Balsam Ridge

After my marriage crumbles, I run from the scrutiny of my suburban Stepford-wife life to my hometown of Balsam Ridge, Tennessee, with my son to pick up the pieces. The small mountain town offers plenty of opportunities for a fresh start: genuine friendships, reconnecting with my mother, and even finding work with the biggest family in town, the Tuttles. It was only supposed to be for the summer, and catching feelings for someone wasn’t part of the plan, but with his quiet confidence the sexy as sin Graham Tuttle has broken down all my walls.

After years of hard work and saving all my pennies while working as Balsam Ridge’s librarian, my dream of opening a combination book store and cafe is finally coming to fruition. Everything is on track until my old high school flame, Nashville’s trouble-making superstar Garrett Tuttle, comes back to town. His wild ways and out-of-control behavior caused his label to send him home while the chatter dies down. Garrett doesn’t know how to lay low, and his arrival turns my world upside down.

I learned at a young age to trust no one, protect myself, and guard my heart—all lessons my mother burned into me. She may not have had much to offer in the way of help, but she poured all she had into me and made me the independent woman I am today. So, after laying her to rest, I packed my belongings and moved to the place she talked about often, where she enjoyed the carefree pleasures of childhood.

I've spent the last twenty years reinventing myself. Shaking off the snotty rich girl facade for law school at Tulane University, only to pivot and obtain a Master's in Social Work, much to my parents' dismay. I settled in New Orleans and embedded myself in local politics, fighting for the people with the least representation. That is until my mother's illness called me home.

I had a perfect life—married to my high school sweetheart and preparing for our new baby. Then tragedy struck. I could have moved us back to have the support of our parents, but home isn't where you come from; it's where you want to be. And I want to be here in Balsam Ridge. So I begin anew, a single mom with a fractured heart. Determined to rise above the grief and grasp the joy that still bubbles inside of me every time I look into the eyes of our baby girl. Starting with a job at the local hemp farm.