Talking Heat

My rookie season didn't end the way I'd imagined. It ended in scandal.
Now I'm in Tampa, trying to rebuild my reputation with the Blaze, the NWSL's newest expansion team and a franchise that Florida still isn't sure it wants. This was supposed to be a fresh start, a chance to focus on soccer and prove I belong. Making friends was never part of the plan.

Then Ash Monroe, our starting goal keepers’ brother, keeps showing up.

At first, he's just a familiar face who always seems to be in the right place at the right time, determined to start conversations I'd rather avoid. I've spent months keeping everyone at a distance, convinced it's the safest way to move forward. But somehow, he slips past my defenses.
As Ash struggles to navigate a new reality and a future he never expected, I find myself caring about him in ways I never intended. The more time we spend together, the more I realize we're both searching for the same thing: a place to belong after everything we thought we knew fell apart.

The problem? Being with him feels dangerously familiar. Like I'm falling into old patterns, chasing a story I've already lived through once before.
And I'm not sure if this time the ending will be any different.