S.C. Stephens | Finding Love Under the Northern Lights
My latest book,Β Under the
Northern Lights, is about Mallory Reynolds, a driven, passionate woman who is
pursuing her dream of photographing wild animals in remote locations. On the way to her
favorite spot in the Alaskan wilderness, the unthinkable happensβthe engine on her plane
stalls and she crashes. Mallory survives the crash only to find herself injured with limited
supplies and no hope of returning home. Just when all seems lost, Michael Bradley, a
mysterious mountain man, comes to her rescue.
Mallory soon discovers that she has to spend the entire winter in a small, isolated cabin with a
stranger. The remoteness, the caregiving, the constant threat of dangerβit all creates a near-
instant intimacy between the characters that is both real and understandable. I love writing
tension between characters, so having them stuck together for months was a writing
playground for me. It led to some great interactions early in the story, keeping the pace
flowing in a fun and realistic way.
Here is one of my favorite interactions between my hero and heroine fromΒ Under the Northern Lights:βHow was work?β I jokingly asked.A brief laugh escaped him. βGood and bad.ββOh, how so?β I asked, amused that he was playing along.Scratching his beard of frost, he said, βGood because I shot a moose. Bad because I had
to cut it up and drag the pieces back to camp. Then I had to prep it, store it β¦ Iβm a mess. I
think itβs a bath night. But on the bright side, weβre having moose steaks for dinner.βThat was when I noticed that his clothes and hands were stained red. Having hunted
with my father before, I knew what a mess dissecting a meal was. It was easy to sympathize
with wanting to feel clean after an ordeal like that. And man, a bath sounded amazing. Iβd
combed out my hair as best I could with my fingers, but it was greasy and dirty. Me too. But I
had to wonder β¦ how did one bathe in a cabin with no running water? And where exactly could
he bathe here? Iβd only ever taken a bath in a bathtub, and I didnβt see one of those in the
cabin. βAnd how does that work exactly?β I asked.He pointed at the large basin heβd used as a sink this morning. βI heat up water, one pot
at a time, until thatβs full. It takes a while, but itβs just about the best thing on earth. Totally
worth it.β His grin suddenly turned massive, and my breath caught in my throat; he had such
an amazing smile. His face still bright, he indicated my leg. βOnce your stitches are healed
enough to be removed, I can make one for you.βHis smile infectious, I grinned too. βIβd love that. I feel disgusting.βHe laughed at my comment. βIβve seen worse,β he said, then he winked at me.
Immediately afterward, his smile fell, like heβd just realized what heβd done and felt weird about
it. Before I could react, he grabbed a pot and headed to the corner of the room, where a few
five-gallon buckets with lids were waiting. Water. Removing the lid from one of the buckets, he
filled the pot, then returned to the stove and set the pot on the top.While the water was warming, he dragged the large metal basin closer to the stove. My
face felt flushed, and I wasnβt sure if it was because of his mild flirting earlier β¦ or because Iβd
suddenly realized that he was going to take a bath right in front of me. βAre you going to do
that β¦ here?βA bit of his humor returned as he looked over at me. βYou want me to freeze to death
outside? Itβs easier and safer to do it in here. And so long as I donβt dump the basin, it wonβt
make too much of a mess.βYep. He was going to strip and bathe in the middle of the room β¦ with me watching him.
βDo you have a curtain or anything?βClearly trying to keep a straight face, he shook his head. βNo. Iβll just have to trust you
not to look.βRight. I could do that. I was a responsible, thoughtful, considerate, mature adult. And
besides, if the tables were turned, heβd probably do the same for me. Because if he didnβt, Iβd
toss him out into the snow.
From the number one New York Times bestselling author of the Thoughtless series comes a
sweet, thoughtful romance set high in the Alaskan wilderness.
Mallory Reynolds is a driven woman fueled by her passion for photographing wild animals in
remote locations. Every year she makes a trek deep into Alaska, but this time the unthinkable
happens: she crash-lands after her plane stalls out in a storm. Injured, vulnerable, and
threatened by the very creatures she loves, Mallory fears the worstβuntil sheβs rescued by
Michael Bradley, a mysterious mountain man living in self-imposed exile.
Mallory is grateful for Michaelβs help but desperate to return home to let her family know sheβs
alive. Unfortunately, neither of them can leave Michaelβs secluded cabin until spring. Malloryβs
stuck with a stranger for months.
As Mallory recovers, a deep bond begins to form between the pair. Mallory is convinced that
fate brought them together, but Michael is buried in his past, unable to move forward.
Undaunted, Mallory tends to Michaelβs heart as tenderly as he cared for her woundsβbut will
her love be enough to heal him?
Romance Contemporary [Montlake Romance,
On Sale: April 30, 2019, Paperback / e-Book, ISBN: 9781542093545 / ]
S. C. Stephens is a #1 bestselling author who enjoys creating stories that are packed with
emotion and heavy on romance. In addition to writing, she likes spending lazy afternoons in
the sun reading, listening to music, watching movies, and spending time with her friends and
family. She and her two children reside in the Pacific Northwest.
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