What happens when the captain of the hockey team kisses you in front of his ex? Things get awkward. What happens when he asks you to be his fake girlfriend? Things get complicated. In the high-pressure world of varsity hockey at Wittmore U, being the team intern means more than overseeing grueling workouts and injuries. It's the colossal egos of the players that truly test my patience. Even if they did see me as something more than another locker room fixture created to tend to their bodies, my boss has made one thing clear: I’m off limits. All of that changes in a heartbeat when Reese Cain, team's womanizing captain, plants a surprise kiss on me in the campus coffee shop. Suddenly, I’m thrust into the spotlight, and not for my awkward charm. The captain, it seems, has ulterior motives—he needs to stay focused on the season, while convincing his ex that he's not available. Apparently, I’m the perfect pawn in his game. For someone who's more comfortable in hoodies than house parties, fake dating Reese is enough to bolster both my confidence and social status. But the longer we keep up the charade, and our barriers start to crumble, it’s hard to know what’s real and what’s fake. Especially how good he makes it feel to belong to him. Faking It with The Forward is a standalone, m/f, college, hockey, fake dating romance by best selling author, Angel Lawson.

“To new identities,” he declares, holding up his glass. “To no more epic f-ups. No more partying for me. No more athletes for you. Not until we get it together.” Little did I know that the night I made the deal with the tattooed, pierced, star goalie in the back room of a bar, that we were starting something—something we can't stop. Except he’s on probation, and I’m looking to change my reputation as a jersey chaser willing to do whatever it took to win the quarterback’s attention. We needed to change–but neither of us thought we could do it alone. But with Axel Rakestraw’s charming smile, it’s a good thing hockey player’s aren’t my thing. And even if they were, my roommate, who dates the captain of the team, told me that hockey players are off-limits. She’s probably right. People around me tend to get hurt. I tend to get hurt. Protecting things is what I do. The goal, my teammates, and now this girl. I’ve spent the last four years living my best life, knowing that once I graduate, my future belongs to my father’s ministry. No more partying. No more women. No more hockey. With my senior year and an undefeated season underway, I had no plans on slowing down, until the night I unwittingly consume a drink meant for Nadia at a party. The next day I fail a mandatory drug test at practice. Someone is out to sabotage us both. I can take care of myself, but Nadia? I’m not allowing someone to hurt her again, not on my watch. Can one of Wittmore U’s most notorious playboy’s and a blacklisted jersey chaser change their ways long enough to fall in love?

Book 3 of the series, Daring the Defender, following Axel’s sister Shelby, and his best friend, Reid, will be released next year.