Recommendations based on "Fake Friends (Never Just Friends)"

THE SUMMER WE FELL is an angsty, forbidden romance full of tragedy, heartbreak and sacrifice. [Bokinfo].

Camden Poe is the last of The Lucky Three, the surviving Pittsburgh Titans who weren't on the team plane the night it went down. By all outward appearances, he's adjusted to post-crash life well but inside he's wrestling with the guilt of living.The catastrophe that killed the Pittsburgh Titans changed my entire world. My teammates were more than my friends-they were my brothers. I mourned their loss with the rest of the nation but then I did as I've been taught... I moved on. I focused on returning to the ice with the newly rebuilt team and put the tragedy behind me. Considering the circumstances, I adjusted well. Or so I thought. Now I'm plagued by nightmares of the crash and my play has suffered as a result. Facing the possibility of losing my place on the team, I need to pull myself together and fast.My buddy and linemate, Mitch Brandt died in the crash, leaving his wife Danica and son Travis behind to pick up the pieces of their shattered family. After reconnecting with Danica at a support group meeting, I find myself inexplicably drawn to helping her and her son move forward. What starts as two friends finding solace in one another following a tragedy becomes something more, leaving us both wondering if we deserve this chance.I feel as if I'm walking a precarious line between a man falling for an incredible woman and a man moving in on his dead friend's wife. But one thing is crystal clear-I've found a peace with Danica that I wasn't sure I'd ever have again. Now I need to find the confidence within myself to push past the insecurities and make sure she knows how important she is to me because if I don't, I'll lose the one thing that makes me truly complete.

An angsty, childhood-friends-to-lovers romance, featuring a broody, overprotective hero, a heroine tortured by the mistakes of her past, and a long overdue second chance.She was all he ever wanted, even when she broke his heart…Growly and gorgeous band manager Brody Mason has been aching for his friend’s little sister, Jessa Mayes, since they were just kids.By the time they’d grown up, she’d broken his heart.Then she ripped it right the f*ck out.As it turns out, time doesn’t heal that kind of wound.It leaves a gaping, festering hole.Hence Brody’s sunshiny nature.Meanwhile, Jessa appears to be living the dream—blessed with beauty, talent, and a glamorous life.But she also has a secret.Six years ago, she ran away from her dream career as a songwriter with her brother’s band. She also ran away from Brody, the only man she’s ever loved.And she never told anyone why.Now Jessa’s doing the one thing she swore she’d never do.She’s coming home.As a bridesmaid in her brother’s rock star wedding, she’ll come face-to-face with the mistakes of her past.Including the sexy, surly, heartbroken one.It definitely won’t be easy.Love this intense never is.

