Out in the wild, Kash Cade Strickland doesn’t ask—he takes.

And the moment Aleena Merrickson steps onto his land… everything changes.

Ex-military and carved from grit, Kash built his life deep in the Oregon woods, far from the noise, the past, and anything that could break him again. Running Grizzly Ridge Timber with his cousin, he lives by one rule—protect what’s his.

Then Aleena crashes into his world.

Fierce, independent, and running from shadows of her own, she came to Timber Falls to capture beauty through her lens—not to become part of it. But one night, one moment, and one undeniable connection ties her to a man she never saw coming.

Kash sees through her defenses.

Aleena feels something she can’t outrun.

But the past doesn’t stay buried—and when it comes for her, it threatens everything they’re building.

Kash doesn’t run.

He doesn’t break.

And he sure as hell doesn’t let go of what belongs to him.

In a place where survival is everything, love might be the one thing that brings them to their knees… or the one thing worth fighting for.