A Kindled Winter — Rachel L. Demeter

""Christmas, my child, is love in action. Every time we love, every time we give, it's Christmas."" - Dale Evans
Spirited Jeseca Reed. Withdrawn Dr. David Drake. Each have known loss. Both have felt heartache.
A week before Christmas, Jeseca Reed sets off for rustic Blue River, Oregon-her childhood home and a vault of tender memories. However, fate takes an unexpected turn when she's left stranded in the mountains' vast, untamed wilderness. Desperate and alone, she seeks shelter at a cottage and finds herself in the arms of a mysterious stranger.
Dr. David Drake was once a renowned cardiovascular surgeon. But a devastating tragedy has left him scarred both inside and out, unable to use his hands to operate again. For the past five years, his Blue River cottage has been his sole escape-a safe haven where he can shut out the world, bury himself in his grief, and reunite with his son's memory.
Together they are summer and winter. Fire and ice. And yet a poignant connection forms between them. Jeseca awakens David and thaws his heart with a romance hot enough to melt snow. But before David and Jeseca can fully embrace each other, they must wade through darkness and confront the ghosts of their pasts ...
Equal parts steamy and heartfelt, "A Kindled Winter" brings the spirit of the holidays to life with a passionate story of second chances and healing love.
Disclaimer: suitable for adults.