Twenty-nine-year-old Montgomery Keller learned long ago that to survive, hiding in plain sight is a necessity. This is especially true when you’re a bear shifter. His life in sleepy, idyllic Laurel Forest is quiet, predictable, and almost entirely—blissfully—people-free, apart from a couple of locals and his neighbor, Andy. He’s alone, but that suits him and his needs perfectly.
Until he met her.
Festive to the core, and in town for the holidays to watch her niece while her brother, Andy, is away, Evalina Resa is determined to spread Christmas cheer. Even toward her brother’s grumpy, but absolutely gorgeous, neighbor. However, his lack of interest in anything Christmas—or joy related, for that matter—suggests that nothing can crack his tough exterior.
But when a broken heater and a cold snap hit, Montgomery opens up his home to Evalina and her niece. What starts as prickly hospitality turns into lingering glances, unplanned laughter, and a slow burn pull neither of them anticipated.
When the holiday peace is shattered and danger strikes this quiet, mountain town, Montgomery must choose between running or staying to protect the woman who makes him want more than his solitary existence… a woman his heart demands he protect.