Gigi Graham meets Luke Ryder at her father's hockey camp, where Ryder mistakenly assumes she is a figure skater.

Briar University absorbs the bankrupt Eastwood College, forcing two rival Division 1 hockey programs to merge into one team.

Coach Jensen appoints Case Colson and Luke Ryder as co-captains of the newly merged Briar men's hockey team.

Garrett Graham witnesses Ryder arriving late to practice and publicly admonishes him, damaging Ryder's chances at a coveted Hockey Kings coaching job.

After her exhibition game, Gigi discovers that Brad Fairlee, whose daughter Emma feuded with her family, is the new Team USA head coach.

Ryder approaches Gigi after the exhibition game, critiques her weak performance behind the net, and asks her to endorse him to Garrett.

Ryder arrives at Gigi's dorm with flowers and a sincere apology, and they strike a deal to help each other improve.

A brawl at a player's farewell party injures a teammate for four weeks and goes viral online, threatening the hockey program's funding.

Assigned to a Boston charity gala for damage control, Ryder and Gigi hide behind backstage curtains and nearly share their first kiss.

Gigi visits Ryder's strikingly sparse dorm room for the first time, and they sleep together.

Coach Jensen strands co-captains Case and Ryder forty miles from campus after they argue and cause a penalty during a road game.

Ryder opens up to Gigi and reveals that his father shot and killed his mother in front of him when Ryder was six years old.

At the annual hockey fundraiser, Gigi learns the true extent of Case's infidelity and publicly asks Ryder to dance, revealing their secret relationship.

During the women's finals in Vegas, Gigi is injured crashing into the boards, and Ryder rushes down calling her his wife, exposing their secret marriage.

Garrett publicly introduces Ryder as his son-in-law at his Hall of Fame induction and announces Ryder's coaching role at the Hockey Kings camp.

Gigi Graham and Luke Ryder first clash at her father's hockey camp when Ryder mistakes her for a figure skater, planting the seeds of mutual dislike. Years later, the forced merger of two rival college programs throws them together again, with Coach Jensen appointing them both to roles that require cooperation. A shared need drives their deal: Ryder needs Gigi's endorsement to land a prestigious coaching job, while Gigi needs his help to fix a weakness in her game. As their arrangement deepens into a secret relationship, each must confront painful truths about their pasts, including Ryder's traumatic childhood and the full extent of Case's betrayal. Their private world collides with public consequence when Gigi is injured during the women's finals and Ryder inadvertently reveals their secret marriage. The novel closes with the relationship fully embraced by Garrett at his Hall of Fame induction, where he publicly names Ryder his son-in-law and awards him the coaching role he originally sought.

The headline events driving Gigi and Ryder's story from rivalry to marriage.

Case Colson shows up at Gigi's dorm uninvited, hoping to rekindle their relationship despite his previous infidelity.

Ryder's roommates suggest he use Gigi's influence with Garrett to secure the Hockey Kings coaching job, an idea Ryder initially dismisses.

Ryder watches footage of Gigi playing hockey and attends her women's exhibition game to assess her skills firsthand.

Gigi confides in her roommate Mya about Emma Fairlee's three years of social media attacks following Emma's breakup with Wyatt.

The merged men's roster is officially announced, with Eastwood players outnumbering Briar players among the starting lineup.

Ryder, Gigi, and Beckett hold their first joint practice session at a private rink owned by Gigi's uncle John Logan.

At Ryder's house party, Beckett kisses Gigi; moments later, Case arrives uninvited and demands she leave with him.

Ryder warns Gigi about Beckett's reputation and suggests they enter a friends-with-benefits arrangement with each other instead.

After an accidental run-in at the training center, Ryder and Gigi spend an afternoon together visiting the butterfly gardens.

Stranded in the woods overnight, Case and Ryder collaborate to build a fire, exchange personal stories, and reach a genuine truce.

Ryder surprises Gigi by showing up at her away game in Portland and takes her to the opera, where they agree to officially start dating.

