Some shelters are made of timber. Others are made of trust.
Grace Larkin has learned the hard way that usefulness is the only safety a woman can count on. Falsely accused of theft by the employer whose crimes she refused to cover, she arrives in Providence Ridge, Montana Territory, with a battered trunk, a five-year-old daughter, and a reputation in ruins. All she wants is to disappear into hard work and keep her child fed. But when the man who destroyed her follows her to this remote frontier town, Grace discovers that staying invisible may no longer be an option—and that the rule-bound supervisor who hired her is asking questions she's afraid to answer.
Owen Garrett trusts systems, not people. Eight years ago, he trusted the wrong man, and two people died because of his laxness. Now he runs the mill cookhouse with ironclad order, refusing to let sentiment cloud his judgment again. He hired the widow because the operation needed a cook—not because her quiet competence impresses him, and certainly not because her daughter's shy smiles are starting to crack something open in his chest. But when a charming hotelier arrives spreading whispered accusations, Owen faces an impossible choice: protect his position or protect the woman he's beginning to believe.
When spring flooding contaminates the water supply and workers fall ill, suspicion turns to poison—and the accusations land squarely on Grace. Forced to work side by side through the crisis, Grace and Owen must decide how much they're willing to risk. She's spent her life believing she's only worth what she produces. He's spent his believing that control is the only path to safety. But mercy doesn't follow rules, and neither does love.
As the town watches and judges, Grace must learn that being truly seen isn't the danger she's always feared—and Owen must discover that some things are worth breaking his carefully constructed walls to protect.
Tropes:
• Forced Proximity (she runs the kitchen he supervises—there's no avoiding each other)
• Protective Hero (he'll risk everything to stand between her and the storm)
• Wrongly Accused Heroine (she's not running from what she did—she's running from what she wouldn't do)
• Single Mother (a little girl who just wants safety… and maybe a father)
• Slow Burn Romance (trust built through work, witnessed kindness, and costly choices)
• Found Family (a mother, a daughter, and a man who didn't know he was lonely until them)
Reader Promise: This is a clean Christian historical romance with an integrated faith thread, emotional depth, no explicit content, and a satisfying, hope-filled ending that will leave you believing in second chances.
Genre: Inspirational
Grace Larkin has learned the hard way that usefulness is the only safety a woman can count on. Falsely accused of theft by the employer whose crimes she refused to cover, she arrives in Providence Ridge, Montana Territory, with a battered trunk, a five-year-old daughter, and a reputation in ruins. All she wants is to disappear into hard work and keep her child fed. But when the man who destroyed her follows her to this remote frontier town, Grace discovers that staying invisible may no longer be an option—and that the rule-bound supervisor who hired her is asking questions she's afraid to answer.
Owen Garrett trusts systems, not people. Eight years ago, he trusted the wrong man, and two people died because of his laxness. Now he runs the mill cookhouse with ironclad order, refusing to let sentiment cloud his judgment again. He hired the widow because the operation needed a cook—not because her quiet competence impresses him, and certainly not because her daughter's shy smiles are starting to crack something open in his chest. But when a charming hotelier arrives spreading whispered accusations, Owen faces an impossible choice: protect his position or protect the woman he's beginning to believe.
When spring flooding contaminates the water supply and workers fall ill, suspicion turns to poison—and the accusations land squarely on Grace. Forced to work side by side through the crisis, Grace and Owen must decide how much they're willing to risk. She's spent her life believing she's only worth what she produces. He's spent his believing that control is the only path to safety. But mercy doesn't follow rules, and neither does love.
As the town watches and judges, Grace must learn that being truly seen isn't the danger she's always feared—and Owen must discover that some things are worth breaking his carefully constructed walls to protect.
Tropes:
• Forced Proximity (she runs the kitchen he supervises—there's no avoiding each other)
• Protective Hero (he'll risk everything to stand between her and the storm)
• Wrongly Accused Heroine (she's not running from what she did—she's running from what she wouldn't do)
• Single Mother (a little girl who just wants safety… and maybe a father)
• Slow Burn Romance (trust built through work, witnessed kindness, and costly choices)
• Found Family (a mother, a daughter, and a man who didn't know he was lonely until them)
Reader Promise: This is a clean Christian historical romance with an integrated faith thread, emotional depth, no explicit content, and a satisfying, hope-filled ending that will leave you believing in second chances.
Genre: Inspirational