They have a secret, forbidden history.
The NHL has given her a league-mandated assignment.
He’s the bad boy of hockey who wants a second chance.
My three non-negotiable rules as the league’s new trainer are: be professional, don’t socialize, and keep my night with Max Stevens a complete secret. Unfortunately, he’s my newest assignment and the star player my father (the league’s most notorious referee) is trying to bury.
That night with Max was truly unforgettable. He wears his bad-boy reputation with swagger, and my father has sought to suspend him for years.
When a leaked photo threatens to destroy the career I’ve spent years building, I’m forced to choose between my future and the man who haunts my every thought.
Max is tired of playing by the rules. He’s ready to risk a permanent penalty to win me back, even if it means taking on the entire league to prove he’s more than just the “bad boy” on the ice. He’s the uncle who shows up, the brother who never walks away, and the man who never stopped wanting me.
✓ Hockey Romance ✓ Forbidden Romance ✓ Second Chance ✓ Workplace Romance ✓ Forced Proximity ✓ Secret Relationship
Heat Level: Spicy (open door) Vibes: High-tension, angsty, banter-filled, protective hero Setting: Professional hockey league locker room Trope Tags: Power Dynamics, Secret Relationship Ending: Standalone HEA (Happily Ever After) Series: The Gold Coast Guardians Perfect for fans of: Elle Kennedy, Avery Keel, and Liz Tomforde
In the game of love, there are no referees—read Officially in the Offensive Zone today.
The Gold Coast Guardians Hockey Series
🎬 Diva in the Defensive Zone–Trey & Scarlett
🍼 Nanny in the Neutral Zone–Chase & Piper
🏒 Officially in the Offensive Zone–Max & Antonia
She’s a single mom.
He’s hockey’s hottest bachelor.
When a one-night stand leaves a surprise baby on the goalie’s doorstep, he’s drafted onto a new team he’s never trained for.
Piper
Hurricane Milton took my home, my daycare business, and my stability. When I find myself with nowhere to go, an unexpected offer puts me under the same roof as Chase Maddox. He’s gruff, stubborn, and infuriatingly handsome, but he’s also a man who’s desperate for help. I’m an expert on how to handle tiny humans; it’s the giant, brooding goalie that throws me for a loop.
Chase
They call me the madman between the pipes, the goalie who knows how to protect what’s mine. I don’t do surprises, and I definitely don’t do “feelings.” But when a screaming infant is abandoned on my doorstep with a note claiming he’s mine, my world takes a hit. My teammate’s sister shows up knowing how to calm a screaming newborn, how to handle bottles and diapers like its instinct. What she doesn’t know is what she does to me.
Having her under my roof is a different kind of danger. She moves through my space as if she belongs there, with a quiet confidence that gets under my skin. I notice the way her shirt slips off one shoulder when she rocks my son at two in the morning. The way my name sounds in her mouth when the house is dark and everything feels too close. People say I guard my heart as fiercely as I guard the net, but Piper Stevens is finding gaps in my defense.
Are you ready for a sizzling romance as Piper and Chase discover that working together as a team will lead to the best win of their lives?
Perfect for fans of found family, opposites attract, and tender moments that melt even the toughest hearts.
Get your copy today and find out if they are destined to stay in the neutral zone forever!
She’s America’s sweetheart on the big screen.
He’s a Stanley Cup obsessed hockey player.
When they fake a relationship for publicity, whose icy attitude will melt first as a silver-screen diva and a king of the rink face off?
I’m Scarlett St. Clair, Hollywood darling, red carpet regular, and one scandal away from career collapse. The actress whose insurance company sued a professional hockey god for millions. So, when my PR team locks me into a fake romance with Chicago’s fiercest hockey enforcer, Trey Dillingham, he doesn’t care that I didn’t file the claim.
What I get is a guy who smirks like sin and undresses me with a single glance. The world’s watching, but behind closed doors, Trey doesn’t play pretend. He peels away my secrets and makes me wonder if this arrangement is the biggest risk of all? Because I might be falling for the man I never intended to keep.
I’m Trey Dillingham. The grind of the season, the roar of the crowd when fists fly is what I live for. I don’t chase the spotlight, and I sure as hell don’t babysit Hollywood starlets. My life has always been about control, both on the ice and off. But Scarlett St. Clair wrecks my grip on normal.
She’s all glitter and red lips on the surface, but I see the cracks she hides. And once I’ve seen them, I can’t unsee. This setup was supposed to be fake.
But with Scarlett, I’m skating a line much riskier than any I’ve ever faced. And the only thing I want to win … is her.
Diva in the Defensive Zone is the steamy first book in the Chicago Gold Coast Guardians Hockey romance series. If you like relatable heroines, sexy banter, and explosive chemistry, you’ll adore Theresa Papa’s sizzling read.
Buy Diva in the Defensive Zone today to find heat that scorches past the final buzzer!