Sweet Sixteen Snowstorm

A Year of Accidental Love Affairs

Maeve Calder has exactly one plan: close up The Howl, beat the freak Oklahoma snowstorm home, and spend the night wrapped in a fuzzy blanket and a filthy paperback.

Then a stranded stranger barrels through her door.

Graham Mercer is tall, tense, and built from control and caffeine. A college basketball coach racing toward the Sweet Sixteen. A man with too much pressure on his shoulders and zero patience for detours.

The highway shuts down.

The power goes out.

And the storm traps them inside her bar.

No exits.

No witnesses.

Nowhere to hide from the heat snapping between them.

Maeve is guarded. For good reason. Her walls are deliberate, reinforced, and not up for negotiation. But Graham—steady, watchful—can't ignore the pull toward her. Her defiance dares him closer. Something inside him morphs from curiosity to protectiveness in a heartbeat.

He doesn't understand it. He just knows he wants it.

As candlelight replaces electricity, the banter softens, the truths turn braver, and the space between them shrinks until it feels less accidental and more inevitable.

Sometimes the fiercest storms don't destroy you.

Sometimes they deliver exactly who you've been waiting for, and lead you home.

©2026 Cedar James (P)2026 Cedar James

Bartender & Coach 😍

GUYSSS this one had me hooked from the start! This is the 3rd installment of A Year of Accidental Love Affairs. Rachel Dane and Lucas Troy were the perfect Bartender and Coach!

This is a snowed-in, forced proximity romance with age gap, delicious tension, banter and healing. I loved every second of this novella!

The FMC is young, but emotionally mature. Her past traumas and how she copes made her easy to connect with. The MMC was so sweet, considerate and playful. I loved seeing him try to remain in control of his urges. He handled her boundaries with such care and was patient until SHE broke. 🤩🥵Their dynamic was soooo fun!

If you love forced proximity, banter and tension that explodes…DO NOT skip out on this novella!

So good!

She did it again. What a banger this short story was. I love her books and the narrators were freaking amazing too. They really brought the story to life

Short and fun

Coach MMC
Bartender FMC
Snowed in together
Forced proximity
Single Dad
Dual POV - 1st person

Duet narration - Rachel Dane & Lucas Troy
Wonderful performance by Rachel & Troy!

Fun and flirty short novella that packs a spicy punch!

Maeve is a small bar bartender with a traumatic past, she doesn't let anyone get to close. That is until a stranger wanders into the bar on a snowy night looking for shelter from the storm. Graham is a single dad and a basketball coach that only focuses on his son and his career, but when he meets Maeve he starts to want more from life. These two spend an incredible and deep night couple days together and it leaves them both with the desire for more...

Overall, this is a sweet, fun, and spicy listen. I really enjoyed it. Easy to listen to and follow with loveable characters and low angst.