SOPHIA
I came home to figure out my future, not to fall for my dad's best friend. But Jake Hawkins isn't the same firefighter who used to give me piggyback rides - he's all grown up, tattooed, and setting my world ablaze with every smoldering glance. At forty-one, he's twice my age and completely off-limits. Our secret meetings at Sunset Cliffs should feel wrong, but his strong arms and heated kisses feel like coming home. When he risks his life to save mine from a raging fire, I realize some flames are worth getting burned by.

JAKE
I've watched Sophia Reynolds grow up, but nothing prepared me for the woman she's become. Twenty years her senior and her father's best friend, I know I should stay away. Yet every time she walks into a room, my firefighter's discipline goes up in smoke. Our stolen moments are pure gasoline on an already dangerous fire. When I almost lose her in the flames, I realize I have to walk away to keep the peace, or fight like hell for the one woman who makes my heart beat again - even if it means losing my best friend in the process.

firefighter, forbidden, age gap, praise, dirty talk, and others!