Wallflower

He's the grumpy hotshot hockey player. She's too shy to look him in the eyes. He needs a live-in summer assistant, and she's perfect.

Chord Davenport is the hottest, surliest man to ever slap shot a puck. He's given up everything to be the best—family, friendship, love—but he's about to retire as a legend of the game, and that makes his sacrifices worth it.

Violet James wanted to be the next big name in bridal couture, not a junior marketing executive for the San Francisco Fury hockey team, but her salary pays her dad's therapy bills, and leaving him behind to chase a selfish dream would cost her too much.

When Chord hires Violet as his summer assistant, he's certain this pretty wallflower won't give him any trouble. But when she moves into the house he built on his family's California ranch, Chord can't take his eyes—or his hands—off her.

All he wants is to love her, protect her, satisfy her, and give her the courage to follow her heart. He didn't expect to feel a desperate need to become a better man.

In just one summer, Chord and Violet change each other forever, but will living their dreams be the very thing that tears them apart?

Wallflower is a grumpy/sunshine steamy small town romance with an HEA. It's the first book in the Aster Springs series and can be enjoyed as a standalone. Tropes include: pro hockey player with a ranch; forced proximity (boss/assistant and roommates); man obsessed; slow burn.