We were childhood friends, me and the boy who would grow up to become Hollywood's hottest star. When I was six, I fell for him at the bus stop. When I was 15, he moved away, taking my heart with him. When I was 24, he came back for me, even though I didn't want him. The nine years we spent apart, I tried like hell to fill the void. Apparently, so did he. Instead of being addicted to me, he became addicted to women, drugs, and money.

She's forbidden. I'm her doctor. She's my patient, my only patient. She's alone and in trouble. From the moment I see her, I know she's special. As a resident, I've spent years living and breathing hospital life. Then she comes into my ER, and my need to help her is all consuming despite the consequences. Even knowing I could lose everything I've worked for, I can't stay away. How far will I go to protect her?

Fastballs. Fast cars. Fast women. They are how I've learned to cope. But then life throws me a curveball. I may never play the game I love again. Then I meet her. She represents everything I've lost - in the best and worst of ways. She may be the only one who can get me back in the game. And I'm not just talking about baseball.  

Baylor didn't know what true love was when she arrived on campus for freshman orientation. Enter bad boy soccer player Gavin, who was all too happy to take her on that journey. Everything was perfect....until it wasn't. He didn't realize what he lost. She didn't know love could be so cruel. One day...one moment...one letter. One lie. That's all it took to change the course of their lives.

It was my home run ball that shattered her face. Right along with her modeling career. Now it's my mission to help her rebuild her life. And get her to love the game that she hates. The game that dictates my life both on and off the field. But when the lines of our friendship become blurred, I worry she'll just be another casualty of my three-strikes rule. The rule I have to protect my money, my future, my heart. No girl has ever broken it. I've never wanted one to. Until now.

He knew she was shattered by some event she kept hidden under lock and key. The clues on her body failed to reveal her secrets - unlike scars on his body that clearly publicized his. The clock was ticking, giving him only a short time to uncover the true meaning of the flower branded into her flesh. Because if she got back on that plane, he knew it would be forever.

The first time I met Hudson Rothschild was at a wedding. I’d received an unexpected invitation to one of the swankiest venues in the city. Hudson was a groomsman and quite possibly the most gorgeous man I’d ever laid eyes on. He asked me to dance, and our chemistry was off the charts. I knew it wasn’t a good idea to get involved with him, considering the wedding I was at. But our connection was intense, and I was having a great time. Though the fun came to a screeching halt when Hudson figured out I wasn’t who I’d said I was.

Unemployed. Check. Zero prospects. Check. An eviction notice in hand. Check. Life in shambles? Check. Check. Check. Desperate to avoid living on my sister’s couch, I took a job in the one place I shouldn’t. That's where I first saw him. Drew Lawson. Elusive bad boy. Owner of the hottest club in the city. And apparently my new boss. 

I don’t want you. You mean nothing to me. I never loved you. I turned my words into swords. And I cut her down. Shoved the blade in and watched her fall. I said I’d never hurt her and I did. Years later I’m faced with all the little lies, the untruths, the false realities, the damage I inflicted when all I wanted was to indulge in my obsession. Lavender Waters is the princess in the tower. Even her name is the thing fairy tales are made of. I used to be the one who saved her. Over and over again.

I hired her to be my girlfriend. To fix my reputation. To save my career. It's not that I don't want a girlfriend. I do. I want it all. Wife, kids, side-by-side burial plots. The problem is - I can't have any of it. So I've made myself untouchable. The quintessential bachelor of baseball. Because it's not worth the risk. Not even for someone I love. Especially not for someone I love. We made the arrangements. We agreed to a contract. It's iron clad. No sex. No love. No future.

Cutler Ryder was everything I wasn’t. He was the hockey star. I was an outcast. He was best friends with my stepbrother, that same stepbrother who hated me. His two parents loved him. My mom was a junkie. My dad barely knew me. Years passed. I got my life together. Cut went onto NHL stardom. Then there was a text. 

This job comes with benefits. I knew that from the moment I laid eyes on her: Summer Sorensen, party queen, super-hot DJ, and soon-to-be rock star. She’s sexy, sassy, strong. But she’s in danger. I know she doesn’t want to hire me. She doesn’t want to need me, but she does. And this job is getting more complicated by the hour.

I play guitar. I create music. It’s all I ever wanted to do. But I’m in a rut. I’ve lived under the shadow of my past for so long I can’t see a future. Then she falls into my life. And suddenly, all I can hear are riffs, melodies, and beats. She’s my muse - my inspiration. She’s exactly what I need to get me back into the groove. But will she accept my invitation?

Music is my life. It’s kept me breathing. Even when I couldn’t eat, sleep, or sing, I could still write songs. It’s the only thing that has saved me from going crazy. Until the day Reckless Alibi decides to hire a girl. Suddenly, everything from my past comes rushing back to me. And now she’s there. For every rehearsal. Every show. Every moment. Every song. We were supposed to be a boy band. Now everything has changed. I’m still breathing...but I’m sure as hell no longer sane.

I'm the wrong guy for her. She's sunshine and cherry pie. I'm whiskey and fast cars. I'm also keeping one hell of a secret from the woman I've wanted for years. But when I find a list my sister left behind for Ruby, I've got no choice but to offer the sexy, big-hearted girl next door both a road trip and a chance. A chance to discover how big she can dream.