Taming
Fire
Braving
the Heat Book 2
by
Leora Gonzales
Genre:
Contemporary Romance
Steam
Yoga
instructor Louise Pine is the ultimate caretaker. Everyone around her
seems to have an emergency, but Lou hasn’t met a fire she couldn’t
put out—until she’s faced with the hunky, bossy firefighter who
crashes into her own backyard—and her life. No one tells Lou what
to do, yet somehow the guy’s take-charge style makes her tingle . .
.
Simmer
Phoenix
“Nix” Jones is used to calling the shots, whether he’s dealing
with his younger siblings or taking on a dangerous blaze. Luckily,
the fire at Lou’s is a false alarm. But the heat the fit and feisty
woman ignites is far from dying out . . .
Afterglow
As
the sparks turn into 5-alarm passion, can two strong-willed people
end up engulfed by love—or will they crash and burn?
**can
easily be read as a standalone!**
Chapter
1
“Lou, I think you may
have bitten off more than you can chew with this one…” Louise said to herself
as she stared into the flames starting to catch fire in her small fire pit.
Louise reached for the
bag of chocolates on the chair next to her. While unwrapping a morsel, she took
in the backyard that had become her oasis these last two weeks. Now that Junior
was living with her, she couldn’t catch up on her shows in the evening. She was
afraid of him walking in and getting an eyeful of zombies. The poor kid had
enough on his plate without adding flesh-eating walkers to his bedtime worries.
That meant that she had been sneaking into the backyard after his bedtime and
lighting a small fire as she sipped, or gulped if she had to be honest, a
bottle of wine.
Swirling her sweet red
wine in her glass, Louise leaned back in her patio chair. The familiar squeak
of the old metal base was comforting as she tried to shake off the day’s
stresses.
Her yard was the perfect
size for the house. A small wooden deck came off the backdoor with a staircase
that flowed down into the yard where her fire pit was centered. Mismatched
patio chairs, aka garage sale finds, circled the pavers surrounding the pit,
and a tall wooden privacy fence surrounded the entire yard.
It was cozy and perfect
and all hers.
Louise washed the
chocolate down with the rest of her wine, smacking her lips at the
deliciousness of the combination. Using her fireplace poker, she stoked the
fire a bit before propping her feet up at the edge of the stones to absorb the
warmth. Even though it was early October, they had already had a few cold days
in Larryville this year. The fire, combined with the leaves rustling from the
crisp breeze, made her wish for spiced cider and Halloween movies.
It was perfect…until she
heard the sirens. Sirens that sounded like they were getting closer and closer
to her house at the end of her block. Was there a fire next door?
Louise tried to turn a
bit in her chair to peer over the fence, but she couldn’t see anything besides
darkness. The neighborhood had only one streetlight, and most of the other
houses on the block were unlit. Her neighbors usually weren’t outside much
once it cooled down in autumn, which meant quiet nights for Lou by the fire.
Louise worried for a
moment that Harold, her elderly neighbor, may have hurt himself and made a 911
call. Relaxing, she remembered that Harold’s daughter had picked him up for a
trip to an out-of-town family reunion for the weekend.
Sending up a silent
prayer that the sirens wouldn’t wake Junior, Louise refilled her wine glass,
pouring all the way to the rim.
Carefully holding the
glass as steadily as possible, she was just getting ready to sip the excess off
the top when a huge crash knocked down her back gate. The large wooden door
fell haphazardly onto her mismatched potted plants that edged the walkway into
the backyard.
Startled by the noise,
she jerked her hand, sloshing over half of the red wine out of the glass and
down the front of her white robe.
“Mother—” Louise yelped
as she tried to figure out what was going on.
Firefighters streamed
into her yard, stumbling over the now broken and knocked down wooden gate.
Hauling gear that she had no idea the purpose of, they stopped and stared at
her as she sat next to her cozy little fire pit.
“What the he—” One of
the firefighters scratched his chin under the fastening on his helmet strap as
he looked around the backyard.
Louise stood up,
somewhat unsteadily, clutching her wet robe closed. “What’s going on? Why did
you break down my gate? Can you turn off that siren?” she demanded, rapidly
firing her questions at the group of men still standing around staring at her.
