Betrayal, loss, and bloodshed destroyed my life… Would the guilt I harbored over it ever diminish? It should have been a day like any other. Instead, it was the day that a cruel twist of fate obliterated everything I cherished. For years I remained in hiding. All alone and with no one to trust, my heart was in shambles, my soul half-dead. But then, Paxton made me feel alive again. With him, I felt safe. The second I saw him, I knew he would be hard to ignore. And while I tried, my attempts to guard my fractured heart from him proved impossible when he pulled out all the stops to claim it as his own. After busting through my walls, he became my savior, best friend, and lover. Could the love of my very own protector, found family, and a monumental surprise stop me from running again? And the bigger question—did I deserve the new life he promised me?