Offside

She's the ER nurse who is entirely immune to his charm. He's the hockey player who has never needed anyone to be immune to his charm. This is going to be a problem.
Cocky hockey player meets unimpressed ER nurse · Enemies-to-lovers, he falls first (hard) · Hidden anxiety rep · Spicy (5/5) · Standalone in series

Theo Volkov is the Northside Rebels' most talented player and biggest headache. He's fast, flashy, and so confident it borders on obnoxious. He flirts like it's cardio. He grins like he's getting away with something. And nobody -- absolutely nobody -- needs to know that the confidence is a performance covering panic attacks he's been hiding since his AHL days. He was drafted by the NHL at 18. He got sent down. He counts in Russian when the panic starts, and no one has ever noticed.

Until Kat Diaz.

Kat is an ER nurse who grew up with three sports-obsessed brothers and an ex who treated her like support staff. She has zero patience for hockey players, zero interest in Theo's smile, and zero tolerance for men who think charm is a personality. When Theo lands in her ER after a bad hit, she treats him with clinical efficiency and total indifference. He is fascinated. She is unmoved. This has literally never happened to him.

Then she witnesses a panic attack in the hospital parking lot. She doesn't pity him. She doesn't freak out. She talks him through it with the same calm she uses on a trauma patient, and she keeps his secret. Late-night texts start. The performance starts cracking. And the cockiest player on the team starts falling for the one woman who refuses to be impressed.

But Theo gets an NHL call-up. And Kat has seen this before -- the athlete choosing the career, the woman becoming background noise. She says "go" when she means "stay." He hears "you don't matter" when she means "I'm scared."

"She's the only person who knows I count in Russian when I can't breathe. She's the only person I don't have to pretend with. And I left anyway, because I'm an idiot, and she was right about athletes all along."

Offside is Book 2 in The Northside Rebels. Each book is a complete standalone romance with a guaranteed HEA. No cliffhangers. Start anywhere.

Enemies-to-lovers. He falls first. She's immune to his charm (he's not handling it well). He counts in Russian when he's scared. She reads romance novels in the break room and will fight anyone who comments. Panic attacks handled with care, not as a plot device. Books that make you fall for the cocky one against your better judgment.

For fans of enemies-to-lovers hockey romance, banter-driven sports romance, and hockey players who are softer than they look.

Free with this complete series.