Showing results for "The Book of Ruth" in Sports

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 she 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.

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.

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.

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.

Apparently, she loved me, but that still didn't stop her from doing what she did. And frankly, I'm done with relationships, and I'm done with searching for love when it has no interest in finding me. After the hit I took last season, I plan to focus on rehabilitation and getting my mind back into the game I've loved for so many years. I don't need distractions, and I don't need another woman in my bed or my head. I've got enough complications to last me a lifetime.

My whole life, I've come out on top. One of the finest players ever to grace the NHL? Check. Most prolific playboy with an enviable reputation between the sheets? Check. Award for the cockiest athlete in America? Also, check, and well deserved I'd say. So why does my life feel anything but the perfect image I project? And why won't the one woman who came crashing into my life and knocked me on my six-foot-four a-s take me seriously?