She kissed him once. Now she must dare to let him see her fully. Emma Stewart has admired Finnegan MacDrummond from afar-too quietly, for too long. But silence doesn't get answered. So she risks everything with a single, brazen act: a kiss that catches him off guard and sends her fleeing into the woods... heart racing, hope flickering, courage trembling.

He never saw her coming. But he can't look away now. Finnegan, gruff Highlander and steady soul, wasn't prepared to be kissed by a stranger-or to feel a spark he can't shake. When he discovers it was Emma, the quiet woman he never truly noticed, something shifts. Her boldness lingers. And suddenly, he wants to know everything she never dared say aloud.

What begins as a dare becomes a door-to vulnerability, to hope, to love. Emma fears she's ruined everything. Finn fears he doesn't know how to respond. And yet, between awkward silences and searching eyes, they begin to learn that the only way to be truly chosen... is to be truly seen. Because hiding feels safe. But nothing about love is meant to be safe.

She kissed him to be brave. Now she must let him in.