Books like 'Playing at Home'
Readers who enjoyed Playing at Home by Jax Calder also liked the following books featuring the same tropes, story themes, relationship dynamics and character types.
contemporary gay romance funny sports single-father friends to lovers boss & employee athletes office secret-relationship
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Thick as Thieves by Lucy Lennox
Julian:I've been in love with my best friend since forever. Okay, fine. Like, kindgergarten. It started out platonic, obviously, but then became... nope. Still platonic. The problem is that Parker Ellis has been straight since forever. And that makes it difficult to convince him the two of us are meant to be together.And now there's no point. All is lost... -
Let's Do This by Loren Leigh
ShawEver since we met two years ago, Eden Burkehammer has made everything better.The big defenseman sets me at ease. He’s a beast on the ice—brutal and physical—but when it’s the two of us, he turns to me with these unexpectedly soft brown eyes. This gravelly laugh that makes my whole body smile...Categorized as:
friends to lovers sports dual-pov new adult athletes queer queer-awakening first-person-pov -
Just a Taste by Briar Prescott
LakeSo... I’m getting married.Just three minor details: my husband-to-be is technically also my step-brother, he’s straight, and we’re absolutely nowhere in the vicinity of being in love.RykerOnly then comes the you-may-kiss-your-husband part. Turns out kissing your husband is a terrible idea because it makes you have strange thoughts you’ve never had before... -
Project Hero by Briar Prescott
What if you accidentally fell in love with the right guy?Andy:If my life was a movie, I would be the sidekick. Not an especially promising start when my plan is to finally let my best friend know I have a crush on him. No worries, though. I have a plan. I just need a complete makeover...Categorized as:
new adult athletes friends to lovers sports dual-pov first-person-pov queer anal sex -
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Not a Day Goes By by E. Lynn Harris
Rated: 4.28 of 5 stars · 29 ratingsJohn "Basil" Henderson has always played the field, both as a professional football player and as an equal opportunity lover. After retiring his jersey for a career as a sports agent, the dashing playboy is surprising everyone--including himself--by deciding to settle down and commit to his new love, Yancey Harrington Braxton... -
Seth by Carly Marie
Be yourself because everyone else is taken. But what if that risks everything you know? Seth Johnson has worked his entire career to be remembered more for his skill than as an openly gay NHL player. Finding a boyfriend has been pushed to the back burner. As for exposing his softer side, the side that loves lace and lingerie? It’s not happening... -
Right as Raine by Lucy Lennox
Tiller:As the first openly gay professional football player, I can’t afford to make any mistakes, on or off the field. And the absolute biggest mistake I could make right now would be to fall for Mikey Vining, my best friend, employee and, more importantly, Coach’s baby boy. I might fantasize about Mikey at night-—every night—but actually touching him would be a serious personal foul...Categorized as:
friends to lovers sports athletes boss & employee office secret-relationship queer contemporary -
Pisces Hooks Taurus by Anyta Sunday
It’s a time for searching, and a time for finding, Pisces: keep casting your line and you will hook what you’re looking for.Zane has it all planned out: land the perfect Meet Cute, fall in love, and live happily ever after. Should be simple enough if he put his mind to it. A little creativity and some thinking outside of the box, and voila, he’d be married to the woman of his dreams...Categorized as:
new adult friends to lovers queer queer-awakening contemporary humor m-m age difference -
Deke by Eden Finley
Ollie Word of advice: don’t come out to random guys in public restrooms. Even if they’re charming and adorably nerdy and offer to help. My family believe I can’t be happy if I’m not out to the world. I have a bitter ex-boyfriend and an unstable NHL career to show for it. A fake boyfriend seems like an easy and quick solution to get my family off my back, and this guy is volunteering...Categorized as:
sports friends to lovers athletes dual-pov new adult secret-relationship queer first-person-pov -
Torn & Bound Duet by K. Webster, Nikki Ash
