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The Plus One Problem: A Fake Dating BWWM Hockey Romance
My ex just got engaged to an influencer with 200k followers.
The same ex who spent three years making me feel like the boring placeholder girlfriend. The same ex who's now attending the holiday party I can't skip, with his shiny new fiancée and her even shinier ring.
I need a date. A good one. A "make him regret everything" one.
Enter Chase Dalton.
Grumpy. Massive. Allergic to small talk. Oh, and apparently a professional hockey player—which would have been nice to know before I agreed to this whole fake dating situation.
The rules were public appearances only, coordinated story, clean end date.
Then someone took a photo.
Now the internet thinks we're in love, my family's planning our wedding, and Chase is looking at me like maybe the rules don't matter anymore.
The problem with fake dating a man who doesn't know how to do anything halfway?
Eventually, one of you forgets to pretend.
Heat 🌶️
✓ Fake Dating / Fake Relationship
✓ Grumpy x Sunshine
✓ He Falls First
✓ Forced Proximity
✓ HEA
The same ex who spent three years making me feel like the boring placeholder girlfriend. The same ex who's now attending the holiday party I can't skip, with his shiny new fiancée and her even shinier ring.
I need a date. A good one. A "make him regret everything" one.
Enter Chase Dalton.
Grumpy. Massive. Allergic to small talk. Oh, and apparently a professional hockey player—which would have been nice to know before I agreed to this whole fake dating situation.
The rules were public appearances only, coordinated story, clean end date.
Then someone took a photo.
Now the internet thinks we're in love, my family's planning our wedding, and Chase is looking at me like maybe the rules don't matter anymore.
The problem with fake dating a man who doesn't know how to do anything halfway?
Eventually, one of you forgets to pretend.
Heat 🌶️
✓ Fake Dating / Fake Relationship
✓ Grumpy x Sunshine
✓ He Falls First
✓ Forced Proximity
✓ HEA
209 pages, Kindle Edition
Published December 14, 2025
70 people are currently reading
26 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 16 of 16 reviews
January 16, 2026
*****Spoilers*****
This book was dissatisfying for me. The romance was really non-existent because the emotions between the main characters were really flat in that regard for me. The only reference to a Black woman is the photo on the cover. No descriptors or other indicators are in the book for her or even for him. I can say that the writing was really good and the characters were varied and believable.
Chase is a professional hockey player who owes an acquaintance, Jamie, a favor. Jamie is best friends with Kiera whose ex-boyfriend is engaged to an influencer one year after they broke up. So as not to seem pathetic when she attends a party where her ex and his new fiance will be, Kiera needs a fake date. Jamie sets things up between Chase and Kiera and they go from there. The party is in 3 weeks after they first meet which is when Kiera gives Chase the breakdown. At this time she's unaware that he plays professionally and refuses to try and look him up despite her sister's urging. For her part, Kiera is a museum curator and meet her ex in law school. I don't remember the book detailing why she didn't go on to work as an attorney like her ex did. In any case, Kiera is clueless about hockey and doesn't recognize Chase. He does tell her before the party but for some reason Kiera is still surprised when people flock to him as the party is winding down.
It's as Chase and Kiera are leaving the party and Kiera is waiting for Chase outside to grab her coat because they left so abruptly she forgot it, that a photographer takes a photo of them while Chase is helping Kiera put her coat on and publishes it. The issue? Chase is looking at Kiera in a way that casts doubt on just how fake he's taking their 3 week relationship. I'll just note a couple of things here. The book doesn't detail much of anything at all for the 3 weeks leading up to the party, just some texts and them meeting one other time to go get their stories straight so this is oddly placed in the story that suddenly Chase is gazing at Kiera lovingly. Secondly, it made no sense for Kiera to be standing outside alone and cold when it seems more chivalrous for Chase to have given Kiera his coat, or for Kiera to have at least stepped inside whether it be back into the apartment where the party was going on or into the car.
In any case, Chase and Kiera have a go at a genuine relationship to quell the gossip mags. It starts out just to let the fervor die down before they officially break up to something real. They have a time in the book where Chase pulls away, self-sabotage but end up with one another in the end.
