A hockey team captain and a bubbly staffer mix business with pleasure when they start fake dating through the wedding season in this hot sports romance perfect for fans of Mariana Zapata and Elle Kennedy.
Darcy Kendrick is used to putting out fires. As an overworked admin to a hockey team, she’s seen it all. But nothing prepares her for accidentally DMing her very private, very NSFW fantasy to the subject of this fantasy: team captain Eric Tremaine. Nobody actually dies of embarrassment. Right?
But when a wedding invite puts them on a collision course with her chaotic family and his emotionally fraught past, Eric suggests a plan: they fake-date their way through the “Wedding Experience.” It’s mutually beneficial. Totally strategic. And definitely not real. Except between mini tacos, slow dances and lingering glances, Eric starts to wonder if the sharp-tongued assistant with a bottomless to-do list might be the one person who truly sees him. And for Darcy? The fire in her heart might be the only one she can’t put out.
It’s supposed to be fake. It’s supposed to be temporary. So why is it so hard to walk away?
Review
Damn, Sarina has done it again. I accidentally devoured this book in a day because I just could not put it down—absolute romantic comedy gold. I’m actually obsessed.
Darcy and Eric are just so cute together… but hang on, I’m getting ahead of myself. Darcy is the office admin for the hockey team that Eric captains. She’s basically running the show and is a master organiser. She’s been harbouring a secret crush on Eric for some time (if you’ve read Thrown for a Loop, you’ll have already seen a glimpse of this), but then she accidentally DMs him a spicy message and that crush is suddenly not so secret anymore 👀
And just when things couldn’t get more awkward… they’re both invited to the same wedding over the summer.
The vibes and banter in this book are peak. I loved how these two fell for each other—slowly, and then all at once. The spice and chemistry are definitely there too. Add in a wedding setting with all the complicated family dynamics, and yeah… it’s easy to see why I couldn’t stop reading.
Overall, this was such a fun read. I’d highly recommend it, and I can definitely see myself re-reading because I had such a good time with it.
My Rating: 5/5 🌟🌟🌟🌟🌟
About the Author
Sarina Bowen is a #1 Amazon bestselling author, and a 24-time USA Today bestseller. Her books have appeared on “best of” lists from The New York Public Library, Barnes & Noble, Audible, Elle Magazine, Goodreads and Lit Hub.
Formerly a derivatives trader on Wall Street, Sarina graduated magna cum laude from Yale University with a BA in economics.
A New Englander whose Vermont ancestors cut timber and farmed the north country in the 1760s, Sarina is grateful for the invention of indoor plumbing and wi-fi during the intervening 250 years. She lives with her family on a few wooded acres in New Hampshire.
Sarina’s books are published in 20 languages with more than two dozen publishers.
She is a sitting council member on the Authors Guild, where she chairs the advocacy committee, and she is a member of Authors Against Book Bans.
*I received an ARC of this book from Publisher/Author in exchange for an honest, voluntary review
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