Between The Blue

by Nikki Witt

Him:

They say history is bound to repeat itself. I’ve worked so hard to prevent that. To leave the past in the past. I decided a long time ago that’s the way it has to be.

I’m here to play my game. To stay focused. To keep my heart and mind locked away in the same box I’ve had them in for the last decade. To lead my team like any decent NHL captain should.

But here she is, threatening all of it.

Do you ever wonder what’s the worst thing that’s ever happened to you? Good for you. I don’t need to wonder.

Because every time, automatically, unequivocally, my answer is the same. It’s her.

Her:

I’m not sure I’ve ever had an enemy in my life, yet somehow I managed to make one within the first hour of being in a new city.

I can’t tear my eyes away from his searing amber gaze. The one that stays locked on mine and pairs all too well with the loathing grimace covering the rest of his face. The one that seems to telepathically communicate to me: I told you not to come here.

I can’t back down. I won’t. This opportunity means too much to me. Everything I’ve ever worked for is just within my grasp. I’m going to work for the Texas Storm hockey team. But there’s just one thing standing in my way.

The captain of the team. I can’t believe it.

It’s him.

Genres: Romance, Sports Romance, Hockey, Sports, Enemies To Lovers, Hockey Romance, Slow Burn

Kindle Edition

Published January 10, 2024

Reviews

[dee☁️]

DNF at 60%

Idk if this hero was supposed to be “grumpy” he wasn’t, he was just as asshole . The heroine pissed me off too the hero kept ignoring her and saying he doesn’t want anything thing to do with her:
“The only thing bothering me, Cherry, is you,” he grits. “Do you not get that yet? I’m not sure how I can make it more clear.”

And he said things like this A LOT, but she just insisted on talking to him😭 it was embarrassing .

And I kept asking myself why are they attracted to each other , I just didn’t get their chemistry . Maybe it’s just me but this was confusing😭?

The writing felt weird and choppy to me.

The reason i picked this because I wanted an angsty romance but this didn’t work for me .

[Carine Oliveira · Rating 1 out of 5]

I really hate when the couple has issues who needs to be discussed but the author only get them to talk when the book is about to end. Nope. This book is not good. At some point I really thought she was the girl from the past. This is such bullshit that they only look alike. I hate it.

[Cheyenne · Rating 5 out of 5]

4.5 stars 🌟 wowww so angsty and the greatest of slow burns - love a growly and protective hero

[Lauren · Rating 5 out of 5]

I just finished reading Nikki Witt's new book "Between The Blue" and I really enjoyed it!

I read her other two books "When Fate Breaks" and "Something Rad" which were very different stories from this one. It is always refreshing to read three different books from an author and they all feel different and each have their own unique tone of voice.

First thing first, I don't know anything about hockey whatsoever (hockey is a big part of this book) but Nikki did a good job with her descriptions and got me right up to speed to have the same knowledge as her main female character Addison (Addie) does.

At first when I was reading I freaking kept wanting to throw my Kindle across my room in frustration with how the main male character Bennett (Ben/James) was acting and I kept thinking to myself how risky it can be to write a broody character like this and make him redeemable in the end but I am happy to report that I think Nikki successfully did so. I really did feel sorry for him and could understand his pain.

A few things I want to note are below:

1.) I enjoyed the way that this book was organized. Sometimes when authors do dual timelines and mix in dual POVs within it it can become clunky and take you out of the current scene you are in. However, I think that Nikki did a great job with this. I think that the important moments in the present day from Addison's POV mixed with the past with Bennett's POV were very well done. His chapters were short but just long enough to keep you wanting more and eager for his part of the story to come back into view.

2.) I also enjoyed how certain phrases or words would connect the past and present timelines together where one chapter ends and another begins. It was a nice touch and ties in certain themes of this story.

3.) Now maybe I am reading into things too much since I have been watching Nikki's book reviews on YouTube and know which books she seems to love the most, but I can't help but think there were some subtle easter eggs in this book that inspired Addie's nickname that Bennett gives her, to the last name of Addie's boss (the marketing manager), to the anguish and dual timelines and POV. I think if that is purposeful, I think that's awesome that Nikki did that. It's fun to pick up on some of those subtle references that inspired her and her writing as well as play some homage to some pretty awesome books that are well liked within the world of romance lovers. It was the cherry on top of this book (if you know, you know 🍒😉).

If you like a conflicting story of life, love and loss that makes you think about what is important to you in your life and not to waste one more moment then check it out when it releases on January 10th, 2024. You will be glad you did.

