She bought a date with the town’s most dangerous recluse for one reason: to solve a cold case.

Monica
I didn't bid five hundred dollars on a date for the romance. I did it for the answers. As a true-crime podcaster, I’m chasing a cold case that leads straight to the North Ridge, and the only man who knows the terrain is the town’s most broody, reclusive hermit.

Gideon Mercer is ex-military, intimidatingly large, and clearly hates every second of the Valentine’s fundraiser. I thought I could play by his rules to get my story, but one look at the mountain of a man and my "podcast brain" goes haywire. I’ve been selective my whole life, waiting for a man I could trust with the "mic off." I just didn't expect him to be a grumpy lookout man who looks at me like I’m the only mystery he wants to solve.

Gideon
I moved to a fire lookout to escape the noise. I wanted solitude, not a date with a vibrant, curvy woman who asks too many questions. But when Monica Reyes wins my "Date Night" basket, my quiet world gets flipped upside down.

I know her game. She wants the secrets of the ridge. But when a blizzard washes out the road and traps us in my tiny cabin, the mission changes. One night of forced proximity turns curiosity into obsession. She’s soft, she’s brilliant, and she’s mine to protect. When I realize she’s been waiting for the right man to give her everything, I decide right then—she’s never leaving this mountain.

The investigation brought her to me, but my obsession is what’s going to keep her.

For readers who love...

• A Grumpy Reclusive Hero: Ex-military intelligence with a protective streak a mile wide.

• A Confident Curvy Heroine: A podcaster who knows her worth (and is a virgin by choice).

• Forced Proximity: Trapped in a tiny fire lookout during a snowstorm.

• Low Angst, High Heat: Steamy on-page scenes and an investigative "light suspense" twist.

Safe & HEA: No cheating, no cliffhangers, and a possessive hero who falls first and hard.

​​​​​​​A Date Night In The Mountains is part of the Date Night with the Mountain Man collaboration. This Valentine’s season, these mountain men will learn love doesn’t wait for an invitation… and it’s never really blind. Coming to your Kindle Jan - Feb 2026!