Book picks similar to
Defending Dani by Kat Mizera


sports
romance
contemporary
sports-romance

Exes and Goals


Heather C. Myers - 2017
    She has one.Harper Crawford is a big fan of the Newport Beach Seagulls, despite their abysmal previous season. It's been a year since Ken Brown's murder and Seraphina Hanson, Ken's youngest granddaughter, just survived her first year as the new owner and manager of the national hockey team. Barely. The last year was dismal to the point where Seraphina is making drastic changes. Like hiring Harper as their official blogger. Harper gets to travel with the team, write character pieces, critiques, game summaries, and the like. It's her dream job.Another change? Putting together practically a new team, including Zachary Ryan, first line center. At six foot four and two hundred and twenty pounds, he is tall, dark blond, and solid muscle. He's arrogant and direct and the minute he sees Harper at Taboo nightclub during a team bonding session dressed in a plaid shirt and converse sneakers, he has to get to know her better.Except there's a problem from her past that won't go away. Harper has an ex that won't stay in her past - where he belongs. He starts showing up at her place, reminding her of all the wrong choices she made, bringing up things she wants nothing more than to forget. When Zachary gets involved, things get heated and his notorious temper flares.Harper doesn't want to get involved with a hockey player - especially with an overzealous ex who won't leave her alone - but Zachary plans to change her mind. No matter what the cost.

Power Play


Maria Luis - 2017
    She's a (struggling) sports journalist looking for her big break. Charlie Denton has been handed the most impossible assignment from her stick-in-the-mud boss: get an exclusive interview with the NHL's golden boy, Duke Harrison. The catch? She's got eight days or she’ll be demoted. Fired. Kicked to the curb - No way is she letting her future rest on the broad shoulders of a goalie who is at least three seasons past his prime. She has eight days to convince Duke that the loyal fans of The Cambridge Tribune (annual circulation: 1,000) are dying to know about his life, on and off the ice. Eight days to stand toe to toe with a man who is pure sex on a stick. Eight days to remember that every mind-blowing kiss is nothing but a power play. What could go wrong?

The Play


J.H. Croix - 2017
    Falling in love is complicated.I want her. There’s just one problem. She’s my doctor, and she says it’s a no-no. I’ve never been one to play by the rules.But she’s not falling for me. Olivia is the challenge I have to beat.With her lush curves and her by-the-book attitude, all I want to do is show her exactly what she’s missing. Again and again and again.I’ll bring her to her knees…in more ways than one. I didn’t count on her bringing me to my knees. *A full-length standalone sports romance.

Breakaway


Ali Parker - 2016
    He’s hard-hitting, rough and puts up with very little. He’s kept to himself throughout his years at Providence University, but it’s time to train the next man up in line for his position. His second on the Hockey team has a twin sister that catches everyone’s eye and leaves most of the guys acting like idiots, but Lucas isn’t interested. Girls are too needy, too catty and a pain in butt. Plain and simple. Aubrey Moore’s had her eye on the captain of the hockey team for the last few years since her brother, Jayce joined the team. He’s known for being a complete jerk, but Aubrey’s had the pleasure of seeing around the edges of his personality and wants to know him more. Now she just has to figure out how to help him breakaway from being so jaded and join her in the best adventure anyone could embark on -love. 18+ Explicit sexual content, possible foul language and violence. **HEA - these novels are all within the Pro-U series, but are about different couples at the university and should stand-alone.

In Skates Trouble


Kate Meader - 2017
    . .Addison Williams isn't looking for romance, but when she encounters an eavesdropping stranger on an adjoining hotel balcony, she figures she's due a little fun. She just hadn't reckoned on the "fun" escalating so quickly to "out of control." One minute she's flirting with a whiskey-graveled voice in the dark, the next that same voice is telling her to do things. Hot, wicked things.Cup-winning hockey player Ford "Killer" Callaghan can't believe he let the anonymous woman who blew his mind slip away into the night. He'll track her down because once could never be enough—even if discovering her identity places her strictly out of bounds.Stolen kisses. Secret hook-ups. Deliciously forbidden in every way. Can a passion that started in the dark find a lifetime of love in the light?Originally published in Hot on Ice: A Hockey Romance Anthology, this sexy prequel to the Chicago Rebels hockey series features an older, curvy woman, a younger, driven hero, and a happily-ever-after you'll swoon over.

