skinny love : (n.) when two people love each other, but are too shy to admit it, even though they still show it. Paristella's Contest ~ Round 2 [ Short Story #54 / Romance #240 ]

Rick tries to take Beth on their first date, but neither of them are as smooth as they'd like.

All she wanted him to do was smile. A love story.

After a very public breakup, Olivia Rodgers is avoiding her cheating ex-boyfriend like the plague. Olivia has a notoriously difficult time speaking up for herself and she's afraid that when she finally runs into her ex, she'll end up apologizing to him. Her goal for the year is to keep her distance from him for as long as possible. She plans to stick close to her best friend Avery; however, Avery is pretty busy with her boyfriend and his brooding best friend, Alexander, who seems to tag along with them everywhere they go. Can Alexander get Olivia to speak her mind and finally stand up for herself? To be heard, Olivia may just need to shout.

Elle Grayson's guilty pleasure is reading cheesy romance novels. Always has been, always will be. Maybe that's why she's never had a boyfriend - no guy can live up to her expectations of the guys in romance novels. She doesn't think there is one guy that can prove to be even half as decent as guys in books. But when there's somebody set on doing exactly that, things just might start to change. Romance #110 Short Story #23 - May 28, 2014

Amelia Bouchard gave her number to the cute barista on campus. It's not him that ends up texting her. Highest rank: #16 teen fiction, #73 in romance

To fulfill a promise to her late father, Aubrey Lynn posts an ad to hire a fake boyfriend for Christmas. But when ex-marine Knox Mikelson shows up, with his arrogant attitude and clear dislike for her, she gets more than she bargained for.

COMPLETED. A university student. A professional hockey player. They've proved they can be friends. Can they be more? Although they're both in their early twenties and living in Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada, their lives couldn't be more different. Camille Riccardi is a university student who doesn't feel like she has her life together quite just yet. A scary thought, considering she's graduating in a few months. Taylor Hudson, on the other hand, is exactly where he wants to be in life. Drafted first overall in the spring, he's set to begin his first National Hockey League season with the Winnipeg Storm. When they meet through mutual friends, they realize that they may have things in common, after all. They realize that maybe they could be friends. Maybe they could be even more. But it's not nearly as simple as it all sounds. This is their story. Cover designed on Canva with photo by Jon Tyson on Unsplash.

Exes aren't supposed to end up as best friends. Exes-turned-bff's should never have a one night stand. Dexter and Hadley do.