Coach Jensen discovers Ryder and Gigi kissing on campus and questions whether their relationship will harm the team's progress.

At a New Year's Eve party in Manhattan, Owen McKay arrives unexpectedly and warmly greets Ryder, revealing he is Ryder's half-brother.

Brad Fairlee tells Gigi after a strong semifinal performance that she has not made the Olympic team.

The Briar women's hockey team wins the Frozen Four championship.

While the main romance builds, a web of secondary events shapes both teams and the people around Gigi and Ryder. Case's persistent attempts to rekindle his relationship with Gigi create ongoing tension, while Ryder's friends push him to leverage Gigi's connections despite his reluctance. The practical side of Gigi and Ryder's arrangement plays out through training sessions, a shared visit to the butterfly gardens, and the gradual exposure of their secret to those closest to them. The men's team arc runs in parallel, moving from a disastrous early performance to a night stranded in the woods that forges genuine trust between the co-captains. By the time the women's team claims the Frozen Four title, the full cast of characters has been tested, transformed, and repositioned for the novel's emotional conclusion.

The supporting moments that shaped the team, the relationships, and the season.

During training camp observations, Gigi and her teammates hear circulating rumors that Ryder broke a teammate's jaw at the World Juniors.

Gigi mentions Ryder favorably to Garrett during a family phone call, recommending him for the Hockey Kings summer camp coaching position.

The men's team suffers a shutout loss in the season opener after Case ignores Eastwood players' verbal cues, exposing the team's lack of unity.

After a fundraiser planning meeting, Ryder gives Gigi a flower and they agree to stay exclusive, establishing the first real boundaries of their relationship.

Ryder and Gigi forget protection during an intimate moment in the sauna; later, Will Larsen discovers their secret relationship while hiding in a bathroom.

Ryder visits Gigi's dorm room for the first time and attempts to ask her on a date; she agrees only if it is to the opera.

Ryder receives a call from lawyer Peter Greene requesting his in-person attendance at his incarcerated father's upcoming parole hearing in Arizona.

When Gigi calls Ryder by his first name 'Luke,' he reacts sharply and she demands he leave her dorm room, refusing to speak to him for days.

Ryder seeks advice from a friend's girlfriend and learns that Gigi is not upset about the outburst but hurt that he refused to confide in her.

Ryder spends Christmas with the Graham family, where Garrett and Wyatt treat him with open hostility while Hannah warmly accepts him and observes he loves Gigi.

After the New Year's Eve party, Ryder confesses his love for Gigi and she reciprocates; the following day, Ryder finally reconciles with Owen.

Former teammate Michael Klein publicly claims that violence is inherent in Ryder's family, triggering a media crisis around the secret of why Ryder attacked him.

At a press conference, Ryder reveals that Klein told him his mother deserved to die and that his father should have killed him too.

Garrett visits Gigi at the butterfly gardens, apologizes for his reaction to her secret marriage, and invites her and Ryder to his Hall of Fame induction.

Ryder and Gigi make plans to attend his father's parole hearing in Arizona before departing for their honeymoon in Italy.

Beneath the surface of the main plot lies a series of quieter but decisive turning points that determine who Ryder and Gigi become by the novel's end. Early rumors about Ryder's violent past establish a mystery that only gradually resolves, while a series of private agreements and accidental discoveries slowly bind Gigi and Ryder closer together. Ryder's guarded nature repeatedly creates friction, culminating in the moment he snaps at Gigi for using his given name and she throws him out, forcing him to confront the trauma he has buried for years. His willingness to finally speak about his past becomes the emotional core of the novel, unlocking both his relationship with Gigi and his long-complicated bond with his brother Owen. The closing chapters show Ryder stepping fully into a chosen family, as a press conference revelation, a reconciliation at the butterfly gardens, and plans for a shared future mark his transformation from a closed-off loner into a man capable of love and acceptance.

The key decisions, discoveries, and emotional breakthroughs that define Ryder and Gigi's journey.