He wasn't supposed to be here.
Not in this house. Not in this town.
And definitely not looking at her like that.
Sterling Heights was supposed to be Clara's clean slate. New school, new people, no messy past. But that hope crumbles the second she walks downstairs after a one-night mistake-only to come face-to-face with Oliver Baker, her ex, her first love... the boy who shattered her heart and never even knew it.
For Oliver, senior year was meant to be simple: skate hard, stay focused, and make it to the draft. But when Clara Monroe walks into his world again-wearing someone else's T-shirt and the same look that used to undo him-nothing feels simple anymore. She's colder now. Sharper. Still beautiful. Still his biggest what-if.
She wants nothing to do with him.
He can't stay away.
But when an unexpected injury threatens to sideline Oliver for good, everything he thought he knew-about his future, about Clara, about the past they left behind-starts to unravel.
Some games you lose.
Some loves you never get over.
And some second chances... are worth the risk.
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A sizzling new adult second chance romance for fans of enemies-to-lovers, sports romance, and heart-flipping emotional tension.
When Clara Monroe transfers to Sterling Heights University, she's desperate for a fresh start. Small-town gossip, a broken family, and the father who left them behind-she's ready to leave it all in the past. But her plan for a clean slate crashes and burns the moment she wakes up in the wrong bed... and comes face-to-face with Oliver Baker, the boy who once meant everything-and now, nothing.
Oliver is the star of Sterling Heights' hockey team. Talented, focused, and on track for the NHL draft, he's built walls around his past. But when Clara walks back into his life-bolder, colder, and still impossibly beautiful-he realizes some ghosts never stay buried. And some loves don't fade with time.
Thrown together by circumstance and haunted by old wounds, Oliver and Clara must navigate sizzling chemistry, buried secrets, and a painful past they never truly let go of. But when Oliver's future is put on the line, they'll both have to decide what's worth fighting for-pride, pain... or the chance to finally get it right.
Perfect for fans of Elle Kennedy, Kennedy Ryan, and Sara Ney, this steamy, emotional sports romance delivers all the feels. Second chances, first love, and the kind of slow-burn tension that leaves you breathless.