This book was dissatisfying for me. The romance was really non-existent because the emotions between the main characters were really flat in that regard for me. The only reference to a Black woman is the photo on the cover. No descriptors or other indicators are in the book for her or even for him. I can say that the writing was really good and the characters were varied and believable.
Chase is a professional hockey player who owes an acquaintance, Jamie, a favor. Jamie is best friends with Kiera whose ex-boyfriend is engaged to an influencer one year after they broke up. So as not to seem pathetic when she attends a party where her ex and his new fiance will be, Kiera needs a fake date. Jamie sets things up between Chase and Kiera and they go from there. The party is in 3 weeks after they first meet which is when Kiera gives Chase the breakdown. At this time she's unaware that he plays professionally and refuses to try and look him up despite her sister's urging. For her part, Kiera is a museum curator and meet her ex in law school. I don't remember the book detailing why she didn't go on to work as an attorney like her ex did. In any case, Kiera is clueless about hockey and doesn't recognize Chase. He does tell her before the party but for some reason Kiera is still surprised when people flock to him as the party is winding down.
It's as Chase and Kiera are leaving the party and Kiera is waiting for Chase outside to grab her coat because they left so abruptly she forgot it, that a photographer takes a photo of them while Chase is helping Kiera put her coat on and publishes it. The issue? Chase is looking at Kiera in a way that casts doubt on just how fake he's taking their 3 week relationship. I'll just note a couple of things here. The book doesn't detail much of anything at all for the 3 weeks leading up to the party, just some texts and them meeting one other time to go get their stories straight so this is oddly placed in the story that suddenly Chase is gazing at Kiera lovingly. Secondly, it made no sense for Kiera to be standing outside alone and cold when it seems more chivalrous for Chase to have given Kiera his coat, or for Kiera to have at least stepped inside whether it be back into the apartment where the party was going on or into the car.
In any case, Chase and Kiera have a go at a genuine relationship to quell the gossip mags. It starts out just to let the fervor die down before they officially break up to something real. They have a time in the book where Chase pulls away, self-sabotage but end up with one another in the end.
Read
January 5, 2026I don't rate books that I don't finish because maybe it got better and I didn't read it. But this book was labeled as a bwwm book, unfortunately in the book we do not have any descriptors telling us what ethnicity these people are. In fact I think the heroin is Jewish which is not an inherently black thing. So that on top of the fact that I was bored I decided to give up.
January 7, 2026
Tropes: Opposites, Mental Health Representation, Sports, Fake Relationship
The Plus One Problem: A Fake Dating BWWM Hockey Romance by Porsha Kelly appears to be the first/only book by this author. I hope that we get other selections from this promising writer! The story is character driven and features two engaging people who normally would not fit together as a couple but do. Kiera is a quietly dedicated museum curator tasked with keeping the past alive for the present. One of the favorite components of her job is curating historical love letters written in times of adversity and distance. These letters resonate with her, partly because her love life is in shambles. Her former long-term boyfriend of three years has recently become engaged to a minor celebrity and she is obligated to attend a party where they will be in attendance. Alone. For all the world to see. Her best friend comes to the rescue and arranges for brooding, hulking no-last-name Chase to attend the party with her! Chase agrees to escort Kiera as payment to debt; what he didn’t expect was that he would enjoy her company so much OR that the media would blow their one date out of proportion. They decide to keep their pretense going a bit longer; what could possibly go wrong?
Conclusion:
Chase had issues with his self-concept and his tendency to self-sabotage. While Kiera had allowed her former partner to make her feel insignificant, she had a sense of her own worth and was extremely supportive of Chase’s struggles. Unfortunately, Chase allowed his baggage to almost destroy the relationship he was building with Kiera. I loved their families, Chase’s teammates, and Kiera’s friends; they were present and giving. Final word, great story and Kiera’s final quiet interaction with her former boyfriend was satisfying. And, if this story wasn’t cute enough, the author included a detailed epilog that looks down the road. Epilogs are fundamental!
Favorite Lines:
"Logan. Your Logan. Well, not your Logan anymore, but you know what I mean.
"Helping my best friend feel like a badass when she walks into a room with her ex? Yeah. That feels right."
"But he made me feel..." I trail off, not sure how much to share with this stranger. "Small. Like I was boring. Like he was settling for me until something better came along.
