The Carolina Cold Fury hockey team proves that love is a power play. As Sawyer Bennett’s New York Times bestselling series continues, the league’s most notorious party animal gets blindsided by the one that got away.

Off the ice, elite defenseman Hawke Therrien enjoys his fair share of booze and good times. And why shouldn’t he? He’s worked his way up from the minor leagues and made himself a star. The only thing Hawke misses from that life is the pierced, tattooed free spirit who broke his heart without so much as an explanation. She’s almost unrecognizable when she walks back into his life seven years later—except for the look in her eyes that feels like a punch to the gut.

Vale Campbell isn’t the same girl she was at twenty. As crazy as she was about Hawke, her reckless behavior and out-of-control drinking were starting to scare her. She had to clean up her act, and that would never happen with Hawke around. Cutting him loose was the hardest thing Vale ever had to do—until now. Because she’s still crazy about Hawke. And if he could ever learn to forgive her, they just might have a future together.

Hawke and Vale--We see them as impulsive, partying, in love young adults, Then catch up to them seven years later as emotionally closed off adults.

Hawke has not changed his partying ways much and has added womanizer to his bad boy list. He's new to the Carolina cold Fury and serious about his hockey career. He's already got friends on the team and the support of their GM Gray Brannon.

But his whole world is turned upside down when he sees his first love, Vale, is the team's new assistant trainer. She cut him out without a reason and shattered his heart. Hawke's past anger, resentment, and bitterness come roaring back due to their unresolved issues. And the new reserved and serious Vale still does not seem to want to share.

Hawke is still bossy, pushy, protective, and magnetic. He is impossible to ignore. She has really changed her wild ways and has become a hard working woman who takes her responsibilities seriously. She is still sassy and sweet, but is also insecure, emotionally distant, and lost.

But Hawke slowly begins to infiltrate her life, reconnects with her Dad and their mutual friends. There are external factors affecting their chance at a real reunion and secrets that still cause pain. But it is hard for her to not fall back into like, lust, and maybe even love with the dynamic, sexy, charismatic Hawke.

They have a strong connection and chemistry. But they both still have deep hurts and resentment. They both fear rejection and abandonment. And their communication is not always effective. Hawke is truly in the dark about several things and he especially has walls of protection guarding his heart. Vale tends to overreact, act impulsively, and go into avoidance and shut down mode to protect herself. So they both will have to be willing to be truly vulnerable and trust in order to have a chance of forgiving the past and moving forward.

But how may chances are they willing to give each other? Are they doomed to keep repeating the same mistakes?

All of our friends are back: Alex, Garrett, Olivia, Ryker, Gray, Max, and Brian. And Vale brings along her wonderful dad, Dave, and their mutual friends Avery and Oliver. I loved her Dad and the relationships that Vale and Hawke had with him.

I came to like Hawke and Vale's personalities, but they could definitely frustrate me and make me want to yell at them to just "say it!". They internalized a lot, held back, and got overwhelmed by their fears and insecurities at times affecting their chances for a healthy coupling. They had a lot of ups and downs that could have been avoided by better communication and opening up. They would make progress then completely back slide and fall back into their self preservation modes.

This was an angsty and at times frustrating second chance love story that had humor, snark, passion, romance, drama, and emotions. The characters had a lot of growing to do and truly needed to find forgiveness and redemption. It was easy to get pulled back into this world with these beloved characters. The epilogue to this one had me smiling multiple times as it let us catch up with some of the other couples. 

I am looking forward to more with Max next. We have seen him as an injured player, a supportive friend, and a hard worker. I can't wait to see where his story leads.

ARC provided by author in exchange for an honest review. 

Hawke Therrien, new to the Cold Fury roster, is ready to show his team he is better than his projections show him to be. His strong start takes a stumble when the new trainer is introduced on the first day of practice.

Vale Campbell knew she would have to face Hawke when she took the job offer at the Cold Fury. She had followed his career enough to know he was heading to Carolina before she found herself needing a quick move. But she needs this job, and needs to be in Raleigh more than she need to continue avoiding her past with Hawke.

Seven years is a long time to go without contact, but is it enough time to bury old wounds? When the sparks begin flying, will they have a different ending, or will they get hurt once again?

Oh, these two. Hawke and Vale clearly love each other and the confusion and tension surrounding their past is palpable. As is the longing between them. Not knowing exactly what happened to split them apart before Hawke went professional, it hurt to watch each of them suffer with the pain of those missing years while trying to keep things light in the present.

Vale’s father provided an interesting twist to the story. His interference, and his own history with Hawke, add an unexpected element to the story, and just one more reason for Hawke and Vale to have to spend time around each other.

Communication, or a lack thereof, is a huge problem for these two. At times, the secrets and silence were understandable, while at others they had me watching to shake both Hawke and Vale into spilling the secrets. As the present day story progressed I grew a little weary of the withheld pieces of the puzzle.

The epilogue made up for many of my communication frustrations, though. It was the perfect cap to no only Hawke and Vale’s story, but some of the previous couples’ as well.

I love this team. Though the book’s focus really does stay on the main couple’s conflicts, the team family is definitely present in the background. This is a family, even as new to the team as both Hawke and Vale are. 

ARC provided by author in exchange for an honest review.