I received an ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review.

[Yari Reads · Rating 1 out of 5]

I had received this as an ARC for an honest review. This book was just not it for me, I tried so hard to finish this, but it just felt like it wasn't it for me. I love a dual POV, but this one was Addie in the present time and Ben's POV was from 11 years ago...with another girl. I don't know it didn't make sense to me. Plus I've read reviews that they don't really resolve their issues until the last 10%. I'm all for a slow burn, but I feel like this is the sloooowest of slow burns.

[Kristina · Rating 4 out of 5]

I have such mixed feelings about this one!!! I loved it but also feel super conflicted at the same time. I LOVED the writing and felt pleasantly happy and surprised with how much I enjoyed it because I only had just heard of the book and author the other day! I loved the dual timeline and the fact that this story kept me genuinely intrigued and invested the entire time. I couldn’t put it down. At the same time I’m like ??? Like the unhinged part in me has very specific feelings but also love how it all happened? But also I’m like ??? 😂😭🫠

I love frustrating characters and Ben definitely was FRUSTRATING. I loved him, wanted him, but also wouldn’t have minded him getting kicked in the balls a few times?? The roller coaster of emotions that man put me through?? Sir, pls stop hurting me. But also let’s kiss??

I loved Addie’s character, I LOVED HER NICKNAME. Seriously, what the hell, so CUTE. 😭

Overall I really enjoyed this book and I’m okay feeling conflicted at the same time. I loved getting to read a new to me author and I’m highly looking forward to a *hopefully* (say yes) Sutty x Caroline book. 💖

[Emily Olson · Rating 2 out of 5]

I liked the premise of this book and I liked the writing, but I have never hoped more for a romance book to have an unhappy ending. The male main character is a walking red flag and the female main character is apparently really too dumb to see that. I think he’s supposed to be dark and broody but he’s just an ass over something that happened 10 years ago. Move on man. Or go to therapy or something. Had to make myself finish this one bc the characters bugged me so bad.

[Marcie · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book kind of registered on my “meh” scale. While I thought the plot was good, the execution could have been better. The two main characters didn’t interact much besides hateful or irritating encounters so them having sexual tension and leading to being in love felt forced to me. We didn’t see much talking or getting to know each other, other than snippy and mean exchanges. Once the spice started, it was so back and forth with Bennett. Make up your mind. The past and present format worked well but a lot of Bennett’s past relationship that left him hurt and jaded could have been explained in a much faster way. It felt a bit like a separate storyline. Also, dude was offered an extension on his nhl contract only ultimately to make a very weird decision about it at the end.

[Kelsey Sullivan · Rating 3 out of 5]

**3.5

AH so good !!!! I read it in one sitting lol it is 3:30 am as i write this …

Potential spoiler warning….

I wish we got to see addie and ben being happy and together more than just the lil bit at the end

[Shelby · Rating 5 out of 5]

Loved the plot and writing structure! You don’t need to know anything about hockey to enjoy the book, and if you love hockey, it’s an added bonus!

A great, quick read for 2024!

[Laureninpink · Rating 5 out of 5]

perfect reread! Bennett James the man that you are🍒

[Taylor · Rating 5 out of 5]

“And, as much as I tried to hide from her, she saw right through me. She saw it all. The worst of it. But she still fought for me.” 🩵

Addie just moved to Austin to pursue her dream as a photographer starting with an internship at her dream company. In the days leading up to it, she starts at a new gym and meets Bennett James - a cold, grumpy man who wants nothing to do with her. He hates her from the moment he sees her and she’s got no clue why. When she finds out the internship falls through and she has no other choice but to intern for the Texas Storm hockey team as their team photographer, she’s already stressed enough before finding out Ben is the captain.

This was the perfect book to finish out my 2023 reading. It caught me so off guard and I did not want to put it down! The writing flowed so well which made it such a quick & easy read (for being quite a long book!) 🫶🏻

This is told in past & present timelines with dual POV and we kind of have two love stories going at the same time, which was such an interesting dynamic. It honestly gave me a bit of whiplash (in a good way lol) and my emotions were ALL over the place.

Bennett actually pissed me off a lot in the present chapters cause he was riding the line between being grumpy and being a straight up asshole hard 😂 once we learned more about him, it all started to make more sense. Addie is a ray of sunshine and she made me giggle on more than one occasion. I loved the way she stood up for herself and refused to let Ben walk all over her when she could’ve easily let it happen like that.

