Goal Line by R.J. Scott & V.L. Locey

Title: Goal Line

Series: Harrisburg Railers 06

Author: R.J. Scott & V.L. Locey

Genre: Contemporary, Sports

Length: Novel (197pgs)

ISBN: 978-1-78564-129-9

Publisher: Love Lane Books (8th August 2018)

Heat Level: Low

Heart Rating: ♥♥♥♥♥ 5 Hearts

Reviewer: Pixie

Blurb: Fear and sadness mark Bryan’s life, can Gatlin show him that you have to trust before you can love?

Gatlin Pearce is creeping up on thirty-eight and is still single. It’s not that he wants to be alone, it’s just that he’s too damn old to be in clubs filled with glittery gay boys who can’t even tell him who the Rolling Stones are.

Better to just spend his evenings at Hard Score Ink – his tattoo and artwork shop – creating masterpieces on human flesh, listening to the Railers games, and nursing a cold beer.

His solitary life is about to end when Bryan Delaney, the new Railers backup goalie, shows up at his shop looking for new artwork for his helmet. There’s some sort of sad story in those beautiful eyes of Bryan’s, and Gatlin finds himself more than a little infatuated with the tender new goalie.

Bryan Delaney leaves home at fifteen to live with a billet family. He just wishes that he could have escaped his alcoholic father and strictly devout mother earlier. Drafted to the Arizona Raptors he finds a new family, and his first love affair even if that relationship is marked with violence.

Being traded to the Railers is a shock to the system but the team isn’t like any other he’s ever played on and they truly seem to care about him. It’s only when he meets artist Gatlin, with their shared love of music and hockey, that he realizes how hard it is to escape the past.

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Review: This story is part of a series and must be read in order.

Gatlin is a tattoo artist who does tattoo’s and gear designs for the Railers, when the new backup goalie is brought into his shop he is immediately struck by the younger man’s looks but it’s his haunted eyes that really capture Gatlin’s attention.

Bryan is scared to be excited about his move to the Railers, he’s had it dung into his head that they will turn on him at the first opportunity and Bryan doesn’t know what to believe when they seem to welcome him with friendly open arms. Meeting Gatlin has Bryan questioning the ‘relationship’ he’s in and it takes the friendship of both Gatlin and the Railers for him to see the abuse that he receives for what it is.

This is an amazing addition to the Harrisburg Railers, I will give a warning that there’s a scene that will take your breath away in shock but I won’t give any details so you can discover it for yourself.

Bryan is a sweetheart who has been beaten down first by his birth parents and then by his last team, his so-called boyfriend was the worst of the abusers and he’s still got his hooks in Bryan. While Bryan begins to fight off the ingrained bullying he begins to open up to Gatlin and it’s with Gatlin’s silent strength that Bryan finally shakes off the chains that held him back.

Gatlin hasn’t had the best relationships in the past but he’s willing to give Bryan a chance and after a couple of false starts his relationship with Bryan blooms. Bryan and Gatlin make a fantastic couple and while they both have things from the past that haunt them they overcome them with the support of the other.

I can honestly say that it was a pleasure to catch up with the Railers team, especially Stan (he’s my favourite J ), we are treated to the entire team making Bryan welcome so there’s some high jinks and fun. There’s also the amazing support that they show each other, the coming together of brothers in arms, the emotional support and the steadfast refusal to let anything shatter the team. This really is an outstanding story.

I recommend this to those who adore men finding the strength to face down bullies, who love a sweet love story playing out on the pages, who adore a fast paced hockey story with fantastic characters, and who love storylines with a happy ending for a lovely couple but a storyline that still needs to play out.