Holly Diehl

I’m just so exhausted—always living on the edge of desperation, one paycheck away from ruin. But this new job… It could be the fresh start I need. It could change everything. The contract is only for three months, but if I keep my head down, work hard, and prove myself, maybe I could stay longer. Maybe I could make Black Mountain Lodge my home. As I pull down the gravel drive, surrounded by the forest and mountains and bright blue skies, I feel something I haven’t felt in a while. I feel hope.

It’s Valentine’s Day weekend, and Charlotte and Seth are not looking for romance. Armed with emotional-support bear spray, Charlotte is in self-imposed isolation and on guard from men. Having a stalker can do that to a person’s nerves. Just across the hall and giving off woodsy vibes is Seth, a recently divorced arborist. As in today recently. Heights, he’s fine with. Trust? Not so much.

As a single mom with my hands and heart full, finding love is the last thing on my mind. Then Everett Windward comes along. My new neighbor is charming, handsome, and sexy—and before I know it, I have a new friend…with benefits. Fun and filthy benefits. There’s just one problem—He’s also my son’s teacher. That alone should have me pumping the brakes… except it doesn’t. I’m drawn to him and to the way he makes me feel. Everett has a filthy side that has reignited something inside of me that I haven’t felt in years.

The first time I set foot in Fire Chief Declan Everhart's small town, he declared me trouble. Maybe it's because I'm a pop star hiding in his house for the holiday season. Or maybe it's the way I can't help but tease the Grinch. More than likely, though, it's because his best friend Cade touched me right in front of him, lighting a fire so hot it threatens to incinerate us all. Now, I can't keep my hands to myself.

What’s the actual last thing you’d ever want your celebrity crush to see you doing when you finally come face-to-excruciatingly-handsome-face with him? Singing and dancing around by yourself to “Dreams” by The Cranberries while drinking straight from a bottle of champagne? While you’re wearing some wedding gown you just found in a closet? Yeah. Me too. And yet, here we are. At a mountain cabin I was sent to by the awfully pretty actress/pretty awful human I work for to get things ready for her romantic New Year’s Eve getaway with him.

Halloween: it’s a holiday where people shed their boring everyday personalities and become fantastic beings ready for an epic party. Well, guess what? That’s Billy Boston 24/7, 365, baby! It’s who I was before I became a millionaire and it’s who I’ll always be. My beautiful next door neighbor, Donna, is a hardworking nurse who takes her job seriously and her fun even more so. All she wants is a no-strings arrangement and that’s fine by me. It’s Halloween for us every time we’re together because she likes to role play.

Amanda Stroken has always been unlucky in love, which has led her to become a workaholic. When her boss decides to close the business for three weeks during the summer, Amanda’s friend – Macey, takes this opportunity to sign her up for a dating app. But with mercury retrograde starting, her luck is bound to get even worse.