“I need us to stay married, Big Guy.”
Recently traded to the Chicago Rebels, hockey veteran Dylan “Banks” Bankowski is adjusting to what might be his last team and his final year in the NHL. That means taking care of his battered body while he strives for the one goal that’s managed to elude him: a championship ring. What he does not need is a visit from the woman to whom he gave a different kind of ring months ago.
His young, flighty, socialite wife.
Apparently, signing the annulment papers within a week of their quickie wedding in Vegas didn’t quite take, and now she’s back, right before the playoffs when he needs his focus most. Only this time she has a different request: let’s keep up the charade. He should say no, but he once said “I do” and surely that means something …
Georgia Goodwin has good reasons for wanting to keep her hockey player husband. Convincing the big lug to cooperate is the easy part. Not so easy? Ignoring the flutter in her chest when he grunts in jock, kisses her neck, or calls her wife. But it’s only for a few weeks, and as soon as the playoffs finish, so will they.
But the more time Georgia and Banks spend together, the more real their marriage feels. Less Vegas mistake, and more like the start of something amazing. They said goodbye once. Can they do it again … or will they figure out that a love this good is worth fighting for as much as that championship ring?
Tropes: Accidentally married, age gap, grumpy x sunshine, forced proximity, only one bed, fake kisses turned real, hockey player & Chicago socialite, big guy & petite gal, “my wife” moments galore
Review:
OMG, Georgia and Dylan/Banks–where do I start with how much I loved their book?
Their meet cute takes place in a Vegas bar, and it’s a lot of fun–though it gets a tad bit eclipsed by the fact that they decide to get married later on that night. (No, alcohol isn’t the reason and also no, it’s not on the page–we see bits of it later on but not the whole thing from start to finish.)
Georgia takes off, sends Banks annulment papers, and it’s all over. Right?
Of course not! I read Wild Ride , so I knew what was coming. (If you haven’t read it yet, not a problem. The scene is here again, this time from our hero’s POV. But hey–why haven’t you read Wild Ride? Do yourself a favor and pick that one up ASAP, you won’t be sorry.) Long story short, the paperwork didn’t work and Georgia and Banks agree to stay married for now for…reasons. Which of course means cohabiting–and sharing a bed when Banks’ family comes to visit.
Marriage of convenience (of sorts)? Close proximity? There’s only one bed? Age gap? Grumpy/sunshine dynamic? Tiny heroine and big manly hero (who’s allergic to her cat but doesn’t tell her because Cheddar “likes him”)? Yes, yes, yes, yes, yes, and YES PLEASE.
But this story is more than the sum of its tropes! Both Georgia and Banks have layers–she’s so much more than the wild socialite girl that the world sees, and he’s not just the newly traded (again) seasoned player brought in to hopefully help win the Cup before he retires. I loved not only watching them grow closer and fall in love (duh!) but also figuring themselves out as they did so. From the beginning Banks was Georgia’s biggest champion and Georgia was his, and I was here for it. Their relationship black moment crushed me almost as much as it did them–but it did make things so much sweeter when they reconciled and headed off into their HEA.
And that epilogue–gah! My heart! So much sweetness!
Also–please tell me I’m not the only one who teared up when Georgia was doing her nonprofit work? Because OMG, I had all the feels <3
Hockey Wife is the 9th book in the series but could work as a standalone. If you go that route, though, and hearing brief synopses of how many of the other series couples got together (spoiler: a Vegas wedding and immediate almost annulment and later fake-ish relationship barely even ranks on the weird scale by comparison) doesn’t make you want to read them all, do you even have a heart?
Rating: 4 1/2 stars / A
I voluntarily reviewed an Advance Reader Copy of this book.