Sign up now and get your free story!
The plan was simple – fake date the NFL bad boy. Falling for him was never part of the game.
Tanner Long is the NFL’s favorite disaster. Charming. Cocky. A highlight-reel wide receiver with a playboy reputation who’s one scandal away from destroying his career.
Unfortunately for me, he’s also the hottest man I’ve ever met. Tousled brown hair I want to run my hands through. Sparkling green eyes I could drown in. And strong arms that make me wonder what it would feel like to be carried away by him.
But when Tanner asks me out, I say no. I’m trying to build a serious journalism career — not become another woman linked to football’s biggest flirt. Besides, my small-town newspaper is barely hanging on by a thread, and I can’t afford distractions.
Then Tanner offers me a deal.
He needs a fake girlfriend to repair his reputation. I need an opportunity to prove I’m more than a small-town gossip columnist.
Simple.
We date publicly for the summer. He convinces the world he’s finally settled down. I get closer to the Steel City Seals organization and the chance to build my career.
Everybody wins.
There’s just one problem. Tanner Long is nothing like I expected.
Behind the goofy charm and reckless reputation is a man who loves deeply, hides his scars well, and makes me laugh when I least want to smile. The more time we spend together, the harder it becomes to remember this is supposed to be just a game we’re playing.
Because the rules were simple.
Fake date the football player.
Don’t fall in love with him.
The Game We Played is a spicy small-town sports romance featuring fake dating, football chaos, meddling teammates, a fiercely independent heroine, a wide receiver with a reputation for trouble, and a hero who falls so hard he throws a public groveling party to win his girl back.
Training camp brings all the Steel City Seals to Smuggler’s Hideaway at once, which means overlapping timelines, familiar faces, and football-player chaos. Read in any order.
He reaches the bar and slaps his hands down before aiming a smile my way. I barely hold back my eye roll.
“What can I get you?”
“Six beers and your phone number, darling.”
I don’t bother to hold back my eye roll now. “Darling?”
He smirks. “Women line up for me to call them darling.”
I bark out a laugh. “Are these real women? Or inflatable ones?”
He scowls. “I don’t use inflatable women.”
I snort. “Sure, you don’t.”
He puffs out his chest. “Don’t you know who I am?”
“I know who you are all right, Tanner Long. Wide receiver for the Steel City Seals.” He grins but I hold up a hand. “And the biggest player on the team. Not to mention a troublemaker whose name is in the newspaper more often for his shenanigans than for his ability to catch passes or score touchdowns.”
“Fake news.”
I raise an eyebrow. “You didn’t get fined for live-streaming from the locker room? Or what about the time you ruined a charity gala by turning the silent auction into a drinking game?”
“The fine was bullshit. I covered all the private parts of the men.”
“But did you ask their permission to stream them showering all over the internet?”
The livestream went viral. I confess I might have watched it a time or a thousand. His team members are sexy. Who knew they were hiding all those muscles under the uniform padding? I do now.
“They should have thanked me. Several of them got underwear endorsements as a result.”
I giggle. “You truly believe they should have thanked you, don’t you?”
He nods. “And the charity gala raised more money that year than ever before. They should definitely thank me, too.”
I shake my head. “You’re trouble in all caps and backlit with neon light.”