Some fairytales begin with a kiss...LaneyI finally get it. And to think, it only took my heart being pried out of my chest and stomped on five separate times by men who claimed they loved me. That's got to be a record, right?Let me put it as simply as I can: Fairy tales aren't real. Love is a lie. And, at least in my experience, sex never comes with a happy ending.Fortunately, I still have B.O.B, and he'll never fall out of love with me. I won't walk in on him in bed with another woman either. Nope. As long as I keep supplying him with fresh batteries, B.O.B's only purpose in life is to make me happy.And, damn it, I deserve to be happy. I'm a nice person. I work hard. And, most importantly, I've learned my lesson:I will never, ever let a man near my heart again.CarsonMy secret to happiness is to be completely upfront with what I want and, trust me, it has nothing to do with Laney's heart. Her lips? Hell yeah. A few other parts of her body? You better f*cking believe it. But her heart? Nope. Not even a little.Until it does...a lot.Forget I said that. I don't have feelings for anyone. They were all ripped out of me when I was a kid.This thing between Laney and me could be great. But we have to follow certain rules. We have a good time--no dates, no sleepovers, no expectations. When one of us is ready for something new or if she starts getting too attached, we move on with no hard feelings. Win-win, and everybody's happy.I came into this thinking it would be the same thing as it had always been and that she was like any other beautiful woman.It isn't. She isn't.But how do I tell her she deserves someone better, someone who can love her, someone who's not broken, if I can't seem to let her go?***standalone contemporary romance/romantic comedy without a cliffhanger or cheating***Now AvailableVirtually Impossible (Once and Forever #2)Deeper Water (Once and Forever #3) Carson and Laney's after happily-ever-afterDarker Water is a friends with benefits story inspired by The Frog Prince, and this is how Carson and Laney's fairy tale begins:Once upon a time there was a young woman who lived in a tall glass tower in the middle of a city. She wasn't incredibly beautiful but she was attractive, probably somewhere around the eighty-fifth percentile. She was smart, kind, honest, and good with animals.But the most beautiful thing about her was her heart, for it was made of the purest of golds. Unfortunately, she wasn't very good at taking care of it, and over the years, it lost its shine. Because every time she met a prince, she believed him to be perfect--strong but gentle, brave, and caring. So, she would show him her heart and give it to him to hold, thinking he would take care of it.What she hadn't yet realized was that there was a curse put on her...at some time...by someone. And the curse was this: The moment the woman gave her heart away and kissed the prince--believing it to be true love--the prince would begin to change. Sometimes slowly, other times quickly. But he always turned into a frog. And although the frog would give her heart back to her, each time it was a little more worn, a little less brilliant.But the woman didn't give up trying to find a prince who would remain a prince, knowing that somewhere out there was someone who could heal her heart and break the curse by remaining a prince after she kissed him.Then one day, she finally understood the curse's power. No one could heal her, she would never find a prince, and the curse would never be broken.And so, clutching what was left of her heart, she gave up her search.

Emma Chase, New York Times bestselling author of the Tangled series, returns with a funny, romantic, sexy story!A knight in tarnished armor is still a knight.When you’re a defense attorney in Washington, DC, you see firsthand how hard life can be, and that sometimes the only way to survive is to be harder. I, Jake Becker, have a reputation for being cold, callous, and intimidating—and that suits me just fine. In fact, it’s necessary when I’m breaking down a witness on the stand.Complications don’t work for me—I’m a “need-to-know” type of man. If you’re my client, tell me the basic facts. If you’re my date, stick to what will turn you on. I’m not a therapist or Prince Charming—and I don’t pretend to be.Then Chelsea McQuaid and her six orphaned nieces and nephews came along and complicated the ever-loving hell out of my life. Now I’m going to Mommy and Me classes, One Direction concerts, the emergency room, and arguing cases in the principal’s office.Chelsea’s too sweet, too innocent, and too gorgeous for her own good. She tries to be tough, but she’s not. She needs someone to help her, defend her…and the kids.And that—that, I know how to do.

My best friend's little sister has been getting under my skin for decades. She's my lifelong nemesis and now-apparently-my wife.When Willa Jameson stumbled into my bar drunk, heartbroken, and desperate to save her family farm, I offered to marry her. For "convenience."Which is hilarious, because nothing about my attraction to this hurricane with hips has ever been convenient.Now we're sharing a roof, a bed, and a potential felony thanks to our fake marriage.It's supposed to be a favor between not-quite-friends-but-not-quite-enemies. Then our late-night arguments turn into practice make out sessions.But according to her, that changes absolutely nothing between us.No matter how many lines we draw, we keep crossing them-in the kitchen, on the porch, in the tiny bed that's become both heaven and hell.And the woman who swears she hates me starts looking at me like I might be exactly what she needs.She calls me her temporary husband. I call her my daily torture, because every day we play house, it feels less like pretending and more like home.When this ends, I don't know how I'm going to forget what it felt like to call her mine. So either I walk away with her, or I don't walk away at all.