Only One Kiss


Natasha Madison - 2020
    I had everything I wanted, my game had never been better, and my wife was due to have our baby any day now.What could go wrong?Everything.I was now raising our baby on my own. After hockey practice and games, I didn't have time to sleep, let alone make sure my social media was up to par.I never thought I'd get a second chance at love. Candace When my hotshot brother was drafted in the NHL, he didn't have time to do his social media, so I took over for him. Little did I know it would become my career.My plate was full with over fifty NHL players, and I wasn't taking on any new clients.Yet when he showed up on my doorstep with the cutest little girl in the whole world, I couldn't say no.I was just helping, but it turned into more than that. He's the man I've been waiting for.All it takes is one touch, one night, one chance, and only one kiss.

Killian


Brenda Rothert - 2015
    We don’t play for money, glory or fame—we’re in it for the straight-up, all-in love of hockey. And not only do women flock to me as a pro athlete, my reckless behavior only makes the fans love me more. As the star forward and team captain of the Fenway Flyers, my job is secure no matter how much trouble I get in—both on and off the ice.That is, until our team is bought by a real estate mogul who busts my balls like it’s her job. And while I suppose it actually is, I can think of much better ways to spend my time with the fearless firebrand who’s now my boss.She wants to control me, and I’m all for it. As long as she surrenders to me in the only place that really matters—the bedroom.

Breakaway


Catherine Gayle - 2013
    He can’t lose focus now—not with his career on the line. But when his best friend’s little sister makes him an offer he can’t refuse, Eric could lose the drive the team relies on from their captain.Still in a downward spiral after a life-altering event in college, Dana Campbell is desperate to try anything to break away from the horror of that fateful night—even enlisting the help of the only man she trusts completely.No matter how irresistible she is or how tempting the offer, Eric might not be able to cross that line—especially with the team’s chance at the playoffs on the line. Now, Eric has to take one last shot, but will he choose Dana’s Breakaway chance at happiness or the move that could secure his career?

Hot as Puck


Lili Valente - 2017
    We're talking my last date went home with our waitress kind of failure.But I have an ace in the back pocket of my mom jeans--my sexy-as-sin best friend, NHL superstar forward, Justin Cruise.Justin owes me favors dating back to seventh grade, long before he became a hotshot with a world famous...stick. So in return for my undying platonic loyalty, all I want is an easy-peasy crash course on how to be a sex goddess.How hard can it be?***I have never been so hard in my life.The things I want to do to my sweet, kindergarten-teaching, mitten-crocheting best friend Libby Collins are ten different kinds of wrong. Maybe twenty.But I'm a firm believer in teaching by example, and by the end of our first lesson, we've graduated to a hands on approach to her education: my hands all over her, her hands all over me, and her hot mouth melting beneath mine as I prove to her there isn't a damned thing wrong with the way she kisses.Give me a month, and I'll transform Libby from wall flower to wall banger, and ensure she's confident enough to seduce any guy she wants.Problem is... the only guy I want her seducing is me.Hot as Puck is a sexy, flirty, friends-to-lovers Standalone romantic comedy from USA Today Bestseller Lili Valente.

Talk to Me


Clare James - 2014
    The young, handsome, high-scoring player quickly became a fan favorite. He had everything going for him: fame, fortune, a promising career, and his pick of women. But when he made an abrupt exit from the NHL last spring, everything changed and he’s been in hiding ever since.Casey Scott plans to find out why.After interning for free all summer at the top television station in the Twin Cities, Casey lands an on-air gig. Trouble is, the new role is Sports Girl—which means reporting from local bars and tailgating parties to create excitement for the hometown heroes. All while wearing tiny team jerseys that are so tight they leave little to the imagination.But she has a plan. Uncover the biggest sports mystery of the decade, and she’ll be on her way. Question is, how far will she go to get the story?*Caution: This story contains explicit sex scenes with an alpha hockey player … who gives an entirely new meaning to the term Body Checking. *

