My name is Hudson Newgate, but my teammates call me "New Guy". That was my nickname in Chicago, too. And Vancouver. That’s what happens when you keep getting traded. Brooklyn is my last chance, especially after my poor performance last season.

My path to success never included an enemy as a teammate, especially one as infuriating as Quinton de Haas. Clawing under my skin is his favorite pastime, only feeding the animosity between us as the years pass. We’re as completely opposite as two people can be; the golden boy and the black sheep. Constantly at odds or at each other’s throats. The only thing we can agree on is hockey is our true love, and we’ll do whatever it takes to come out on top. I never imagined that drive would lead me to do the unthinkable: falling into bed with my not-so-straight rival.

Charles Preston Carmichael is the most infuriating man I've ever met. I want to sock the golden boy of college hockey right in the mouth. He enjoys telling me everything I'm messing up—publicly. And since he's my roommate for the next year, I can't avoid him. Yet there's something about him that makes me watch him. Something dark. A secret I want to uncover. When he returns from a weekend away, broken and haunted, I can't keep my distance anymore. He needs someone, and I'll be damned if it's not me.

When it comes to hockey, I'm all about the game. I've worked for years to be one of the best in the league, and l've done it without splashing my orientation all over the tabloids. My hockey image is one I've carefully cultivated, and after one night with Ezra Palaszczuk, I risk it all. He's cocky, obnoxious, and has an ego bigger than Massachusetts. And okay, maybe he's the sexiest man I've ever known. We'll never get along. Not when we sleep together. Not even when my possessive streak awakens. That doesn't stop us from falling into bed together over and over again.

For Landon Stackhouse, being called up from the Calgary farm team is exciting and terrifying, even if, as the backup goalie, he rarely leaves the bench. A quiet loner by nature, Landon knows he gives off strong “don’t talk to me” vibes. The only player who doesn’t seem to notice is Calgary’s superstar young winger, Casey Hicks. Casey treats Landon like an old friend, even though they’ve only interacted briefly in the past. He’s endlessly charming and completely laid-back in a way that Landon absolutely can’t relate to.

As a founding member of The Vers, a queer podcast I host with my three best friends, I’m "The Loner"—quieter than the others, and except for them, I don’t let myself get too close to people. Most of them just let you down anyway, or maybe it’s just that something about me chases people away.

My loser high school friend never deserved him anyway. If I’d had the chance, I would have locked Remy down years ago. Only, when the party leads to a drunken kiss, going on their honeymoon, and sharing their marital bed, I have to say, I’m not entirely sad that their wedding went up in flames.

"Look out for Zach, and don't hit on him." My brother's request sounds easy enough. Keep an eye out for his best friend on campus and keep my hands to myself. Easy. Even if Zach is a quintessential nerd, who I've always thought was cute, I don't have the time to think with my...stick. There's only one stick I should be focused on this year, and that's my hockey stick. My goal once I graduate is to get an NHL contract. The last thing I need is a distraction. On or off the ice. Only, keeping to the rules is harder than I thought it would be.

I’m Logan Lewis: popular, charming, and athletic. All the girls love me. Yep, I’ve really got it made. Then I find myself in danger of failing my chemistry class and losing my sports scholarship. I know the only person who can save me is the smartest science tutor on campus. Theo Reign is brilliant. He’s also cold, antisocial, moody, and mean. He looks at me like he hates me, but touches me like he wants me. There’s something just beneath the surface that draws me in. His secret pain mirrors my own, and I suddenly find myself craving him.

I like to party; to have a good time. Life’s too short not to. I learned that when I lost my grandpa. He told me to have fun while I can, and I intend to. Though sometimes when you’re having a good time, you forget others may see you as irresponsible. And sometimes you screw up. I’ve definitely screwed up a time or two, but I’m still determined to have fun. I’m hoping I’ll convince my best friend, Camden, to do the same along the way. He’s too serious. Too focused. Too busy taking care of everyone to just relax. And that’s where I come in.

