Assassins (Aleo) Series

No matter how hard she tries, Elleanor Fisher never thinks she's good enough, from her job to her weight to her love life. After enduring years of abuse at the hands of an ex-boyfriend, Elli has been drifting through life in a daze. Until, that is, she meets Shea Adler on a promotional shoot for the NHL's Nashville Assassins. Before Elli knows what's happening, the gorgeous Shea breaks the ice and shatters her world. A brilliant athlete inside the rink, Shea Adler is tired of the life he's living outside of it: the women, the money, the drinking. But everything changes when he meets Elli. After laying eyes on this feisty, witty, beautiful woman, he feels like he's just taken the hardest hit of his life. No matter how skeptical she is, Shea knows they are meant to be together-if only he can convince Elli to put her insecurities aside before she misses out on a shot at love.

Down and out with an injury, Assassins defenseman Jordie Thomas has been forced away from the sport that runs through his veins. With his life crashing down around him, he's given an ultimatum. Ready or not, Jordie is forced to face his past, the fears that consume him, and the one woman he let walk away. Kacey King had her professional dreams come true, yet her heart was battered and broken. With an Olympic gold medal around her neck, she's ready to look forward to the future but without the one man she wanted in it. In the game of life, there are winners and losers, and neither Jordie nor Kacey wants to be on the losing bench. With emotions running high and the game on the line, can two proud people find happiness with each other, or will their hearts and souls be left in the cold?Contains mature themes.

Fallon Parker's dream has always been to turn her family's wine company into a runaway success and eventually start a cellar of her own. Since graduating from college, she has worked relentlessly to make that dream a reality, especially after taking a chance on love-and losing. By the time Fallon becomes an official sponsor of the Nashville Assassins, she feels like all her hard work is finally paying off. And then the man who broke her heart skates back into her life. On the ice, Lucas Brooks is the NHL's leading scorer-at least when he's not in the box. Off the ice, he's a mess, with all his anger and misery bottled up inside. He threw away the most important person in his life and has regretted it ever since. But when Lucas returns to Nashville in a trade, he's determined to convince Fallon that he's a changed man. The attraction is still there. The tension is electrifying. But the odds are stacked against them-especially after Lucas finds out that Fallon has been keeping a devastating secret.

Audrey Parker is up against the boards. She's stuck in a job she hates and pining for a total jerk. Meanwhile, her sister Fallon is moving out and getting married to hockey star Lucas Brooks. Where is Audrey's Prince Charming? Nothing she does has ever seemed to be good enough for any of the men in her life. Audrey's about to hit rock bottom . . . until she wakes up next to Tate Odder. The thrill of moving up from the minors to the Nashville Assassins was a welcome distraction. But not even becoming the first rookie goalie to tally three shutouts in the Stanley Cup finals alleviates the pain. With the loss of his parents and sister weighing as heavily on his soul as ever, Tate Odder can't keep pretending he's okay. That's when he meets smart, sexy Audrey. Her gentle warmth and quirky sense of humor make him feel whole for the first time in too long. But to stay that way forever, Tate must find a way to accept his past and learn to live for love.

Markus Reeves is sucking. Big-time. Toiling away on a minor-league hockey team hundreds of miles away from home, he's watching his dreams of an NHL career fade away. Add in the lingering guilt he has over the dramatic demise of his relationship with college girlfriend, Mekena, and he's a mess on and off the ice. But the family of his heart, the Sinclairs, won't let Markus suffer any longer. When he arrives himself back in Nashville for a trial run on the Assassins, it feels like his life may be making a turn for the better. If only he could get Mekena to forgive him . . . Mekena Preston has been hurting since fleeing Nashville following the horror of Markus's betrayal with her sister. Now a professional photographer, Mekena finds herself in the same place at the same time with Markus to celebrate Lucy and Benji Paxton's wedding. Neither of them has been able to move on-and they're starting to wonder if they really want to. They're headed for a face-off at the altar unless they can confront their past and unearth the truth about what really happened on that fateful night.

