Sweet Tea and Slow Burns

One family barbecue. One long weekend. One love that refuses to stay hidden.

Lyra has spent years keeping her heart carefully guarded. Between anxiety, old scars, and a lifetime of being watched over by an overly protective group of men, dating has become more trouble than it's worth.

Dalton has loved Lyra for as long as he can remember.

The problem?

She's always been just out of reach.

When a Fourth of July celebration brings everyone together for a long holiday weekend, years of tension, teasing, and unspoken feelings finally reach a breaking point. As sparks fly under the Arkansas summer sun, Dalton must decide whether to keep protecting Lyra from a distance-or finally fight for the future he's always wanted with her.

But love isn't the only thing waiting for them.

Old wounds, painful memories, and fears neither of them have fully faced threaten to pull them apart before they can build something real.

Can a lifetime of friendship become the forever kind of love?

Or will the past prove stronger than the future they've dreamed about?