Smoke and Mirrors

Loving each other was never the problem.

It's what happens when the smoke clears.

Tori Johnson knows how to survive. She survived losing her father. She survived losing her sight. She mastered the art of making strength look effortless.

The world doesn't see how close she is to splintering.

Scott Harris might. And that's what terrifies her.

Because loving him means letting him see the parts of her she's kept buried-the shadows that don't stay quiet, the pieces she's convinced would send any sane man running.

Scott Harris has never backed down from a fight-not in war, not in life. He carries scars the world can see. Loving Tori presses on the ones it can't.

He knows she's unpredictable. Fierce. Fragile in ways she refuses to admit. He also knows what it feels like to lose her, and he won't let that happen again. Even if it means tightening his grip.

As they blend families, rebuild careers, and attempt something neither of them has ever truly had-a stable, permanent future-the past presses harder. Old ghosts. Old fears. Old versions of themselves that refuse to stay buried.

They've spent years colliding at the wrong time.

Now they're choosing forever... and hoping it doesn't break them.

Because forever isn't just a promise. It's a risk.

And this time, they're all in.