Hockey Ever After

She's the one who got away. He's always been off-limits.A secret romance with my brother's hockey star best friend wasn't part of my plan when I desperately asked him to invest in my bakery.I just needed a business partner before my dream shop went under.And when the bossy, protective single dad athlete said yes, I didn't think that one knee-weakening time he'd kissed me senseless (and then some) would get in the way of us baking cakes.But just try working with a sinfully handsome, incredibly generous, and dangerously flirty hockey player who's good with his hands in and out of the kitchen.We set a rule: don't mix business with pleasure. Again.Except Corbin doesn't do anything halfway.When he's not scoring goals on the ice, he stays up late with me to test tempting recipes.Braids my hair before we bake like it's foreplay.Gives me his jersey to wear to games.And looks at me like I'm the answer to his dreams.Falling for my business partner-my brother's best friend-could cost me everything: the bakery, our friendship, and the family who's already doubting me.But when Corbin shows up after closing one night and tells me he can't stop thinking about me and hasn't been able to for years?I'm ready to break every rule.

Hockey is Gabe Martin's life. Dante Baltierra just wants to have some fun on his way to the Hockey Hall of Fame. Falling for a teammate isn't in either game plan. But plans change. When Gabe gets outed, it turns his careful life upside-down. The chaos messes with his game and sends his team headlong into a losing streak. The last person he expects to pull him through it is Dante. This season isn't going the way Dante thought it would. Gabe's sexuality doesn't faze him, but his own does. Dante's always been a "what you see is what you get" kind of guy, and having to hide his attraction to Gabe sucks. But so does losing, and his teammate needs him, so he puts in the effort to snap Gabe out of his funk. He doesn't mean to fall in love with the guy. Getting involved with a teammate is a bad idea, but Dante is shameless, funny, and brilliant at hockey. Gabe can't resist. Unfortunately, he struggles to share part of himself that he's hidden for years, and Dante chafes at hiding their relationship. Can they find their feet before the ice slips out from under them? Winging It is the first book in the hot, hilarious, heartfelt Hockey Ever After series. If you like witty banter, friends to lovers, and sports romance, you'll love Winging It.

Hockey's started, holidays are looming, and NHL player Dante Baltierra's husband is keeping secrets. Of course, secrets aren't unusual this time of year, but Dante is pretty sure Gabe isn't being squirrelly about a new flat-screen or tickets for a second honeymoon. Whatever is eating Gabe is more serious than a surprise under the tree. But as much as Dante wants to help, asking about it would be fruitless. Besides, he has a theory about the problem-and the solution. He's just not sure Santa has the power to deliver what Gabe really wants this Christmas.

Ryan Wright's new hockey team is a dumpster fire. He expects to lose games-not his heart. Ryan's laid-back attitude should be an advantage in Indianapolis. Even if he doesn't accomplish much on the ice, he can help his burned-out teammates off it. And no one needs a friend-or a hug-more than Nico Kirschbaum, the team's struggling would-be superstar. Nico doesn't appreciate that management traded for another openly gay player and told them to make friends. Maybe he doesn't know what his problem is, but he'll solve it with hard work, not by bonding with the class clown. It's obvious to Ryan that Nico's lonely, gifted, and cracking under pressure. No amount of physical practice will fix his mental game. But convincing Nico to let Ryan help means getting closer than is wise for Ryan's heart-especially once he unearths Nico's sense of humor. Will Nico and Ryan risk making a pass, or will they keep missing 100 percent of the shots they don't take?

People say there's a fine line between love and hate. If you ask Grady Armstrong, the line's as obvious as the one across the middle of a hockey rink. So he can't explain why he doesn't walk away when his Grindr hookup-a guy who accused him of impersonating himself-turns out to be Max Lockhart, a rival player Grady once punched in the face. Apparently Max can goad him just as well off the ice as he can on it. Max Lockhart showed up thinking he was going to expose a fake. Instead he hooks up with a guy who claims to hate him. <i>And</i> has a good time. A really good time. But that doesn't mean players from different teams can be together. Max has always wished Grady would relax a little. When the season starts and Grady accepts Max's offer of help with finding someone to date for real, Max gets his wish. But he should've been careful what he wished for, because now that he knows Grady is a big softie under that prickly shell, he'd rather keep Grady for himself. Grady only goes on a handful of dates before he realizes he has a lot more fun with Max. But he can't be falling for a rival player… can he?

Any other year, hockey player Grady Armstrong would be licking his wounds after a disappointing playoffs exit. Somehow, this year, he's in the stands as his rival-turned-boyfriend Max Lockhart competes for the Stanley Cup… and there's nowhere he'd rather be. Well, except maybe lifting the Cup himself. So along with preparing his body for next season, Grady prepares to ask Max to stay in his life permanently.   Max figures it can't be easy for Grady to watch Max cash in on his dreams, but if he's struggling, he hides it well-which is great, because they don't get much time together during the season, and it would suck if Grady spent the summer sulking.    But while Grady may still be a competitive bastard, he doesn't sulk. He nurses Max through hangovers. He comes home with him for the summer. He loses fishing bets. He earns so many boyfriend points Max should really level him up. The question is, how?

When Liam Belanger gets a professional tryout with the Miami Caimans, he's hoping to land a roster spot that'll keep him from bussing tables. If he can make the team and score a tryout in bed with Russ Lyons, the veteran defenseman who's appointed himself Liam's mentor, that would be the icing on the sweet hockey cake. Living life by a strict set of rules has worked out well for Russ. He has a great career, great friends, and a great family, even if they do keep setting him up with hometown honey traps. But he can't stop time, and now, despite all his planning, he's looking at his last year with the Caimans before the uncertainty of free agency. Maybe that's why he finds sunny, free-spirited Liam so attractive.  He's still not going to sleep with his rookie. Probably. Liam starts the season in the minors, but it's not long before he gets a shot at the Big Show. His year is shaping up to be a dream come true-even before Russ picks up on Liam's passes and proves defensemen can score too.

Rowan Chadha's job as a children's librarian might be temporary, but at least it comes with adorable, hilarious patrons. When he bumps into Jordy Shaw-NHL star and super-hot dad of one of his favorite library kids-at a charity event, he suggests they team up as a fake couple to fend off unwanted attention, never expecting the connection to last. Jordy is in desperate need of a new nanny, and his daughter, Kaira, already adores Rowan. When Rowan's apartment becomes uninhabitable just as his library contract ends, Jordy offers a stopgap solution: Rowan can crash in the nanny suite in his home and help with Kaira while Jordy trains for the new season-just until Rowan lands a new job and Jordy can find permanent childcare. As the lines between fantasy and reality blur, the attraction that's been simmering between them bubbles over. But while they're free with their bodies, they struggle to defend their hearts, knowing their arrangement has an expiration date. After all, Rowan's a librarian, not a nanny, and Jordy could be traded at any moment. Their arrangement is temporary, right? Or maybe some things are worth staying for….   Textbook Defense continues the Hockey Ever After series with a fake relationship turned real and an adorable child in need of a nanny.