San Francisco Strikers

Penny Connor is putting the pieces of her life back in logical order. At least that's the plan. Six months ago, her world imploded when she walked in on her fiance with another woman. After calling off her wedding, she spent a week acting completely out of character in the Tuscan countryside with a scorchingly hot man. They didn't even exchange last names. Ethan Hartnell has grudgingly returned home. He's got an image to fix after being traded to the San Francisco Strikers, due to some questionable behavior. He plans to keep his nose to the ice, focusing on the career he loves. Everything is going according to plan, until he walks into a friend's bar and sees her. She'd left him in her bed in Italy, with a note, and run. Which is exactly what she does when they see each other again. It should be a sign. So why does he keep chasing her?

Drunk-texting a grumpy soccer star? Best worst decision of my life. Especially when the player is the sinfully handsome, foul-mouthed Holden Sanders . . . my new library assistant. The benched bad boy needed an image makeover, I needed to save my job, and his star status was just what the library ordered to raise awareness for our fundraising campaign. The press can't get enough of Mr. Growly reading to kids. It's win-win and completely platonic. Until I need a shoulder to cry on after drowning my heartbreak in too many margaritas. I only typed that invitation for fun–I never meant to hit send. Holden isn't the kind of guy to care about tears and feelings, least of all mine. But he shows up–with his strapping shoulder, a box of tissues, and a supersized bag of Doritos. That's when I realize there's more to him than meets the eye. One soulful, smoldering mistake of a kiss has me craving more, and the heat between us quickly builds to a blaze. But I'm not the only one guarding secrets, and Holden's might push us to the breaking point. Even if I'm surrounded by books, I know better than to believe in storybook endings. And yet, I want to believe . . . Because I know he's a keeper.

The last time I saw Tim Cheltenham, he was an eighteen-year-old soccer hottie with an irresistible English accent, a painfully gorgeous face, and an enormous . . . ego. Fifteen years later, with a medical degree under my belt and a new dream job with The Strikers soccer team-his team-I'm not about to let Tim's bad attitude and grumpy scowl ruin it for me. But when my chauvinistic boss implies that he doesn't trust single women to stay on the job long-term, I panic and tell him I'm engaged. And to my surprise, it's Tim who comes to my rescue, offering to play my fake fiancé if I'll do him a favor-cover up the truth about his injury. The lie could derail both our careers, and I've got no desire to spend more time than necessary in Tim's surly presence. And falling for him again? Ha! That's never going to happen. So with my job on the line, I say yes. Now, the more time I spend with Tim, the more I sense a softer side beneath those chiseled muscles and broody exterior. But the more I understand him, the harder it is to pretend that we're just for show. And when a rival player threatens to expose our secret, I'm terrified I'll lose everything. They say you have to fake it to make it. But what happens when love is the goal?

Amanda Pearsall never wanted to put down roots. Six years ago, she put California in her rear-view mirror and set out to travel the world, one adventure at a time. Eighteen months ago she returned home for a family emergency, and she's still here, with no departure date in sight. The job she took to tide her over is stifling at best and she needs to get back out there. To throw caution to the wind and live her life on her terms. Ben Chester, stoic captain of the San Francisco Strikers, lives and breathes hockey. From the tender age of three when his father strapped a pair of skates on Ben's feet, hockey has been his life. What could be more enjoyable than being out on the ice and winning with your team? His nickname might be Cheesy, but he has no time for jokes when he's playing the game he loves. And he has no time for distractions, especially from the media. He learned his lesson years ago to never trust anyone with a press pass, and when he discovers what Amanda does for a living, he wants nothing to do with her. Ben knows they are all wrong for each other, no matter how good she feels in his arms. He likes skating in the lines. But Amanda can't even see them.

Can secrets designed to protect the ones they love end up tearing them apart? From a painful past nobody knows about to aspirations for the future, Sophia Lanzi has learned to lock things away to please those around her and to protect herself. Landing a job working for the top sports physical therapist in the city, avid hockey fan Sophia is taking a step toward fulfilling her dreams. But when sexy hockey player Eric 'Finn' Finnegan enters the clinic for treatment after a devastating injury on the ice, Sophia only has more secrets to keep, as she develops more than a crush on her patient. The last thing Finn needs is a distraction, and especially in the form of Sophia Lanzi, a beautiful physical therapy assistant. Finn is desperate to get back to the game he loves and prove to everyone that their investment in him has been worth it, but the chemistry with Sophia is too strong to deny. Finn and Sophia can't resist each other, and a kiss leads to a secret relationship. Secrets aren't new to Finn, either, and he's holding one that can destroy his family if it's ever discovered.

I swear I didn't plan to steal my brother's car. But one impulsive decision later, I'm stuck in a cabin with his best friend, a grumpy, gorgeous soccer star. Did I mention there's only one bed? I'm a small town girl with big-city dreams of seeing San Francisco-cable cars and wine bars and the Golden Gate Bridge-not getting stranded during a blizzard in a tiny mountain cabin. And definitely not fixing leaks and playing endless board games with Danny Weston, who has zero construction skills and doesn't trust mine. My previous choices in men have led to poor decisions, so I try to ignore his sculpted abs and mischievous dark eyes. I try not to let his gourmet cooking and perfect campfires warm me to my soul. Problem is, Danny Weston is a charmer with a wounded heart. His painful secrets rival my own, and his beautiful, tender heart begins to melt mine. Which leads to one unforgettable night in that one bed when our resistance wears so paper thin, it rips to shreds. But this is a vacation fling, right? I shouldn't think about what would happen if we turned into more, even when every part of me wants to see where it leads. Weston is known for breaking records on the field. But what if he breaks my heart?

Sara Randolph is head chef in a bar frequented by the San Francisco Strikers hockey team. With her history of having her heart broken by athletes, she really should be avoiding them. They're her Kryptonite, and left winger Colin O'Sullivan is at the top of the No Touch List, in spite of his delicious flirtations. Colin "Sully" O'Sullivan is tired of being second best. His home team took the Stanley Cup the year after he was traded to San Francisco. He's been on the top line on the Strikers for a few years and now his spot is in question. But when the ginger-haired jokester lands a night in the arms of Sara, he thinks his luck is finally changing. Until she tells him it was all a terrible mistake. Sara can't believe she let herself get carried away with Sully. He's an athlete. A player in all variations of the word. Been there. Done that. Never again. But there's no denying their attraction is hot enough to melt all the ice in the arena. When it comes to a faceoff between them, are they willing to own up to the truth about how they really feel about each other?