know how to deal with the internal fallout.Antioch Police Sergeant Shannon Crowley has been intrigued with the uptight FBI agent for months. When he looks at Taylor, he sees more than the mask she hides behind.She doesn’t have time for the cop who won’t quit chasing her—she’s got chasing to do of her own. Taylor admits he calms her, but he’s a distraction she can’t afford. She’s playing a dangerous game, riding the line between revenge and justice.Keeping Shannon close could give Taylor the balance she desperately needs, but it would put something more than her case in jeopardy: her heart.  With so much on the line, is she capable of handling it?

Vowing to protect her has nothing to do with feelings. Detective Pete Crane catches a new shooting case and considers it business-as-usual. But when the lead witness is the Chief of Police's fiery assistant, he never anticipated she'd challenge him-personally and professionally.Little do they know, the shooting she and her grandmother witnessed was anything but random.Thrown together, their attraction sizzles, even though she's squarely in the hands-off zone. She makes him break every rule in his little black book.Nikki Harper has been attracted to Pete since they met two years ago. Witnessing a brutal shooting throws her into a stigma that's always been her greatest fear: a victim. She has no choice but to accept his protective custody and let him help save her and her beloved grandmother.Can Pete protect his witness and solve the case, while fighting the intense heat with Nikki?

The Highlander's vow versus the surgeon's oath…Angus MacLeod is always getting everyone else out of trouble. When a bonnie lass appears naked on the beach, he's compelled to rescue her.Only, Lila Salinas doesn't need saving. Her oath as a surgeon is to heal others, even when yanked back to 1692.Angus is immediately intrigued with the take-charge lass. His father gravely injured, so her appearance holds whispers that everything happens for a reason.Lila is anxious to get back to modern times, but she can't leave a sick patient. The longer she remains in the 17th century, the more distant her dreams in the 21st feel. She flirts with the idea that staying is perhaps more destiny than chance.Angus is convinced the healer from the future is his Fate, and he's determined to have her for keeps. He just has to persuade her they're destined, and their love is worth fighting for.

Prequel to the time travel, fantasy romance trilogy, Highland Secrets!He’s a reluctant Laird…Alex MacLeod always knew he’d be leader of his clan, but duty was thrust upon him before he was ready. His father’s devotion to his sick mother is something to admire—or so he keeps telling himself. He regards the man above all others and can’t understand why he would forgo duty for love.He teeters on the edge of selfishness—the drive for something more.She’s a runaway Fae princess…Headstrong Alana is used to disobeying her father, king of the Fae, especially when he commands her. When she sneaks through the Faery Stones into the Human Realm, she never expects to run into the human laird. Despite her cousin’s warnings and her father’s wrath, Alana finds herself increasingly drawn to a man she can never have.Together they share a forbidden union...Alex and Alana find freedom in each other that they’ve never experienced with anyone else. They’re both running from something. Can the solace they find in each other overcome the danger that awaits in both their worlds? 

Book three in the epic fantasy romance series, The King’s Riders!She’s on the run, but doesn’t know it…Raised in the security of the king’s castle, Lady Elissa Durroc remembers nothing of the death of her family or how she survived it. As an elemental mage with control over all four elements, her powers are rare. And coveted by dark magic. None darker than the mage who killed her parents.When the king learns the mage knows Elissa is alive, he orders her to Greenwald under the guise of choosing a husband. Her protection falls to Sir Alasdair Kearney, a knight whose prowess on the battlefield is rivaled only by his appetite for women.Alasdair’s not sure what to make of being a glorified nursemaid, despite Elissa’s beauty and intriguing magic. The rogue has rules. Rules that don’t involve being tempted by his noble charge.Elissa is drawn to the knight, even though he’s not on her list of suitors. Can she guard her heart and her magic? And when the dark mage comes after her, will it be too late to matter?      

Book Two of the Fantasy Romance Series, The King's Riders! Leargan Tegran, Captain of Greenwald's personal guard, is an honorable knight. When his king commands him to wed Senior King's Rider Ansley Fraser, he intends to follow orders; even as he knows nothing of the girl. Not to mention her blasted wolf bondmate, Ali, who barely lets him near her. Ansley has been in love with Leargan for turns, but marrying him out of duty doesn't sit well with her. She'll fight the match tooth and nail-no matter how much she craves to be in his arms and in his bed. The sudden appearance of Avril, a mysterious girl on the run, creates suspicions of powerful magic and evil lurking on the horizon. Dangers lead to a fight Leargan's not prepared for. With the Province threatened, will duty interfere with Leargan's orders or entwine him and Ansley regardless of their desires?

Book One in the fantasy romance series, The King's Riders!For generations, the Ryhans, ruling family of the Province of Greenwald have been keepers of a sword rumored to possess enough magic to defeat kings. Lord Varthan, a former archduke and betrayer of the king, covets the sword and invades Greenwald. Lady Ceralda Ryhan, daughter of the murdered duke, gains the sword and flees, trusting only her white wolf, Trikser-magically bonded to her. Cera needs nothing more to aid in her fight. Jorrin Aldern, half elfin and half human, left his home in the mountains of Aramour to find his human father who disappeared twenty turns before, but finds Cera with Varthan and his shades on her tail instead. His dual heritage and empathic magic will tempt Cera in ways she never thought she'd desire. But can he convince her trust and love can pave the path to redemption or will the epic battle end in tragedy and evil conquer them all?

Book Three in the time travel, fantasy romance trilogy, Highland Secrets! Her sister is lost...in the past. Three weeks after her sister goes missing, Juliette McGowan encounters her on a beach in Scotland. Her sister gives her a scroll full of claims about time travel and disappears-literally. As a sister, Jules is determined to find her. As a cop, she can't go to the authorities. The piece of parchment declares magic exists; they'd think she's nuts. When a mysterious woman vows she can help her get to the seventeenth century, Jules goes along with it out of desperation. He's an infamous barbarian... Hugh MacDonald is intrigued when he finds a disoriented naked lass on the beach. She holds a scroll that was written by his rival's wife. Clan MacLeod will pay ransom for her safe return, so he takes her captive. She challenges his authority-and his desires. What started off as a plan to anger the MacLeods ends with Hugh wanting to keep her for himself. Can Jules break free of the barbarian, find her sister and return to the future or will she give in to her attraction and desire to remain in the past?

Book Two in the time travel, fantasy romance trilogy, Highland Secrets! She's always been a dutiful daughter... Janet MacLeod has spent the last ten years dedicated to her clan, acting as the Lady of the castle-at the cost of her own happiness. She aches every time she looks at her brothers, both happy with their wives, and wants nothing more than a love of her own. He's a broken soldier... Xander, a former Fae Warrior, sacrificed his wings and magic to live in the Human Realm and became a traitor to his people. When he finds Janet forlorn on the beach, Xander gives her a ring he's had since childhood, not realizing it'll reveal her as his fated mate. The ring's magic activates the Faery Stones, and Janet is sucked into the Fae Realm. Her life is in immediate danger, for the Fae sense-and seek to destroy-any human who dares step into their world. Xander is the only one who can retrieve her, but he too, wears a target. Can he rescue his soul-mate and return with her to the Human Realm or will temptation of great magic and the rebirth of his wings force him to abandon their destiny?