The Deal – Paperback by Elle Kennedy (An Off-Campus Novel)

Why We Shelved It:

The undisputed gold standard of modern college sports romance. The Deal launched the iconic Off-Campus universe and set the blueprint for fake-dating banter, emotional vulnerability, and swoon-worthy romance across BookTok and bestseller lists alike. Balancing trauma recovery with electric humor and genuine respect, Garrett Graham and Hannah Wells’ story anchors our contemporary romance selection as an absolute must-read comfort staple.

The Story:

Hannah Wells has finally found someone who turns her on. But while she might be confident in every other aspect of her life, when it comes to seduction, she’s hopelessly out of her element—haunted by past trauma that makes opening up to anyone feel impossible.

Enter Garrett Graham: arrogant, golden-boy captain of Briar University’s championship hockey team. Facing academic probation after flunking an ethics midterm, Garrett's dreams of going pro in the NHL suddenly hang by a thread. The only person who aced the exam? Hannah Wells.

Desperate to secure his starting spot, Garrett proposes a mutually beneficial arrangement: if Hannah tutors him to pass his class, he will pretend to be her boyfriend to make her crush green with jealousy. But what begins as a strictly transactional, fake-dating game of witty insults and mock study dates quickly morphs into real intimacy, late-night confessions, and an undeniable heat neither of them saw coming.