Novels by Lauren Anderson

The lighthouse beam swept across the cliffs one final time before the mechanism groaned to a halt. Maya stood at the edge where it had all begun—where she'd first seen the Tidewater Inn rising from the fog like a ghost, where she'd first locked eyes with Elijah across the harbor, where she'd learned that running away and coming home could somehow be the same thing.Behind her, the inn glowed with warm light from every window. Inside, the town had gathered—not for a funeral this time, but for a wedding. Her wedding. The dress she'd chosen was simple, cream-colored linen that moved like water, so different from the suffocating white gown she'd almost worn ten years ago to a man who'd confused possession with love. That girl was gone. The woman who stood here now had salt in her veins and steel in her spine.But the past had one final card to play."You always did have a flair for the dramatic, Maya." The voice came from the shadows near the cliff's edge, and every nerve in her body igni

The wedding dress hung in the turret room like a ghost of every future Maya had once thought impossible. Ivory silk caught the dawn light streaming through the windows of the Tidewater Inn, and she stood before it with trembling hands, unable to believe this moment was real. Six months ago, she'd arrived here broken, running from a man who'd taught her that love meant pain. Now she was hours away from marrying a man who'd shown her that love could mean healing.But the knock on her door at 6 AM wasn't the gentle tap of her bridesmaids or the excited chatter of wedding day preparations.It was the sharp, authoritative rap of someone who meant business.Maya's blood turned to ice. She knew that knock—the kind that came before everything fell apart. Her hand froze on the dress fabric as Simone appeared in the doorway, her face pale despite the carefully applied makeup."Maya," she said quietly. "There's a detective downstairs. He says he needs to speak with you before the ceremony."The

The confession hung between them like a blade suspended by thread—sharp, dangerous, and inevitable in its fall. Ethan stood in the doorway of the Tidewater's master suite, his shoulders rigid with a tension that had nothing to do with the storm raging outside and everything to do with the words he'd just spoken."I wanted you from the moment you arrived. But wanting you terrified me more than anything I've ever faced."Maya's heart hammered against her ribs as she watched him, this man who'd spent months building walls only to tear them down with brutal honesty. The lightning outside cast his face in stark relief—all sharp angles and shadows, the scar above his eyebrow more pronounced in the flickering light. He looked like a man standing on the edge of a cliff, waiting to either fall or fly."Terrified?" she whispered, taking a step closer. "You don't strike me as someone who's afraid of much, Ethan Cross."His laugh was bitter, self-deprecating. "That's because you didn't know me be

Maya stood in the wreckage of what had been the Tidewater Inn's north wing, dust motes dancing in the afternoon light like tiny prayers answered. Six months had passed since that terrified woman arrived in Moonlight Cove with nothing but a duffel bag and a bruise fading on her cheekbone. Six months since she'd inherited a broken-down inn and a town full of secrets. Now, as she surveyed the newly restored ballroom—crown molding gleaming, chandelier sparkling like captured starlight—she barely recognized the person she'd been.The woman staring back at her from the antique mirror wasn't invisible anymore. She wasn't small. She wasn't apologizing for taking up space.She was Maya Reeves, and she had learned how to fly."You're doing it again." Ethan's voice was warm honey and sea salt, sliding across her skin like a caress. She felt his presence before his arms wrapped around her waist from behind, his chin settling on her shoulder as they both looked at their reflection. "That thing whe

Maya stood in the doorway of the Tidewater Inn's newly renovated great room and felt something she hadn't felt in years: complete. The afternoon sun poured through the floor-to-ceiling windows she and Ethan had installed last month, casting golden rectangles across the restored hardwood floors. Where there had once been darkness and decay, there was now light. So much light.But the envelope in her hand threatened to shatter everything she'd built."You've been standing there for ten minutes." Ethan's voice came from behind her, warm and concerned. His arms wrapped around her waist, chin resting on her shoulder. "What's wrong?"She turned in his embrace, holding up the certified letter that had arrived that morning. "It's from him. From him, Ethan. After all this time."She felt his body go rigid, saw his jaw clench in that way that meant he was fighting to stay calm. Ethan—the handyman who'd become so much more, who'd helped her uncover her grandmother's secrets, who'd stood beside h

Maya woke to the sound of waves and the warmth of sunlight streaming through lace curtains she'd chosen herself. For the first time in longer than she could remember, she didn't wake with dread coiling in her stomach. She woke to the smell of coffee brewing downstairs—coffee that Ethan was making because he'd noticed she loved those quiet morning moments before the inn came alive with guests. She woke to happiness, and the terrifying part was that it felt real.Too real. Real enough to lose.She pressed her hand to her chest, feeling her heartbeat steady and strong beneath her palm. Six months ago, she'd arrived in Moonlight Cove with nothing but a duffel bag and a lifetime of survival instincts. Now she had a thriving inn, a town that felt like home, and a man downstairs who looked at her like she hung the moon. The transformation should have felt like a fairy tale, but fairy tales didn't prepare you for the fear that came with having something worth losing."Stop it," she whispered