Chapter 1
Lena Carter never expected to find a baby on her doorstep at 2 a.m.
The crying woke her. At first, she thought it was part of her dream—something about a lost puppy in the rain. But then reality cut through, sharp and insistent. A baby. Crying. Right outside her door.
Barefoot and half-asleep, she stumbled through her tiny apartment, flicked on the porch light, and froze.
A baby carrier sat on her welcome mat. Inside, swaddled in soft blue blankets, was a newborn. Tiny fists waved weakly in the air. A note, scrawled in what looked like rushed handwriting, was taped to the side.
“Please keep him safe. I’ll explain soon.”
Lena’s heart slammed against her ribs.
What the hell?
Her trembling hands reached for the note again, as if rereading it would make it make sense. Was this some kind of mistake? A prank? But the baby—very real and very upset—kicked his little legs, his cries getting louder.
And that’s when she saw the envelope tucked underneath the carrier. With growing dread, she flipped it over and recognized the name written on it.
Wes Callahan.
Her neighbor.
Her ridiculously famous, ridiculously private, NHL-playing neighbor.
Lena swallowed hard. This just got a whole lot more complicated.
