Fifth Generation Cowboy - Liz Isaacson

A shy cowboy, a single mother, and their journey out of the friend zone.

Tom Lovell, a fifth-generation cowboy raised by a single dad, knows ranching like the back of his hand. At Three Rivers Ranch, he watches his fellow cowboys get married one by one, but he's not sure he's the marrying type. His mother's abandonment when he was a child has left him wary of women and content with his life as a cowboy.

Rose Reyes, a single mother to her daughter Mari, who has Autism, has been raising her daughter alone for seven years. Despite Mari's improvements through equine therapy, Rose struggles with loneliness, exhaustion, and the desire for adult companionship-and she's always found a friend in Tom.

One day, Tom and Rose find themselves alone in the kitchen, where Rose confesses her feelings of being out of control and her need for a break. Tom, without judgment, offers to help her with her leaking kitchen sink and overgrown lawn. As they spend more time together, Tom realizes that his friendship with Rose could grow into something more-if he can get out of his own way.

Tom also must navigate his confusing feelings about where he should be-Three Rivers or back home in Montana?-as his relationship with Rose heats up. And she always has to consider her daughter in every decision she makes.

Tom and Rose will need faith, patience, and love to navigate the road out of the friend zone and toward where they're supposed to be without risking Mari's well-being in the process. Can they face the challenges of single parenthood, past traumas, and societal expectations to build a life together? Or will their leap of faith leave them all broken-hearted?