Them together was absolutely electric, the hate to love was chefs kiss 😚👌🏼 the tension build up and slow burn after going back & forth from past to present was just what this book needed! I cannot wait to see more from this series (especially Sutty 🤭)

Microtropes & moments I loved:
Nightmares
Their “meet cute” and her nickname 🍒
All of the gym face offs
The photo backdrops ❄️💗💋
Bar nights & the lip sync song
The hotel room 👀
The night after the gala 🤭

Tropes:
Hate to love
Pro hockey
Team captain x team photographer
Workplace
One bed
Forced proximity
Dual timelines

[Wren · Rating 4 out of 5]

ARC Review
Between the Blue by @nikkis.book.nook
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Releases January 10

If you are looking for a book that takes you on a rollercoaster of emotions here is your next read!

Addie moves to Texas for the internship of her dreams. Everything is going perfectly, until at the gym she bumps into the hottest man she’s ever seen. There’s no meet cute though, because for some unknown reason, this man, Ben, absolutely despises her. She tries to just kill him with kindness but he is not interested. Addie refuses to let Ben disrupt her from focusing on her dreams, but when her internship falls through, she’s forced to intern instead with the Texas Storm, a professional hockey team. And it just so happens her new best friend (can you sense the sarcasm) is the Storms captain. He tells her to not take the job, that she isn’t cut out for it, but Addie refuses to let him win. She’ll take the internship, and prove to him that she is cut out for it. Now if only she can stop being distracted by how attractive he is…..

Nikki has such a hauntingly beautiful way of writing. She writes stories that truly stick in your head long term.

Between the Blue follows dual timelines and honestly follows two separate love stories. The back and forth kept me on the edge of my seat and gave me so much emotional whiplash, but I was there for it!

The hate to love is STRONG in the book. I almost feel like it has a hint of bully romance in it. Ben James is haunted by Addie, and he would do anything to try to avoid her at all costs, but fate has a funny way of working against him. Honestly I struggled to like Ben in any of the present chapters till late in the book, but as you read his past chapters you can’t help but break your heart piece by piece for him. I will also say the grovel in this book is one of my favorites ever!!!

Addie is a strong FMC that isn’t scared to say what’s on her mind and what she feels. She isn’t scared to stand up to Ben no matter how mean or hateful he is, and honestly, Ben ends up loving her so much more for that.

If you like books that makes you experience every single emotion, sometimes all within the same chapter, add Between the Blue to your TBR!!!

[Morgan Paige · Rating 5 out of 5]

Happy ‘Between The Blue’ day to my favorite girl!! @nikkis.book.nook

It’s finally out! ❄️💙🏒

What to expect:
❄️Enemies to Lovers
❄️Forced Proximity
❄️Workplace Romance
❄️Open Door Spice
❄️HOCKEY
❄️Slow Burn
❄️Dual POV

If you know Nikki, you know that she loves hockey. She put her heart and soul into this book! I immediately fell in love with Bennett when I started reading. I was also so curious about his past; Nikki did an amazing job at keeping me guessing! I love how he was a hard shell to crack, but deep down, he has the sweetest heart. Also, CHERRY. IYKYK.

I love Addie. She made me laugh so much. I love how strong she is. She knows what she wants, and no one is going to stop her. And her cherry panties. 🤭🍒 She is absolutely perfect for Ben.

Let’s also talk about the side characters, I LOVED THEM! Caroline and Rhett have my heart.

Nikki does a great job at writing a hockey story, even for readers who may not understand hockey. Her explanation and detail makes the story flow so nicely.

I seriously could not put this book down. It was phenomenal and deserves all the praise. The build up + enemies to lovers was SO good. Crossing my fingers for another book! 🫢

I’m so proud of you, Nikki! You deserve it all! 💙

[Megan Penn · Rating 5 out of 5]

“So in conclusion, humans can survive without the sun. But they won’t really live”

I mean WOW.

I was so lucky to be chosen by Nikki to receive an ARC of Between The Blue. I have been following her journey as an author since the beginning and was so excited when she announced this novel. Being a hockey girl myself, I couldn’t wait to see what she had in store for Ben and Addie.

This book gave me ALL of the feels. I laughed, I cried way more than I expected to, I grinned any time there was a Taylor Swift reference (fellow swiftie here as well) and when I saw Noah Kahan on the book playlist, I got butterflies, I was kicking my feet and squealing. I could go on and on and on about how this book made me feel.

