Grumpy Darling

The second book in the Darling Devils series, a young adult romance set in the small town of Ransom, follows two alternating perspectives: Grayson Darling, the quiet and intimidating defensive enforcer on his high school hockey team, the Ransom Devils, and Paige Price, his cheerful, outgoing best friend, as a plan to help Paige land her first kiss forces both of them to confront feelings they have long buried.

Grayson has been secretly in love with Paige since second grade but has never acted on his feelings, convinced he is unworthy of her and that confessing would destroy their friendship. A lingering injury to his MCL, the medial collateral ligament in his knee, complicates his senior year: He holds a verbal scholarship agreement to play hockey at Ryker University, but signing day is two weeks away, and he fears the coaches will revoke the offer if they discover he is hurt. His twin brother, Reed, the team's captain, and their teammate Matt tease Grayson about his obvious feelings for Paige and warn that the two may drift apart after graduation, since Paige has no college plans.

When both of Paige's work-obsessed parents leave on simultaneous business trips, her mother arranges for Paige to stay with the Darling family for two weeks. There, Grayson's younger brother Parker discovers Paige's senior year bucket list, a collection of activities she has been trying in order to find a passion and satisfy her parents' pressure to plan her future. The final unchecked item is her first kiss. Parker theorizes that Grayson's intimidating reputation is the reason no boy has ever approached Paige. Stunned, Paige confronts Grayson, who admits he warned potential suitors away. She demands he back off and instead act as her wingman. Grayson reluctantly agrees.

At school, Paige's friend Bonnie, the editor of the school newspaper, helps scout candidates. A new student arrives whom Bonnie considers untouched by Grayson's reputation. He turns out to be Damien Stone, a childhood friend who has returned after his parents' divorce and joined the Devils as a defenseman. Paige is excited; Grayson is immediately jealous. Reed, Parker, and Matt stage a locker room "intervention," presenting Grayson with a whiteboard plan to help him escape the friend zone. Grayson is insulted and leaves, but Reed argues that doing nothing is just as risky as acting. Grayson grudgingly agrees to consider it.

At a house party, Paige tries to flirt with Damien but fumbles badly and retreats to the bathroom in humiliation. Grayson follows and, attempting to make her feel wanted, flirts with her genuinely for the first time: He boxes her against the counter, calls her beautiful, and whispers that he wants her. Paige is visibly affected but interprets the moment as a demonstration of skill rather than a sincere confession. She asks Grayson to become her "flirting coach." Crushed but unable to refuse, he agrees, privately vowing to use the coaching to make Paige see him differently.

Parker and Reed advise Grayson to lean into the arrangement and flirt with Paige at every opportunity. During a Sunday ice-skating outing, Paige practices flirting with Grayson, and a rogue puck nearly hits her. Grayson yanks her to safety, and the near miss reinforces how much she means to him. Paige's feelings begin to shift. She falls asleep against Grayson's chest during a movie night and has a vivid romantic dream about him. Later, a thunderstorm sends her running to his room, where he holds her close and recites storm facts until she falls asleep. She wakes still in his arms, overwhelmed by the desire to stay. When she asks Bonnie for a reality check, Bonnie warns the coaching is going to her head. Paige resolves to stick with the Damien plan.

Paige expands the arrangement, asking Grayson to become her full "Dating and Relationships Coach." She wants real romance, not a meaningless party kiss. Grayson proposes that Paige flirt with him openly at lunch to make Damien jealous, and the performance works. He then volunteers to take Paige shopping for a makeover, and at the mall, their charged interactions continue to blur the line between coaching and genuine feeling. Meanwhile, Bonnie recruits Paige to write player profiles for the school newspaper. Grayson's interview becomes a revealing exchange: He describes his ideal type as matching Paige's exact appearance and alludes to waking beside someone and knowing she is the one. When Paige interviews Damien, he asks her to dinner, but she hesitates and cannot bring herself to answer.

While cooking pizza together one evening, a playful flour fight ends with Grayson pinning Paige against the kitchen counter. In that moment, Paige fully recognizes she is in love with her best friend and has been for a long time. Terrified of ruining their friendship, she panics and blurts out that Damien asked her on a date. Grayson hides his disappointment and offers to take her on a practice date to prepare. When Damien asks again at school, Paige accepts. Bonnie, meanwhile, reviews Paige's player profile articles and suggests she consider studying sports journalism, an idea that resonates deeply.

A power outage one evening catches Paige in the shower. Grayson rushes to help, and in the dark bathroom, he tells her she has no idea how the way she looks at him makes him feel. When she whispers that maybe the boundaries of their coaching arrangement are worth crossing, he begins to respond, but the power snaps back on and Paige flees.

For the practice date, Grayson secretly buys the pink floral dress Paige loved at the mall and leaves it on her bed with a note. He rings the doorbell of his own house, presents her with a bouquet made of her favorite candy, and takes her to a private, fairy-lit dome at her favorite restaurant, inspired by something she once mentioned loving. Afterward, he drives to a hilltop overlooking Ransom and sets up a stargazing spot in his truck bed. Beneath the stars, Grayson confesses he has fallen in love with her. Paige responds that she wasted her shooting star wish: She had wished for exactly this, for the date to be real. She tells him she is in love with him too. They share their first kiss, and Grayson reveals it is his first kiss as well. Paige is briefly outraged that she hired him as her dating coach when he had no more experience than she did, but her anger dissolves into laughter.

The next morning, Paige returns home, where her mother demands she complete college applications immediately. Paige refuses for the first time, insisting she will find her own path. Her mother, Deborah, breaks down and reveals she has lost her job after years of sacrificing family time for her career. The confession softens the confrontation: Deborah agrees to let Paige find her own way, and Paige agrees to apply to a few colleges on her own terms. Paige tears her bucket list in half and sits down with her mother to work on an application.

On game day, with Ryker's Coach Mercer watching from the stands, Grayson plays through severe knee pain. Paige arrives late, having stayed home to fill out a college application with her mother. When Grayson spots her in the crowd, he is momentarily distracted, and a Waverley Wolves player slams into him. He is knocked unconscious and carried off on a stretcher. At the hospital, Grayson's mother, Amy, emerges and tells the family he has a concussion but will recover. Grayson tells Paige his knee has been failing for months, and when Coach Mercer visits, Grayson discloses the chronic injury. Mercer responds that the news does not change Ryker's commitment and offers to reschedule the signing. Reed announces he will postpone his own signing so the twins can do it together.

In the epilogue, set weeks later, Grayson watches from the bench after knee surgery as the Devils win the state championship. Paige sits beside him, covering the game as the school paper's new sports journalist. Driving to the hilltop where they had their first date, Paige hands Grayson an acceptance letter from Ryker's sports journalism program. As a shooting star crosses the sky, Grayson does not point it out. He has no wish left to make.