Payne. In search of: Room to rent. Must ignore the patheticness of a 40-year-old roommate. Preferably dirt cheap as funds are tight (nonexistent). There’s nothing sadder than moving back to my hometown newly divorced, homeless, and lost for what my next move is. When my little brother’s best friend offers me a place to stay in exchange for menial duties, I swallow my pride and jump at the offer. I need this. I also need Beau to wear a shirt. And ditch the gray sweatpants. And not leave his door ajar when he’s in compromising positions...

I have to stop replaying the one night I spent with my rival. Trouble is, that white-hot encounter with the other quarterback answered a lot of questions I’ve had about myself, but it also led me into this mess where he hates me. I never showed up for our second date. Since, well, life happened, and the worst part is he’ll never know how much that night meant to me.

Kyran Harbor is everything I'm not. Rich. Popular. A superstar football player who's awfully broody for someone who has it all. Basically, he's a preppy jock who hates me. Oh, and he's also my stepbrother. That's right. We're stuck together, sharing a school, a house, a bathroom. Honestly I wouldn't care if he wasn't such an uptight control freak who messes with me just because we're different. I had every intention of avoiding him when we got to college. Until abrupt misfortune forces us both into a compromising position.

I’ve had a crush on my brother’s best friend since the moment I laid eyes on him four years ago. Warner Ramsey is 225 pounds of pure hotness, a media darling, and one of the best NFL quarterbacks in the league. Hell, he’s the reason I figured out I’m solidly bi. It was easy to keep my crush under control when I was in college. Now, we play for the same team, and every time he talks smack, I want to shut him up. With my mouth.

Being invited to my cousin’s wedding really shouldn’t be a big deal except, oh yeah, I haven't seen my family for a decade. My parents turned their backs on me, and I’ve done everything since to become successful and show them what they've lost. Only it’s kinda hard to be a success when you’re a walking trainwreck.

Earning a full scholarship to King University was my hard-earned ticket out of hell. I'm happy to be away from the small town I grew up in. King was going to be my safe haven. A place where I could leave the old me behind and finally grow into the young man my family had desperately tried to hide away. Diving head first into new experiences, new friends, and parties, I didn't expect to run straight into the one thing I wasn't ready for.

Five years ago, I walked away from Sunbury, Oregon, and left my best friend behind. The move was supposed to get my life on track. I even had a list: Life changing epilepsy surgery. Check. See the world. Check. Get over my straight best friend... Not exactly. No matter where I go or who I meet, I can't let Tanner go. I'm back to tell him how I feel. To get the closure I need once and for all. Only now I'm here and falling for him all over again, it's getting harder to say the words. Because once I have my closure, I'll be gone. And this time it will be for good.

When I showed up at my roommate's work party, the last thing I expected was to find a man straight out of my dreams. But when the crowd parted and the fates aligned, there he was, waiting for me. Marcus St. James, president of ENN WorldWide News. Sexy and powerful, with a stare that could freeze you in place, Marcus was the perfect reward for securing a job at Mitchell & Madison, the best law firm in Chicago. To play with the big fish, however, one must become a big fish, and that's where my little white lie began.

As the captain of the Chicago Aces, Marc Dupuis is all business. The apartment he shares with his teammate and best friend, Duncan, is a refuge from the pressures of fame. But when the sexiest woman he's ever seen interrupts his early morning coffee wearing only a skimpy cami and matching panties, Marc can't exactly say that he minds. Their chemistry is off the charts. Unfortunately, this girl's no random puck bunny. She's Duncan's little sister, and she's moving in.

Being an identical twin doesn't come without issues. No one can tell us apart, not even our parents sometimes. We don't usually use that to our advantage, but it comes in handy when my brother needs help breaking up with his boyfriends - which happens more than I'd care to admit. I know it's enabling him, but I can't say no to Anders. I will do anything for my twin. The breakups always go the same; they're swift and simple. Until Reed. When I give in to temptation, it's not because he's a guy. It's because he thinks I'm my brother, and I can't bring myself to tell him the truth.

