It’s been a long, cold winter at Riverside Ranch, where Robbie has lived alone since his brothers moved away. Alone, that is, except for his three devious cats, four saddle horses, and the forty-eight mustangs that roam the ranch. Robbie is preparing for yet another snowfall when he gets the last call he expected—a plea to pick up Lance Taylor from the county jail. Lance wasn’t just his little brother’s best friend, he was a part of the family. Then, one night, after Lance asked Robbie for something Robbie couldn’t give, he ran away and never came back. Lance was sixteen and heartbroken when he left his middle-of-nowhere hometown. Six years later, he’s at rock bottom with nowhere else to go, and no one to turn to but Robbie, the man Lance has been inconveniently in love with for most of his life.

When Robbie offers Lance a place to stay, Lance expects a guest bedroom and awkward silences. Instead, he finds himself sharing Robbie’s one-room hayloft apartment and its single bed, while realizing that the old flame he carries for Robbie might not be so hopeless, after all. Long Winter is the first book in the Wild Ones series and has a happy-for-now ending. Robbie and Lance’s story continues in Signs of Spring. Praise for Long Winter "What a beautifully written story this is! There is an effortless elegance to Rachel Ember’s prose that I found myself sinking blissfully into, like a relaxing Sunday drive—or horseback ride, as it were. Robbie and Lucas are perfectly imperfect, their past complicated, and their desire a slow burn destined to ignite. They breathed from the page, and the setting was so real I felt like I could go to the ranch right now and see all of them. I will definitely be reading more from this author!" - L.C. Chase, author of Pickup Men "Long Winter is a gorgeously detailed, realistic contemporary drama full of angst and longing and set in the backdrop of a rural Nebraskan town in winter. A self-styled city boy, Lance, returns to his home town after the fallout from an abusive relationship with no one else to turn to other than his childhood crush, modern day cowboy/rancher, Robbie. Hot enough to warm your cold winter's night and threaded through with tender and sometimes painful childhood memories. Recommended for people who like realistic, character-driven stories with a heavy emotional current running throughout." - KP Maxwell, author of The Problem Client "An enchanting and heartwarming novel, with strong themes of family, love, and a long overdue second chance for two flawed but utterly lovable men. The setting was beautifully evocative, from the winter scenes, to life on the ranch, to the wild horses that watch over it all. I sank totally into the read and can’t wait for the next book from this author!" - Stella Shaw, author of Dante