Cinder Adair’s life shattered in a single night. A child died in the ER—and when the attending physicians lied to save themselves, the blame fell squarely on Cinder, a burned-out pediatric nurse already drowning under grief and impossible expectations. With his reputation ruined and every hospital door slammed shut, he takes the only job he can a low-pay medical assistant position with the disgraced Colorado Dragons hockey team. It’s not the career he trained for. It’s not the life he wanted. But it’s a place to hide… and a chance to breathe again. Taranis Rees knows exactly what it feels like to be discarded. At thirty-seven, the veteran goaltender is aging out of the league—one hit away from forced retirement, one mistake away from losing the last identity he has. Quiet, lonely, and painfully shy off the ice, he never expected to care about anything except hockey. Then he meets Cinder. The soft-spoken, guilt-haunted new medic sparks something fierce and ancient in Taranis—something he’s kept buried for years. Something with scales, fire, and the instinct to protect what’s his. When the press starts digging into Cinder’s past, painting him as a killer, Taranis—usually the gentlest man on the team—goes scorched earth. He stands between Cinder and the world, shielding him with a fury no human goalie should have. Because Taranis isn’t just fighting for a teammate. He’s fighting for the man who quiets the storm inside him… the man his dragon has chosen. But as the truth behind the ER cover-up resurfaces—and Cinder’s enemies close in—both men will have to decide whether hiding can ever lead to healing… or whether it’s time to step out of the shadows and fight for the future they never believed they deserved. Two broken souls. One protective dragon. A love born from ashes… and ready to burn the world clean.