From USA Today bestselling authors K Webster and Nikki Ash comes an angsty, new adult, poly romance.I’ve spent the past three years in college terrorizing the dean, also known as my father.I’m everything he hates.Troublemaker. Slacker. Gay.But I’m only getting started.I’m about to make Dad really proud with my newest life choices…I fall for my best friend, Mia, who’s a freaking chick...Categorized as:
new adult sports queer friends to lovers athletes first-person-pov dual-pov secret-relationship -
Limited Edition Husband by Lauren Blakely
One weekend with no strings was supposed to be the plan.After barely escaping my last train wreck of a romance, I’ve got a new dating goal—play it cool.I stick to that strategy when I meet a hunky Brit at a fundraiser and ask him to grab a drink... -
The Weight of It All by N.R. Walker
After being dumped by his long-term boyfriend for being overweight, Henry Beckett decides to make some drastic changes. In a vain attempt at getting his boyfriend back, Henry does the most absurdly frightening thing he can think of. He joins a gym. Reed Henske is a personal trainer who isn’t sure he’ll ever be ready to date again... -
My Dearest Patrolman, Vol. 1 by Niyama
Rated: 4.23 of 5 stars · 23 ratingsResigned, Shin has to settle for seeing Seiji when they run into each other about town or when Shin makes a point of stopping at his store. Shin believes he's content with that, but one night Seiji changes everything by bemoaning his lack of romantic prospects and mentioning he might as well try his luck with guys... -
From Coast to Coast by J.J. Mulder
NHL forward Remy Stone steps off the plane in Calgary a newly divorced man. While he doesn’t necessarily want to live in Canada, the trade offered a good excuse for a fresh start and he means to capitalize on it.Defenseman Grayson Brody has played most of his career with Calgary, but has long fallen out of love with his team...Categorized as:
sports queer friends to lovers athletes queer-awakening dual-pov first-person-pov office -
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Flash by K.M. Neuhold
Lewis tattoos himself on my brain instantly. Too bad this whole situation is about to get messier than spilled ink. LewisClingy, needy, Too MuchJust a few choice words from men who never deserved me anyway.I'm not going to make the same mistakes again though. I plan to ride the motorcycle hottie of my dreams just until we both get bored...Categorized as:
queer new adult anal sex first-person-pov dual-pov m-m contemporary from hate to love -
The Bastard and the Heir by Eden Finley, Saxon James
WREN: Moms are good at one thing: the guilt trip. It’s the only reason I’m at the funeral of a man I’ve never had anything to do with. I’ll show up, make her happy, and get out. At least that’s what I think until I learn daddy dearest has left me a crap load of money and the obligation to learn about the family business. All from his eldest son who looks nothing like the rest of us...Categorized as:
secret-relationship dual-pov office first-person-pov queer friends to lovers anal sex contemporary -
Damage Control by Lynn Van Dorn
Rated: 4.34 of 5 stars · 13 ratingsEverything to lose. Tyler’s worked hard to kick the dust of the Chicago suburbs off his heels and move on with his life as Hollywood’s newest up-and-comer, burying his demons and hiding his scars from the world. Just as everything seems to be going his way, a scandal from his past threatens everything he’s worked for... -
Indirection by Gregory Ashe
Rated: 4.31 of 5 stars · 14 ratingsRabid readers. Backbiting authors. A romance convention from hell.Shaw Aldrich and his best friend, boyfriend, and partner, North McKinney, are doing great, thanks. The aftermath of their search for the Slasher has finally settled down. Their private investigation agency is thriving. And after years of missed opportunities, they’re finally together... -
Musical Mayhem by Alley Ciz
Rated: 4.44 of 5 stars · 9 ratingsHelp Wanted: Producer for the latest album from multi-platinum selling band Birds of Prey.Enter Sammy Rhodes.Famed DJ The Spin Doctor.Musical genius.Fits with the band like he's our sixth member.We hired him on the spot.So what's the problem?He's also all broad shoulders and dazzling smile, and has this flop of hair I constantly yearn to brush away from his handsome face... -
Aaron's Awakening by K.C. Wells, Meredith Russell
Rated: 4.50 of 5 stars · 8 ratingsAaron isn’t looking for love, but it finds him – and it has a few surprises in store…A laidback man who goes with the flowAaron is happy for his friends who’ve found love, but he’s starting to feel as if he’s an endangered species – a single guy. Not that he’s looking for anyone...Categorized as:
friends to lovers queer queer-awakening m-m humor contemporary bisexual length-medium -
Walk With Me by Cardeno C.
