Alana has spent months on the run, guarding the child she carries and the fragile hope that still keeps her moving. Alone, betrayed, and exhausted, she's built her life around survival until a violent storm drives her into a remote mountain cabin. Inside waits Ryn, an alien shifter warrior nursing old wounds and secrets too heavy to share.
Ryn has hidden from everyone since the betrayal that shattered his unit. When Alana crashes into his refuge, he wants her gone until he senses the tiny heartbeat she's protecting. Something fierce stirs in him, something he thought long dead. Against his better judgment, he lets her stay.
Days stretch into uneasy peace. Repairs turn into shared work, silence into trust. Beneath Ryn's scars, Alana finds a protector she never expected. And in her courage, Ryn discovers what it means to belong again.
But danger is closing in. Mercenaries hunt him. Her past isn't far behind.
Now Ryn must decide keep running from what broke him, or fight for the family he never thought he'd have.
Can two survivors build something lasting in a world built to tear them apart?
