Highly Smitten

Hello!

I’m so excited to finally share Highly Smitten, Book 3 in my Cedar Spurs Ranch series. And I have to admit, I have a soft spot for this one.

Jace and Leah are the quiet ones. They’ve spent years working at Cedar Spurs, noticing each other in all those little ways that don’t look important until suddenly they are—a glance across the ranch, bad coffee shared on a mounting block, knowing somebody’s habits without ever admitting you’ve been paying attention. Then, one summer, all that slow-burning attraction finally catches fire. And Jace completely screws it up.

By the time winter rolls around, Leah has spent months putting herself back together. She has no intention of giving the man who broke her heart another opportunity to do it. Jace, unfortunately, is still hopelessly smitten. And for a man whose usual response to complicated emotions is to shut up and hope they go away, winning Leah back is going to require a very uncomfortable amount of talking.

That became one of my favorite things about writing this book. Highly Smitten isn’t really about one giant romantic gesture. Jace can’t fix what happened with flowers, a grand speech, or one perfect apology. He has to do something much harder: he has to show up. Again. And again. And again. Sometimes that means saying the thing he’s terrified to say, sometimes it means giving Leah space without disappearing, and sometimes it means accepting that loving someone doesn’t mean they owe you forgiveness.

Of course, none of this would be quite so difficult if Leah had stopped wanting him. She has not—not even close. So while Jace is trying very hard to become an emotionally functional adult, Leah is trying equally hard not to notice the cowboy standing in front of her looking unfairly good in a canvas jacket. Neither of them is particularly successful.

There is a lot of chemistry in this book. A lot of longing, a lot of kissing, some very questionable decisions, and plenty of open-door spice once these two remember exactly why staying away from each other was such a problem in the first place. But what I love most about Jace and Leah is everything underneath that attraction.

This is a story about second chances that aren’t easy. About regret. About trust. About learning that I’m sorry is only the beginning, and about the difference between loving someone and actually knowing how to love them well.

All of it happens against a winter at Cedar Spurs—cold mornings in the barn, Christmas at the ranch, trail rides, muddy boots, stubborn horses, guest chaos, handwritten notes, New Year’s Eve, hot drinks, and all the familiar faces that make Cedar Spurs feel like home.

If you love second-chance romance, quiet cowboys, strong heroines, ranch life, emotional healing, lots of yearning, found family, and open-door spice, I think you’re going to love Jace and Leah. Because sometimes loving someone isn’t the hardest part. Sometimes you have to say the damn thing. And then you have to stay.

Highly Smitten: Cedar Spurs Ranch Book 3 is available now on Amazon.

I hope you enjoy coming back to Cedar Spurs.