One bet. One spark. One chance.
Net Bet, an all-new age-gap M/M hockey romance and the second book in the Buffalo Warriors Hockey Series from bestselling authors Ryan Taylor and Joshua Harwood, is now available!
Gabe
I’ve spent years as the Warriors’ goalie, holding the line under pressure. But off the ice, my life’s a disaster. After dating too many men who only saw me as an NHL trophy, I’ve sworn off romance—until Brody skates into my life. He’s newly traded to the team, ten years younger, and carrying the weight of the world.
I should keep my distance, but every stolen glance, every unguarded smile pulls me in. A playful bet pushes me to take a chance with Brody, though I’m risking more than my heart.
Brody
Being traded to Buffalo was supposed to be my fresh start, an escape after my old team turned on me. Now, I have one goal: keep my head down so I can play hockey.
Enter Gabe: confident, relentless, and far too good at breaking through my walls. I can’t let myself want him. But when he’s around, I forget every reason I should walk away.
One spark turns into something neither of us can ignore. But will falling for each other be the ultimate win—or the one loss we can’t afford?
Net Bet is the second standalone in the fantastic Buffalo Warriors Hockey series. It
features a bisexual defenseman with a traumatic past, a lonely goalie looking for love, and found family in the form of a nosy yet supportive hockey team. Packed with high heat, dirty talk, first times, forced proximity, angst, an age gap, and a hard-earned HEA, this story delivers all the feels.
Start reading today!
FREE in Kindle Unlimited
Amazon: https://amzn.to/3B3arxU
Add Net Bet to Goodreads: https://tinyurl.com/nbrtjhgr
Keep Reading for a look inside Net Bet!
My feet pounded the dirt path, each step slamming out the frustration I couldn’t escape. The lingering heat was unusual for Buffalo in mid-September, making it feel like summer refused to let go. The woods around me were beginning to shift—hints of gold and orange creeping into the green, with a few colorful leaves dotting the undergrowth like scattered confetti. Sweat trickled down my forehead, stinging my eyes as I pushed myself to keep going. I focused on my breathing, forcing it into a steady rhythm, even though my lungs burned with the effort.
At the eight-mile mark, I ground to a stop, gasping for air. My legs were on fire, and my heart thundered in my chest. In one fluid motion, I stripped off my soaked tank top and bent over, hands on knees, struggling to catch my breath. Running had become my way to cope, but today, it had done nothing to silence the noise in my head.
How had my life, which looked so perfect to others, become such a mess? I was drowning inside, wondering if I’d ever find someone to be with long-term, if there was anyone out there who could want me for being me. After years of dating guys who only wanted to use me for publicity—and maybe so they could brag about being fucked by a hockey player—I was done. No more dating, no more sex. Instead of fucking my nights away with guys ten years younger and half my size, I now stared at the ceiling all night, wondering how I could feel so alone and unlovable at thirty-two.
As my pulse settled, footsteps approached, accompanied by an odd jingling sound. A small black dachshund trotted up, his tags clinking together as he sniffed and licked my shoes.
A voice came from up the path. “Leave him alone, Otto.”
The dog ignored the command, and I straightened up to greet Otto’s owner. My breath caught again, but this time it had nothing to do with the heat. The guy standing a few feet away was drop-dead gorgeous—a shock of blond hair catching the light, piercing blue eyes, and a physique that looked like he’d come straight from the gym. It took a few seconds to recognize him—Brody Tanner, the new D-man who’d been traded to the Warriors over the summer. He was younger than me, and much more put-together than I felt at the moment. Something stirred inside, and with a shock, I recognized it as my “guy response.” Finally, I was reacting to someone who wasn’t just another pretty boy barely out of college whose life revolved around an Instagram feed full of selfies and product recommendations. But fuck, Brody was a teammate. A teammate who, if rumors were true, might be open to a relationship with a man.
“I tried to speak, but no words came out. What was I supposed to say? I couldn’t exactly ask him to step behind a tree with me. My thoughts spun wildly before slamming to a halt when I caught his expression—wide-eyed and slack-jawed, like he’d stumbled into something he wasn’t meant to see.
Brody had been one of the hottest rookies in the league a couple of years ago, and since we’d met at the All-Star game back then, he probably recognized me now. But if he did, why was he gaping at me like he was afraid I might bite? Eager to convince him I wasn’t a criminal on the loose, I offered what I hoped was a reassuring smile. “Hi, Brody. I’m Gabe Donovan, the Warriors’ goalie.”
He managed to widen his eyes even more before nodding. “I know who you are. Uh… How’s it going?”
His unexpected behavior made me unsure of how to respond. “Am I in your way?” Ugh, that was stupid, considering I was standing in the middle of the trail.”
He shook his head, but his gaze remained focused on my chest. Was he bothered because I’d taken off my shirt? It was too wet to put back on, and I wasn’t exactly flashing him. You don’t get to be a professional hockey player without spending most of your life in locker rooms, so he’d seen guys take off a lot more than their shirts. I tried again. “Everything okay?”
Jerking his head upward, he barely made eye contact before looking away. “Y-yes. I’m… I’m just hot.”
He was hot as hell, all right, but I couldn’t go there. Instead, I chuckled and waved a hand at my sweaty body. “Me too, obviously.”
For more information about Ryan Taylor and Joshua Harwood’s books, visit their website: https://www.ryanandjoshth.com
