The Gift by Perri Forrest

Kayla
It’s a week before Christmas, but Kayla Carter has nothing to celebrate. No tree, no plans, and no family to speak of. Her life is ripping apart at the seams. But this state of affairs is not new to Kayla. She is no stranger to life having its moments with her. But, at forty years old, she’s wondering why it is, that the universe is hell bent on dealing her a losing hand.With her vehicle newly repossessed, and an eviction notice pinned to her front door, Kayla knows it’s just a matter of time before she’ll be without a roof over her head, and searching for somewhere to go. But she has nowhere to go . . .Alone, in a world that is pulling no punches, defeat is singlehandedly, weighing Kayla down. And it all goes from bad to way worse, when a stranger shows up to drop off yet another piece of bad news.

Silas
When Silas Daniels arrives at Kayla’s front door, he’s there only to bring a misrouted 48-hour disconnection notice, from the gas & electric company. It mistakenly got mixed in with his daughter’s mail and he’s just there, as a favor, to deliver.His intent is to hand the envelope off to its rightful owner, and be on his way. But when Kayla opens the door, it takes only a few seconds for Silas to see the pain inside her eyes. She’s hurting, and in his hands he holds something to twist the knife further.He wants to help; she wants to be left alone. And while Silas wants to honor and respect her wishes, how can he walk away from her in her time of need? That’s not who he is. He simply can’t do it . . .