FRIENDZONE — Michelle C. Hillstrom

To get out of the Friendzone, you've got to shoot your shot...Taylor Echols... He's my mortal enemy. My boyfriend's best friend. He bullies me in middle school and has ignored me for all of high school. But when tragedy strikes and I experience an unexpected loss, he is shockingly there for me - comforting me and reminding me about all the good things in life. Now he has me feeling complicated and confusing emotions and I'm so close to trusting him - to wanting him. I'm feeling things I didn't think I could ever feel again. Feeling things for Taylor I would never have imagined possible. But is this new Taylor the real Taylor or is he really the arrogant playboy he presents to the rest of the school? Mikayla Hightower... She's the girl who has always been too good for me. Unattainable. My best friend's girl. All I want to do is make her smile, but my past mistakes make her wary of trusting me. My loyalty to my best friend makes me feel guilty for the way I look at her and think about her - for all the things I want to do with her and to her. Not that it matters. I don't do girlfriends. I have to stay focused on basketball, school, getting into a good college, and drafted into the NBA. Mikayla's pull is strong though. She might just be enough to have me rearranging my priorities. Jordan would understand, right? FRIENDZONE is part one of a series. There is a cliff hanger. HEA guaranteed by end of book two. Tropes in FRIENDZONE include:Athlete / Jock RomanceBest Friend's LoverFriends-to-lovers / Frenemies-to-loversChildhood friendsEveryone can see it except themLove triangleRecommended for 18+ Content Warning for grief, survivor's guilt, depression, teen drinking, strong language, and explicit sex scenes (all sex scenes are consensual and characters above age 18).