Friends With Benefits

It’s senior year at Briarwood Prep, and Charlie has already survived the hardest part: coming out to his friends. Now he just wants an easy year. That means no drama, no heartbreak, and definitely no crush on Joe, the quiet nerd who came back from summer with new glasses, a new haircut, and a smile that keeps catching Charlie off guard. Joe, unfortunately, doesn’t seem to notice.

Lucas does. Charlie’s best friend since forever, blond, soccer-star, always joking, always there, he’s the one person who makes everything feel easy. So when a kiss at a party turns into a habit, they make a deal: no strings, no promises, and it ends the second one of them falls for someone else.

The rule sounds perfect. Until the new girl starts flirting with Lucas. Until a weekend hike makes Charlie realize he’s been jealous for weeks. Until the group notices what neither of them will say out loud.

Because feelings don’t care about deals. And the hardest part of falling in love with your best friend is that it might be the thing you’ve been trying not to admit all along.

A funny, tender, school-days romance about first love, found family, and the friend who was never just a friend.