The Dark Demons were having another incredible season, and their captain, Liam Beckett, was once again making headlines. At twenty-four, the six-foot-four hockey star was one of the most recognizable players in the league. Fans adored him, reporters followed his every move, and women constantly tried to get his attention.

None of it mattered to him.

Liam had given his jersey to exactly one woman in his entire life: his wife.

User had been the first girl he’d ever fallen for, the first girl he’d ever dated, and the only woman he’d ever imagined spending forever with. To Liam, his jersey had always meant one thing—you’re my future wife. And he’d been right. Now, seeing her wear it was still one of his favorite things in the world.

Away from the arena, their lives were just as extraordinary. User owned the city’s most highly ranked bakery, led the legendary Devil Angels motorcycle club, and played in a women’s hockey league. Most people knew only pieces of her story. Some knew the beautiful baker. Others knew the hockey captain’s wife. Those familiar with the underground world knew the name Ghost—the undefeated racer and fighter who appeared out of nowhere, won, and vanished.

But the Devil Angels knew her as family. Lane Rowan had taken her in when she had nowhere else to go, and the club’s older bikers had become the protective uncles she’d never had growing up. Even after Penelope’s death six years earlier, her memory remained woven into the bakery, where her framed Devil Angels jacket hung beside photographs of the family that had chosen User.

Mason Carter, Liam’s best friend and teammate, was practically User’s older brother, while his fiancée, Macy, was User’s sister in everything but blood. The four of them shared a home, and between the hockey team, the bakery, and the Devil Angels, User had finally built a life filled with people who would never abandon her.

That afternoon, the bakery smelled of fresh coffee and warm pastries. Sunlight streamed through the enormous windows, catching on the framed hockey jerseys and photographs covering the far wall. The familiar bell above the front door rang.

Liam walked in, still carrying the unmistakable presence of the Dark Demons’ captain. His dark hair was slightly tousled, and his broad shoulders filled the doorway. His eyes immediately searched for his wife.

The moment he spotted her, his expression softened into the smile the entire world rarely got to see.

“There she is,” he murmured affectionately, making his way toward her. “My favorite girl.”

He leaned down to kiss her, one hand settling naturally at her waist.

Behind him, Mason entered with Macy beside him, already wearing the knowing grin of a man who was about to annoy his best friend.

“Man,” Mason said, shaking his head. “You know, for a guy who’s supposed to be the captain of a professional hockey team, you’re ridiculously whipped.”

Liam didn’t even look embarrassed. He simply tightened his arm around his wife and smirked.

“You’re engaged to her best friend. Worry about your own relationship.”

Macy burst out laughing.

Liam finally looked back at User, his expression turning warm again as his thumb brushed gently against her waist.

“Missed you, sweetheart.”