Ruth Stilling

Boarded Hearts

Once bitten, twice shy …

The mantra I live by so no one can hurt me in the same way my parents did.

I’m Tommy Schneider, the most feared player in the NHL with a last name to match my bad boy reputation. Only, I’m the better, stronger, faster version of my estranged dad. Everything in my life I control with expert precision—from the hits I land in fights to the tattoos covering my body. Nothing and no one can get the better of me. I’m impermeable, a wall of steel that’s as cold as it is opaque.

So when my trade to the New York Blades is met with controversy, it’s fair to say I’m unbothered. The recently appointed General Manager expects a brutal enforcer, and that’s exactly what he’ll get.

But what I didn’t expect when I landed in Brooklyn? Jenna Miller. And the way she unceremoniously turned me down. I shouldn’t let her rejection weave it’s way under my skin, and I definitely shouldn’t have punched her brother when he tried to defend Jenna’s honor.

Instead, I should heed my mantra and walk away from the girl who hates my guts and grates on me with her bratty smile and backtalking mouth. If I don’t, I know someone will eventually get hurt. But each time I back off, I wind up standing outside her apartment door again.

I’m in the fight of my life, with so much more at risk than just broken bones and bruises …

This time, it’s my heart on the line.

The Blade Kings #4

Full Tilt

Darcy, Darcy, Darcy.

The name I should have wiped from my mind nearly two years ago.

Her brother, and my assistant captain, has repeatedly warned she’s off-limits to a guy like me—a playboy bound to bed her one night and break her heart the next morning—an opinion shared by her stepdad, who also happens to be my coach. I can see why they don’t want their goalie anywhere near her. My reputation with women isn’t exactly unblemished.

Except, they shouldn’t judge what they don’t understand, and neither should my girl. Okay, she’s not technically my girl yet, but that’s just semantics, as are the things I’ll do to make her mine.

Each time she’s visited from the UK, I’ve warred with the respect I have for my friendship with her brother versus pursuing a growing obsession for the honey-haired bombshell with blue eyes as big as the Ocean that separates us.

That is, until everything changes and there’s nothing keeping me at a safe distance. She’s living in Brooklyn and looking for fun with guys, and I can no longer observe from the sidelines. Any chance—no matter how small—she gives me, I’m going to take it and say to hell with the consequences.

Only, the opportunity I get isn’t small, and neither are the stakes that go with it.

Shots Fires

They think my greatest gift is my ability on the ice. But they’re wrong.

I’ve been hailed as the guy who has it all when it comes to hockey. Powerful people have invested their time and money, determined to turn my potential into their reality.

The most influential of those people? Graham Jenkins—former NHL player and the General Manager of the Dallas Destroyers. The second he set eyes on me in the little leagues, he piled all his resources into my success. And when the Destroyers were awarded the first-round draft pick, he didn’t hesitate to snap me up.

He thought I was the golden boy, the star that would make his team as successful as his playing career. Only I wasn’t. Instead of unleashing my potential in front of the goal, he discovered my real talent—secrets.

And I have many that I will never share. One for every scar disguised beneath the tattoos painting my body, along with the childhood memories either buried deep inside my broken mind or drowned out by empty bottles lining my kitchen counter.

There’s only one secret I wish I didn’t have to keep. She’s also the addiction I know I’ll never kick. A detox my heart could never survive since it only beats for her. And even years after we were torn apart, my fixation hasn’t changed. Although neither have our circumstances—I’m still the broken boy, suffocated with trauma. And she’s still Mia Jenkins, the good girl, and daughter of the man who offered me everything except his blessing to date her.

But one thing about addiction? It never seeks permission.

Genres/Tropes:
Broken Boy x Good Girl
Second Chance
Forbidden Love
GMs Daughter
He Falls First
He can't stay away
Spicy Lessons
Found Family
Virgin FMC
Mental health (PTSD) rep

TW include: Abusive parents, domestic violence, substance abuse, off page child loss (not involving the main characters) mental health rep namely PTSD, off page discussion of self harm.

Ruled Out

She can’t stand me.

She also thinks she’s got me all worked out.

My Princess is determined to stay as far away from me as possible. Eighteen months ago, she wanted me, but now she’s convinced I’m bad news.

The thing is, an attraction like ours doesn’t just fade, and my need for her has only grown stronger no matter how many times she offers me a scowl instead of her beautiful smile.

We’ve been playing a game of cat and mouse since the day she wore my jersey, and fortunately for her, I love the chase. I love to watch the way her body reacts to mine. I’d fall to my knees in front of her if I didn’t think she’d kick me while I’m down and unearth painful memories from my past that I’ve worked to keep hidden for so long.

I’m not the only one with secrets and a hurtful past, though. The walls she’s built around her are so high that I doubt anyone can see the real Kate. But I can; I see it all. I know what makes my girl tick and what she truly wants from life. I was just waiting for a chance to prove it.

And now that it’s here, I’m going all in to make Kate Violet Monroe fall in love with me.

Dead Rinker

The plan was simple: just me, my boy and hockey.

I’m the unapproachable NHL captain with a reputation for chewing up reporters in interviews, forwards on the ice and shutting down anyone who tries to get close to me. And that’s how I like it—no feelings, no complications, and zero chance of reliving the grief I experienced when my wife passed away seven years ago.

But sometimes the best laid plans go up in flames, and that’s exactly what Collins Mackenzie does when strolls into a bar one post-game night and gives me a taste of the cold shoulder I’ve bestowed on all those around me.

The only person she doesn’t dismiss? My boy. In fact, she lights him up with her pink hair and perfectly winged eyeliner, leaving him fascinated and me infatuated.

There’s only one problem: she’s nine years younger, convinced I’m not her type and doesn’t do relationships. She doesn’t even hang around in the same city beyond a few months. Trouble is, I want her permanence right next to me—on the couch watching movies and in my bed on lazy mornings.

I’m ready to chase her, no matter where she goes or how quickly she hits the accelerator. This girl is a ride I never want to get off.

Total Shutdown

How to complicate your rookie season in the NHL: fake date your former college rival and now teammate’s ex-girlfriend.

It’s a bad idea, and I know it, especially since Kendra Hart has had a hold over me since our freshman year of college. She has no idea how I feel, and I have zero control over my mouth when her life goes up in smoke and she needs a friend, along with a place to stay.

My coach, who also happens to be my stepdad, is warning me to stay away not only for the team's sake but to spare me from getting hurt. I should probably listen to his advice. However, taking the simple route has never been my thing. And with every “fake” look, touch and kiss I give her, I think she might be starting to like me for more than just my British accent.

I’m starting to think this might be my best idea yet…
What to expect:

Pro Hockey MMC x Pro Soccer FMC

Golden Retriever x Black Kitten

Rival Teammate’s Ex

Fake Dating

He Falls First & Hard

Forced Proximity

Ruth Stilling

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