Six years ago, an ultimatum forced Dan Greyson to make a choice that cost him everything he loved most. One of those things? His boyfriend, hockey player Ashton Yager. Now that they’ve crossed paths again, Dan isn’t about to let the opportunity slip away. Ash’s reappearance in his life is just the catalyst Dan needs to escape the rut he’s fallen into…and win back Ash’s trust and love.Ashton … love.
Ashton Yager, once burned and now a little bit shy, didn’t mean to publicly come out as bisexual. But now that he has, he’s got to deal with the consequences, including the fact that it might’ve cost him his NHL contract. With his job on the line, he needs to keep his head down, work hard, and play the best hockey of his life. Rekindling things with Dan? That’s not exactly keeping a low profile. It’s also never going to happen, not after Dan walked away once without an explanation.
When a hurricane forces Ash to seek shelter out-of-state, he and Dan find themselves in the same B&B, where old feelings resurface. But with everything Ash has on the line, does he dare play with fire again?
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Dan and Ash are a delightful couple, and I live second-chance romances. Also, I love the hockey jokes. Not knowing anything about hockey myself? It’s nice to feel included.
Some say that the universe only gives us what we can handle, no more, no less. For Ashton Yager and Dan Greyson, that saying has a different meaning. Life gave Dan a mother who dominated his and his brother’s lives. She used them in ways they hated, to get what she wanted in her life. It took Dan years to find himself but during those years, he suffered at her hands. He also brought pain to those around him, specifically Ash.
How do you re-enter a person’s life after inflicting pain, pain that needn’t have been inflicted? How do you expect that person to react when you try to explain why? How do you grow through that situation, grow enough to find your own legs to stand on? Amy Aislin did a great job walking me through the pain, the later conflicts, and the ultimate healing. She did a good job bringing me into their lives, helping me to understand the pain they endured, and even the struggles that followed an unfortunate slip of the tongue – to near a journalist.
If you are looking for a love story, a love story that seems doomed from the start, a love story that is so fragile each partner can’t face the possibilities, then give The Nature Of The Game a chance. At minimum, you will fall in love with both Ash and Dan.
The Nature of the Game is a wonderful second chance romance. I loved the first book in this series (Mitch and Alex’s story) and was thrilled to Dan and Ash’s story.
This is a powerful, emotional story of reaching for another chance with the love of your life. Without going into to many details, Dan and Ash have been apart for six years and meet up again unexpectedly. Old feelings are still there but can they overcome the pain and mistrust from the past?
I hurt for both of them. I rooted for their HEA! I was totally thrown into their story and did not put this book down until I reached the last page. I need more from this wonderful series!
Ashton and Dan, old love but not forgotten. Second chances, connected friends and family. This could be read as a stand alone but I think the first book in the series should be read anyway as it would confirm a few things.
Hands down I love this book!! This is the second book in the series and it can be read as a standalone. This is my first book by this author and I regret not reading her works earlier.
Second Chance
Dual POV
Hockey Players
This is an excellent read. I haven’t read Mitch’s and Alex’s book yet and I regret that. I think it would be better if you read the first book before reading this one.
Dan and Ash. I have no words. I read it in one sitting ’cause I just couldn’t put it down. They are adorable together. This book is the embodiment of angst with happy ending. Oh all the pining!!! There were times when I wanted to tell to stop being so blind.
I sort of like Kinsey already! I think he’s a good kind of asshole(Yeah those kind apparently exist) I’m looking forward to his book!!
*ARC provided by the author via A Novel Take PR in exchange for an honest and unbiased review
Oh my, this second chance romance was so sweet and highly emotional. The pain that Dan caused in both him and Ash was heartbreaking. There was more heartbreak after they reconnected but they worked through their issues and ended up with a fantastic happily ever after.
I’m a sucker for the hockey coming out stories
Dan knows he’s going to have to see his ex, Ashton (Ash) again while he’s visiting his brother and brother’s boyfriend. He’d give anything to turn back time and have made a different decision years ago when he had to leave Ash, but all he can do now is move forward and hope that Ash will at least give him a chance to explain his actions, even if he isn’t willing to give him a second chance.
