Icing the Injury: An Injured Star, a Sports Therapist, and the Fear of Starting Over (Frostline Harbour Hockey Book 1) (Paperback) (ISBN-13: 9798246747520)

He was built to move.
To win.
To be worth something the moment the crowd rose to its feet.

Until one bad landing turns Reid Mercer, Frostline Harbor's star forward, into a man with a timetable, a brace, and a silence he can't outrun.

Reid tells everyone he'll be back soon. He smiles. He jokes. He plans his return like it's just another game to dominate.

But the truth is uglier.

If hockey is taken from him... what's left?

Anya Kincaid doesn't do hype.
She doesn't do shortcuts.
And she definitely doesn't do special treatment for pro athletes who think pain is a suggestion.

After leaving a high-pressure city clinic, Anya came to Frostline Harbor for one reason: a slower life where healing is real and boundaries hold. She's seen what happens when a patient rushes recovery with charm and stubborn grit.

She won't let it happen again.

So when Reid shows up at her clinic with restless eyes and too much confidence, Anya gives him a plan that feels like punishment: rehab, restraint, and time. No promises. No hero moments. No cheering.

Just the work.

Forced into each other's orbit by a strict rehab schedule, Reid and Anya learn how to exist in the in-between. The walks that feel pointless at first. The quiet sessions where he finally listens instead of pushing. The small moments where she stays a little longer than she needs to, and he stops performing long enough to be honest.

In a town that watches without demanding, Reid begins to find a different kind of strength... the kind that doesn't need an audience.

And Anya begins to realize that distance isn't the same thing as safety.

Because the hardest part of starting over isn't the injury.

It's choosing who you are when you can't prove it.

ICING THE INJURY is a slow-burn, emotionally mature hockey romance packed with quiet tension, forced proximity, small-town healing, and earned intimacy.

No miracle recovery.
No grand speeches.
Just two people learning the pace together... and choosing to stay.