When the unthinkable befalls Alaska during a trip to Russia, it’s Drake’s turn to drop everything and race to her aid. Safely back at The Refuge, he just as quickly realizes what he’s failed to see for two decades—his oldest, dearest friend is the love of his life. A revelation that may be too little, too late. Because Drake’s brought the enemy right to their door.

Bo “Safe” Cyders was born to protect. He loves his job as a Navy SEAL and takes his oath to protect his country and the men on his team seriously. So when a woman literally stumbles into his arms at Aces Bar and Grill, begging for help, he doesn’t hesitate to act. Wren Defranco’s online date went south quickly, and when she wakes up in a strange bed, in a room she doesn’t recognize, she’s certain she’ll end up a statistic on some random crime show. Instead, she’s somehow found not only one of the world’s rare good guys, but someone she can rely on…and easily fall for.

There wasn’t a lot that surprised me. My years in the Navy taught me a lot, my years hunting human traffickers taught me the rest. Meeting a beautiful woman in a bar and spending the night with her should’ve been a blip on my radar. Instead, I spent years trying to forget her. In the middle of a rescue operation, fate dropped her back into my life, but there was a twist—she wasn’t alone.

Loner Boone Hendrix left the military with ghosts that haunt him. He lives with his dog Atlas on a farm in Vermont. Alone. Just the way he likes it. Until he rescues a half-drowned, beautiful brunette from his river. Gemma Newhouse is the daughter of the richest man in America, and from the abrasions on her wrists and her drugged state, she’s on the run from someone dangerous. She’s nothing like Boone expected—sweet, smart, and likes baking—and she ignites a fierce need inside him.

A new, sexy standalone novel from New York Times Bestsellers Vi Keeland and Penelope Ward.