After an injury forced Theo Wynn to give up professional hockey, he turned to his second love: numbers. Now, as the general manager of his grandfather's NHL team, the Los Angeles Condors, Theo is dying to prove to the rest of his family - especially the brother who betrayed him - that he's just as successful as the rest of them. If only Theo had a gorgeous woman on his arm to complete the picture... Lacey Olson needs to get out of Las Vegas right now, thanks to her no-good, crooked brother. When a handsome stranger comes to her rescue, they strike up a conversation.

Kelly Cannon is satisfied with his life. He has friends, a wonderful family, and a great job. But his love life has reached a new level of pitiful. Why? Well, his heart decided to break all the rules. Don't fall in love with a straight guy. And definitely don't fall in love with your best friend. NFL standout Britton "Blue" Montgomery has pressure coming at him from all sides. When Kelly admits he's in love with Blue, bonds are tested, and Blue has to decide what's really important.

Julian was the boy next door. My brother's best friend, he fit with my family in ways I never could. While he and Rhett went on to play house, I left the only life I knew, desperate for a fresh start. Until everything changed. Heartache came along, and the aftermath of my brother's death was here to stay. I was now face to face with Julian more than I ever wanted to be. Being around him brought up all my insecurities, forced me to deal with hard truths, and conjured up feelings I had no business entertaining. He wasn't the man I thought I knew.

Most people called it a cult. But for 20 years, Josh and Caleb called it home. In Paradise, there is no television. No fast food. Just long hours of farmwork and prayer on a dusty Wyoming ranch and nights in a crowded bunkhouse. The boys of the Compound are kept far from the sinners' world. But Joshua doesn't need temptation to sin. His whole life he's wanted his best friend, Caleb. By day they work side by side. Only when Josh closes his eyes at night can they be together the way he craves. It can never be.

Troy: Of course I fell for a football jock. But Jackson and I are polar opposites. He's popular, confident, and as hot as hell in a tight T-shirt. Me? I'm just a scrawny, awkward nerd. Another point of difference: He's straight.

It's a cliche really, falling in love with my best friend, my very straight best friend. And to add more complications, I'm a football player, about to be drafted. We're manly men. We aren't supposed to be gay. But I am and I love the one person I'll never have. Until fate forces us together six years later. It'll be both a fantasy and hell on earth, playing along Crush - the only man who will ever truly own my heart.

Faking a relationship with an injured hockey player had never been on Eliot's to-do list. When he's sent by his editor at Cocky to interview the newly out hockey legend Danny Harper, though, he gets a little more than he bargained for. Eliot has been stuck writing a men's fashion and grooming column that no one reads since he started at Cocky - a men's lifestyle magazine - a year ago. Desperate to prove himself, he takes the assignment to interview Harper, even though he couldn't necessarily hold a hockey stick the right way up in an emergency.

At 34, veteran catcher Jake just wants to finish out his contract and retire. His team doesn't have a prayer of making the playoffs, but who needs the stress anyway? Jake lost his passion for the game - and life - after driving away the man he loved. He swore he'll never risk his heart again. Then he's traded to a team that wants a vet behind the plate to tame their new star pitcher. Jake is shocked to find the gangly kid he once knew has grown into a gorgeous young man.

Harley: What happens when the most successful boy band on the planet breaks up? How about 20,000 fans screaming my name. But the price of fame comes with an increased risk to my safety. I've been avoiding the dreaded B word for as long as I can, but after a close call with a rambunctious fan, I can't do it anymore. It's time to give in. I need to hire a full-time bodyguard. And when he shows up, he not only screams badass, he's another B word I try to stay away from: boyfriend material.

Veteran goaltender Eric Bennett has faced down some of the toughest shooters on the ice, but nothing prepared him for his latest challenge—life after hockey. It’s time to make some big changes, starting with finally dating men for the first time. Graduate student Kyle Swift moved to New York nursing a broken heart. He’d sworn to find someone his own age to crush on (for once). Until he meets a gorgeous, distinguished silver fox hockey player. Despite their intense physical attraction, Kyle has no intention of getting emotionally involved.