When no answers were given, she snapped her fingers to get their attention and
raised her voice. “What’s going on?” Louise held out the hand still holding her
glass and pointed at the gate, “I sure as hell hope you guys plan on fixing
that!” The big guy in front jerked his head toward another fireman. The action
must have been some unspoken command since the other fireman immediately spoke
into his walkie-talkie, “Cut the siren.”
“Ma’am.” The man who had been leading the
charge on her poor defenseless gate stepped forward and pointed at her fire.
“We received a call from this residence saying there was a fire at the back of
the house.”
Louise gestured to the
pit as if she were explaining it to a person hard of hearing. “Of course there
is. I have a fire pit.”
“We can see that—” He
moved closer to her. “Is that blood? Are you injured?”
Not waiting for her to
answer, the man walked right up to her and opened the front of her robe. A robe
that was covering her pajamas. Pajamas that consisted of a thin tight tank top
and some booty shorts that had seen better days.
Whipping open the front
of her robe, he looked for a reason the entire front of her body would be
covered in red. Using large but gentle hands, the mystery man probed her chest,
his hands sweeping over her now hard nipples.
“You’re not hurt.” His
voice husky, the firefighter pulled her robe closed, making sure not to let the
men behind him see what he had uncovered.
“Wait, did you say that
you received a call from this residence?” Louise asked in a hushed whisper now
that her small street was once again quiet.
“Yes, ma’am.” The man
nodded before taking off his helmet and sending her a crooked smile.
Louise felt her mouth go
dry at the sight of the gorgeous man in front of her. Damn. Firefighters were
apparently the stuff that calendars were made of if this guy was anything to go
by. The sight of his dark wavy hair and twinkling eyes was almost enough to
distract her from what he had said.
Almost, but not enough.
“Junior,” Louise said
quickly, before rushing up the deck stairs and through the back door.
Simmering
Heat
Braving
the Heat Book 1
Where
there’s smoke . . .
Spark
Growing
up as the privileged daughter of two doctors, Jasmine Kingford always
thought the housekeeper’s son was hot—and the feeling was mutual.
But back then there were lines they couldn’t cross. Good thing
they’re all grown up now—and in the same wedding party . .
.
Blaze
As
best man for a fellow firefighter, Leo Trask is floored to discover
the maid-of-honor is a blast from his past. One that ignites
fireworks that have been brewing for years. Soon enough, he and
Jasmine are having a very private, all-night-long celebration of
their own—and it’s clear neither wants it to end there . .
.
Wildfire
Jasmine’s
all too happy to finally shed her pampered princess demeanor with
Leo. What she finds is a connection—and a complication—she didn’t
expect. Leo’s the opposite of the nine-to-five guy she planned on.
She wants a nursing career, kids, and a man who’s home by
dinnertime. Leo’s an irresistible bad boy with a dangerous,
unpredictable job. And he’s everything she never knew she wanted,
and more . . .
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Melting
Snow
Braving
the Heat Book .5
Hot
Broke
college student Winter Snow wants Christmas to be over.
Thanks to her annoying name, this time of year always leaves her
feeling Scrooged. The only cheer she wants is cold hard cash from her
mall cleaning job—until a surprise offer from a hunky firefighter
sparks one sizzling midnight temptation . . .
Hotter
William
Holiday needs a replacement elf for his fire station’s fund-raiser.
Convincing Winter she's perfect for the part—and giving her some
one-on-one training—is a task he’s happy to take on. Because her
irrepressible smarts and luscious curves are making this seductive
Saint Nick want to deliver all night long . . .
Burn
Winter
isn't betting on more than an X-rated Xmas fling. But Will plans to
show her they have more in common than their quirky last names—enough
to keep their wildest holiday wishes
coming
true . . .
**Only
99 cents!**
Amazon
* Apple
* Barnes and Noble
* Google
* Kobo
Leora
Gonzales is an original Kansas girl
who misses the Sunflower State every day. She spends time reading,
writing . . . and making sure her two kids don’t kill themselves or
each other. She's addicted to tattoos, good food, good company—and
finding lots of reasons to laugh or smile every day.
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