LeafGrief is a complex thing to experience. Since losing my husband, I’ve let it call the shots.

It’s been in control so long that I’ve almost forgotten what it feels like to have someone hold me tight at night or share a secret smile with. But a beautiful young model shows up at my lodge.

He’s eager to learn about the outdoors and experience life outside the city. The more we laugh and share secrets under the stars, the more he makes me want things that I’ve kept buried for too long.

He’s more than my first impression; he’s intelligent, kind, eager, and fiercely protective. He’s only supposed to be here for a month, but he’s chipping at the walls around my heart.

Now that I’m falling for him, I need to convince him to stay, but we’re from two different worlds. Could a beauty like him be happy in the mountains with a bearded widower like me?SashaBeing a model assumes you’re all looks and no brains.

Well, I’m done playing the part of the pretty boy. The flirt.

The easy target. No more cowing to the demands of others.

It’s time to figure out who I am and what I want from life. I’m heading to the mountains for a month to discover the kinder side of life—if there is such a thing.

I want to heal my wounds and use the wilderness to search my soul for where I should go next. When I arrive at the lodge, the sexy lumberjack with the sad eyes immediately captures my attention.

He’s incredibly thoughtful, and he emboldens me to be me. With his encouragement, I’m doing things I never thought possible, like learning to fish.

. .

and catching feelings instead. We lead different lives, but even though I didn’t come here looking for love, would he want a beautiful mess like me to stay?CW: mention of spousal death, off-page past sexual and emotional abuse.