56 parts Ongoing MatureEva Graham is a guarded, no-nonsense social science major who studies human behavior to understand why people leave-and how to make sure she never lets the wrong ones in. She keeps to herself, avoids drama, and especially avoids campus athletes, whom she considers walking red flags. Cole Grayson is a third-year psychology major, a cocky ice hockey star with a grin that disarms and a fanbase full of puck bunnies. While everyone sees him coasting, Cole's under constant pressure-trying to go pro, balancing school, and keeping up a charming front to hide just how much he's cracking underneath.
When Cole starts slipping in class, he's assigned a tutor: Eva. Neither is thrilled. She thinks he's a loud, lazy distraction. He calls her "Teach" just to get under her skin-she responds by calling him "Skates," with just the right amount of disdain. What begins as bickering soon turns into banter... then something softer. The nicknames stick, becoming a quiet thread that ties them together as friends-and maybe more.
Cole falls first. Hard. Eva, scared of being hurt and shaped by people who've left before, fights it. Still, she agrees to go to one of his games-just once. But seeing him on the ice, in his world, adored yet somehow still alone, shifts everything.
Then the bet surfaces. A stupid, careless thing made before he really knew her-and it threatens to destroy everything they've built. Surrounded by puck bunnies stirring drama, teammates with their own loyalties, and a past Eva isn't ready to share, the fragile trust between them begins to crack.
Between jealousy, late-night confessions, and moments where one look says everything, Eva and Cole must decide: is love worth risking it all-even if it started with a bet, a nickname, and everything going wrong?
