Jamie: I came home to honor the dead. I wasn't supposed to fall for the living.

I don't do relationships anymore. I survive. I'm Jamie MacIntyre -- Air Force Combat Controller, and the man who carries ghosts everywhere he goes. I've lost everyone I've ever loved, and I'm convinced I'm toxic to anyone who gets close.

What I don't need... is her.

Blakely Mason is my past wrapped in golden hair and emerald eyes, with a heart I shattered five years ago. Our first meeting after all this time? A disaster. Our second? She's assigned to interview me. And suddenly, she's everywhere I don't want her -- seeing straight through my carefully constructed armor.

The connection is still there. The pull? Undeniable.

And as the truth about what happened overseas threatens to destroy me, I'm faced with the one thing I can't outrun: my feelings for her. Because the more she fights to save me, the harder it becomes to let her go.

I wasn't supposed to come home. She wasn't supposed to forgive me.

But now? I'm not sure I can survive losing her twice.

Blakely: He broke my heart and disappeared. Now he's back, and I'm supposed to pretend I'm over him.

I didn't plan on Jamie MacIntyre crashing back into my life -- or under my skin. One assignment to write about his foundation, and suddenly I'm remembering why I fell so hard for the boy who became this haunted, beautiful man.

He's guarded. Damaged. Impossible.

But he looks at me like I'm his salvation... and I'm starting to realize that maybe saving him might be the one thing that finally saves me too.

Tropes You'll Love:
Second Chance Romance
Grumpy x Sunshine
Military Hero
Childhood Friends to Lovers to Strangers
Forced Proximity (hello, emotional chaos)
"He was my first everything"
Emotional, healing, angsty slow burn

Perfect for readers who love:
- Slow-burning second chances that hurt in the best way
- Military heroes who carry more guilt than gear
- Grief, healing, and longing woven into every page
- A heroine who rebuilt her life -- until he walked back in
- Stories that feel like a Taylor Swift bridge

SPICE LEVEL: ?? Medium

? Spice Scale - For the Emotionally Unstable & Romantically Inclined

? Mild:
Sweet kisses, soft sighs, and maybe a steamy fade-to-black. Think swoon, not steam.
(Perfect for Hallmark girlies with emotional damage.)

?? Medium:
Full open-door steam, but woven into the emotion and story. Tension, build-up, and earned intimacy.
(You're gonna feel things. In your heart. And your pants.)
?? This book lives here.

??? Hot:
The angst is high, the chemistry is higher, and so is the page count on that one scene you keep rereading.
(You'll need water. And maybe prayer.)

???? Spicy AF:
Graphic, frequent, toe-curling. The plot is trauma, the recovery is ?spice?.
(N.S.F.W. and proud of it.)

????? Blistering:
Emotionally reckless. Physically irresponsible. Zero chill, zero fade-to-black, maximum destruction.
(You are no longer reading. You are spiritually ascending.)

• We started tracking this book on December 23, 2024.
• This book was $4.99 when we started tracking it.
• The price of this book has changed 6 times in the past 500 days.
• The current price of this book is FREE last checked 37 minutes ago.
• The lowest price to date was FREE last reached on May 7, 2026.
• This book has been FREE 2 times since we started tracking it.
• The highest price to date was $4.99 last reached on May 10, 2025.
• This book has been $4.99 2 times since we started tracking it.
• This book is currently at its lowest price since we started tracking it.

• RomanceMilitary

• Text-to-Speech: Disabled
• Lending: Disabled
• Print Length: 422 Pages
• File Size: 32 KB