All Sophia ever wanted was for Ashton Maverick to notice her. But he was best friends with her older brother, Patrick, and a hockey star. There was no chance in Hell he'd be interested in her. But when Sophie moves back home for the summer and runs into Ashton for the first time in two years, things start to change. Between stolen glances and secret hookups, they begin to fall deeper in love with each other. But Sophie has something bigger to worry about than her big brother finding out about their secret relationship. Find out more in Hockey Baby by Ariel Hughes 🏒

At just a few months old, Myra was stolen in the dead of night; torn from her father, her brothers, and her twin. Escaping the orphanage, surviving the streets, and blind to the people that 'saved' her, Myra didn't just endure. Myra clawed her way out, and she burned everything in her wake to ashes. Seventeen years later, she's not just alive. She's powerful. Dangerous. Untouchable. Myra built her empire from the blood she's bled, the blood she's spilled, and secrets she'd kill to protect. It's not just her identity she's concealing - it's the cracks. She's back. But she's not the little sister they imagined. Can she keep everything hidden when a twist of fate drops her into the lap of her so-called family?

Donatella Winters: Spellbindingly beautiful. Effortlessly smart. Not the most popular but friendly with everyone she comes across. Darius Ford: Painfully gorgeous. Shining star of the hockey team. Reigning at the top of the high school food chain. At school they don't know each other. She knows of him, of course she does, but he's never even heard her name. Or so he believes.

Sugar's addicting. So is she. Graham Davis has two addictions: Hockey-and Gracie Daniels. (Not that he knows it yet.) At St. Brown University, Gracie Daniels is the golden girl. Blonde ponytail, perfect smile, always saying yes. So when she's asked to manage PR for the hockey team, she agrees-hoping to help thaw their notoriously icy captain. But Graham Davis doesn't melt. He's distant, guarded, and doesn't need help from a pink-sweater-wearing perfectionist... until he starts noticing things he shouldn't. Skipped meals. Covered bruises. Flinches too small to be accidental. Gracie is sweet, bright, and hiding more than anyone knows. And Graham can't stop looking.

[WATTY'S 2026 SHORTLISTS] Sophia Honey never expected college to mean sharing an apartment with her childhood nemesis. ~~~ Freshman Sophia Honey never imagined her brother would stick her with Theo Gray-his best friend and her childhood nemesis-as her roommate. But things get complicated fast. Theo, with his shirtless mornings, flirty remarks, and those intense stares, pushes all of her buttons. Just when Sophia thinks she can handle their awkward living arrangement, she discovers he's not just popular-he's one of the hottest seniors on campus. And as the star of the hockey team, his status skyrockets, forcing her to tread carefully around him to avoid drama. But drama comes knocking When Sophia lands a side gig with the seniors in her photography department to make some extra cash, she doesn't expect her first assignment to be Theo Gray shirtless in front of her camera. She definitely doesn't expect him to say yes with that smug grin-and one condition. What he wants in return? Not money. Something else. Something dangerous. As the photo sessions begin, so does the unraveling. Their banter becomes charged. His touches linger a little too long. Her defenses are violently slipping. ​Then comes the night the mask shatters. When Theo stumbles home drunk, his eyes glassy and his defenses down, he confesses a truth that breaks every version of him Sophia thought she knew. ​Gone is the boy who teased her growing up. This Theo is raw, complex, and beautifully broken in places she never noticed before. ​Suddenly, Sophia wants things she never dared to dream of. His kisses. His hands on her skin. His body-yes-but also his secrets, his pain... him. What started as a paycheck has become a dangerous line they can't stop crossing, forcing her to realize the most terrifying truth of all: ​What if falling for Theo Gray was the real assignment all along?