Shelter

A broken-down suitcase, a closed bridge, and one remaining bed at a storm-battered inn.Mara is on her way back to Eastbank to face the hardest deadline of her life: emptying Honey & Salt, the bakery she built with her late sister, before the lease runs out. When torrential rain closes the local bridge, she finds herself stranded at a small inn with a broken suitcase wheel and nowhere else to go.Rhett is thirty-two, skilled with his hands, and dedicated to helping his aunt keep her aging inn from falling apart. When the last available room is given to Mara, he offers to give up his space and sleep on the floor. But thirty-year-old Mara is exhausted, freezing, and tired of carrying her grief alone—so she offers to share the bed.What begins as a single night of warmth and comfort quickly ignites into an intense, uninhibited connection. As the storm rages outside, Mara and Rhett begin opening up about past guilt, lost loved ones, and uncertain futures. But with Mara facing the painful task of closing her shop and Rhett weighing a new job opportunity in town, both must decide if this unexpected haven is just a temporary refuge or the start of something lasting.Shelter is an emotional, high-heat romance featuring dual POVs, forced proximity, and a guaranteed HEA (Happily Ever After).