Playing for Keeps: A Glasgow Lads Novel - Paperback

by Avery Cockburn (Author)

Rule One: No Drama!

Fergus Taylor is damaged goods. Reeling from a brutal breakup, he's determined to captain his LGBT soccer team out of scandal and into a winning season. For that, he needs strict rules and careful plans. He does NOT need a brash, muscle-bound lad messing with his head and setting his body afire.

John Burns has a rule of his own: Don't get attached. Boyfriends are for guys with nothing to hide. Nobody-not his university mates, not the men he beds-knows his family's shame, a shame that stains all Scotland. Now his double life is starting to unravel, thanks to a certain Highlander whose storm-riddled eyes turn John inside out, who wears a kilt like he was born in it.

Fergus is the first man John wants to share his secret with-but he's the last man who could handle it. John knows the truth would shatter Fergus's still-fragile heart. But how can he live a lie when he's falling in love?

The series features a recurring cast of teammates, but each novel contains its own stand-alone romance, so they can be read in any order.

• Play On, Duncan & Brodie novella
• Playing for Keeps, Fergus & John novel
• Playing to Win, Colin & Andrew novel
• Play It Safe, Fergus & John short story
• Playing with Fire, Liam & Robert novel
• Play Dead, Colin & Andrew novella
• Playing in the Dark, Evan & Ben novel
• Play Hard, Liam & Robert novella
• All Through the House, Duncan & Brodie short story
• Men in Shorts: A Glasgow Lads Collection
• Playing by Ear, Jamie & Perry novel, coming 2026

• Throwing Stones, Luca & Oliver novel
• Must Love Christmas, Garen & Simon novel

Author Biography

Avery Cockburn (rhymes with Savory Slow Churn) lives in the United States with one infinitely patient man and two infinitely impatient cats.