Chasing Lightning: Mr. Irrelevant and the Coach's Daughter

The whole town is rooting for the underdog quarterback. But he’s only playing for the family he never knew he needed.

Claire Stone’s coffee-fueled days center around the growing stack of third-grade assignments awaiting her green pen and keeping up with her high-energy four-year-old daughter. Between spilled juice boxes and lesson plans, she barely has time to breathe, and she definitely has no time for dating. Especially not athletes. Burned by her past, Claire has one unbreakable never trust a man in a jersey.

Knox Foley is running out of time. Dubbed “Mr. Irrelevant” as the final pick in the NFL draft, the third-string quarterback for the Tidewater Lightning is playing out the last year of a dead-end rookie contract while carrying the heavy weight of grief. But when a sudden injury thrusts him into the high-stakes starting lineup, the sports world expects him to crumble. Knox is ready to fight for his career, but a chance meeting at a local pub hits him from the blind side.

The chemistry is undeniable, but fate has a wicked sense of Knox’s tough-as-nails head coach happens to be Claire’s father.

To protect his rising career and her fragile heart, they launch a secret romance. But between toxic locker-room rivalries, a meddling media, trade talks, and dangerous ghosts from Claire’s past, the stakes rise higher than any championship game. Can the NFL’s biggest underdog pull off the ultimate comeback for the family he never knew he needed?

Catching Lightning is a sweet contemporary sports romance. If you love a protective underdog hero, a relatable, harried single mom, an adorable scene-stealing toddler, and banter, you’ll love this small-town pro-football romance. No cliffhangers, no cheating, and a guaranteed happily ever after.