Pearl Bamford has been gloriously single ever since divorcing her cheating ex. She's built an empire of fun, freedom, cheeky flirting, and strictly uncommitted hookups. As for romance? She left that behind with the wedding china and the monogrammed towels. Then her mother gets remarried and just her luck, Pearl acquires a brand-new stepbrother named Finn Cole. He's tall, annoyingly handsome, suspiciously charming, and the sort of man who makes women visibly swoon while weaker men suddenly become profoundly intimidated, as if standing beside him requires emotional fortitude and a functioning ego. Pearl refuses to be impressed. She has sworn off anything involving attachment and plans to keep her heart under lock, key, and reinforced sarcasm. But Finn has that slow mischievous grin, unbothered confidence, and infuriating patience. He's determined to see past her cool exterior, and Pearl is determined to remain an uncrackable delight. Can Finn infiltrate a heart she insists is permanently frostbitten, or will he learn the hard way that charming a Bamford is as difficult as convincing a British aristocrat to switch from Earl Grey to instant coffee? The universe has plans for Pearl. Whether she approves or not.

After a decade-long marriage ends in betrayal, New York chef Jilly Moore is left with two sons, a rising restaurant, and a heart she refuses to let break twice. As she learns to co-parent with the man who hurt her, she finds herself rebuilding more than a business - she's rebuilding her family, her future, and the parts of herself she forgot. Across split weekends, baseball games, school plays, late-night recipes, and unexpected laughter, the Moore family discovers that love doesn't vanish... it changes shape. And sometimes, healing shows up in places you never expect. She built a life around love. He broke it. Now she's learning how to live for herself - and discovering that love might not be gone... just different. Author's note: I recently released a short horror novella - darker, quieter, and very different from this story.