By the age of twelve, we had become best friends, and by the time we turned sixteen, we were more. I had eyes for only one girl. My girl. But then life changed, and different paths led to broken promises. When she left town, I was forced to let go of our dreams. I spent my days existing. Baseball, classes, and working at the family farm became my life. I didn't care about anything else. Until I met Allison Jo. AJ was the quiet girl I never expected. She brought me to my knees with that beautiful smile. She made me laugh and slowly brought the old me back to life.

Daxton Ford tried to warn me. He never made promises. He swore a girl like me would only get hurt by a guy like him. Did I listen? He portrays dangerous, dark, and brooding. Or so he thinks. Daxton is trouble; anyone can see that. He carries the weight of the world on his shoulders and keeps his circle of friends small.

But I'm the girl who believes in the good. I'm the girl that even when every fiber in my body is telling me to not go there. I head straight for it, even if I know I'll fall.

Kian Carter is stuck in a rut. A successful lawyer in his parents’ New York City office, he’s sick and tired of their greed, their lifelong insistence on putting their powerhouse practice above all else—including Kian and his siblings. So he does what he should have done long ago, what his brother and sister did … Kian turns his back on law. Quitting the firm and moving back to the only home he’s ever known, quiet Moose Village in Upstate New York.

It was supposed to be a regular day out. Three couples celebrating the last days of summer. When tragedy struck. I thought I was going to marry her. Instead, I was burying her. I blamed the world for my pain. I buried it all. I became a man I didn’t even recognize.

I should have known everything was going to change when she walked into my tattoo shop... Timid as hell and gorgeous to the extreme. I knew better than even thinking about touching a woman like that. My life is dangerous. My calling wicked. Willing to cross any line to protect the innocent. I thought I’d never see her again until my little boy tumbled and busted his lip, and I found her working at the doctor’s office. The woman who’d taken possession of my thoughts. When it becomes clear she’s in trouble, I offer up a deal.