Book picks similar to
A Game Like Ours by Marissa J. Gramoll
arc
college-romance
lgbtq
romance
First to Fall
Stacy Lane - 2020
A homebody to the extreme. All it took was one night out for my hermit lifestyle to tailspin into one with a professional hockey player kissing me on my doorstep in a Wednesday Addams costume.I wanted us to be friends, so I became the girl friend—with a space, as he likes to say. Just friends is a tried and true failure. I’ve fallen for a hockey player, and I don’t even like hockey.Brooks I’ve had a lot of random hookups because of my status, but never one made by my dad pimping me out to fans in the crowd at my game. And she rejected me.My hockey career is my only ambition. I don’t date women because, eventually, they always want more. When I think of the future, it’s about career goals,breaking records, and how many trophies I will hold above my head. Now I’m the one who can’t stay away. Out of all the Labelle men, I never expected to be the first to fall.
Self Destruct
K.D. Carrillo - 2013
But one unexpected encounter at a lake house would stir up every dark emotion she worked so hard to forget. There wasn’t anyone Aiden Ryan hated more than himself… Plagued with a life filled with manipulation and regret, he will try anything to ignore the guilt that eats him alive, even if it means more pain for him in the long run. It’s not until he meets Becca that things start to change. There’s only one problem—he’s stuck in a relationship he can’t get out of with a woman he doesn’t care about. Love is complicated, but when two people have demons they refuse to face, love could destroy them. Together, Becca and Aiden try and let go of their painful pasts to be together. But will their pasts let go of them?
Let There Be Light
A.M. Johnson - 2018
Hard work and drive kept Royal O'Connell one step ahead of his competition. His spot on the swim team, keeping his scholarship, was the only plan that mattered. His world was ebony and ivory. Natural talent and ambition set Camden Morgan apart from the other music majors. His dedication scoring him a full ride. Normally, their paths would have never crossed….But when Royal meets his best friend's new roommate, his big plan and Camden’s controlled environment faces a variable that could destroy it all. Attraction. The world they live in had no room for error. That undeniable pull between them was dangerous and neither one of them could've prepared for the choice they'd have to make. Love isn't always an easy road and, when everything they've worked for is on the line, they'll have to decide if being together is worth the risk. Let There Be Light is a full-length standalone.
Blurred Lines (An FU College Basketball Romance) (FU Series Book 1)
Mackenzie Lane - 2022
My dad has anger issues, and my mom drinks too much. When I’m at home, I spend most of my time locked in my room, trying to avoid the toxic environment.I have two things that help me escape. My art, and Colt— our college basketball teams best shooting guard and my best friend with the emotional depth of a tree. He cares for nothing but basketball, his dad…and me.We’ve been best friends for years. If he’s not climbing through my bedroom window at night, I’m climbing through his. It’s a habit that started the day his mom died, and we haven’t spent a night apart since.But we’re just friends. Nothing more.Our dating relationships are equally disastrous. Colt’s tendency to say inappropriate things, and my inability to trust makes dating other people hard and exhausting.The truth is there’s only one person I trust, one person I’m comfortable with. And that’s Colt. No one else. He’s been my first everything.My first friend. My first hug. My first date. My first kiss.But then the lines blur and we become more than friends. Will I find my happily ever after…or will I lose my best friend?
Out in the Deep
Lane Hayes - 2018
He’s a type A control personality with a penchant for order and a love of water polo. But he’s determined to enjoy his last year of college. The real world with a serious job and big expectations can wait for a few months. He’s going soak up every minute on campus with his friends and teammates before he moves on. The only possible kink in his plan is the new guy on the team… also known as his nemesis. Gabe Chadwick has big Olympic dreams. His transfer between Southern California universities has nothing to do with scholastics. The degree is his backup plan. He’s not there to party or make friends. And he certainly isn’t going to announce his sexuality. But he can’t deny there’s something special about the uptight team captain. However, when an unwitting friendship and mutual attraction collide, both will have to decide if this is the real thing or if they’re about to lose it all in the deep.
In This Moment
Autumn Doughton - 2013
A year ago her world imploded and Aimee has been running ever since. She doesn't want to feel. She doesn't want to remember. To bury the ghosts that haunt her, she is living a life that has become unrecognizable.Cole Everly is a golden boy with a cocky smile and an attitude to match. He's grown accustomed to girls throwing themselves at his feet, but when Aimee trips and literally lands in his lap one afternoon, she's not at all what he expects. Difficult, damaged, closed-off. If Cole needed to make a list of qualities to avoid in a girl, Aimee would probably match up with every single one of them. He knows that he should stay away but he's drawn to her in a way that he can't exactly explain.In this honest and absorbing story, Aimee and Cole struggle to sort out the thin spaces between loss and love. Ultimately, they will need to learn how to navigate through the pieces of the past if they want to hold on to the future and each other.
Drew
Amanda Shelley - 2020
He’s made me a firm believer in chemistry existing outside a textbook. Until his ego shows up. Nope – No thank you. Moving on. I mean… who has an entourage in college?When our professor announces we’ll be stuck as lab partners, I nearly lose my mind – I’m certain my dreams of becoming a doctor will go up in smoke with a distraction like him around.DrewI don’t date during the season.The number of trolls who venture into the arena simply to chase jerseys is unbelievable.In fact, I typically distance myself from the social side of being a college athlete because I have my eye on something bigger than our next D-1 championship.I’ve taken painstaking measures to avoid distractions – at all costs. This plan has worked perfectly until Abby shows up at my door.Gone is the plain studious girl I left in lab the day before. Left in her place is the intriguing woman I want to know better. Here I thought she wouldn’t be a distraction – yeah right… I am so screwed. Abby’s gorgeous and there’s nothing plain about her.I am this close to having it all. If I let Abby in, will my perfectly laid out plans disappear?
