Desire or Defense: A Hockey Romance (D.C. Eagles Hockey Book 1)

Name: Desire or Defense: A Hockey Romance (D.C. Eagles Hockey Book 1)
SKU: 164205
Availability: InStock

4.1 | 9,731 ratings

Price: 4.99

Last update: 02-28-2025

About this item

**Now a top 50 Amazon best seller!**

I’m not the hero in this story.

I’m the villain...

The notoriously angry, grouchy, D.C. Eagles defenseman that just can’t keep his temper in check. The temper that leads to a fifteen game suspension from the NHL.

As if that’s not bad enough, I'm forced into a short term youth-hockey coaching gig. Which my manager swears will “rebuild my image.”

But what I didn’t expect was for a gorgeous, spunky blonde to stomp onto the ice on day one and lecture me about being rude to her little brother.

Something about this spitfire of a woman, and the boy she’s so protective of, has my defenses melting.

And if I’m not careful, I’ll burst into flames, forever melting the ice I’ve carefully kept around my heart.

(This is a closed-door romcom with mild language. Trigger warnings include: parental substance abuse & dealing with grief/loss of parents).

DESIRE OR DEFENSE

FIVE STAR REVIEWS

“Such a great, swoony yet not explicit, grumpy/sunshine romance, absolutely adored the world, the writing, the characters, and the romance. The romance is to DIE for!!” ~ Sarah Santay, Amazon reviewer

“Absolutely amazing closed door hockey romance. Left me with a book hangover for days- in the absolute best way!” ~ Jennifer, Amazon reviewer, Vine Voice

“I absolutely loved Mitch & Andie's heartachingly beautiful, sassy, sweet, caring, loving, swoony story!!!!” ~ Lissa Ruck, Amazon reviewer

WHAT TO EXPECT

Grumpy/Sunshine
Enemies to Lovers
Hockey Romance
Little Brother's Coach
Closed Door Romance

Top reviews from the United States

Britt98

This Book Was Amazing!

Reviewed in the United States on April 6, 2024

I am loving this series! I listened to Flirtation of Faceoff first. Then I read Passion or Penalty, followed soon after by listening to the audio version. Now I have listened to Desire or Defense. Wow! That audio narration was amazing. The deep voice for Mitch was perfection.

I don't want to choose a favorite book in this series as each one has its own reason for being a favorite of mine. So, I will just say that this entire series is moving quickly up into a top spot as one of my very favorite series.

Mitch and Andie were such great characters, as was Andie's brother, Noah. I had hesitated to read this book for a while, simply because I wasn't sure if I would be able to like Mitch. I figured that I would, but was hesitant because he really was an intimidating character in the other books. However, I very quickly fell for Mitch empathized with and all that he had been through in life. I admired what he had achieved and felt for him in his struggles with anger and self control. The author did an amazing job of showing his growth and change, while still also showing that he was a work in progress.

Andie and Noah were wading through grief throughout this entire book. It was nice to see them begin to pull themselves up and out of it a bit. Yet, the author did a very good job of showing that they still were easily pulled under at times.

The romance was beautifully swoony and there were some great laugh out loud moments in the book, as well. (I'm thinking about a certain audio book and bath scene!!! I could not stop laughing!)

I loved this story and know that I will want to listen to this one many times.

fizzleswim

Surprisingly Good Sports Romance

Reviewed in the United States on September 14, 2023

This is a well written book. The characters are so lifelike that the reader gets drawn right in to the story. The plot flows smoothly and there's no egregious editing errors to interrupt the flow.
The book has it all. Good plot, believable characters, laugh out loud moments, thoughtful moments, a few sad ones, some sappy, and a happy ending.

CWirk

Very cute!

Reviewed in the United States on January 4, 2025

I appreciated the clean language and no sex scenes. As much as I can love some good bedroom romance, this was a fantastic break! The author did a great job unraveling the tough MMC and I loved the story.

Camy Jo Weber

fantastic read

Reviewed in the United States on January 10, 2025

I absolutely loved this book.
Yes it’s a hockey romance but oh my lanta it is so much more than that.
Andie is now her brother Noah’s legal guardian since their parents passed.
They are trying to figure out this wild new life they have.
Mitch is a professional hockey player with a bad temper and sad childhood with trauma.
This book had so many wonderful and beautiful scenes in it. Just so much more than a hockey romance.
Absolutely wonderful

Treez

Great read and my first time reading Leah Brunner

Reviewed in the United States on April 14, 2024

This book is a smut-free Hockey romance which is a combination of tragedy and some extremely well written humour. I thoroughly enjoyed the chemistry between Mitch and Andie and watching their polar opposite personalities become the conduit to their love story. Props to the character, Noah, who is hilarious as Andie’s angsty teenage brother! Loved him. Also appreciated the bonus chapter because I love knowing how the characters end up years later so another thumbs up from me.

Bethany Nelson

Perfect!

Reviewed in the United States on January 11, 2025

All of the characters were so good and believable with great growth throughout the book. Their HEA was hard earned and so sweet. I loved that there was a lot of tension, without the smut!

Denice L

Sweet closed door romance that deals with grief

Reviewed in the United States on October 1, 2024

My first book by this author and it's a real sweet closed door romance between Mitch, a grumpy hockey star player and Andie, an ICU nurse who is now the legal guardian of her younger brother. It was heartwarming to see how they both were trying to deal with their personal grief while learning about each other. I loved how Mitch was able to also listen to Andie's brother Noah for advice on how to deal with grief and actually use it to get better himself. Mitch's teammates and Andie's coworker were fun supporting characters that really helped make this an enjoyable read.

BookishbyRenee

4.5⭐️ You need to read this!!

Reviewed in the United States on May 21, 2023

I loved this book! I’m immediately adding Leah’s backlist to my TBR.

Andie just tragically lost her parents and assumed guardianship of her much younger brother. They are both are trying to navigate all the changes and adapt to this new life together. Mitch is a grumpy hockey player who’s always in the penalty box and has a traumatic past. When Mitch’s temper lands him a 5 week suspension, he’s assigned an assistant hockey coach position to help boost his image and ends up coaching Andie’s younger brother. Sparks FLY!

This was a heartfelt romance that beautifully dealt with some heavy issues and the benefits of therapy. The tension and pining were fabulous and the banter was top notch. The character growth and found family dynamic were so good! Highly recommend!

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