Showing results by author "Freya Barker" in All Categories

In the dark alley of a pub, the words "Please don't" take hold of her heart and break the silence she seeks. Thinking herself beyond redemption, she tentatively grabs on to the slim thread of hope that unfolds inside of her. Holding her secrets close, she can't resist the comforting draw coming from The Skipper. The unconditional friendships it offers, the protective roof it provides, and the spark that its owner ignites in her - melting the frost off her heart, and slowly stripping away her resistance.

When her surly teenage son moves back to live with ER physician Naomi Waters unexpectedly, her motherly instincts go on high alert. Nothing could've prepared her for the wave of trouble that follows him back into her life. Sheriff Joe Morris blew his chance with Naomi a few years back when he'd moved faster than his own past allowed. At the first opportunity to get his foot back in the door, he takes it and risks everything to keep her and her son safe.

Even at 37, with a challenging but rewarding career as a paramedic, Bella Gomez is treated as the baby of the family. It's made her allergic to anyone meddling, so she chooses to keep mostly to herself. Unfortunately, that doesn't stop her family from inserting themselves in her life. Nor does it deter the one man she knows she shouldn't get close to from showing up on her doorstep.

Nowadays Kendra Schmitt puts most of her time into the new clinic in Cedar Tree. Always the responsible one in her family, she has avoided any kind of entanglement. In particular with a persistent young investigator. With her schedule a bit more predictable, she is ready to explore a personal life and concedes to what turns out to be a disastrous blind date. Junior member of the GFI team, Neil James, has seen and experienced more than most at his age.

We’re complete opposites—one who plays it safe, the other a thrill-seeker—but when old sins resurface bringing violence to the present, our path forward becomes clear.

She likes picking up her camera because it allows her to see things through a different lens. Like when she lost her job recently and instead of focusing on what she’s forced to leave behind, she zooms in on the new options opening up in front of her. Or when a dangerous looking silver fox comes rolling up her path on a FatBoy, and her digital output shows a deep loneliness, matching her own, in his ice-blue eyes. But when she's working on making her dreams come true, she inadvertently captures something in her viewfinder she can’t un-see.

I am a wandering disaster. A hedonist, a lover, a son, and a rebel. My name is Yuma. I’m sober enough to see the need for redemption, but too blind to realize I already found it. I am an independent seeker. An overachiever, a friend, a misfit, and a cop. My name is Lissie. I’m determined enough to find acceptance, but too stubborn to see all I need is my own. We shouldn’t get involved - all the odds are against us - but when bodies turn up on common ground and lines between duty and purpose get blurred, our future becomes clear.

They didn’t know each other, but the events of one single day heralded a pivotal change that would alter their lives forever. After almost two decades spent locked away in a dark, dank cell, Gray Bennet isn’t used to the sun, the sounds, the scents. It’s overwhelming. Each year Robin Bishop returns, and while everyone around her is solemn, she lifts her face to the sun and celebrates her freedom. It’s liberating. He sees her. She stands out in the grieving crowd—her head thrown back, her face bright with contentment—like a beacon offering to guide him into the light. 

When her sister, Pippa, goes missing, Nella Freling tells her boss she’s taking time off from her job as a research librarian, hops in her sensible van, and heads south of the border to Montana. However, local police don’t seem too concerned about a missing woman living in her motorhome. So Nella will have to look for Pippa by herself, unless she can convince a highly recommended tracker to help her, but sadly the rude and angry cowboy won’t even listen to her at first.

Violence corroded her.... Obedience defiled her.... Fear kept her chained.... Freedom is hard to embrace when she's never learned to trust. Yet in the span of a second, she grabs a single opportunity and runs toward it. Straight into the sanctuary of a pub at the end of a wharf. She doesn't understand the concept of friendship. She's never felt the connection of a relationship. She's as innocent as the driven snow and yet tainted with corruption.

Not much has gone according to plan for mechanic, Pippa Freling, recently. With lots of bridges burned behind her, she decides to stick close to her sister and give Montana a try. Things are looking up when she joins a local group of animal activists, buys an auto shop for a steal, and even tries her luck with the opposite sex. But it doesn’t take long before her hopeful new future is derailed once again.

Her single night of indulgence with the silver-eyed stranger is only the beginning. He sees right to the heart of her and she is unable to ward off emotions that have been deeply buried. With the sting of betrayal still fresh in her soul, she's surprised to find herself opening up to the honest integrity of the sharp-eyed, rough-looking biker.

A life in the service of others is both penance and a blessing. She soothes her personal hell by pulling victims from theirs, helping them on their path to survival; never finding her own. When a crippling blow finally evaporates her last hope, the temptation to give up is strong. Still, she can't find it in her to turn her back on those who need her.

For Mia, a crowded subway ride changes her entire life. Retreating to the wilderness helps her cope with a world that is suddenly too loud, too turbulent. Her existence safely contained to the small cottage on the lake, she is unprepared for the neighbor that moves across the bay. A career-ending injury has Jared permanently benched. His reputation as The Enforcer won’t survive the unanticipated responsibilities awaiting him. Away from the public eye, he adjusts to his new reality, under the quiet observation of the intriguing hermit on the other side of the water.

When Leelo can no longer identify herself by the roles that once defined her, it's both terrifying and liberating. Oh, she feels the loss, grief, and the anger, but when she inherits property up north, she jumps at the promise of freedom and independence. Yet, not everyone in her new community is what they seem, starting with the surly mountain man down the road.