This is a story about a hockey team, but above all, a story about boys.
Brooks Myers is the captain of the Oakridge Otters and he's willing to do whatever it takes to hear his name called at the NHL draft next summer.
Elias Somerset is a freshly crowned World Junior champion, forced to move back to the small town of Aspen to play for his father's old team. In Brooks' eyes, Elias is nothing but an obstacle in his way and Elias just wants to survive the year, and forget.
Both boys live and breathe hockey. Both boys are lost in their own lives, but have to work together to win a Championship. Can they learn to play together despite their differences? Is there something in life worth more than hockey? In the end, the line between obsession, desire, and love is thinner than either of them dares to admit.
"When I push it into your mouth... just swallow."
His lips part slightly, breath uneven.
I lean in, close enough to count the flecks in his eyes. Our knees brush slightly. He pulls back a second too late.
I take a slow drag, hold it, then exhale steady between us.
The smoke slips past his lips, and in that second, I can't help it.
I press my mouth to his.
***
Blake Callahan ruined me without even trying.
Now I'm going to ruin him too-one threat, one kiss, one perfectly timed prank at a time.
He has everything-money, looks, and a last name that opens doors. The golden boy of Seattle: captain of the soccer team, top of the class, with a future already written in Ivy League gold.
Me? I'm Ryder Quinn. Dyed hair, piercings, fists bruised from too many fights, and a life with no safety net. Reckless. Broke. No future.
We come from opposite worlds-his built on privilege, mine on survival.
We're supposed to hate each other.
And for a while, we do.
But hate turns into tension.
Tension turns into something neither of us can control.
Because loving him was never part of the plan.
Destroying him was.
Trigger warning ⚠️
-Mature language
-Sexual scenes
-Violence
-Drug use