Ash can’t believe he never realized his ex, the only man he’s ever loved, is his best friend’s boyfriend’s brother. And he really can’t believe Dan is in the same city as he is, asking for a few minutes of his time to explain why he broke his heart all those years ago. If only Ash’s body (and heart) didn’t still react to Dan, if only he could act as pleasant but disinterested as he wishes he were.
But Dan’s determined to prove to Ash that this time he’s not running, that he can at least be his friend, and will stick around. Can Ash resist Dan at his most vulnerable, at his absolute sweetest? Can Dan really stand up to the woman who made him turn his back on everyone he loved most? And can Ash’s career survive when he comes out? The world of professional sports does not have a good history of being inclusive, so Ash knows not only is his heart on the line, but so is his career.
The Nature of the Game is so freakin’ sweet. I adored Dan and Ash together and found their story to be not only sweet, but sexy and a little bit heart rending. I felt so badly for Dan, as he struggled to stand up to the person who had caused him to ruin his life before, and who also continued to try to control him through heinous means. Ash was a little less adorable than Dan, and he was beyond insensitive at times, so much so that I wanted to yell at him more than once, but on the whole, I liked him, and definitely liked him with Dan. I will be on the lookout now for more from this series and more from this author.
Be prepared for an amazing deeply emotional ride with beautifully developed characters. I loved this wonderful genuine story hard.
Dan has changed since the last time Ash saw him. Ever handsome, but more subdued and withdrawn. Ash should be mad and angry but facing the man who broke his heart six years ago didn’t left him indifferent.
It was unavoidable he knew, but confronted with Ash was heartbreaking all over again.
He left him six years ago and never got over him. He had his reasons and they were heart wrenching. Ash doesn’t want to hear any explanation from Dan about what and why things happened the way it did. Oh boy the stupidest act ever, if he only knew!!
Ash is wary, he can’t forget the hurt, they try to reconnect and struggling with it. The attraction is still strong but the gap and the hurt is so palpable. When a tornado destroys Ash his home and the Try Out Center for Youth which is sponsored by Ash’s NHL team, Dan is the first one to stands up and help.
This story was so vividly written and the heartbreak palpable I was floored. At times it was so hopeless. This all amazingly written down, I completely got lost of time and surrounding.
Alternating between past and present the relationship of Ash and Dan reveals before our eyes. So much love, so much connection, they were meant to be together, and now… these beautiful men who had to work so hard to let the past go. Every move, every turn with them felt so honest and real, absolutely not over-romanticized. It was deeply emotional I couldn’t keep my eyes dry.
Thoroughly developed journey with the most engaging characters. The environments perfectly displayed. A story with depth, consistency and a lot of emotions, at times it just blew me off my feet.
Highly recommended!
This is an expertly crafted second chance romance. It’s the kind where you start reading and end up calling in sick or taking an extra long lunch because Ash and Dan are so real and darn it! I was sucked in.
This storyline could have gone sideways very easily. Two men meet, fall in love, get separated, stay separated, meet again and fall in love. Simple, right? Well, if you throw in exes, pro sports, meddling parents and just life, you get a story that makes you laugh- oh the puns- and hitch your breath in turns.
This is technically a sequel, but you really don’t need to read the first book to enjoy this one. However, you should read the first one and then read this one again. Lol you’re gonna love them both! Oh. I hope a third is in the works and Kinsey is next because no one can be an unredeemable jerk all the time. Wink wink.
* Advanced copy provided for an honest and voluntary review.
Dan: He has learned the hard way that when you are young sometimes we make choices that seem like the only path at the time can come with a very high cost. Dan is an endearing character so broken by choices he has made in the past. However he is a character I wanted to shake sometimes and say stand up for yourself you DO deserve to be happy.
Ash: From past experiences he has learned to protect himself with emotional walls. Sadly the choice that Dan made is one of the reasons that Ash is closed off. He loves deeply and has a wonderfully kind heart and a protective streak when it comes to Dan. Even when he doesn’t want to feel anything for him.