Rated: 4.20 of 5 stars · 20 ratingsA Book in the Home Series When Eli Block steps into his parents' living room and sees his childhood crush sitting on the couch, he starts a shameless campaign to seduce the young rabbi. Unfortunately, Seth Cohen barely remembers Eli and he resolutely shuts down all his advances...Categorized as:
friends to lovers queer queer-awakening contemporary m-m humor age difference length-short -
Uncomplicated Choices by Cara Dee
When life gave you lemons, you learned who stayed and made lemonade with you. Or something to that effect. And the day Ellis Hayes kidnapped me—or, he borrowed a yacht and didn’t know I was on board—he'd definitely been handed too many lemons. We faced a dilemma when I woke up hungover in the middle of the ocean...Categorized as:
friends to lovers single-father queer queer-awakening humor m-m age difference contemporary -
Slow Pitch by Amy Lane
Rated: 4.31 of 5 stars · 12 ratingsTenner Gibson has a job he enjoys, a prickly ex-wife, and an adorable daughter he wouldn’t trade for the world. With no romance, no sex life, and no other hobbies, a rec league softball team is as close as he gets to hedonism. But life throws him a curveball when cocky Ross McTierney sets his sights on getting under Tenner’s skin... -
The Jock Script by Lane Hayes
The nerd, the coach, and the hookup…Asher-Swipe left, swipe left, swipe left. Sure, the idea of a quick, no-strings intimate rendezvous via hookup app sounds oddly thrilling, but it’s simply not me. Or maybe it is me, because it happened…and I liked it. Until I realized he looked familiar for a reason. A bad reason...Categorized as:
sports athletes friends to lovers secret-relationship queer queer-awakening humor m-m -
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Rules, Schmules! by Becca Seymour
The first Zone Defense series spin-off with a rule-following basketball player and an unimpressed twink who thinks rules are made to be obliterated.It’s not my milkshake that brings Kieran Kendall to my yard. Okay, maybe it’s a little bit my milkshake. But I also like to think it’s my dazzling personality and my magical… uhm… you get the idea...Categorized as:
sports new adult athletes dual-pov first-person-pov queer anal sex friends to lovers -
By the Numbers by K.M. Neuhold
Two hot roommates, minus clothes, plus a drawer full of debauchery, and a WHOLE lot of tension. You don’t have to be a math genius to figure out the sum of that equation...Categorized as:
friends to lovers new adult first-person-pov dual-pov anal sex queer contemporary m-m -
The Best Men by Sarina Bowen, Lauren Blakely
Bestselling authors Sarina Bowen and Lauren Blakely team up for the first time in an enemies-to-lovers, opposites-attract, irresistibly sexy standalone romance between the best man and the other best man! In my defense, I was left alone with a bottle of single-malt and a life-long penchant for protecting my baby sister...Categorized as:
sports new adult single-father dual-pov secret-relationship first-person-pov queer contemporary -
When Red Cried Wolf by Nash Summers
Rated: 4.33 of 5 stars · 9 ratingsAsher Williams is obsessed with love. It’s probably one of the reasons he makes such a fantastic matchmaker, love guru, and romance expert. And now that he’s in college, it’s finally his turn to shine. Asher’s relationship advice column in the school newspaper is his strongest matchmaking instrument, especially when it comes to helping hopeless romantics find their soulmates... -
Just for Me: A Rugby Romance by Rosalind James
Rated: 4.33 of 5 stars · 9 ratingsLuke Armstrong doesn’t want to be a pioneer or an inspiration. He just wants to be a prop.What’s it like to be the first All Black to come out while he’s still playing rugby? Luke has spent over thirty years not wanting to find out, but hiding has become so hard. He’s a man who doesn’t get tired, but now, he’s soul-weary... -
Mr. Picture Perfect by Daryl Banner
Rated: 4.33 of 5 stars · 9 ratingsCOLEAll I wanted to do was take my grandma to the crafts festival.Instead, I accidentally save someone’s lifeand end up on the front page of the Spruce Press.That’s not all. The person whose life I save happens to bemy childhood crush Noah Reed.I’m hardly an example of perfection.But now they’re organizing a pageant featuring the town’s hottest bachelorsand I’m number one on the list... -
