Jax Malone would take a puck to the face any day. But his best friend's betrayal? That hurt.
As a defenseman for the Katahdin Wildcats, Jax lives by three rules: play hard, never get attached, and always have his best friend's back. But when team captain Vince Mayes, his brother in all but blood, orders him to throw a playoff game to cover gambling debts, Jax refuses... and pays the price.
Overnight, hockey's golden boy becomes its most hated villain. The media brands him a locker room cancer. His teammates turn their backs. And the only creature that still tolerates him? A battle-scarred feral tomcat who steals his steak, destroys his furniture, and against all odds becomes the one thing keeping him from total self-destruction.
But hitting rock bottom shows him who his real friends are. Like Ryan Hargrove, the team enforcer who risks his career to stand by him. And Molly Finch, the sunshine kindergarten teacher who sees the man behind the bad-boy reputation. Even the scrappy alley cat who becomes his unlikely anchor.
This isn't just a story about hockey. It's about brotherhood betrayed and redemption earned. About a playboy's secret heart and the stray who teaches him to trust again. About how sometimes you have to lose everything to find what really matters.
Tropes: Brothers-to-enemies, "Who hurt you?" hero, One emotionally adopted feral cat, Hockey romance that'll wreck you in the best way
Warning: Contains male tears, a feline dictator, and a friendship breakup so brutal you'll scream into your pillow (before the hope puts you back together).
Get ready for a heaping helping of autumn coziness and swoon-worthy instalove in Maple Falls with this sweet hockey instalove romcom!
Chloe Hart, the fiercely independent owner of The Cozy Bean and reigning pumpkin spice latte queen, has sworn off dating, especially athletes, after being burned in the past. But when the charmingly persistent Theo Callahan, star center for the Maple Falls Lumberjacks and a total golden retriever off the ice, walks into her café, all bets are off.
Their meet-cute is a delicious disaster. Chloe accidentally baptizes the gorgeous hockey star in a tidal wave of pumpkin spice. For Theo, it’s love at first spill. He’s instantly smitten by the flustered but funny barista who’s completely unimpressed by his fame. Despite Chloe's best efforts to resist the dazzling smile of Maple Falls' most eligible bachelor, Theo's relentless charm and genuine kindness begin to melt her guarded heart.
As hockey season heats up, so does their unexpected connection. But can Chloe, a regular girl with a thriving small-town coffee shop, navigate the grueling schedule and public scrutiny that comes with dating a famous athlete?
When an article questions her motives, labeling her just another "puck bunny", Chloe must decide if she’s ready to step into the spotlight for a love that feels like a one-shot goal.
Filled with funny, lighthearted moments like Theo bribing Chloe's judgey cat, Biscuit, and Chloe giving him ridiculous fake names on his coffee cups, Puck, Love & Pumpkin Spice promises a sweet and hilarious journey as opposites attract in a charming small town where everyone knows everyone.
Will Chloe finally let down her walls and embrace a happily ever after with the golden boy of hockey, proving that sometimes love is just a spill away?
He’s hockey’s most notorious grump. She’s all about happy endings. Together, they’re rewriting the rules of love.
Tessa Monroe believes in grand gestures, slow burns, and happily-ever-afters, the kind she sells at her indie bookstore, Once Upon a Bookshop. But when Liam O’Connor, the brooding, granite-jawed goalie of the Maple Falls Lumberjacks, crashes into her world mid-losing streak, Tessa’s fictional fantasies get a real-world rewrite.
With a scowl sharp enough to slice open shrink wrap and a reputation for shutting out both pucks and people, Liam is the last man she’d cast as a romance hero… until he accidentally wins her Literature Bingo Night with encyclopedic knowledge of Pride and Prejudice.
Challenge accepted.
Liam’s idea of a good time? Silence, solitude, and zero distractions. Not a fiery bookseller who dares him to read a romance novel… or her.
But when Tessa bets him a book club date against his grumpy pride, something unexpected happens.
Between her lethal wit, maple latte wizardry, and the way she sees past his armor to the soft center he forgot he had, Liam’s starting to think Tessa might be the only playbook he needs.
But love isn’t a game. Or is it?
As bonfires crackle and snow falls over their quirky Vermont town, their opposites-attract chemistry starts melting more than just marshmallows.
Liam trades his goalie mask for late-night bookstore raids and defends Tessa from rude customers and her own self-doubt, while Tessa drags him into chaotic book debates and invents a “Hockey Hero” cocktail that goes viral.
Just as they begin rewriting each other’s endings, the weight of Liam’s past, and the pressure of a big game, puts everything on ice.
Tessa’s willing to risk her heart. But can a man who lives for shutouts ever let love in?
Perfect for fans of grumpy x sunshine romance, bookish banter, and cinnamon roll athletes in disguise.
