When I lost my mom, I thought the worst was over. Moving to Sun Valley to live with a father I barely know is punishment all over again. I need to survive the year, then leave this town behind. Roman Valdez has other plans. Star receiver. King of the school. The Devil in cleats. From day one, it's his mission to ruin me. Except something about his actions doesn't add up. One moment, he's tearing me apart. The next, he's stepping in, protecting me like I belong to him.

For years, I've dreamt of what college life could bring, and while some things changed, there was always one constant. It didn't matter how wild I allowed my imagination to run, it always led me to the same place in the end. It led me to him. My future was clear, and he was it. Until suddenly, he wasn't. Now there's a new man in my life, one who isn't afraid to go after what he wants, and what he wants...is me.

I know her as the unconscious girl I found bleeding out on the locker room floor. I got her help. I saved her life. The next time I see her, she makes it clear she wants nothing to do with me. Too bad. I didn't go through the trouble of saving her life just for her to throw it away again. She doesn't know it yet but I'm about to be her new best friend.

I was supposed to be attending a friend's birthday party, not used as bait to lure out the elusive Holden Hayes. Holden was the last thing I needed. My life was already spiraling, a slow-moving head-on collision that you couldn't swerve to avoid. In hindsight, so was his. Neither of us was looking for a relationship, but that is precisely what we found. An instant, all-consuming, soul-deep connection that few people ever find.

At eight, he gave me roses. At fifteen, he gave me butterflies, and at seventeen, he gave me sanctuary. I wasn't a damsel in distress. He wasn't Prince Charming waiting to whisk me off my feet. We didn't meet by chance. He's been part of my life for years, and for most of that time, I've been under his spell.

On the ice, college hockey star Tyler is a god, but to me, he's a remorseless devil. After shattering my heart and scarring my soul, he thinks he can arrogantly skate back into my life. I'm not fooled. He doesn't love me; he doesn't want a second chance. He wants to control me. This is all just a twisted game to him. And I know he's keeping secrets

You know that post-vacation glow? Where you’re all sun-kissed and optimistic and determined to make changes in your life? Well, mine lasted for about five minutes. Until I walked into the office and saw Myles Salinger sitting in my boss’s chair. One look at his scowling face was enough to make me want to fly straight back to Europe. And no, he’s not getting any of the donuts I brought in for the team. He doesn’t deserve them. You see, on paper, he’s my contemporary. In reality, he’s been my workplace nemesis for the last two years.

His name starts with a H. So does happiness. Heartbreak. Home. Hoops. All things I associate with him. Ever since my family moved in across the street when we were both kids, Holden Adams has been that guy. My first crush. My former confidante. My best friend's brother. He's the highest of highs and the lowest of lows. I love him. I hate him. One of those is a lie. I'm just . . . not sure which.

Bianca Chopra. Gorgeous. Forbidden. My past obsession. When she propositions me for a sham marriage, I say no with a warning to stay away. Like a dirty vixen, she raises the stake, reawakening the forbidden feelings, and I find myself throwing caution to the wind. She thinks she'll walk away unscathed but doesn't realize she made a deal with a monster with a secret that will wreck her entire world.

My reputation at Fairview University preceded me. I was the projected number-one pick in the NHL draft and the fan favorite at the rink. People wanted to be me or be with me. Except for Lyla James Marichal. She didn't look at me like I was her next meal. She eyed me with disdain. Instead of vying for my attention, she ignored me and pushed me away. She was completely unattainable, and I became obsessed with her. When I finally got her, it felt like I was on top of the world. I was going to help the team win another championship, going into the draft, and had Lyla by my side.

I loved to hate her...She made it so easy. She was everything I wasn’t - everything I didn’t want to be. A reminder that from the moment I was born, I was the outcast. The rebel. I went against everything that was expected of me and created a life on my terms. I built my own empire, carved out my own destiny. Then she shows up at my tattoo studio, representing everything I tried to escape. She expects to just fit in...like she ever could. The posh girl trying to prove everyone wrong...that she can be something else - someone else. She hates me because she knows I’m right.

Bon Jovi. Bryan Adams. Presley West. My favorite men of music. Only one of them within reach. The night before Presley West was due to leave our small town of Hollings Hill, all of my high school fantasies came to life. He finally wanted me. Eight years I'd spent pining, and now I, bartending Tessa Lisbon, was going to make damn sure I made that night count before the music industry stole him. Never screw your idols. That's what they say, right? Well, I did, and I did it well. So well, I somehow managed to screw my own heart in the process.

I think I always knew I was going to die young. Like I had this… silent, invisible clock ticking down to my final moments plastered above my head. Maybe that’s why I was so reckless, crazy. Why I sought after adventure. Why nothing scared me… Except, there was always this… feeling I couldn’t shake that something was in the darkest parts of every corner, under every bed, closet, or room, like a ghost watching me. Waiting to take me. My own, personal reaper. But it was always only during a lightning storm that I could see the outline of my reaper. No scythe.

I don’t remember a time when I didn’t love Rhett Walker, which is complicated since he’s ten years older and my brother’s best friend. After a falling out, we didn’t speak for years—until today, when he found me sleeping in my car, threw me over his shoulder, and dragged me “to safety.”

Greer always dreamed she'd have a life filled with love, laughter, and her own Prince Charming. But life showed her, time and again, that fairytale endings only exist in the movies. Or do they? When Greer flies to Vegas for her brother's wedding, she's reunited with Ryder Gray, the one man she ever dared to believe in. But after he ghosted her eight years earlier, she learned the hard way that Ryder is no different from the rest of them. Or is he?