The Rest of Forever by Alexa Land
Rated: 4.38 of 5 stars · 8 ratingsDoes love stand a chance between two very different long-time friends? Mike Dombruso’s life is anything but glamorous. He’s a shy, nerdy accountant and a widower with three young sons, whose world revolves around his kids. In many ways, Yoshiro Miyazaki is Mike’s polar opposite... -
Harder They Fall by J.D. Light
Rated: 4.38 of 5 stars · 8 ratingsWhen his dad makes it obvious he isn't going to kick the good-for-nothing thief and liar of a son and Branson's brother to the curb, Branson decides he can't sit and watch his father shower undeserved praise on a man who will undoubtedly just steal from him again and leave him swinging in the breeze... -
Waking Up Filthy by R. Cayden
Rated: 4.38 of 5 stars · 8 ratingsWhy in the hell is there a naked, tattooed man in my bed?I’m a closeted tennis pro, and I’m certainly not accustomed to waking up with strange men.Never mind that Gabriel is a notoriously flirty rock star and, according to the marriage certificate we find in our Vegas hotel room, my new husband.Last night is a drunken blur, but there’s no doubt in my mind what needs to happen this morning... -
The Linebacker by Emerson Beckett, Rheland Richmond
Rated: 4.38 of 5 stars · 8 ratingsIs it wrong for me to want the world to know I’m in love with Patrick Griffin and have been since we were eight-years-old? Patrick Griffin I hurt him. I didn’t mean to.Now he’s gone, and I deserve it.As a linebacker in the NFL, I've never found the right time to come out of the closet. Not even when I promised Cole I would... -
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The Birthday Manny by Sammi Cee
Rated: 4.38 of 5 stars · 8 ratingsHere’s the deal, not everyone understands why an almost twenty-eight-year-old man is happy taking care of other people’s children, but I am.Do I love being single? No, but what’s a guy to do?Then I met Kevin Wadsworth. He’s everything I’ve ever wanted in a man. He’s older than me, smaller than me, and needs a little bit of care...Categorized as:
single-father boss & employee queer m-m humor contemporary age difference forced proximity -
Kiss My Axe by R.M. Neill
Rated: 4.38 of 5 stars · 8 ratingsPerryYou know that saying, keep your friends close and your enemies closer? Well, whoever said that never had the misfortune of meeting Roman Auclair.Sure, he’s sexy and wears a corset like nobody’s business, but he’s arrogant, entitled and so damn judgemental he should sit on the Supreme Court.I’d rather sleep with a porcupine than bunk with him... -
For Today by B. Cranford
Rated: 4.50 of 5 stars · 6 ratingsSeventeen Years Ago . The first time Aaron Andrews saw Simon Foster smile, he knew he was in trouble. He'd never seen anything--or anyone--like the man who'd stolen his favorite seat in his favorite coffee shop. Six Weeks Ago . The late-night phone call that changed their lives forever was short... -
Buckeye: An MM Romance by Casey Morales
Rated: 4.50 of 5 stars · 6 ratingsFrom international bestselling author, Casey Morales . . . A traded player, a children's home, and a love to defy all odds. Climbing the ladder of professional baseball is hard. As one of the only openly gay players in the league, Nick Dunlap's path is rockier than most. When Nick is traded mid-season, despite a team-leading batting average, everyone knows his "open secret" is to blame... -
New Hope by Annabella Michaels
Rated: 4.15 of 5 stars · 18 ratingsWhat do a city cop who’s never been with a man and an out-and-proud, small-town doctor have in common? Besides being single dads, more than they know.A year after divorcing his wife, Ford Scott leaves his job with the NYPD and moves to a small town in Rhode Island, hoping to get a fresh start for himself and his daughter, Ellie...Categorized as:
friends to lovers single-father queer queer-awakening m-m contemporary men in uniform humor -
The Dating Experiment by Briar Prescott