From the minute than Ash decides to talk to Dan you can see the connection that still exists no matter how much Ash doesn’t want it to. For them to be able to overcome their past to see if there is even a chance at a future Ash will need to open the doors to the past and Dan will have to prove that he has changed. The connection is there. The attraction is there. The real question is will they be able to succeed in conquering communication?
I really liked both characters in this book and was pulling for them from the very beginning!
I really liked the second chance story of Dan and Ash. I loved that the story moved back and forth so smoothly, giving glimpses into their history. The book was easy to read and included updates from previous book in the series but maintained the story of Ash and Dan. It was romantic, sexy and hot and I really enjoyed the book and would recommend it.
I really enjoyed this story by this new to me author. I am a sucker for a second chance romance and add the fact that its a sport romance made this story all the better. Dan and Ash first met 6 years ago….they fell hard and fast. Due to circumstances beyond Dan’s control the relationship dissolved and Dan practically disappeared from Ash’s life. A chance meeting provides Dan the opportunity to explain and make Ash understand why he had to walk way. Ash doesn’t make it easy for Dan and doesn’t want to hear the excuses. Dan’s leaving devastated Ash and he wasn’t going to allow the man to hurt him again. Can Ash let go of the past and give Dan the second chance that they both want desperately even though Ash doesn’t want to admit it? What a great story….I was rooting for them to get their happy….lord knows they deserved it. I was hooked from the beginning and hated to see it end. I would recommend this story to all who enjoys a good sports/second chance romance. I can’t wait to see what this author comes out with next. Well done!!
This was a fantastic read! I knew this was a must read for me with it being about hockey, a closeted athlete and a second chance romance. So many of my favorites all rolled into a wonderful story. This trying had all the feels for me and I felt so many emotions while reading it. I found myself laughing, crying, and truly just feeling the emotions of both Dan and Ash. The angst and tension in this story is real, but I couldn’t have imagined it playing out any other way. If anyone truly deserved their HEA it was Ash and Dan. I couldn’t recommend this book enough!
A heartfelt second chance for a hockey hottie and his number-crunching honey
May 7, 2019
Format: Kindle Edition
4.5 stars
I really enjoyed Dan and Ash’s story! The second chance plot unveiled the full extent of their first time failure as a couple in bits and pieces through switching between the present and flashes to their romance that crashed and burned six years prior. Yes, there’s a villain but even she reforms (a bit) by the happy ending. And author Amy Aislin maintained some suspense through most of the story with the realistic question of where Ash’s career will take him (or if an unguarded moment of support for a bullied kid will contribute to end his career prematurely).
I have not yet read the first story in the series about Dan’s younger brother Mitch and his partner, another Tampa hockey player. They both show up frequently in this book, but this story is fine as a standalone and reveals enough of his brother’s previous story to fill in some background since it is so key to Dan’s own story.
Well-written, good pace, focused on the relationship and not the nuts and bolts of hockey play (perfect for me!) with just enough steam, I really enjoyed this one, right through to its winning ending.
I read a complimentary advance copy of the book; this is my voluntary and honest review.
I did not read the first book before this one and while I had no problem following along, I would recommend reading them in order. This was a great second chance story in more than one way. Dan and Ash were great characters very believable and lovable. Truly enjoyed their story.
Amy Aislin’s The Nature of the Game is the second book in The Stick Side series but can be read as a standalone. It is a second chance romance between two bisexual men who find themselves staying at the same B&B. There is no doubt the attraction is still there between them, but their shared past is not as easy to move away from. Besides there are some other major issues Ash needs to worry about. An interesting and entertaining story…
Ash and Dan are great characters that I enjoyed getting to know. I really liked their interactions. Their story was entertaining and satisfying. Funny, sweet, sexy, a touch of drama and completely enjoyable… add to you TBR or one click worth for sure.
I received an advanced reader’s copy of the book and I am voluntarily leaving my honest review and recommendation.