1880s – North Carolina
Pointed fingers of condemnation accuse Margaret Rose Fellrath of aiding and abetting her outlaw brothers despite the lack of convicting evidence. When her brothers escape jail, all options are stolen from her except one: she must leave Raleigh and go where nobody has ever heard of the Fellrath brothers. The tiny mountain town of Hot Springs, North Carolina, seems the perfect spot for a new start. Introducing herself as Rose Miller, she finds employment as a chambermaid at the posh Mountain Park Hotel and Resort. She prays she can keep to herself and remain “invisible,” and somehow satisfy the head housekeeper’s impossible demands.
Cullen Delaney’s groundskeeper job at the Mountain Park Hotel and Resort is safe and predictable, but his second job—working part-time with the town sheriff—instills instincts that his father would have taught him if an outlaw’s bullet hadn’t cut Pa down. When he meets Rose Miller, his suspicious nature is piqued by her reticent behavior. What is she hiding?
Despite efforts to remain aloof and distant from everyone at the Mountain Park, Rose’s memories of her mother and the faith they shared nudge her to step beyond safe shadows. Mama always said doing something kind for someone else would make her forget her own troubles, and Rose can’t keep herself from doing what she knows Mama would tell her to do. But demonstrations of kindness bring unwanted attention, and Rose realizes she has broken her own rule. If her identity is revealed, she’ll have no choice but to run again. How she wishes she could trust someone—Cullen most of all.