Brendan Clearly. He was the lad I liked since I was barely out of pigtails, the one who never slagged me off when the rest of the boys thought it was gas. He was different. Always smiling, always asking me if I'd eaten, like some little mammy trapped in a seventeen-year-old fella's body. It sounds stupid, but those tiny things kept me going. And then I went and wrecked it. Not just with him-no, I managed to shatter it with all of them. My friends, the ones who made the halls feel less lonely, the ones who kept me tethered here when the world felt too heavy. Gone. Because of me. Just a mistake, that's all it was, but a mistake that cost me everything. And now when I see him across the yard, laughing with the others, it's like a knife. He doesn't even look my way. And I deserve that, don't I? *** Caoimhe Kavanagh. Once upon a time she was my best mate. The kind of girl you'd sit on a wall with for hours, talking about nothing and everything. She was soft, kind, never the type to go looking for trouble. But now? I hardly recognise her. She's gone cold, sharp, always hanging 'round with that crowd-the type of people you know are only bad news. Ciggies tucked in their sleeves, mouths full of poison. And she's right there in the middle of it, like she belongs to them now. Part of me wants to write her off, tell myself she's not the Caoimhe I knew. That girl's dead and gone. But... I can't. I remember too much. The way she used to laugh, the way she'd defend you even when you were being a gobshite, the way she cared more than she ever let on. That's still inside her, I swear it is. I don't care how hard she tries to hide behind the mask she's wearing now-I know my friend is in there somewhere. And I'll drag her back if I have to. Because she's worth it.

Pro hockey star, Christian Brooks, has everything he ever needed as a starting forward Right Winger, and a three year old daughter. Or, so he thought. When Brinley Cameron's newest patient happens to be, a star hockey player, for her favorite team's biggest rival's, daughter. She never thought she'd find herself quickly getting over her ex fiancé, and falling into the world that is: Christian Brooks. * Christian I never thought I'd need someone more than Charlie, that is, until I met her. Meet: Brinley Cameron, one of my daughter's surgeon, southern sass at its finest, slight pain in my ass, and the girl I can't get off my mind, no matter how hard I try. Brinley I always assumed Christian Brooks was a jerk. He was an antagonizer on the ice, that meant he was one off the ice too, right? Wrong. He was the total opposite. In fact, I couldn't help myself from melting into a puddle every time I saw him interact with his daughter. And I definitely could help the fact that I found myself wanting to be around him, 24/7. (#1 - singleparent) ~ 1/12/23 (#2 - surgeon) ~ 1/10/23 (#11 - hockey) ~ 1/10/23 (#1 - sports) ~ 3/14/23 (#3 - cancerpatient) ~ 1/10/23 (#6 - singledad) ~ 1/10/23 (#8 - nhlhockey) ~ 1/10/23 (#670 - sportsromance) ~ 1/10/23 (#458 - maturescenes) ~ 1/10/23

Tadgh Lynch doesn't lose focus. He's sharp, volatile, and not here to play nice. First year at Tommen, he's already collecting enemies-and Leah Daly's at the top of the list. Leah Daly's fierce, stubborn, and hiding the kind of damage you don't talk about. She's built for survival, and Tadgh's the last person she wants anywhere near her. She hates him. He hates her. That should've been the end of it. But the more he sees, the more it looks like his history repeating itself. And once he recognises it, walking away isn't an option. Even if saving her burns him all over again.