Jamie:Three years ago, I sold my soul to the devil.Also known as my boss. Same thing.Here’s the deal. Connor Quinn is arrogant, impossible to please, cold as ice, and prone to find flaws in everything.Since that fatal day three years ago, many a murder plan have been made and many a weapon considered... -
Twincerely Yours by Eden Finley
EMMETTMy twin brother and I have gotten ourselves into a lot of messes growing up. We would constantly switch places to escape consequences while protecting each other at every cost.But sleeping with Ben’s professor is a whole new level of mess, because there’s something Jonah doesn’t know. He might have been Ben’s professor last semester, but the person he was lecturing wasn’t Ben. It was me... -
Coaching the Nerd by Eli Easton, Tara Lain
Super-bod meets super-brainWhat happens when marshmallow-bodied supernerd Sean volunteers to be on the jocks’ flag-football team? It screws Bubba’s fraternity’s chances at the coveted flag football title, that’s what.Bubba is drafted to be Sean’s personal trainer. He has to whip Sean into shape and make sure he doesn’t F up their team...Categorized as:
new adult sports friends to lovers athletes queer queer-awakening secret-relationship anal sex -
The Happy List by Briar Prescott
GrayThere are some things I excel at:- Exercising rigid control over every aspect of my life- Making sensible decisions at every turn- Being organized, predictable and responsible to an abnormal degreeIn short, I’m boring as hell and in desperate need of a change.Luckily I have my best friend by my side and a newly written to-do list to guide my way through the murky waters of finding happiness...Categorized as:
friends to lovers queer queer-awakening dual-pov first-person-pov m-m contemporary humor -
Tigers and Devils by Sean Kennedy
Rated: 4.06 of 5 stars · 32 ratingsThe most important things in Simon Murray’s life are football, friends, and film—in that order. His friends despair of him ever meeting someone, but despite his loneliness, Simon is cautious about looking for more... -
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Delicious by Stella Starling
Rated: 4.10 of 5 stars · 20 ratings“You’re exactly what I never knew I needed.” “I don’t have time for love.” Gavin Campbell has poured everything he has into starting up his bakery, Delicious... -
Beautifully Devoted by Michele Lenard
Forgetting to knock changed everything.CamWhen I was ten, I made a promise. One that I’m still honoring a decade later, even though it means hiding a part of myself from the most important person in my life.My best friend, Jagger. And truthfully, burying that part of me is a small price to pay if it means nothing comes between us...Categorized as:
queer-awakening friends to lovers queer new adult anal sex first-person-pov dual-pov athletes -
Rookie Move by Neve Wilder, Riley Hart
Falling for a teammate who also happens to be your brother's best friend? Total rookie move.McRAE: I’ve had a crush on my brother’s best friend since the moment I laid eyes on him four years ago.Warner Ramsey is 225 pounds of pure hotness, a media darling, and one of the best NFL quarterbacks in the league.Hell, he’s the reason I figured out I’m solidly bi...Categorized as:
sports friends to lovers athletes new adult secret-relationship dual-pov queer queer-awakening -
Something New by Harper Logan
Rated: 4.22 of 5 stars · 9 ratingsA marriage of convenience is one thing. But married to a straight guy? That’s a whole different story… Brooklyn Blackwell’s got a dissertation to finish and tenure to secure - the last thing he’s looking for is romance. But with his advisor’s charity on the brink of losing funding, Brooklyn’s got one shot at saving it... -
Bad Idea by Max Walker
Gabriel ‘Fox’ Morrison is starting a brand new chapter in his life. He spent years drifting after his time in the military and finally felt ready to settle in one spot. This leads him to becoming the head detective of the recently opened Stonewall Investigations in Miami... -
The BAHs by Saxon James
Rated: 4.22 of 5 stars · 9 ratingsA short featuring Kole and Asher from Line Mates & Study Dates book four of the CU Hockey by Saxon James & Eden...
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