The Friend Face Off
by Grace Worthington
(Love on Thin Ice, #3)
Publication date: September 12th 2024
Genres: Adult, Comedy, Contemporary, Romance, Sports
Getting involved with your brother’s best friend is risky enough. But when he’s a hockey player? It’s a whole new level of bad idea.
As a ravenous reader, I’ve got a secret: I’m obsessed with hockey romances.
But let me tell you, real life hockey players are nothing like my book boyfriends.
So I threw down the gauntlet on BookTok. I challenged any single guy out there to prove me wrong. Can a real hockey player be as romantic as the ones in my favorite stories?
Enter Dawson Hayes, a goalie with a point to prove and my brother’s best friend. He’s confident he can win me over and take me on the most romantic date of my life.
But there’s a catch: for me to accept, I have to pretend that he’s my fake boyfriend. Now everyone in my small town thinks that Dawson and I are having a fall fling. Even if it’s a fling that can’t last.
Worst of all, I’m starting to believe this fling is real. I’m falling for my brother’s best friend.
DAWSON
The first time I met Emmy, her brother warned me to stay away. As hockey teammates, that made her totally off-limits.
But now I’m back in Emmy’s small town to play in a charity hockey match, and I can’t resist her dating challenge: to find out if any man can be more romantic than the book boyfriends she adores.
Emmy and I are both fiercely competitive, and I’m determined to win her over.
When the moment of truth comes, the chemistry between us turns into something neither of us expected:
A romantic face-off between friends who are insanely attracted to each other.
Now, I’m out to prove to her that you should never judge a book by its cover—or a hockey player when it comes to love.
The Friend Face Off is part of the Love on Thin Ice sweet small town hockey romcom series. It’s a brother’s best friend, closed door hockey romcom with fake dating, friends to lovers and You’ve Got Mail vibes. It’s a small town romance with all the sizzle and chemistry, but none of the spice.
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Enjoy this peek inside:
“She can’t go with you,” a voice growls behind me. I spin around to see the hockey player’s steel gaze locked on the jerk who’s asking me out.
“Why not?”
“Because she’s going to the party with me,” Dawson replies without looking at me.
My breath catches. I’m caught between a guy who makes angry hives break out on my body, and one who makes my heart feel things I shouldn’t.
“Is this true?” Stewart asks me directly.
I pause, then look at Dawson. “Yes, he’s my date,” I say, even though I know this is a bad idea. Because once it’s out there, I’m committed. I’ll have to date my brother’s best friend.
I make myself move closer to Dawson and give his arm a pat, only to realize I’m touching what feels like a boulder. Seriously, no man should be walking around with biceps that huge, even if he is holding a coffee carrier with four cups. Either the man is working for a food delivery service in his spare time or consumes coffee at an alarming rate.
Dawson’s eyes trace over my workout wear. His mouth quirks at the corner. “Good run?”
I nod and thread my fingers through my knotted ponytail.
“You were always so fast,” he says.
How does he know this?
“Oh, right,” I laugh. “The night I tried to leave you behind at the party.”
I glance up at him and I’m immediately mesmerized by his eyes. He’s not my usual type—his hands are calloused from hockey. He’s rough and mysterious and his hair looks amazing without any effort. Plus, he’s always ready with a hockey pickup line that’s so cheesy it actually circles back to charming.
I need an emotionally sensitive man who reads books and quotes my favorite parts. Not someone who punches people in the face for a living. Of course, there was that one time he quoted Jane Austen. And he did buy my favorite romance book at the store. What kind of man does that?
My eyes trace over his frame. Dawson’s got that tall, dark, and muscular look. Put him in flannel and he’d be a sexy lumberjack. The image of Dawson in flannel with an axe stirs a funny feeling in my chest.
I can’t date a hockey player. He’s my brother’s best friend. That’s double the trouble.
And I just agreed to a fake date with him.
The Friend Face Off is a
brother’s best friend
closed door hockey
fake dating
friends to lovers
You’ve Got Mail vibes.
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About Author Grace Worthington:
Grace Worthington eats, breathes, and geeks out over sweet romcoms. So it’s no surprise that she believes that laughter and love are a cure-all for pretty much everything in life. After a short stint working in musical theatre (where she was often cast in comedic roles), she instills her books with witty banter, lovable characters, and a story that moves your heart and soul. Her inspiration includes quaint towns by the beach, romantic comedy movies from the ’80s & ’90s, and the crazy shenanigans of her family. Snag a free sweet romcom at graceworthington.com
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