Dear Reader,

I really wanted to write a different specialty for this book and it occurred to me that I’d never written a firefighter. Initially, my hero was the firefighter and my heroine was the paramedic. But I knew that I wanted my heroine to have grown up as a tomboy due to having three older brothers—like me! And that was when I realized I needed to swap them over. Once I did that, the plot unfolded easily.

My mother used to despair that I wouldn’t play with dolls or wear pretty dresses. I remember her tutting a lot! I was much more interested in building dens with my brothers, carving our own bows and arrows, and spending hours fishing in the river.

So, in this story, I had to add a despairing mother and a father that couldn’t let go of his little girl. And then I developed my hero, Tom, who could see through Cara’s armor and understand the hidden woman beneath the mask. Cara and Tom’s connection was a pleasure to write and I hope you enjoy their story as much as I enjoyed creating it.

Louisa xxx