The dialogue was incredible, Bennett is up there with some of my favorite MMCs (Archer Hale, Rhys from ACOTAR, Xaden Riorson, Tobias Rhodes, Dr. Adam Carlsen, to name a few). The side characters have so much depth to them and really contributed to the story(Nikki if you’re reading this I am expecting a Sutty book soon😬). THE SPICE…….. IMMACULATE. (I was literally fanning myself with my kindle so many times). Addie, the main character, is fierce, knows what she wants, an over thinker (beyond relatable), confident, a Boss Bitch, and pretty much everything else that comes in a standout FMC.

The ending is what solidified the 5 star rating for me. I can’t really explain why without spoiling it, but as a working woman with passion for being such, I was very satisfied with Addie’s character arc.


I quite literally could go on and on. When I hit 100% on my kindle with this book, there was no question what my rating would be. ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️.

[amna (taylor’s version) · Rating 4 out of 5]

this book is so daylight coded. if you’re a major lover of daylight by taylor swift and a fan of hockey romances like i am, you’ll very much enjoy this one.

bennett made me wanna rip my eyes out many, many times, but once you get his full story and feelings and he owns up to his shit, it makes it all worth it. it really helped getting his past slowly sprinkled in throughout the story. loved that format. and absolutely loved the nickname cherry 🤭

i loved the romance in this so much. the spicy scenes were done so well and the tension and banter was 🤌🏽 i like a good buildup but not too much of a slow burn and this was the perfect balance of that for me!! sometimes i did feel like addie gave him too many chances but that’s just the empathetic lover girl in her and i fear i’d be quite similar in her position. and i LOVED how they ended up finding their way back together. it felt so raw and real and like there was actual development on ben’s end <3

sutty and caroline’s book next please!!

[Joscelyn Hynes · Rating 4 out of 5]

Received this as an ARC read, but is my second book from Nikki. Would definitely recommend her books and this one!

The concept of this book was so compelling that I couldn’t wait to read it. Addie is the team photographer and Bennett is the captain of the hockey team she ends up working for, like come on. I loved the drama that was caused by this. It was a complete push and pull between the two of them, mostly caused by Bennett’s side, but I was eating it up the whole time. Huge enemies to lovers like he lowkey was so mean to her at points at no fault of Addie which pissed me off but you could tell there was something else at play. I really didn’t start to semi-like his character in general but also for Addie towards the end of the book when we start to get some answers. It took me a little to get into the book with it being dual POV Addie in the present POV and Bennett in the past following his love and relationship with another girl (which initially confused me). So that had taken me some time to get over. But I honestly don’t see anything that I would drastically change from the book. I really hope that this gets made into a series potentially following Sutty and the coach's daughter 👀🤞🏻.

[Patty Van Leijsen · Rating 3 out of 5]

Vermakelijk, maar beetje meh

[Stephanie Thurston · Rating 5 out of 5]

LOVED + obsessed with Ben + Addieeeee 🍒 we need a second book on the asap! With Rhett + Caroline.

[Lindsey Kramer · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book was absolutely worth reading! I would like to thank Cheyenne from That Tall Book Girl for recommending it!
Tropes-
Enemies to Lovers
Slow-burn romance

[Christiana Bowles · Rating 5 out of 5]

It hurt so good! The slow burn, almost enemies to lovers energy was so good! Every romance book lover needs to read this!!!

[mads · Rating 5 out of 5]

I just read this in one sitting. Holy crap Nikki what did you put in this? I loved it so much. So many quotes and the chemistry was amazing. This officially comes out on 1/10/24! 5 million stars ⭐️⭐️⭐️

[Micah Bridges · Rating 5 out of 5]

I truly could not put this book down! It had the best slow burn ever. Probably my new fav book by Nikki!

2025- loved it then & love it now! Still hits me right in the heart. Such a deep book unlike any other hockey romance I’ve read

[Erva Cagala · Rating 1 out of 5]

It was good but had potential to be great. It felt like another Hockey romance that has been over done

[Vero B. · Rating 4 out of 5]

Thank you Nikki for the ARC of this book. All opinions are my own.

⭐⭐⭐⭐ / 🌶️

Basic data:
- Contemporary hockey romance
- 1st person, double POV, double timeline
- Standalone (at the time of the review) and I think it might be a part of a series of standalone books.