On the Rocks


Sawyer Bennett - 2014
    Now he’s returned home to the sand and salty breeze of the North Carolina Outer Banks so he can open The Last Call, a beach bar nestled among the dunes of the Atlantic.Five years ago, Gabby Ward drunkenly threw herself at her best friend’s brother, only to have her young heart crushed. Hunter is back but Gabby is content to stay far away from him and his dangerously charming ways. Gabby’s well-schemed plans to ignore Hunter go up in flames when he presents her an offer she simply can’t refuse. Working together day in and day out proves problematic for two reasons—Gabby realizes her feelings for Hunter are still very much alive, while Hunter struggles to break through to Gabby’s cold heart. What starts out as a mutual business arrangement soon turns into a passion that neither can deny.But when the pro surfing tour comes knocking and Hunter has a chance to reclaim his former glory, hard choices lie ahead for both of them.Choices that could destroy what they have built or take them further than they could ever dare to hope in their second chance at romance.

Pucking Parker


Jillian Quinn - 2020
    In the men’s locker room, of all places.As if that wasn’t embarrassing enough, Mr. MVP gave me one of his killer smirks, right before dropping his towel in front of me. Just to prove a point. That no woman can resist him. Not even me.Now, he keeps finding ways to see me, touch me. And I find myself wanting to break my dad’s rules about his players. Rules I never break for a reason. Because falling for a player like Parker… was never part of the plan.

Playing For Keeps


Liz Matis - 2011
    Fresh from the battlegrounds of Iraq, reporting on a bunch of overgrown boys playing pro football is just the change of scenery she needs. If trying to be taken seriously in the world of sports writing wasn't hard enough, Ryan, her college crush, is only making it harder. As a tight-end for the team she's covering, he is strictly off limits. Ryan Terell is a playmaker on and off the field, but when Samantha uncovers his moves, he throws out the playbook. Just as he claims his sweetest victory, Samantha's investigation into a steroid scandal involving his team forces him to call a time-out to their off the record trysts. But then a life threatening injury on the field will force them both to decide just how far they'll go to win the game. Winner of the NERWA First Kiss Contest A Kindle Bestseller.

Offside


Juliana Stone - 2012
    Not because Billie's talent is in question, but because Billie is a woman. And though these are modern times, some of the local guys still have a problem letting a girl into their 'men's club.'Soon, Billie is at the center of a small town battle of the sexes, with everyone choosing sides. Her sisters. The townsfolk. Her friends. And yet, the only person whose opinion she cares about doesn't seem to care much at all. Logan Forest, the man who broke her heart when she was eighteen and the man she now shares the bench with every Friday night. She's got a lot to prove and though Billie Jo Barker scores on the ice, will this girl ever score with the man of her dreams?

Quick Trick


Skye Jordan - 2015
    If he has to be off the ice for three weeks of recovery, he‘ll do it on his back—breaking in a new wanna-be cowgirl every night. But pressure from the team’s owner and Grant’s parents land him in his hometown of Holly, North Carolina instead. Things look up when he learns the hometown beauty who was once so out of his league is now single, and sexier than ever. Determined to slip in a night with her while he’s in town, Grant is shocked to discover one will never be enough. Faith Nicholas has no interest in the newest Saber-son gossip. After losing her father just months before, she is now on the verge of losing their family hardware store—which is also her home. She couldn’t care less about the Saber’s big money or flashy toys. But she can’t seem to keep Grant out of her store--or her dreams. His magnetic charisma is impossible to ignore, and the longer he stays in town, the more she finds to love about a man who isn’t as superficial as he’d like others to believe.With a struggling store, four-hundred miles and a rigorous hockey season looming between them, Grant will have to pull out his very best moves if he’s going to make this quick trick last forever. ROUGH RIDER HOCKEY NOVELSQUICK TRICKHOT PUCKDIRTY SCOREWILD ZONE