OMG THE MOMENT HAS FINALLY ARRIVED! YASSSSS! This was one of my most highly anticipated reads, and with all the teasers that Hannah posted I was brimming with excitement and ready to dive into Maddox and Braxton’s story! Reunited with my favorites from Oakley, Ava, to TYLER BATEMAN! Gracie,Cooper, and some of the other children, yeah I was over the moon happy at being thrusted back into this world of hockey, as well as being introduced to the second generation of the children. With hockey galore, reunited old friends to enemies to lovers, and a whole brunch of goodness oozing from the pages, I was extremely happy and it was the highlight of my life while reading!

The last time I “saw” Braxton and Maddox was when they were teenagers in, “Vital Blindside”, which is part of the Swift Hat Trick series, which by the way I would HIGHLY RECOMMEND READING! Ahem, as I was saying, Braxton and Maddox were best friends since they were kids, always together, but something happened that caused them to drift apart. Years later, Maddox now twenty-six and one of the most successful hockey players on the Vancouver Warriors team, he was famously known, and focused on his career. Braxton, also twenty-six was now a veterinarian with her own clinic and spending her days treating animals like she always dreamed of. Braxton and Maddox hadn’t seen each other in a few years, but with the tabloids spinning a false story about Maddox, as well as Braxton’s father taking the opportunity to try to ruin Maddox’s career, it seemed like the only viable option was to get Braxton to help Maddox out… by pretending to fake date him! 

Maddox and Braxton had to pretend to fake date in order to help with Maddox’s image/ reputation, and with that it seemed inevitable that they would have to spend time together, getting to know the new changes in their lives, etc. With the belief that Braxton was part of her father’s schemes in the past, Maddox dealt with trust issues, especially when it came to Braxton. That being said, when it comes to fake dating we all KNOW the real feelings were bound to come out, and my goodness did I have lots of fun seeing Maddox and Braxton get all their feelings out in the open between the tension filled moments they shared that had me gasping!

I will say that I loved seeing the flashbacks to when Maddox and Braxton were teenagers! Like there were plenty of amazing moments one of my favorites being when Maddox showed the framed picture of Braxton he had in his room, and WHAT HE SAID TO HER IN THAG MOMENT! OMG! I LOVED IT! THIS MAN WAS OBSESSED WITH BRAXTON AHHH! I LOVED IT! Safe to say, I was swooning and adoring the inner thoughts Maddox and Braxton had about each other in their minds. Like, come on, you couldn’t expect me not to fangirl over the things Braxton thought about Maddox or even how Maddox went out of his way to spend any and all time with Braxton NO MATTER WHAT?? (Sigh) yeah I was a sucker for all of the sweetness that was embedded in this story. *me swooning and twirling around with glee. 

From the moment I started reading this book, I knew right away I was in love. I mean, even before reading I had a feeling this was going to a hit, and the way Maddox and Braxton were together was phenomenal. I’m an absolute sucker when I read about a fictional man being protective and possessive over his woman, and that was exactly how Maddox was with Braxton. Even more than that, Maddox was so obsessed with Braxton that I loved reading the things he said to her such as, Maddox telling IN DETAIL just how beautiful Braxton was. A lot of the things Maddox said and did was highlighted through his actions and dang, he kept raising my expectations to the point my jaw dropped, and was blown away. Braxton was such a lovely character, and to see her at odds with her confidence at times made me sad for her, but with Maddox as her own personal hype person, she felt comfortable, at ease, and downright sexy with the way he was eyeballing her, and wanting her all to himself. Together, Braxton and Maddox were chef’s kiss, and I was equally obsessed with the both of them. 

Yes this review just keeps going and going, but in my defense… THIS BOOK IS JUST SO FLIPPING FANTASTIC I CAN’T CONTAIN MYSELF! (Sigh) just when I finished reading such a swoon worthy moment, I read something else and next thing I know I’m having to momentarily take a pause in order to fangirl and scream to my delight! Example A) MADDOX’S TATTOO! Example B) THE DIRTY TALK COMING OUT OF MADDOX’S MOUTH (GASP) HAVE MERCY! And example C) The banter between Braxton and Maddox was the perfect combination of their friendship and now romantic relationship. 

*slow claps, feeling so overjoyed. Wow, this exceeded my expectations in the best way possible. Maddox and Braxton were the best, and again I absolutely adored both of them. From childhood friends with long held crushes on one another to finding their way back to each other with a fake dating agreement, Maddox and Braxton were bound to end up together because, they were each other’s soulmates. I loved the relationship between Maddox and Braxton from when they were younger all innocent and in love to seeing them as full on adults filled with passion, desire, and an overflowing amount of love bursting between them. Maddox was every bit of the man just as his parents the loving Oakley and Ava. Maddox was equal parts protective, strong, possessive, and all kinds of sexy that I wasn’t expecting, but definitely loved. Braxton was so sweet and lovable that I could see myself being friends with her, and her personality shined through out the story. This book had so many amazing qualities that I legitimately cannot express how fantastic they were. I loved the ending, and of course THE EPILOGUES WERE MAGICAL! (Sigh) I won’t spoil it, but just know when you read them, you’ll know why I was all happy and giddy and feeling the love as I read Maddox and Braxton living their best lives. That being said, I loved this story, and as always I’m in love with Hannah’s books. I’m not a sports girly, but with authors like Hannah, I’ve grown to wanting to learn about hockey in real life. Cheers to an amazing book, and to Maddox and Braxton getting their happily ever after!