Something Wilder

The bestselling author duo of Christina Hobbs and Lauren Billings, writing as Lauren (The Unhoneymooners), returns with an unexpectedly dramatic contemporary romance. Lily Wilder was just 19 when she fell for Leo Grady, a college boy working on her father’s Wyoming ranch for the summer. Then came the terrible week when Leo abandoned her and her notorious treasure hunter father abruptly sold the ranch that Lily loved. Ten years later, Lily has rebuilt her life, using her late father’s notes and reputation to create a tourist expedition company leading city slickers on fake treasure hunts through the Utah wilderness. The business is barely breaking even when Leo turns up with three friends for a guys’ weekend, shocking them both. Despite long-held feeling of betrayal on both sides, their old chemistry is strong as ever, and when the treasure hunt they’re on turns out to be all too real, it will take Leo’s puzzle solving skills and Lily’s knowledge of the terrain to find the booty—but they’re not the only ones searching. The tone veers from lighthearted rom-com to high octane romantic suspense as the danger ramps up and Lauren packs the plot with quirky characters, vivid scenery, and sizzling sexual tension. This tense, poignant romance is another sure hit for Lauren. Agent: Holly Root, Root Agency. (May)