Instead, I hear myself say: "I'm going to a party."
"I mean, hi. Hello. Nice to meet you. I'm a big fan. Not in a weird way. In a normal way. A normal amount of fan."
But we didn't promise each other easy. We promised each other everything.
We're part of that now. Our story, woven into the fabric of all the stories that came before.
https://theretiredreader.com/f/the-pl...
January 6, 2026
2.5 Stars
Kiera finds out her ex-boyfriend is getting married a year after they broke up and she's feeling some type of way. After being invited to a mutual friend's christmas party, she decides she needs a fake date. Her best friend Jamie calls Chase—a man he helped out of a crisis and has a favor on the books, yet to be used, so Jamie graciously uses it for Kiera to save face. She meets Chase at a local diner to vet him and he turns out to be pretty stoic, but he essentially asks her the same question I was thinking—why does she care if her ex-boyfriend is engaged?
Kiera admits that something was missing from their relationship, yet she stayed for three years, it was her boyfriend that decided to break up with her. She didn't catch him in bed (refreshing) with someone else, he moved on, 14 months ago, so I never understood why she had to bring a date or even attend this particular christmas party, instead of saying who gives a f*ck!
I loved that Kiera worked at a museum and I liked that her work wasn't centered around art, per se. As for Kiera as a person, her character, she could have been any ethnicity, she was pretty bland, her sister Kayla on the other hand had a festive personality. Chase doesn't fare much better in the personality department either.
Overall, this story didn't come together for me and I found it to be too dry and extremely tame, with no spice in this story whatsoever, and I need spice in my stories.
Kiera finds out her ex-boyfriend is getting married a year after they broke up and she's feeling some type of way. After being invited to a mutual friend's christmas party, she decides she needs a fake date. Her best friend Jamie calls Chase—a man he helped out of a crisis and has a favor on the books, yet to be used, so Jamie graciously uses it for Kiera to save face. She meets Chase at a local diner to vet him and he turns out to be pretty stoic, but he essentially asks her the same question I was thinking—why does she care if her ex-boyfriend is engaged?
Kiera admits that something was missing from their relationship, yet she stayed for three years, it was her boyfriend that decided to break up with her. She didn't catch him in bed (refreshing) with someone else, he moved on, 14 months ago, so I never understood why she had to bring a date or even attend this particular christmas party, instead of saying who gives a f*ck!
I loved that Kiera worked at a museum and I liked that her work wasn't centered around art, per se. As for Kiera as a person, her character, she could have been any ethnicity, she was pretty bland, her sister Kayla on the other hand had a festive personality. Chase doesn't fare much better in the personality department either.
Overall, this story didn't come together for me and I found it to be too dry and extremely tame, with no spice in this story whatsoever, and I need spice in my stories.
January 2, 2026
2.5⭐️
The premise was good and honestly I’m happy to have read it because it was different to read a no smut book, and understand the characters on a deeper level.
However that’s where it stops. The book was rather dry and Chase clearly needed psychological help but didn’t get it for whatever reason.
Idk…it was nice and at the same time filled with pick me moments that ruined the whole experience. Like I was sympathetic to a point until it became repetitive 60% in the book.
The premise was good and honestly I’m happy to have read it because it was different to read a no smut book, and understand the characters on a deeper level.
However that’s where it stops. The book was rather dry and Chase clearly needed psychological help but didn’t get it for whatever reason.
Idk…it was nice and at the same time filled with pick me moments that ruined the whole experience. Like I was sympathetic to a point until it became repetitive 60% in the book.
December 31, 2025
Laugh Out Loud Funny and Sweet🥰
Kiera is so relatable and likable as a character (her plants, her museum work, her vulnerability and determination and quirky sense of humor). Chase is a character I’d love to meet in real life-the strong silent type with strong protective instincts and an athlete to boot! 😋 Their story is giving swoony novella energy, satisfying Uno Reverse towards her ex and happily ever after!
Kiera is so relatable and likable as a character (her plants, her museum work, her vulnerability and determination and quirky sense of humor). Chase is a character I’d love to meet in real life-the strong silent type with strong protective instincts and an athlete to boot! 😋 Their story is giving swoony novella energy, satisfying Uno Reverse towards her ex and happily ever after!