Nine years ago, things were perfect. Lacey and Karson had found their happily ever after in each other . . . or so they thought. How do two people who were meant to be move on from that once-in-a-lifetime love? Lacey has a strength inside her that comes alive with the things she's most passionate about. She's a fighter and a survivor, and she has everything she's ever wanted except the one thing that matters most-love. Karson is doing the one thing he loves most-playing hockey for the Assassins-yet he knows regret. He knows his life has been missing the one thing he walked away from so many years ago: Lacey. Nine years later, and neither has been able to succeed in moving on from what was, what could have been, and who each of their hearts still beats for. When a chance encounter during a fateful night has their paths crossing again, will the tether still attaching their souls allow them to face the past, present, and a possible future?Contains mature themes.

The instant Piper Allen sees Erik Titov, she wants him-wants his rock-hard body, sure, but the strength and mystery that lie behind that superstar hockey jock demeanor, too. So when he sidles up to her at a bar and slinks his arm around her waist, she's lost. What follows is the wildest night of her life . . . followed by inevitable heartbreak the next morning. And then, a few weeks later, a very big surprise: two blue lines on a pregnancy test. Only a check to the head could make Erik fall for a nice girl like Piper. But since their crazy-sexy night together, he's been trying to forget about her by falling into bed with every woman in Nashville, and it's not working. So when Piper shows up at his house with a baby-bomb to drop, it doesn't take much for Erik to suggest the nuclear option: marriage. While it's supposed to be all for show, the second they say "I do," the ice between them starts to melt into sizzling steam. Contains mature themes.

When Nashville Assassins center Phillip Anderson's sister dies, he becomes guardian to his very angry sixteen-year-old niece, Claire. He soon discovers that the only thing that seems to heal her lonely heart is dance class. After having her heart broken in New York, Reese Allen comes home to Tennessee determined to make her dance studio one of the best in the state. When she sees Claire dance for the first time, she knows that the girl is bound for greatness and takes the troubled teen under her wing. Using dance as therapy, she suddenly finds herself bound to the young woman . . . and to her hot-as-sin uncle. Soon, Phillip and Reese are more than willing to spend just one night tangled in the sheets. One night turns into two, and two turns into three, until they find themselves in a repeated dance of "One Last Time" that has the potential to be something more . . . if only Reese and Claire would allow it. Can Phillip find a way to thaw the hearts of both the women in his life, or will he be forever trying to break them away from their pasts?Contains mature themes.

After serving as a dutiful bridesmaid in the wedding from hell, Aynslee Shaw just wants to slink home to Nashville and forget the whole trip. That is until the hottest guy she's ever seen is seated next to her on the flight and charms her with his easy laugh and killer smile. But just when she thinks things are getting good, he vanishes, leaving Aynslee wondering, was that guy the one? And did she just let him slip through her fingers? Former superstar goalie Jordan Ryan is back on the ice-finally. After a crippling knee injury that had him wondering if he'd ever play pro hockey again, he's got his full attention on rebuilding his career. So a pretty-okay, beautiful-girl on a plane shouldn't be a distraction. But Jordan is very distracted. And when Aynslee crosses his path again, he's not sure any job in the world is worth missing his second chance with a woman like her. Contains mature themes.

Jensen Monroe is a unicorn. As handsome as any model, as polite as can be, a goalie of unmatched skill, and the best friend anyone could ask for. But he longs for a particular special someone to make his life complete. He's been in love with Wren since he was a teenager, but as his best friend's sister, she's always been off-limits. Wren Lemiere has prided herself on being a love 'em and leave 'em girl her whole life. She's all about equal opportunity in the battle of the sexes. Why should guys like her brother and his best friends get to be the only ones allowed to play the dating game? One wrong move, however, and she finds herself in violation of her own rules. In need of a fake husband and baby daddy for her unexpected bundle of joy, Wren finally accepts Jensen is the logical one to ask for help. Except he has a counteroffer . . . one with so many strings attached, they may just find themselves wrapped up in ties that bind. Forever.

Join Lucas and Fallon along with Tate and Audrey, as they await life-changing gifts; Erik and Piper, and Phillip and Reece, who have decisions to make that could lead to exciting developments in their lives; and Claire, as she makes a Christmas wish and choices for her future. Spend Christmas morning with the Adler family, and see what the New Year has in store for Karson and Lacey, as well as Kacey King. The King family faces significant changes and resolutions that will leave listeners alternately cheering and maybe a little heavy-hearted . . . all wrapped up in a big bow. Contains mature themes.