Includes:
Grumpy goalie x sunshine bookseller banter
A bet that backfires (or does it?)
Small-town charm, swoony gestures, and a judgmental cat named Biscuit
Roasted marshmallows, viral cocktails, and a love story that’s worth the overtime
Fall for the goalie who’s bad at love… but great at proving he’s worth the risk.
Tropes You’ll Devour:
Grumpy x Sunshine
Small-Town Romance
Opposites Attract
Meet-Cute Chaos
Secret Softie Hero
Found Family Vibes & Book Club Shenanigans
Read it now—before this grumpy goalie steals your heart and refuses to give it back.
He’s skating on thin ice. She’s slipping on soap. Together, they’re a perfect Valentine’s disaster.
It’s February, the height of a cozy Vermont winter, and Lily is focused on the biggest soap-selling event of the season, Maple Falls’ beloved Valentine’s Market. The last thing she needs is to trip face-first into the dazzling eyes and mischievous grin of the hockey world’s most notorious playboy. But one disastrous puck-meets-soap mishap later, her practical heart is sliding helplessly onto dangerously thin ice.
Soon they’re teaming up to host charmingly awkward Valentine-themed soap-making fundraisers, sizzling social media feeds, and trading playful banter that warms even the snowiest winter day. The more Lily discovers the unexpectedly sweet heart behind Jax’s penalty-box reputation, the harder she’s falling for Maple Falls’ bad-boy-on-skates.
But as Jax struggles beneath the weight of past mistakes and small-town skepticism, a collision with his former team threatens to crash their romance headlong into the boards. Lily must make a choice. Play it safe and stay on the sidelines, or risk her heart for a man determined to prove he’s worthy of love.
Filled with laugh-out-loud soap catastrophes, hilarious hockey hijinks, swoony Valentine’s charm, and enough warming chemistry to melt all the snow in Maple Falls, this cozy, romantic comedy will leave you rooting for Lily and Jax’s happily ever after.
Grab your mittens, whip up some bubbly, and lace your skates. This Valentine’s romance is about to glide right into your heart!
Tropes you’ll adore in this heartwarming romantic comedy:
🏒 Instalove (heart-skating attraction at first sight!)
🧼 Quirky soap queen falls for lovable hockey troublemaker
🏒 Sweet, funny small-town romance & winter coziness
🧼 Adorable Valentine-inspired soap-making dates that endearingly go wrong
🏒 Fun, teasing banter from teammates and irresistible community charm
🧼 Swoon-worthy gestures and heart-melting declarations
🏒 Heartfelt redemption arc with cozy emotional depth
🧼 Guaranteed Happily Ever After sparkling with snowy magic
Your next favorite romance is waiting, with ice skates, soapsuds, and all the hearts, and it’s causing quite the stir in Maple Falls!
He doesn’t say much, but when he looks at her, it’s like she’s the only thing that’s ever made sense.
A heart-melting instalove hockey romance where one look changes everything and fate doesn’t wait around.
Nora Wilder isn’t looking for love. She’s too focused on launching her dream physical therapy clinic in small-town Maple Falls, where everyone knows your business and your coffee order. She likes plans, structure, and keeping her heart right where it’s safe.
Then Ethan Ashford walks into her office. Quiet, brooding, and painfully gorgeous, the pro hockey defenseman isn’t used to being seen off the ice. Until Nora. The second their eyes meet, something shifts. Something real. Something immediate.
He’s the kind of man who doesn’t waste words, but when he looks at Nora, it’s with the weight of everything he’s never said. She’s the only one who sees through the armor, and the only one who makes him want to stay. In a town where gossip spreads faster than wildfire, Nora and Ethan’s connection ignites like a spark to kindling. Instant. Intense. Undeniable. But with their worlds pulling in opposite directions, and past scars threatening to undo what’s barely begun, they’ll have to choose. Fight for something that feels like forever … or walk away before it ever really starts.
In Maple Falls, love shows up without warning. Ready or not.
If you love protective heroes, fierce heroines, and instant chemistry that turns into forever, this hockey romance is for you.
Tropes in Slapshot to My Heart:
Instalove
Grumpy x Sunshine
Small Town Romance
Protective Hero
Heroine with a Caregiving Profession (Physical Therapist)
Man of Few Words, Eyes That Say Everything
Found the One Without Looking
Mutual Pining, One of Them Just Doesn’t Know It Yet
Emotionally Safe Hero / Soft on Her
Close Proximity + Small-Town Gossip Mill
Cozy Vibes with Heat and Heart
Love at First Sight but Neither of Them Knows What to Do With It
Fated Love / Meant to Be / “Written in the Stars” Feel
He’s a gruff, rule-bound coach. She’s a polished negotiator who rewrites the playbook. They’re strictly business … until her brother’s small-town wedding forces them off the bench and into a game neither saw coming.