Quarterback Sneak
Baylin Crow - 2019
RUSH: I’m in love with my best friend. There wasn’t an exact moment when I fell for him. It was something that grew and evolved over time. He loves me back, but it’ll never be more than platonic. It can’t be because he’s straight. Then one night he kissed me and left me with more questions than answers. The very next morning my trust was shattered by a family secret. I’d been lied to my whole life. He was by my side through it all, offering support when I needed it most. How can I risk losing a friendship that held me together when I was falling apart? TORIN: He friend-zoned me. Four years ago, I gathered enough courage to kiss my best friend. What I’d hoped would be a pivotal moment that would start a new kind of relationship between us was over before it began. His world was upended, so I put my feelings aside and stepped back into my role as a friend he could count on. He wasn’t ready then, but now it’s time to find out if he’s willing to take a chance on us being something more. We’ve been friends, roommates and teammates, but I want him, body and heart. Quarterback Sneak is a low angst, high steam novella about childhood friends, trust and football.
Third Base
Heidi McLaughlin - 2015
In his second season with the Boston Renegades he has set his eyes on the girl behind the visitors’ dugout.That girl is Daisy Robinson, a journalism student at the University of Boston and a die-hard Renegades fan.But with new found love comes challenges and Ethan and Daisy have to deal with his crazy schedule, school finals and his presence on her campus for some much needed media training. For Ethan nothing can come between him and Daisy, until a secret that she’s been keeping threatens to destroy them both.
Thirteen Hours to You
Annie Emerson - 2021
A town that took pleasure in my torment, and refused to leave me as anything but broken. Four months ago, I left. I drove thirteen hours to Everlee Falls, Georgia, to live with my Gamma for senior year. To give myself the chance to fall in love with a life that I’d missed out on for far too long.I was expecting to find hope, I was hoping to find freedom, but I never expected him.I was too damaged to recognize the beginning.But all it takes is a moment, and he was positive he’d invade every one of mine. If I pushed, he pulled. If I ran, he followed.I was his fate.Meekai was my north star.I was what he chose to remember,he was a goodbye my soul refused to forget⠀⠀*Trigger Warning: Please be warned, this duet includes scenes of sexual assault and sensitive subject matter.⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀
A Little Like Romeo: A Sweet Enemies to Lovers Romance
Emily Childs - 2020
It doesn't hurt that Jonas is funny...and sweet...and really easy on the eyes.But when he kisses me, he's not just a secret friend anymore--he's the guy I'm falling head-first in love with.If our families find out, this feud will turn into an all out war!Welcome to the one-of-a-kind sweet, swoony ride following small-town Scandinavian bakers and the ones who hold their hearts. A toe-curling happily ever after, guaranteed.
The Midwife's Playlist
Piper Lennox - 2019
The day he left, he ruined every single song.My name is Easton, and I catch babies. When I’m called to a teen mom’s birth in the middle of a thunderstorm, the last person I expect to see is Caroline. No, scratch that: the last person I expect to see—the last person I want to see—is her brother. Six years, and the sight of Ford still wrings my heart dry. His voice still melts me. His smirk still pisses me off in ways he can’t even imagine. Our small, Southern town broadcasts rumors 24/7, yet no one thought to tell me Ford was back. And now I’m stuck living near him all over again—stuck replaying the hell he put me through the last summer I saw him. I swore I wouldn’t give him the time of day. I failed. But I sure as hell won’t give him a second chance.* * *Once upon a time, I thought Easton Lawrence would be the girl who saved me. I didn’t return to sleepy little Hillford for redemption; I don’t deserve it. I didn’t even return for her. I came back because my family needs me. As soon as this is over, I’m out of here. Gone. A ghost.At least, that was my plan. I didn’t count on seeing Easton again—much less confessing I’m still in love with her. The day we met, she hated me: eight years old and sworn enemies. But as the years passed, I changed her mind. So maybe there’s hope. Maybe I can change it again.
Kiss Me Like This
Bella Andre - 2014
Nothing seems to matter anymore...until the night Serena Britten unexpectedly ends up in his arms. Serena is a world-famous model who has only ever wanted to be normal, even though her mother has always pushed her to become a superstar. Though it isn't easy to try to leave everyone and everything she knows behind, Serena is determined to enroll in college. More than anything, she wants to turn her love for books into a new career that she actually loves. Only, she never expected to meet someone like Sean on campus—or to be instantly consumed by their incredible chemistry and connection. But when the pressures of her high-profile modeling career only get bigger and more demanding, will it make living a normal life as a college student—and falling in love with the hottest guy on campus—impossible?
Strong Side
Alison Hendricks - 2016
But can they ever be more than friends?Jason Hawkins is about to throw the biggest Hail Mary pass of his career. If he can't turn NFL recruiters' heads this year, he'll lose his shot at the one thing he's ever been good at. But every quarterback needs a man he can count on down-field. For Jason, that man just might be the Tigers' new receiver, Derek Griffin.Four years ago, Derek nearly lost everything after being outed by his teammates.Now he finally has a chance to get it all back as a walk-on for Eastshore College... if he can resist his immediate attraction to the gorgeous and very straight star quarterback.An instant connection during practice leads to an easy friendship that only grows stronger off the field. Derek is convinced friendship is all it'll ever be, but a very confusing moment of impulse leaves both of them fumbling for answers about their relationship.As curiosity gives way to passion and passion gives way to something deeper, Jason and Derek will have to tackle their own personal demons to bring home the win and earn their happy ending.