Tropes/hooks:
- Workplace romance (hockey player/team photographer)
- Hate to love
- Forced proximity
- MMC with a traumatic past
- No strings attached
- Ugly Love (by Coleen Hoover) vibes

Trigger warning:
- Terminal illness
- Death of a loved one

My opinion:
- The winning was easy to follow and understand. The book can be read fast even though it's about 450 pages long. I can also recommend this book to those non-native English speakers who want to start reading in English.
- It's always fun when the book's title has a meaning that is explained in the book. This book is an example of it. There is also a cool playlist in the beginning.
- While reading I did feel hooked up and intrigued to know what happened in the past to get to the present we are presented with.
- I loved Addie (FMC) as a character. I myself am passionate about photography and I related to her a lot. She is also very sunshiney, which makes her not give up on Ben and just not give a shit about his bad attitude.
- My feelings towards Ben (MMC) almost throughout the entire book were a mixture of hate and love. He does start hating FMC out of nowhere, at least that is the feeling we get because we only see her POV in the present. We do have his POV in the past which made me instantly think that something traumatic happened to him in the past. When you reach the end and all the pieces click together you might forgive him for his behavior (or not, depending on the reader). I'm still not sure how I personally feel about that.
- The constant banter, tension, and back and forward between Addie and Ben was fun to follow.
- I would have loved to see a little bit more of Addie and Ben being together. They get together only on the last pages of the book, and we see them together only in the epilogue.
- There were some hard-to-believe moments and very convenient moments regarding Addie's internship, but I just overlooked them.

All in all, I would recommend this book.

[Robyn · Rating 5 out of 5]

I lucky to received this as an ARC review.

⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
🌶️

I try to wipe out my tears writing this. Yes, nothing more awesome than find a book that make you feel a lot of emotions, that's of course a 5 star and one of my favourites. Literally I read it while I'm working because I want to know what happened to them.

As soon I know about Nikki writing a new novel a sport romance one, make me more into it the way she describe the novel and the MMC makes me intrigue me more, also I want to go in sport romances and of course know Nikki as an author, being on my challenge that year to read new author and she's one of my newest ones and priority since I follow her Youtube channel. The playlist on the book makes a you a little spoil of what you can expect and grab a tissue box.

The story follows Bennet James and Addison Dixon, and how the first meet not goes really well but destiny wants them together in all the ways. Addie follow her dream to be a fashion photographer, moving to Austin after she get call from her dream company, all good right? Well, sometimes the path has thorns on it some for make you grow up and other has names as our brown eyes iced man. They have a really funny first meet, following by them working together making the tension grow between them and in some point explode and get fireworks. Addie ends being related to the sport games, but she grab that opportunity meeting her achinemesis.

Now I can say why Nikki say Bennet is a really complex character, the way his POV is write is magnificent, because we can see three version of him, the last one when you arrive at the end of the book. Yes, the ways I want to scream, punch him and then huge him. He's a storm so cloudy you can see his real person because the way he put all the clouds and thunders to scare people, and then you find Addie, our cherry and sunshine girl that make that clouds away. I love Addie, the way her arc is building, also I learn with her about hockey too maybe because I related to her both love fashion and we end up doing works out of our comfort zone that make us learn other things about ourself, live and people. Her tattoos, love it not also for being a Swiftie, HER song because is Addie totally.

Great read, so quick even you see 400 pages, you devour it! The writing structure is awesome, so deep and different and those characters live on my mind.

[itsthetulipsisee · Rating 5 out of 5]

I didn’t expect much from a hockey romance, they are all very predictable and light and don’t have much to anticipate but this one blew it out of the park for me.

So let’s get the annoying part out of the way first:

Addison pissed me all the the way off until about 80% of the book because I just saw doormat behaviour from her. Ben kept telling her off and yet, she kept falling for him. Kept showing up for him and kept nudging to talk to him. NO GIRL.

Then there was the part that kept bothering me about Julia, no offence to her but wtf Bennett!? But then again, I guess love does that to a person.

Now the part I LOVED:

Rhett has my whole entire heart. The best supporting character I’ve ever read in a sports romance no less.

The angst that followed their story was unbelievably raw and it triggered me at every point. EVERY! EFFIN! POINT!
It is too genuine not to pull at one’s heart.

I absolutely loved how they came to be finally at the very end, not dramatic, not extravagant but real and heartburn worthy.

Maybe it was my own personal trauma but it just made the read and several small breakdowns so worthy that I couldn’t even complain.

