Textbook Defense is Ashlyn Kane and Morgan James's contemporary LGBTQ+ romance about a children's librarian and an NHL single father. A joking fake-dating arrangement brings Rowan Chadha into Jordy Shaw's household, where temporary housing, parenting routines, and growing attraction complicate both men's expectations about how long their connection can last.
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Rowan Chadha meets hockey player Jordy Shaw at a charity event, where a playful suggestion to pose as a couple offers a way around unwanted attention. When Rowan loses the use of his apartment as his library contract ends, Jordy offers a room in the nanny suite. The arrangement gives Rowan somewhere to stay and brings him into everyday life with Jordy and his daughter, Kaira.
Domestic routines and close proximity turn a convenient performance into something harder to define. Jordy's uncertain hockey future and Rowan's fear of being temporary give the relationship its emotional stakes. Readers of queer sports romance will find fake dating, single parenting, humor, and questions of trust woven through the household story.
A joking offer to pretend they are dating draws a children's librarian into an NHL player's home. Ashlyn Kane and Morgan James build a contemporary queer hockey romance around fake dating, a single father's household, and two men unsure whether the arrangement can become something lasting.
Rowan Chadha meets hockey player Jordy Shaw at a charity event, where a playful suggestion that they pose as a couple offers a way around unwanted attention. When Rowan's library contract ends and he loses his apartment, Jordy offers him a room in the nanny suite. The arrangement gives Rowan somewhere to stay and folds him into daily life with Jordy and his daughter, Kaira. Domestic routines and close proximity turn a convenient performance into something harder to name. Jordy's uncertain hockey future and Rowan's fear of being temporary supply the emotional stakes. Readers of queer sports romance will find fake dating, single parenting and humour threaded through a household story about trust.
A light suggestion at a charity event sets the whole arrangement in motion. The pretence is useful to both men for different reasons, and the novel uses it to place them in situations they would not otherwise choose, letting the reader watch a performance strain against real feeling.
Moving into the nanny suite turns convenience into closeness. Shared meals, routines and ordinary household friction give the relationship its texture, and the novel lets intimacy grow out of daily life rather than grand gestures.
Jordy's daughter is part of the household the arrangement creates. Rowan's place in Kaira's daily life raises questions about responsibility and attachment, and the child's presence keeps the romance grounded in family rather than only in the couple.
Jordy's professional future is uncertain, and that uncertainty shadows the relationship. The hockey setting supplies more than atmosphere: it introduces instability and decisions that affect where and how the couple might build a life.
The emotional core is the tension between growing attraction and the fear that the arrangement is only temporary. Rowan's worry about being replaceable and the difficulty of trusting a convenient setup give the romance its conflict and its eventual resolution.
The novel combines fake dating, forced proximity and a sports backdrop with domestic warmth and humour. These familiar romance elements are used to explore queer family life, so readers who enjoy the tropes find them serving character and relationship rather than standing alone.
Readers of contemporary LGBTQ+ romance, especially sports romance fans who enjoy fake dating, single-parent households and slow-burn domestic tension.
Edition, audience, and study-guide details at a glance.
Textbook Defense is Ashlyn Kane and Morgan James's contemporary LGBTQ+ romance about a children's librarian and an NHL single father. A joking fake-dating arrangement brings Rowan Chadha into Jordy Shaw's household, where temporary housing, parenting routines, and growing attraction complicate both men's expectations about how long their connection can last.
Readers of contemporary LGBTQ+ romance, especially sports romance fans who enjoy fake dating, single-parent households and slow-burn domestic tension.
Yes. This page includes an original study guide with six thematic sections, key takeaways, and a topic map for structured reading.