Before beginning her new job as sous chef at one of Seattle's finest restaurants, Josie Stewart takes on a six-month position cooking at a lodge in an Alaskan lake town. It's only temporary--or so she thinks, as she becomes a valued part of the local community, falling in love with the people who call the Klutina Lake home.But one man, in particular, stands out among the rest of Josie's new friends: an intriguing swordsmith whose very existence forces her to question whether her heart wants to return to Washington at all. .