I'm her safe place.

I always have been.

The torment that Dani Lexington went through at the hands of her father was something no child should have had to endure. But I was the lucky one she turned to.

Our age difference and the fact that her brother was my best friend kept her off-limits, even though something was always there, lingering under the surface.

But when she was old enough, she left Bitterroot Valley, and I was forced to move on with my life.

I got married and had my little girl. Now, I'm a single dad, focused on my job as fire chief and making sure my daughter stays healthy after a mysterious illness has plagued her for the past year.

But after Dani's father dies, she returns to Bitterroot Valley and is now living across the street from my daughter and me.

Dani's no longer a child. No longer off limits.

This time, I won't let anything or anyone stop me from being her safe place again.

I've been in love with Bridger Blackwell for as long as I can remember.

He's a smoke show, kind, and gives the best hugs in the world. But best of all? He's everything my sorry excuse for a father wasn't.

Now, I'm back in Bitterroot Valley, living across the street from Bridger and his adorable daughter.

It doesn't take long for all those old feelings to come rushing back, and every cell in my body knows that I belong with them.

That they're mine.

Bridger's arms are where I feel safest. They feel like home.

I'm growing to depend on him, to truly love him and his daughter. But I have deep-rooted baggage, and Bridger's past has decided to rear its ugly head.

Will we survive this, or is our relationship doomed from the start?