January 11, 2026
This book is magical
I I feel about this book and this author the same way I felt when I read Elizabeth Stephens first book: that I was watching the beginning of something wonderful. This book is beautiful. It is lyrical, it is everything that can be great about first person p o v. It is a story about big love and small love, loud love and quiet love, and the second chance we give ourselves. It was delightful , and I cannot wait to read more from this author.
I I feel about this book and this author the same way I felt when I read Elizabeth Stephens first book: that I was watching the beginning of something wonderful. This book is beautiful. It is lyrical, it is everything that can be great about first person p o v. It is a story about big love and small love, loud love and quiet love, and the second chance we give ourselves. It was delightful , and I cannot wait to read more from this author.
February 2, 2026
This story had so much promise but fell short in the end. Not a bad read, but not satisfying either. The first half of the book was strong; character development, dialogue, and situation was on point. It seems the author didn’t know how to build on the momentum of the first half, so it becomes repetitive. I found myself skimming the second half hoping it would get back on track. Unfortunately, it didn’t. It starts to tell, not show, so I was disappointed.
January 29, 2026
Poorly Written, DNF’d
The repetition, continuity errors, and vague characters that have no chemistry are just a few the of things that make this book hot garbage.
This whole book was just a big disappointment especially as a someone who’s favorite trope is fake dating especially when it involves a black woman.
DNF’d @ 70%
The repetition, continuity errors, and vague characters that have no chemistry are just a few the of things that make this book hot garbage.
This whole book was just a big disappointment especially as a someone who’s favorite trope is fake dating especially when it involves a black woman.
DNF’d @ 70%
February 6, 2026
i wanted to like this book very bad but it kinda just fell flat. the characters were great and had lots of potential but i felt like they barely knew each other and didn’t even spend that much time together. while it was only 200 pages i felt the story should have been maximized a bit more- gone a little bit deeper with the characters and such.
December 30, 2025
Easily forgettable
A cute story with lots of funny parts. A bit boring 60% in and I skipped some bits to make sure I could pull through and read to the end. This love story will not stick with me forever as the plot and characters are easily forgettable.
A cute story with lots of funny parts. A bit boring 60% in and I skipped some bits to make sure I could pull through and read to the end. This love story will not stick with me forever as the plot and characters are easily forgettable.
January 6, 2026
What a sweet story⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
I really enjoyed this book. It unfolded at a good pace, and the MCs were really interesting, and engaging. It was so frustratingly fun to go on the journey with the MMC! Will he, or won’t he allow himself to be loved?!?! Such a fun read.
I really enjoyed this book. It unfolded at a good pace, and the MCs were really interesting, and engaging. It was so frustratingly fun to go on the journey with the MMC! Will he, or won’t he allow himself to be loved?!?! Such a fun read.
January 10, 2026
I’m gonna (try to) be really nice in this review.
I’m supposed to believe that a very educated museum curator…has never heard of a breakfast burrito? Yeahhhh that alone was enough to piss me off, but I read the first 70% of this book too, so I’m double pissed.
I’m supposed to believe that a very educated museum curator…has never heard of a breakfast burrito? Yeahhhh that alone was enough to piss me off, but I read the first 70% of this book too, so I’m double pissed.
January 24, 2026
I love how they included love letters from the 1800s which was awesome. What threw me for a loop is how the character felt like he wasn't good enough for her in pushing everyone away just to feel hold. Over all I love this book...
January 25, 2026
When will it be my turn.
10/10 !!! This book was amazing. I like how it was emotionally intimate. It was focused on the love for each other and the doubts tha come with a relationship and battling your emotions and feelings. Porsha you put your foot in this book !!!
10/10 !!! This book was amazing. I like how it was emotionally intimate. It was focused on the love for each other and the doubts tha come with a relationship and battling your emotions and feelings. Porsha you put your foot in this book !!!
February 5, 2026
Love is more than a word
If you want to read a dark romance or one with alot of intimate details not this book. This is a sweet romance and it's about finding love.
If you want to read a dark romance or one with alot of intimate details not this book. This is a sweet romance and it's about finding love.
Displaying 1 - 16 of 16 reviews