- Written by
- Adriana Locke
- Read by
- Allyson Voller, Lance Greenfield
- Length
- 9 hrs 22 min
- Publisher
- Umbrella Publishing, Inc.
- Released
- 2026-09-24
Shelved under
What it is
Markie St. James is officially done with men. Unfortunately, she needs one to defend her pickleball championship title against her cheating ex-boyfriend.
Her solution comes in the form of Jory Plath, her brother’s best friend, a single dad, and a professional rugby player. He’ll help her defend her title if she helps tutor his son. It’s a simple arrangement. Everybody wins.
Until they don’t.
Somewhere between practices, late nights, and giving the town something to gossip about, Markie and Jory go from pickleball partners to fake dating. And the more time she spends with him, the more she realizes he’s exactly the kind of man she swore off.
Now she’s not sure what’s worse—losing her title, losing the man, or losing her heart.
__________
Tropes:
* Single Dad
* Fake Dating
* Small Town
* Brother's Best Friend
- 1 Play Me: A Grumpy Sports Hero, Enemies-to-Lovers Romance4.5
- 2 Try Me: A Workplace, Friends-to-Lovers Romance4.2
- 3 Show Me: A Small Town Sports Romance4.4
- 4 Make Me: A Second Chance, Marriage of Convenience Romance (Play Me Series, Book 4)4.8
- 5 Beg Me: A Single Dad, Fake Dating Romance (Play Me Series, Book 5)4.8
On the charts
Last charted September 29, 2026. Its best position was 8 on New releases in Romance, reached September 28, 2026. Seen on 3 charts over 3 days of readings, the first on September 27, 2026.
| Chart | Best | Days | Last seen |
|---|---|---|---|
| Romance | |||
| New releases | 8 | 3 days | September 29, 2026 |
| Bestsellers | 16 | 1 day | September 27, 2026 |
| All audiobooks | |||
| New releases | 13 | 1 day | September 27, 2026 |
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