From the world of Cranberry Ridge comes a story about new places, unexpected sparks, and the man determined not to fall for her smile. After wrapping up her last case in Seattle's courthouse, Melanie Vanderbilt decides it's time for something different. The city has lost its shine, and she's ready for quiet mornings, friendly faces and the kind of peace that only small-town life can offer. Moving to Cranberry Ridge means being closer to her friends and trading traffic for long walks beneath the pines. Mel's the kind of person who finds joy in the ordinary...always smiling, always hopeful, even when life refuses to play along. But her endless cheer soon collides with Luke Prescott's gruff silence...a sexy, secretive, stubborn man who meets kindness with caution and has a heart he keeps under lock and key. Luke Prescott knows danger when he sees it. He's spent years tracking threats, building firewalls and outrunning ghosts of his own. Mel is everything he shouldn't want...bright where he's guarded, open where he's closed off. But she disarms him with every sweet smile. Luke learned young that happiness usually hides something, but the more time he's forced to spend around Mel, the more he realizes it isn't an act. It's armor made of Christmas cheer and hope. As Christmas settles over Cranberry Ridge, the man who stopped believing in love finds himself falling for the woman who never stopped creating it. Because in this small town, love isn't about perfect beginnings. It's about finding love and family in the most unexpected places.