Island Fire

She's secretly burned for her best friend for years.Derek Severson left his career as a firefighter after tragedy shook him to his soul. Running his uncle's beachside bar on a south Texas island gives him the chance to heal, find peace, and avoid entanglements. That is, until Macey, his childhood friend, tracks him down.After two years abroad in a developing country, Macey Locke is ready to dive in to her Peace Corps-inspired foundation. But when she learns Derek is suffering, she can't turn her back. Six weeks on a tropical island to help the guy she's loved for years? No-brainer.Derek can't help but notice she's not the same girl he used to know. She's more. More self-assured, more determined, more irresistible. But is she enough for him to let go of his newfound fragile peace and give in to the passion sparking between them?

Opposites might attract, but what happens when one night brings a lifelong consequence?Firefighter Evan Drake overcame a challenging childhood to build a life he loves. He's got a rewarding career, loads of friends, and more than his share of female attention. He couldn't ask for anything more. Then heiress Selena waltzes into his world.Selena Jarboe grew up lacking for nothing. Money can't buy what she aches for the most though-a stable, secure family. When family discord becomes too much, she trades her privileged existence for peace a thousand miles away. With courage, she pursues a new life-and a night with a sexy stranger.Selena can't regret her time with Evan…and then she learns it has a major consequence. Her future uncertain, she's sure of only one thing-Evan is the last man who could offer her security. Evan has experience fighting for what he wants, but will it be enough to win over Selena forever?

The worst way to prove herself on the job would be to fall for her captain.Firefighting has been Captain Joe Mendoza's passion since the days his firefighter dad let him climb on the trucks. When the chance for a promotion arises, he'll do whatever he can to secure it. Accepting the chief's request to take the newest hire, Chief Peligni's daughter, under his wing is a given. What Joe doesn't anticipate, though, is the way Faith storms into his life and becomes a monumental temptation.Faith Peligni may be the first female in the department, but she's not interested in making waves. She's determined to fit in as just another firefighter. However, being a woman and the chief's daughter, she has to work twice as hard to gain half the respect. She burns for that respect, and she'll take help from no one-least of all the sexy, dark-eyed captain who sends a spark through her with just a look.As their attraction billows to inferno levels, they're both faced with high-stakes decisions. Can they find a way to have a workplace romance without their careers going up in flames?

Nearly dying can make a girl want things she's never wanted before.Environmental engineer/architect Sophie Alexander's life blueprints have always centered on being solo, professionally and personally. Thanks to a less-than-stellar (a.k.a. majorly dysfunctional) family, she trusts no one and prefers to be alone…until she nearly dies alone.Firefighter and eternal bachelor Nate Rottinghaus falls for Sophie the minute he lays eyes on her-while rescuing her from a burning building. Her defenses are down, but are his feelings enough to help her move beyond her past and embrace a future together?

She cost him his career. He's got no plans to give her a second chance.Firefighting is everything for Penn Griffin-his job, his family, and his friends. When a hurricane roars toward San Amaro Island, he's called on a rescue and ends up face-to-face with Nadia, the gorgeous but frustrating woman he went on one interrupted date with months ago. Now, in one fell swoop, she's altered his life irrevocably.Nadia Hamlin eats, sleeps, and breathes her career at her family's beachside hotel. As the storm approaches, she thinks nothing of making a last-minute stop at the hotel on the way out of town-until it's too late. Thanks to her careless decision, Penn's beloved career is over.Nadia wants to make it up to him. Penn wants nothing to do with her or her well-intentioned "help." But the attraction that once sparked between them isn't easily extinguished, and soon Nadia wants more than her career-she wants a second chance with Penn. Can he find his way toward forgiveness and acceptance and a future with Nadia?

He's jaded and hell-bent on leaving town. She's sunshine and light and impossible to resist.Scott Pataki became an EMT to save lives, but ten years later, the stress of his job is killing him. He's counting down to his escape from San Amaro Island to work on a cruise ship. Estranged from his family, there's nothing holding him back. But when his big move is only a month away, the half sister he never wanted to meet, and her bulldog advocate, Mercedes, crash into his life.Mercedes Stone is a sucker for underdogs and lost souls. Though she's drowning in responsibilities as a caretaker, business owner, and volunteer, she can't ignore a homeless teenager's plight. She'll do anything to help her, including lock horns with Scott, the troubled but tempting half brother the girl's determined to bond with. It doesn't take Mercedes long to see he's not the heartless jerk he wants everyone to believe he is.Scott feels his hardened heart softening, but he fights it, knowing he's the dark cloud to Mercedes' bright sunshine. Will he chase the peace he craves or figure out the best way to weather any storm is together?

He's a single dad fighting for custody. Her secret past could jeopardize everything.Firefighter Clay Marlow might have a colorful past, but priorities became black and white fast when he learned he has a daughter. As the custody battle heats up, Clay's focus is providing the stability his little girl has never known. His alluring temporary renter, Andie, could only jeopardize his case.Carrying everything she owns on her Harley, Andie Tyler is only on San Amaro Island to manage her friends' bar for four weeks. A self-proclaimed drifter with more emotional baggage than a jumbo jet, Andie isn't interested in a forever relationship, even when she finds herself increasingly attached to an adorable girl and her tough-to-resist father. She has secrets and a dark past, and Clay and his daughter deserve better.The more she pushes him away, the more intrigued he becomes. Andie's tenderness and strength draw Clay in, and he realizes she's the vibrant color he and his daughter need in their life. Can he convince Andie to become a permanent part of their family before she rides off again?

Her secret connects them in a way he's never imagined.Becoming an ER doctor is the second hardest thing Rachel Culver has ever done. The hardest was losing her beloved twin sister two years ago. As a medical resident living far from her family, Rachel was able to keep her grief at a distance. But now that she's back on San Amaro Island, there's no avoiding her anguish…or her guilty secret.Cale Jackson is a rescuer at heart, both in his job as fire lieutenant and outside of it. But his fiancée's heartbreaking death derailed him, and he's been focused on healing himself ever since. When he runs into her sister, Rachel, in the ER, he suspects she's struggling even more than he is, and he reaches out.Rachel's an expert at keeping people at arm's length, but the secret she's keeping from Cale connects them in a way he's never imagined. If she tells him the truth, will it bring them closer…or scare him off forever?