5 O'clock Shadow

A childhood nightmare. A distinctive scar. And a love story built on a lie that could change everything.

Emma has spent her life running — not just as a black-belt martial artist and marathon runner, but from the haunting memories of the night she was lost as an eight-year-old at the Winston National Exhibition. That night, she escaped a predator only to hide and overhear a chilling confession: a man with a jagged, checkmark scar claiming he had "taken care of" a woman named Celeste, ensuring her body would never be found.

Years later, in the quiet coastal town of Barron’s Cove, Emma thinks she has finally found peace — and perhaps love. Leo is everything she never expected: a soft-spoken carpenter and hockey player who makes her feel safe for the first time in decades. But when she recognizes the thick white scar on his chin, her world shatters. The man she is falling for is the same man from her nightmares — the man she believes is a killer.

As Emma’s past and present collide, she must uncover the truth about that night at the fair. Was Leo a protector who guided a lost child home, or a cold-blooded murderer who has been hiding in plain sight? In a high-stakes game of trust and survival, Emma learns that some secrets are meant to stay buried — and some endings need to be rewritten.

5 O'Clock Shadow is a gripping psychological thriller and romantic suspense about the trauma that shapes us, the secrets we keep, and the thin line between a monster and a hero.