Toe the Line

Penelope Ward

Feb 2023 · Penelope Ward Books, Inc.

About this ebook

From New York Times bestselling author Penelope Ward comes a friends-to-lovers story spanning more than a decade…

At first, I thought I’d hate spending the summer with Archie Remington—the conceited son of my parents’ friends.

What I knew about Archie: he was gorgeous, pre-law, and had always treated me like I didn’t exist when we were younger.

When our families bought a house together on an island in Maine, he and I were forced to share a bathroom.

The boy I remembered was now a full-grown man—but with the same attitude.

After a rough start, Archie and I unexpectedly started getting along one day and eventually became friends. We shared secrets and bonded during our morning jogs. I discovered that Archie had a wild spirit and that he struggled to conform to his father’s expectations.

Things were cool until I had to go and ruin it, getting drunk one night, and blurting out my fantasy—involving him.

I took it back, but it was too late. Archie had heard me loud and clear. After that, we never quite knew how to toe the line.

When that summer came to an abrupt and shocking end, I headed back to college, unsure if anything would ever be the same again.

Across the miles over the years, he and I stayed in touch as friends, but fate and timing always kept us from becoming more.

You know the saying: If two people are meant to be, they’ll find their way back to each other?

Let’s just say Archie came back into my life in a way I would’ve never expected.

And this time, my heart would really be put to the test.

Ratings and reviews

Penelope Ward has once again given us a wonderful read to start the year off. Toe the Line has characters you will fall in love with and a journey that will captivate you from the moment you pick this second chance, friends to lovers book up. This is Archie and Noelle’s entertaining and at times emotional journey and it will appeal to all romance lovers. I’m not going to write a review that will give their journey away because I believe this slow burn should be read with no preconceived ideas.

Toe the Line is a standalone, friends to lovers that has a veritable slow burn. The story delves into past and present over many years and the sizzling chemistry between these best friends seems hard to ignore. Due to certain family circumstances and other life choices, Archie and Noelle seem to toe the line to keep their friendship just that, as best friends. However as years go by, its always each other they have to count on. Will these two ever be together or just lifelong friends. Loved it

All Aboard! If you are into roller coaster rides, then jump on board the Toe the Line Express. Holy cow, this book had my heart racing and my stomach dropping throughout this entire book. Archie and Noelle were the best of friends. There were moments where I wanted to shake both of them to wake them up. They both were so worried about ruining their friendship that they kept hurting themselves and each other by keeping their feelings bottled up inside. It was worth it in the end!

About the author

Penelope Ward is a New York Times, USA Today and #1 Wall Street Journal bestselling author of contemporary romance.

She grew up in Boston with five older brothers and spent most of her twenties as a television news anchor. Penelope resides in Rhode Island with her husband, son, and beautiful daughter with autism.

With over two million books sold, she is a 21-time New York Times bestseller and the author of over thirty books. Her novels have been translated into over a dozen languages and can be found in bookstores around the world.