In short; this book is a rollercoaster ride that starts off at a painstakingly slow pace, has turbulence that makes even the decent ones curse and keeps one wondering if it’s going to get more adventitious and enjoyable but it just doesn’t come, up until it reaches the final drop, the rigorous depth imbedded drop that renders one silent and hooked. It gives one butterflies that are background noise in the face of intensity of the drop. And then the ride ends and you’re all the more glad for it to have been over but it’s also the ride you know you’ll never forget.

"Love is a cruel pain that devours everything. Sometimes it tears the veil from the soul, sometimes it draws it together”

[Susan · Rating 2 out of 5]

I’m so annoyed with this book. The MMC was such a douche that I’m seriously wondering what exactly the FMC was in love with. Was it the whiplash that got her off? The constant yelling? All the meanness? And then for this issue to be such a big thing for months apparently and then for the couple to talk about it in all of 2 sentences 😂

Also they put so much mystery around the first chic that I kept thinking Addie was her somehow, I thought it would turn into an amnesia story somehow even with her having a whole background of the grandmother and then the mom who died when she was 4😂 all this to say how it was handled was sorely disappointing.

Additionally, their actual relationship didn’t even get any page time, they just skip a month and a half into it from the first sex scene I think and then we are back to the fighting and meanness so we really don’t get a chance to even root for them. I saw someone saying they’ve never rooted for a non-happy ending and I guess the same thing applies to me coz these two needed to go their separate ways. She needs to work on her self esteem that she kept trying with someone who made it clear several times that he didn’t want to deal with her. I get taking the internship coz of no choice but she really could have switched up the gym times more than just the activity of the day. He needed severe therapy for at least a year before getting in a relationship. Coz what was going on when he’d tell her to leave him alone and then switch up his routine to match hers. Make it make sense.

At some point I was sure the MMC and the first love interest were bipolar. They certainly came off that way with their hot and cold behaviour!

[Thalia | NightlyReadandTea · Rating 4 out of 5]

Overall, this story was a wonderful blend of fun, heartbreak, and genuine emotion that resonated deeply with me as a reader. From the serendipitous meeting between Bennett and Addie to the intricacies of their interactions, I found myself totally engrossed. The palpable push and pull between them was masterfully executed, adding layers of intrigue and depth to their dynamic. I was rooting for each character individually as well as for them as a couple, just wanting a happy ending that felt impossible to achieve (but don't worry, it happens).

One aspect I particularly love in storytelling is when I predict a twist yet I end up stunned when it unfolds, like here which evoked tears and intense emotions that I was truly not expecting to occur. This signifies the compelling depth of character and narrative that struck a chord with me. Bennett's brooding nature might incite frustration in readers, given his oscillating demeanor, but enduring through it all is unquestionably rewarding. Addie, on the other hand, exuded charm and patience, managing not just Ben but also the enigmatic Storm hockey players with remarkable grace.

However, my biggest issue is that these characters don't figure anything out until the final pages of the book. This beautiful story is woven, and emotions are wrung out, only to be left while a hole craving more. Sure, it was satisfying in the sense it was happy but it wasn't fulfilling. Additionally, the penultimate line before the epilogue irked me so much that, sans the epilogue, I 100% would have rioted.

[Colleen T · Rating 5 out of 5]

Thank you to Nikki Witt for the ARC of this book!

Addison Dixon moves to Austin to attend grad school at AIT for photography. She dreams of working for Collins Bohemian (COBO), a fashion magazine she has adored since childhood. She thinks she'll be fulfilling her internship requirement for AIT with a dream opportunity with COBO, but unfortunately, this falls through. Her advisor somehow can get her in with the local NHL team, the Texas Storm.

The Texas Storm is also where the bane of her existence is the captain of the team. Addison and Bennett James got off on the wrong foot at the gym within days of her moving to the city and have seemed to rub each other the wrong way since then. He doesn't want her working for the team, but she wants to prove him wrong. She won't let him ruin her future and a potential connection to COBO.

This book was a great way to finish out the year 2023. Needless to say, this book was a pleasant surprise for me. I liked how Nikki added both of the main characters' perspectives to provide more context both with their emotions and to the whole of the story. It's clear that Bennett is someone who is hurting (remember that hurt people hurt people), but the reason why he was hurting for so long was a gut punch for me as a reader (I'm not going to spoil it because that's just rude, but just...wow).

I do have to say that Nikki Witt has matured as a writer since her first book "When Fate Breaks", and this book is a great example of that. I'm going to have to pick up "Something Rad" and I hope to see more from her in the future!