Natalie Callahan thrives on control. She knows how to navigate tough conversations, lock down million-dollar deals, and keep things strictly professional. Especially with Coach Frank Davidson, the grumpy, set-in-his-ways taskmaster who pushes all her buttons … and not in a good way. Their “professional disagreements” are legendary.
But when Natalie returns to Maple Falls for her brother Theo’s wedding, everything shifts. Away from the rink and under the twinkle lights of small-town chaos, Frank is suddenly less infuriating and a lot more intriguing. Turns out, beneath the scowl is a man with loyalty, passion, and an off-limits appeal that’s getting harder to ignore by the day.
Frank knows better than to blur lines with the smart, stunning woman who negotiates his roster. But wedding toasts, forced proximity, and the simmering tension they’ve been ignoring for months? That’s a game-changer. And with the team betting on when they’ll finally cave, it’s only a matter of time before sparks fly in the most inconvenient, unforgettable way.
In a town where everyone’s watching and love plays by its own rules, can a grumpy coach and a headstrong agent find common ground off the ice? Or will pride, fear, and a few too many opinions from the peanut gallery cost them their biggest win yet?
✨ Tropes you’ll love:
Grumpy x Polished
Enemies-to-Lovers
Forced Proximity (hello, wedding chaos)
Small-Town Shenanigans
Age Gap
Team Betting Pool on the Romance
Secret Softies & Hidden Depths
He Falls First… but Denies It
She Negotiates Everything, Except Her Feelings
Instant What Is This Feeling Vibes
Big City Woman vs. Small Town Man Energy
Hockey Coach Who Looks at Her Like She’s the Whole Rink
He avoids soap like it’s a penalty box. She needs his star power to save her theater. When a charity photoshoot forces them together, their hearts might be the ones getting cleaned out.
Autumn Hayes escaped Hollywood betrayal to restore Maple Falls’ historic cinema. Her carefully planned grand reopening doesn’t include falling for the town’s beloved hockey star, especially one who flinches at a bubble bath.
Sven Eriksson, the Lumberjacks’ Swedish sensation, has mastered every hockey play except handling fame. When his teammates volunteer him for a charity calendar to save the local theater, there’s just one problem, his bizarre soap phobia threatens to humiliate him in front of the entire town.
Their deal is simple. Autumn will help Sven overcome his fear before the bubble bath photoshoot, if he’ll use his local celebrity status to promote her theater’s reopening festival.
As October leaves fall around them, late nights watching classic films and hilarious “soap exposure therapy” sessions create an intimacy neither expected. But when a local gossip blog twists their private sessions into scandal, and career opportunities threaten to separate them, the final period is ticking down on their chance at forever.
Will they take the penalty or score the winning goal for their hearts?
Return to the town readers can’t get enough of with this heartwarming finale to the Maple Falls Lumberjacks Hockey Series. One-click today for all the autumn vibes, small-town charm, and the happily-ever-after fans have been waiting for!
Maple Falls Lumberjacks Hockey Collection: A Sweet Hockey Instalove RomCom Full Series Collection
Small town. Big hearts. Instant sparks.
Six closed-door hockey romances bursting with swoony kisses, cozy vibes, and love-at-first-sight magic now in one binge-worthy set.
Welcome to Maple Falls, a quirky little town where the coffee is strong, the gossip flies faster than a slapshot, and the Lumberjacks hockey team is always a heartbeat away from falling head over skates in love.
In this complete collection of sweet, heart-melting romances, six hockey heroes meet their matches in the most unexpected (and hilarious) ways. From coffee shop chaos to soap-slicked collisions and bouquet bodychecks. They may be stars on the ice, but off it? These guys are falling fast, fumbling hard, and ready to prove they’re in it for forever.
Inside this set, you’ll find:
A golden retriever hockey star smitten after a pumpkin spice catastrophe
A grumpy goalie who secretly knows his way around Jane Austen
A notorious bad boy and a soapmaker who team up for the world’s worst Valentine’s fundraiser
A rule-bound coach and his favorite sparring partner stuck together at a small-town wedding
A brooding defenseman who finds peace in a woman who sees him—truly sees him
And one more surprise couple who prove love doesn’t follow a game plan
These sweet, closed-door romances are filled with delightful heroines, grumpy x sunshine pairings, instant attraction that turns into true love, and all the cozy, small-town magic you crave, with just enough steam to keep you swooning (and nothing you'd be afraid to recommend to your mom).
Six books. Six HEAs. Zero cliffhangers. All the feels.
Whether you’re here for the judgmental cats, maple lattes, or the quiet heroes who fall the hardest, Maple Falls is calling. And love? It’s always in season.
Amazon
The Maple Falls Lumberjacks Hockey Instalove Romance Series
