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Description
In a world of clickbait headlines and high-stakes games, a fierce heroine and a playboy athlete find themselves entangled in a web of secrets and staged affection. As the lines between performance and passion fade, they must choose: protect their hearts, or fight for a love worth breaking the rules.
Order now and receive the stunning LIMITED EDITION, featuring a full color inside cover with character illustrations. This collectible is only available on a limited first print run, a must-have for any hockey romance lover!
“All’s fair in love, hockey, and podcast syndication.”
All I wanted was a tiny interview to secure my podcast syndication deal.
What I didn’t expect? That my big break would hinge on Hunter Reed—the NHL’s newest golden boy, full-time playboy, and the guy who mistook me for a puck bunny at Oakley’s bar.
Hunter Reed is six-foot-two of attitude, muscle, and maddening charm. He’s the kind of clickbait fans obsess over and network execs would kill for—and exactly the kind of man I swore I’d never chase. Especially not after our less-than-stellar first encounter... and second... and third.
But when a Date-A-Player charity auction, his manipulative ex, and a very public kiss force us into a fake relationship, suddenly I’m not just chasing the story—I’m living it.
Now he’s crashing on the other side of my queen-sized bed. Covering my living expenses. Washing my car in a Speedo in the middle of December. And somehow worming his way into my life one sarcastic grin at a time.
The more he shows up—with pre-game texts, surprise Post-its, and family dinners like he’s always belonged—the harder it is to remember this is supposed to be pretend.
But with his ex-girlfriend circling, trade rumors heating up, my career hanging by a thread, and feelings I never planned for complicating everything, I have to choose:
Do I play it safe and report from the bleachers?
Or finally, get in the game—for real?
Order now and receive the stunning LIMITED EDITION, featuring a full color inside cover with character illustrations. This collectible is only available on a limited first print run, a must-have for any hockey romance lover!
“All’s fair in love, hockey, and podcast syndication.”
All I wanted was a tiny interview to secure my podcast syndication deal.
What I didn’t expect? That my big break would hinge on Hunter Reed—the NHL’s newest golden boy, full-time playboy, and the guy who mistook me for a puck bunny at Oakley’s bar.
Hunter Reed is six-foot-two of attitude, muscle, and maddening charm. He’s the kind of clickbait fans obsess over and network execs would kill for—and exactly the kind of man I swore I’d never chase. Especially not after our less-than-stellar first encounter... and second... and third.
But when a Date-A-Player charity auction, his manipulative ex, and a very public kiss force us into a fake relationship, suddenly I’m not just chasing the story—I’m living it.
Now he’s crashing on the other side of my queen-sized bed. Covering my living expenses. Washing my car in a Speedo in the middle of December. And somehow worming his way into my life one sarcastic grin at a time.
The more he shows up—with pre-game texts, surprise Post-its, and family dinners like he’s always belonged—the harder it is to remember this is supposed to be pretend.
But with his ex-girlfriend circling, trade rumors heating up, my career hanging by a thread, and feelings I never planned for complicating everything, I have to choose:
Do I play it safe and report from the bleachers?
Or finally, get in the game—for real?
I keep it clinical. I keep it clean.
And I definitely don’t date players—well... not anymore.
Not since my ex-husband—a pro football player with more ego than loyalty—left me for a cheerleader and a faster life in Miami.
These days, I tape ankles, manage injuries, and ignore locker room charm—especially from flirty Finnish wingers named Aleksi Makelin, who somehow always finds me in a crowd.
He’s relentless in a way that’s… infuriatingly endearing. Always coming up with reasons to need a check-up. Always maneuvering his way beside me at team dinners. Always—always—looking at me like I’m something more than the team doc.
So when the Hawkeyes' private jet throws a mechanical code after an away game, the team scrambles for commercial flights to get home before playoffs. Of course, it’s just my luck that Aleksi and I get stuck together on the last outbound plane.
But when a passenger collapses mid-flight, everything shifts. The CDC boards the plane in full hazmat gear and initiates an emergency quarantine protocol. Aleksi, smooth as ever, tells them we’re married—and just like that, we’re roomed together.
One room. One bed. No exits. Just adrenaline, proximity, and the kind of tension that finally breaks the moment I let him touch me.
I told myself it was quarantine adrenaline. One night. Nothing permanent.
But now I’m late. And the test is positive.
Training camp is around the corner. Aleksi’s coming home.
And I’ve got two new problems:
A pregnancy I didn’t plan for.
And a text from the ex-husband I’ve tried so hard to forget… telling me he’s training with the Seattle Sentinels... and wants to meet up.
I used to guard my heart like it was the only thing that mattered.
But now?
I’m not just protecting myself.
I’ve got a baby on the way—and no idea what to do next.