I slept with my best friend's boyfriend…

… the night after her funeral.

(Faust had been mine long before hers, but that's a whole other story.)

It's been years since that forbidden night.

So why does it matter now?

(Because the guilt is killing me…)

And also because Faust should meet his son.

Am I really going to potentially mess up my entire life for some college hockey player?

* * *

The short answer? Yes.

The long answer? Keep reading.

I never intend for it to happen.

To catch feelings for someone like Jax.

(Especially considering I was still sort of with someone else…)

I don't know what to say.

Jax kind of just keeps appearing.

When I need someone? He's there.

When I find myself in possible danger? He's there.

When I want to go to some cheesy horror movie and my now ex would rather drink with his friends?

Jax shows up.

It's not that simple though.

My ex has a dark secret.

A dangerous secret.

I should have just kept pushing Jax away.

It would have been better for all of us.

Safer too.

This is more than just finding the right guy at the wrong time.

This is more like everything going wrong… and my heart is far from being in the right place.

Knox is supposed to the guy who helps me get out of bad dates… not the guy who gets me pregnant!

But. Here we are.

Two lines on a pregnancy test confirm my new reality.

Hi. I'm Willow. I'm in college. And I'm pregnant by the star goalie of the Puckford Pirates.

You know Knox, right?

Big. Strong. Passes out at every ultrasound appointment.

How did we get here?

I'm not giving the birds and the bees talk.

Let's just say Knox saved me from an awful date and I thanked him in a special way.

And now we're having a baby.

Between the intense morning sickness that lasts all day and the sudden appearance of the baby bump, Knox and I have grown closer, but we both stay far away from labeling what we are.

Knox is poised to get drafted as soon as possible.

We can't have a baby on campus.

I'm sure he'll be a good father.

But I can't help but want to know…

What about me?

Do I get a shot at Knox's love?

Or will he play goalie and block me out, leaving me wishing for a rebound?

A single mom working as a lifeguard.

An injured baseball player caught up in a social media scandal.

PIPER

My days consists of getting my son ready for school, dealing with my bird obsessed neighbor, and monitoring a handful of elderly women during their aquatic aerobic class.

So what's my reaction when my boss tells me some famous baseball player is going to need to use the pool at his disposal and I'm the one who has to accommodate his every need?

Cursing. Attempting to quit.

I don't care how popular or rich Cutter Buckley is, he's in my town and he's trying to use my pool.

He can try the nice guy act all he wants when he helps me get my car fixed when it won't start, or hang out with my son in an arcade… but I know better.

He's only here for a short time. Yet every second spent near him feels more and more like uncontrollable temptation.

CUTTER

My entire career has been built from controversy. So when a video goes viral involving me giving an autograph and a car crashing with rumors that caused it all on purpose, my agent suggests I disappear and let things blow over.

I end up in a small town with the sole purpose of using the indoor pool to continue my rehabilitation for an injury that's kept me off the baseball field for far too long.

I'm used to getting boo'ed. I'm used to being the bad guy.

So when I meet the lifeguard at the pool and she's colder than an icy road in winter, it doesn't bother me.

She's also stunning. She's mean. Fierce. Did I mention she's beautiful?

The more I learn about Piper, the more I want. The more I crave. The more I desire.

Another scandal begins to brew and what should be an easy decision to leave this small town is becoming one of the hardest decisions of my life.

Leaving Piper and her son behind feels impossible to do.

He was once sort of like a stepbrother to me. Now he's the father of my baby.

Ten years ago my mother moved me into a new house with her new husband and his son.

That boy teased and tortured me… but when I needed someone the most, he was there.

Cheating, divorce, and time tried to erase all those haunting memories, right up until the moment in my life when I need someone… someone like Colver. Someone violent. Someone fearless.

In exchange for his help, I give him the one fantasy he's always wanted: ME.

That's where it's supposed to end.

Until I see two lines on a pregnancy test and realize I've just entered the world of FOREVER with this dangerous hockey player, this bully, and the only man who can save me from myself.