Single Dad Protector: Small-Town Romance

by Rose Luv

Elise Bennett has learned how to be lonely.

She spends long days working to pay off a debt that was never hers and quiet nights escaping into novels in her tiny home.

Then, out of nowhere, her estranged grandmother gets injured and calls her out of the blue, asking Elise to come and help her.

Elise wants answers about the family feud that tore everyone apart years ago.

She arrives in the small coastal town of Emerald Cove, expecting to stay only a short while before returning to the city and the job she cannot afford to lose.

Instead, she meets Jonathan Walker.

A tall, broad-shouldered rancher with gentle eyes, a guarded heart, and an eight-year-old son who struggles silently with the world around him.

Jonathan has long since given up on love. After years of protecting his son, he no longer believes there is room in his life for anything more.

But somewhere between repairing a broken bookstore, helping a lonely little boy find confidence, and finding herself surrounded by people who quietly begin to feel like family—

Elise finds herself healing too.

And somewhere along the way, she and Jonathan begin falling for each other.

For the first time in years, Elise finds herself wanting something she never thought she could have
A family.
A home.
And a man who quietly makes impossible things feel possible.

But staying in Emerald Cove means walking away from the job that pays her father's medical debt. And loving Jonathan may force her to choose between the life she wants and the responsibilities she cannot leave behind.

847 pages, Kindle Edition

Published May 28, 2026

Reviews

[Mary · Rating 5 out of 5]

Single Dad Protector is a rebuilding of Elise’s life, by a small town that really didn’t know her.  She came to Emerald Cove at the request of her Grandma that she has not seen or heard from since she was very young.  Her father had a falling out with his mother and refused to have anything else to do with her.  Now Grandma has fallen and hurt her ankle and can’t continue to work at their family business Bennett Books.  Now she has called Elise to ask her to come help her till her foot heals and get the bookstore restored so they can sell it.  The handyman she had hired was the choice of all the single women in town but he was not interested.  He was a widower raising a young son.  His work reputation was above reproach in the town.  Elise has taken some time off work in the city to come help her Grandma but she begins to try to figure out ways to keep the store open for her Grandma.  She is working at the store to try to set up ideas to make the bookstore a success again.  While all this is going on she finds out how small towns work.  How friends help each other out of friendship instead of everything being done for money.  Can Elise rebuild her soul to where she can believe not everybody is after what you have and maybe find something she has been missing all alone?

[Mary Ann Speel · Rating 5 out of 5]

Nice story with the h being a single woman who feels responsible for doing everything along. She assumes the responsibility of paying her father’s medical debt even though she doesn’t really have the money needed. Then a phone call from her paternal grandmother, who she hasn’t had contact with for decades calls asking for help because she has fallen and injured her leg. The h takes leave from her very necessary job and goes to her grandmother with expenses she really can’t afford. The family bookstore needs to be repaired before it can be sold and she pitches in even though she lacks knowledge of how to do things. The H is the man she hired to do the repairs. He really sees her and wants to help her with more than the repairs. She realizes that the bookstore needs more than repairs to survive and she comes up with a plan to use the bookstore as a means to helping the children in town. She is successful and the h and H get their HEA. Recommend this book to everyone who enjoys a simple story about people who really care for each other, the h, H, his family and some of the people from the town. Enjoy!

[Ruth R · Rating 5 out of 5]

Elise works at Evergreen Marketing company , she works so late every day, she had no one waiting for her .
She had bills to pay and a loan she made for her father’s treatment.
One day after hours at work she received a call from her grandmother who she didn’t see from when she was a kid,she was curious about her but her father tells her to not talk about her , because in the past they had an argument.
She asked her to go to her because she wanted help to sell the book shop .
Jonathan a single dad, he owns a ranch but he wanted a tutor for his son, his brother’s wanted
him for to find a woman but he didn’t want, he tried many times but didn’t work.
He received a call from Elise , she told him who she is and she’s coming to Emerald Cove to help her grandma to sell the store but she needed him to fixed some things on it, they agree to meet in a couple days and when he hang up he was smiling.

An amazing and lovely book that I enjoyed reading.

[Jean Katchmar · Rating 5 out of 5]

Elise works in a marketing office in the city and needs every cent she earns to pay her deceased dad's medical bills, her rent and her living expenses. She receives a call from Margaret, her grandmother, who needs her to come help her in Emerald Cove since has fallen and lives alone. Elise goes and learns that she has a bookstore needing lots of work before she can sell it. Margaret hires Jonathan, a local handiman, to work on those repairs. He has a son Caleb who is having problems in school. Elise works with Caleb on his science project and his reading. Jonathan is drawn to Elise when he sees how Caleb interacts with her. Jonathan's brothers see how much he likes Elise and encourages him. Jonathan and Caleb teach Elise to ride a horse and things seem to be going her way. Will Elise decide to stay and help Maragret with the bookstore or will Elise return to her job in the city? Enjoyable read about hope, trust and caring that I hope you will enjoy as much as I did.

[Sheila M. · Rating 4 out of 5]

Sweetness, kindness, respect, helping others, family, community. The book embodies all of these. Elise was in town to help her grandmother fix up the bookstore, which was an important part of the community. My favorite lines were about when Elise was struggling with accepting help from others without paying them. She didn’t want to accept charity. “That’s not charity…Charity is helping someone because they need it…This isn’t that. You’ve already helped us.” Repairing the bookstore was a labor of love not only for Elise, but for all of the folks who volunteered. It benefited many people. An enjoyable book that is worth a read.

[Jane Culbertson · Rating 5 out of 5]

I am just getting to know this amazing author. This book is a great read and I highly recommend it. Elise and Jonathan are two great characters and very special in so many ways. A clean romance with a small town setting. A Community of people willing to help each other and willing to create a place of belonging for the adults and young. A HEA ending.

[Barbara Tobey · Rating 4 out of 5]

A sweet small town romance. It was wonderful to see the personal growth of not only the main character but of the children as well. A delightful variety of characters. Thanks to the author for providing a copy. My review is voluntary.

[Tami Willard · Rating 4 out of 5]

Can be read as a standalone but is part of an interconnected series with overlapping characters
Opposites attract
Estranged family
Found family

[Renee Helton · Rating 5 out of 5]

Sweet Story

I received a copy of this book. My opinions are entirely my own. Sweet Story and Wonderful Characters.
Looking forward to reading more books in the series.