Pumpkin Spice and Second Chances: A Romance Novelette

Hazel Thompson has made peace with long hours, lukewarm coffee, and a life built around caring for everyone else. As a nurse in a small mountain town, she’s used to being steady, even when the world around her isn’t. Love, she tells herself, is for people with more time and fewer scars.

Detective Miles Carter likes things simple. He keeps his head down, follows the rules, and tries not to get attached. His loyal border collie, Annabelle, is the exception. She’s clever, intuitive, and has an unshakable belief that her human could use a little help in the romance department.

When Hazel and Miles cross paths over pumpkin spice coffee and a runaway dog, their lives begin to tangle in the best possible ways. From the chaos of a charity pie contest to quiet nights spent drying rain-soaked fur by the fire, their friendship grows into something tender, unspoken, and impossible to ignore.

But when fear and habit pull them apart, it’s Annabelle who finds her way back to Hazel’s porch - and gives them both the nudge they need to try again.

Filled with small-town charm, laughter, and second chances, Pumpkin Spice and Second Chances is a cozy autumn romance about learning to stay, to hope, and to let love find its way home.