By: Tela V.
Many thanks to Torch Lit Ink for the ARC of this book!
About the Book
Dr. Maria Lyons doesn’t date. Not anymore. Fresh off heartbreak, courtesy of her ex and former coworker, she realizes, who needs love? But when her ex shows back up at her hospital with a new job and a lot more than she wants to know about their past relationship, it turns into a tit for tat where, even to her surprise, she blurts out that she has a boyfriend. He might be fake, but the ex doesn’t need to know that. What makes it even worse is the first name that comes to mind.
NHL Captain, absurdly attractive and utterly obsessed with her. He should be completely off-limits. It doesn’t take much to convince Ford to play along with fake-dating her. Dead serious about convincing Maria to give him a chance, he’s ready to claim the title of boyfriend of the year. She’s given Ford a chance and he’s not backing down.
Falling for Ford Jenson might mean risking losing control of the aspect of her life that she’s just gotten control over again. Will Maria take a chance on Ford? Take a chance on love?
My Review
This is part of the Hit Behind the Net series. I haven’t read the other books, but you don’t really need to in order to read and enjoy this one. I will say that when the book started, I wasn’t quite sure why Ford was so into Maria and I wasn’t sure I believed it at first. It wasn’t long that I feel for these two falling for each other!
Ford is kind of obsessive at first, he’s unrelenting. But it turns into something supportive. It was very sweet. When things go bad for her at work, he wants to be there for her. Similarly, when Ford gets hurt, she easily shows that she cares. Nothing is rushed. She’s unsure if this is what she wants, and Ford waits patiently.
There is A LOT of spice in this book. At first, I was like “okay, this is good.” But then it became that every time they see each other, it was 99% about the spice, and there wasn’t much else. They didn’t spend too much quality time together. So that was lacking for me a bit. But that is personal preference and I know a TON of people will love all the spice!
Overall, this was a really good read!
Publish Date: January 15, 2026
Find the book here.
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