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Hartford Nautilus #1
Put a Rink on It
Not yet published
Expected 9 Oct 26"My wife's name is Marina."
That's what I accidentally tell my new hockey teammates.
Do I have a wife? No.
A fiancée? Also no.
A girlfriend? Not even close.
But I do have a best friend named Marina Keeley.
We've been friends since college, she loves hockey almost as much as I do, and signing with the Hartford Nautilus puts me closer to her than I’ve ever been.
Asking her to play my fake wife seems crazy. Hearing her say yes is even crazier.
The catch? Marina draws the line at fake marriage.
Fake engagement, though? Apparently that's fair game.
As I settle in with my new team and adjust to engaged life, everything with Marina feels effortless. The way it always has.
Until it doesn't.
Because somewhere between playing house, sharing a bed, and pretending to be in love, I realize there's nothing fake about the way I feel.
Then Marina admits she's done putting her life on hold. She wants a real marriage. A family. A future.
And suddenly our fake engagement comes with an expiration date.
If I can't give Marina the forever she deserves, I'll lose my best friend.
If I tell her how I really feel, I might lose her anyway.
That's what I accidentally tell my new hockey teammates.
Do I have a wife? No.
A fiancée? Also no.
A girlfriend? Not even close.
But I do have a best friend named Marina Keeley.
We've been friends since college, she loves hockey almost as much as I do, and signing with the Hartford Nautilus puts me closer to her than I’ve ever been.
Asking her to play my fake wife seems crazy. Hearing her say yes is even crazier.
The catch? Marina draws the line at fake marriage.
Fake engagement, though? Apparently that's fair game.
As I settle in with my new team and adjust to engaged life, everything with Marina feels effortless. The way it always has.
Until it doesn't.
Because somewhere between playing house, sharing a bed, and pretending to be in love, I realize there's nothing fake about the way I feel.
Then Marina admits she's done putting her life on hold. She wants a real marriage. A family. A future.
And suddenly our fake engagement comes with an expiration date.
If I can't give Marina the forever she deserves, I'll lose my best friend.
If I tell her how I really feel, I might lose her anyway.
318 pages, Kindle Edition
Expected publication October 9, 2026
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Displaying 1 - 3 of 3 reviews
Review of advance copy received from Author
Put a Rink on It is the perfect beginning to the spinoff series from Aspenridge College. The author weaves a wonderful tale bringing in some of the characters I loved to most from the original series into Put a Rink on It. I do love the Keely family and all of the laughs they bring.
Marina Keely have been BFFs with Nero Champion since their first semester at university. For years she kept her BFF professional hockey friend a secret from her hockey obsessed family. For years she kept him separate as much as possible from her hockey obsessed family. One slip of the tongue will change every thing.
Nero is out with his new teammates, getting to know them. After a little over eight years with the Storm he has just started playing on the Hartford Nautilus expansion team. Was it peer pressure? Was it Nero's subconscious? A simple slip has him saying he is married to Marina. He can't back out now.
Put a Rink on It is one crazy decision after another. A late night drive from Hartford to Havenwood speaks of desperation as Nero pounds on Marina's door. I have to say Marina is the best BFF Nero could ever have. She is all in for the fake relationship to help her best friend. Get ready to laugh out loud as he writes list after list. Swoon over Nero's romantic moves. Nero really needs to share his lists. Plans frequently go awry. One simple little lie gets more and more complicated. It is the biggest lie of all that will change everything.
Marina Keely have been BFFs with Nero Champion since their first semester at university. For years she kept her BFF professional hockey friend a secret from her hockey obsessed family. For years she kept him separate as much as possible from her hockey obsessed family. One slip of the tongue will change every thing.
Nero is out with his new teammates, getting to know them. After a little over eight years with the Storm he has just started playing on the Hartford Nautilus expansion team. Was it peer pressure? Was it Nero's subconscious? A simple slip has him saying he is married to Marina. He can't back out now.
Put a Rink on It is one crazy decision after another. A late night drive from Hartford to Havenwood speaks of desperation as Nero pounds on Marina's door. I have to say Marina is the best BFF Nero could ever have. She is all in for the fake relationship to help her best friend. Get ready to laugh out loud as he writes list after list. Swoon over Nero's romantic moves. Nero really needs to share his lists. Plans frequently go awry. One simple little lie gets more and more complicated. It is the biggest lie of all that will change everything.
Review of advance copy
This is slow burn, professional hockey player, friends to lovers romance but different from previous friends to lovers I have read. It’s an interesting beginning for them. Nero befriends Marina one day in their first semester of college and that starts this beautiful friendship. They shift to FWB but she is only there till the end of the semester so it’s short lived. Their friendship prevailed though and even a decade later they are friends and each others safe space. What they don’t see is the love they have for each other is more than friendship until he gets himself in a pickle and needs her help.
Nero is the kind of guy you want your son to grow up to be like. He is kind and not arrogant even though he is super successful in hockey. The nickname he has for Marina is the cutest!
Marina is an interesting and very likeable FMC. I loved how she never wants anything from Nero except friendship and maybe a hoodie? lol.
The characters go through such changes in their relationship but it feels natural and the timing is not forced. I enjoyed how they both were blind to what everyone else saw and when they finally faced their feelings it was so beautiful.
If you are curious about Marina’s brother, you can get his story and more in Aspenridge College series.
Nero is the kind of guy you want your son to grow up to be like. He is kind and not arrogant even though he is super successful in hockey. The nickname he has for Marina is the cutest!
Marina is an interesting and very likeable FMC. I loved how she never wants anything from Nero except friendship and maybe a hoodie? lol.
The characters go through such changes in their relationship but it feels natural and the timing is not forced. I enjoyed how they both were blind to what everyone else saw and when they finally faced their feelings it was so beautiful.
If you are curious about Marina’s brother, you can get his story and more in Aspenridge College series.
Review of advance copy received from Author
Nero and Marina have been best friends since college, but after Nero switches hockey teams, they have to pretend to be engaged. But what happens when he no longer wants an end date?
I absolutely love the "friends-to-lovers" trope involving a fake engagement set against a hockey backdrop I couldn't help but fall head over heels for this amazing romance.
I absolutely love the "friends-to-lovers" trope involving a fake engagement set against a hockey backdrop I couldn't help but fall head over heels for this amazing romance.
Displaying 1 - 3 of 3 reviews