Starting over was never part of the playbook.
On the eve of his retirement from the NHL, Ty Hudson met a woman he never forgot—and lost her just as quickly. One night. Immediate sparks. Terrible timing.
Three years later, Ty is back in Linwood, adjusting to a life that looks nothing like the one he planned. His days are split between reviving the Mayhem Hockey Club and tending to a rescue farm full of misfits, each one in need of a second chance. And then came Junie, the eight-year-old next door who needed one too. Loving her is easy. The thought of losing her is unbearable.
Daisy Winslow never expected her life to unravel all at once. Within hours, she’s without a job, without a home, and grieving the sudden loss of her sister. She arrives in Linwood determined to find something good to hold on to, starting with bringing her niece home. To her surprise, Junie is already safe, loved, and living with the one man Daisy never forgot.
That spark reignites, even as grief makes everything heavier. Daisy is barely holding herself together. Ty is risking his heart—for her and for the family he never knew he wanted.
But this time, he isn’t walking away.
🌼 Grumpy x Sunshine
👨🏻 Single Dad/Guardian
❤️🩹 Healing from Grief
🏠 Forced Proximity
🔥 Slow Burn → Scorching
🐓 Farm animal chaos
🏒 Found Family
Ty and Daisy meet, the first time, on the night he retires from the NHL. He is a little lost, a little unsure on what he is going to be doing next, and more than willing to spend a little time avoiding making those decisions. I think anyone who has ever made a big life decision knows how it feels to finally be facing the decision, even if it was your idea, and feeling a little at a loss for where to go next. The idea of putting that off, even for a night, is appealing to Ty and I related to this.
Daisy is new in the city and at the start of a new era in her life. They have one night together, they don't exchange names, and life goes on. I think the idea that she would be ok with putting off starting that new life to spend the night with a man she was attracted to makes a lot of sense.
The story takes place three years after their initial meeting, after a lot of life happens, and when both of them are again at a crossroads in their lives. Getting into it specifically is a major spoiler, but it works out perfectly that they had the connection from the past that works it's way into the present.
The writing style does lend itself to shorter sentences, which at times did make it feel like it jumped from scene to scene, but not enough to ruin the story for me, just something I noticed.
