**SAMPLE ONLY - READ ON KU, EBOOK, OR PAPERBACK** US: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0GV177BWC UK: https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B0GV177BWC AU: https://www.amazon.com.au/dp/B0GV177BWC CA: https://www.amazon.ca/dp/B0GV177BWC 𝐇𝐨𝐜𝐤𝐞𝐲 𝐦𝐚𝐝𝐞 𝐡𝐢𝐦 𝐚 𝐬𝐭𝐚𝐫. 𝐈𝐭 𝐦𝐚𝐝𝐞 𝐡𝐢𝐬 𝐰𝐢𝐟𝐞 𝐚 𝐭𝐚𝐫𝐠𝐞𝐭. Emerald Sawyer has always been my home. She saw something in me when everyone else saw a hockey goon who could barely read. When the world called me stupid, she called me capable. Her faith built me in ways my father's cruelty never could. Now I'm Hayden "Haymaker" Sawyer-the league's most feared enforcer. My violence goes viral. My fists pay the bills. Every hit, every fight, every autograph, every deal-I told myself I was doing it all for her. Somewhere along the way, I stopped seeing what it was costing our marriage. I let my agent handle the business so I could focus on the game. I ignored the threats and harassment. The fans who hated her simply for being mine. When Emerald tried to show me how cruel it had gotten, I told her it didn't matter. That I would always keep her safe. I was wrong. The losses piled up. The fans turned vicious. My temper snapped, and with one ugly moment, I pushed away the only person who has ever truly loved me. Then, while I was smiling for the cameras, my wife was brutally attacked by a fan wearing my jersey. Now I see everything too late. I want blood from every single person who touched her. And the deeper I dig, the clearer it becomes that none of this was random. My agent, Rick Fox, has been pulling the strings for far too long. I'll do whatever it takes to bring down the people who came for my wife, earn back the woman I love, and prove that this time, I won't fail her again. Because Emerald Sawyer is my home, my heart, my everything.

One lesson I learned very early in life was to be cheerful, to be agreeable, to do as I was told and ask for nothing, and to never ever complain. Smile Maddie. Be happy Maddie. Don't make trouble and maybe they'll love you. I grew into an adult who took care of others and never expected that those I loved would take care of me in return. I gave and never asked, never expected, never demanded. Smile Maddie. Be happy Maddie. Don't make trouble and you'll find someone that will love you. And then one day, a Dragon walked into my workplace and turned my world upside down with a single wink. Having grown up watching his father treat his men like they were disposable, just meat bags to be fed into the grinder, Dragon was determined to be different when he became president of the Dragon's Inferno MC. He cares about his people. He takes care of them. He was upfront with me, taking care of his MC and those he considered to be his would always be his priority. And I agreed to that, I joined him in that mission, throwing myself into becoming the perfect old lady of the prez. Smile Maddie. Act happy Maddie. Take care of them and maybe they'll love you. Smile Maddie. Be happy Maddie. Don't complain and maybe he'll love you. I told myself I was independent. I was strong. And I didn't need my Dragon to take care of me. And I almost believed it. Almost. But now I'm watching him with her. I'm watching him comfort her. I'm watching him listen to her, support her, reassure her. I'm watching him take time from his day to check in with her. I'm watching him worry about her. I'm watching them become closer right in front of my eyes. I'm seeing every thoughtful gesture he does for her. And me? I'm not happy. I'm not smiling. I'm done being agreeable. Fuck not causing trouble. I'm about to set my Dragon's world on fire. And then I'm walking away. She can have him. For the first time in my life, I'm choosing myself.