BransonMy dad was my best friend.He dreamed this big, adventure filled life for me. One I've been living every day. Finding someone to share it with led to a string of bad dates and a repeated broken heart. When a one night stand turned to more at the same time feelings started developing for my roommate, I thought I'd have to make a choice. When that turned out to not be the case and the three of us were happy together, I started to wonder if it was all too good to be true.NoelMy dad was sick.And I was a coward living on another continent too afraid to face his illness head on. I couldn’t keep hiding in the sand much longer though and falling in love made that so much harder to do. Because if I needed to leave, what would happen if they wouldn't follow?MiloMy dad was a monster.I’d spent years working to pull myself from under his thumb. I had a job and an apartment, and I was making my own way. I also had two amazing boyfriends. And a secret. And a deep fear that my past and insecurities would destroy us.Branson's Promise is an MMM novel featuring a list-making, praise loving accountant, a tattoo artist with a big heart and a painful past and a hotel mogul with a desire to protect and take care of the men he loves, no matter what the cost.This book can be read as a standalone.

Chase Grayson has never been interested in having a relationship that lasts longer than it takes for him and his date to get dressed again. But then he stumbles into a gray-eyed girl whose innocence pours off her, and everything changes. From the minute Harper opens her mouth to let him know just how much he disgusts her, he's hooked.But a princess deserves a Prince Charmingwho can make her dreams come true. Not a guy who can turn her life into a nightmare.All good intentions go out the window when Harper starts to fall for the guy Chase has come to view as a brother. He wanted to protect her by keeping her away, but he can't stand to see her with anyone else, and he'll do anything to make her his. But when it comes down to Harper choosing between the two, will Chase have the strength to step back from the girl who has become his whole world if it means she's happy?Lines will be crossed. Friendships will be put tothe test. And hearts will be shattered.

Trey Walker has one major flaw as far as he’s concerned: he impulsively falls in love too easily and too often. That reckless impulse resulted in several failed relationships, not to mention the implosion of his marriage. And what’s the best way to ensure you don’t make that mistake again? That’s easy. You shrug off relationships for good.And it was working for him. Right up until it wasn’t.Trey was on a winning streak until fate threw him a curveball eighteen months ago when he crossed paths with Magnus Storme, the smoking hot, ridiculously persistent twenty-four-year-old owner of Camp K-9. Using the 12-year age gap as an excuse, Trey managed to resist Magnus … for about a minute. Did he mention Magnus was persistent? His first mistake was taking Magnus home, thinking one night with him would get the man out of his system. One night turned into two, then a week, a month, two… After a year, Trey still adamantly denied falling for Magnus, which meant he wasn’t only lying to Magnus, he was lying to himself. Just when Trey’s life seems to be cruising along the right track, another unexpected turn arrives, this time in the form of a woman from Magnus’s past. Only Ava March isn’t just any woman, she’s one Magnus has a history with, and now Ava needs him. Trey has to make a decision: live in denial and walk away from the man he loves or accept that his feelings are in direct contradiction to everything Trey thought he knew about himself.This MMF romance can be read as a standalone; however, Trey, Magnus, and Ava’s story picks up where things left off in Confessions from the Brantley Walker: Off the Books series. Trigger warning: While this book is about love, healing, and perseverance, some readers may find the retelling of the physical abuse Ava suffered at the hands of her husband difficult to read.

Screwing two guys? Now that's easy. But living with them? That's an entirely different story. I love my life. With the career I've always dreamed of just one phone call away, and two hot guys who have tied up my personal life in the very best of ways, what more could a girl ask for? Yet as hot and steamy as the sex is with Jack and Simon, sex alone does not a relationship make. We each have our own demons to battle, but acknowledging them can be much harder than it seems. Not having enough time to spend with the guys is wearing me down, and as much as I love being Simon's submissive, I need more from him than the occasional workout in the attic. Simon is still hung up on what happened in the past, and sometimes, I'm not sure that he has realized that Jack and I can give him everything he'd ever want. Then there is Jack-who is learning to accept us as we are, but still wears his heart on his sleeve-a constant reminder that I'm not the only one who needs so much more than we have right now. And with our track record? Let's just say that I hope that we can work this out before we end up unravelling all ties between us.