Caught in the Flames (54 page)

BOOK: Caught in the Flames

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“Don’t discount yourself, Army. You’d be fine without me.” I reach my hand across the table to cover hers and gain her full attention.

“No. I don’t think I would. Don’t put yourself down, Kate. You’ve been my saving grace today. Yesterday, too. Thank you.” We stand and refill our drinks before walking out into the midday heat.

I think it only reasonable that my first thanks goes to the brave men and women who put their lives on the line to keep others safe; who fight fires and sacrifice holidays, family time, and personal needs to make our communities better. It’s not an easy job, and to those of you that do it with humility and grace, I am in awe. I’m also a big fan of the uniforms which may have been a key source of inspiration for this book: #itsgottabethepants

As always, thank you to my family. We made it through another book! No easy feat, I know, and I appreciate all the sacrifices you make so that I can continue to live this dream. I love you Joe, Abby, JD, and G. To my parents and siblings, I love you and the support you give.

Kerry, I could not do this without you. You celebrate my successes, you commiserate my failures, and you tell me (nicely) to suck it up and just stop when I try to wallow in my own fears and self-doubt. When I write something new I can’t wait to share it with you first. Thank you for your honesty. Thank you for your friendship. Thank you for being my best writing buddy!

I’ve been saying it, and I’ll say it again because it’s true. I have the best beta reading team an author could ever wish for…

Rachel, the weekly gifs in addition to your beta notes are the best thing ever. And the trailer you put together: perfection. I love your enthusiasm for this story. The positive energy and love of books you bring to the table is contagious. Your confidence and belief in my writing is empowering and I’m forever grateful our paths crossed.

Vivian, I may have not sold you on the chapter beginnings (hehehe) but I love that you share with me the good and the bad, when something doesn’t work for you and when you’re head over heels. Your feedback is always insightful and pushes me to do better. I love your enthusiasm, hard work, mutual appreciation for good organization, and the fact you’re across the world is perfect for my night owl writing schedule. I can’t wait to visit you in February!

Danielle, I appreciate your hashtags and emoji tweets almost as much as your beta feedback. Okay, maybe not that much, but they still make me smile every week! You’ve been with me since you fell for your man Jon and I’m so thankful for that. Thank you for your feedback, always honest and respectful. Well, except for when you are threatening bodily harm to characters (they usually deserve it), lol. Those messages always make me smile and I know I’ve struck the perfect mix of emotion if I can get you to feel that way. I cannot wait to meet you in just a few short months!

Rikki, my Arizona girl! How crazy has this all been? I’m so thankful for your humor, your intellect, and your honesty each week. For sending inspiration when I feel a little stuck or kicking me off social media when it’s time to write all the words. This story dug up all sorts of crap for you and I, thanks for trusting the process, and not giving up on this story. Above all, thank you for your friendship, encouragement, and genuine care.

Laura, it all began with a giveaway! Thank you so much for sticking with this book and for loving Callie, all of her—not just the pretty parts, but her insecurities and all the things that make her unique and special. I love how passionate you are about the characters of this story and appreciate all your help in sharing it with the indie world.

Amy, thank the Lord you care and know about cars or this book would’ve been toast from the get go! Lol, that along with your lessons on firefighting linguistics played a huge part in how this story came to life. Thank you for being a part of this book’s beta experience, but more than that thank you for your friendship.

Sommer this cover is brilliant and I’m forever in awe of your skills. Thank you for giving me gorgeous designs on all of my books. Eric, thank you for making the trip to Arizona to shoot with Shane. This cover photo is everything I wanted, and more than that, is the very reason I was introduced to the talented and generous authors of Hook & Ladder 69. Thank you for all your support and professionalism!

Shane, words don’t give justice to how much your support, guidance, and creative ideas mean to me. Thank you for your continual belief in me and positive words. I’m so excited to take this book “on the road” with more signings together.

Brenda, thank you for working with me on another book! I appreciate your editing skills but more than that I’m thankful you always push me to be a better writer. Thank you for helping me to make this book my best work yet and for taking on a second round of edits. Thank you for your support, encouragement, and friendship.

Stacey, thank you for being so organized, professional, and skilled at your work. Formatting with you is an absolute breeze, and your genuine care to do an excellent job shines through. I highly recommend you to every author I meet! Thank you for making my books so beautiful. I cannot wait to hold this baby in my hands!

CJ, thank you for being at the ready to proofread, for rolling with the changes in schedule and for supporting my books with your ability to catch the little things that sneak through editing. I’m so appreciative of your time and generosity.

Mom, Tami, and Melissa, thanks for giving this book one last look before it hit kindles. Thank you for the support, I’m so lucky to have family like you.

Tana! Thanks for schooling me in firefighter talk and finding answers to all my questions. You are always so generous with your time. Thank you for driving to meet up, whether it was to provide firefighting clothing and props, impromptu photo shoots, or to answer all my firefighting questions. Love you girl.

Alexis, thank you for your friendship and for being such a generous and supportive individual. I’m so thankful to have met you, and being able to watch you work with Shane only showcased how extremely talented you are at more than just writing! Thank you for taking the photos for this book’s teasers. I can’t wait to work with you on future projects, both in writing, author events, and photography.

Stephanie, the teasers you designed for this book release are absolutely stunning. I’m so proud to be able to present my book to the world with your creative talent behind my words. Thank you for supporting indie authors and for your love of books. 3 Fictional Hearts was one of the first blogs to take a chance on me, offering your honest and constructive feedback, and it’s bloggers like you that make the indie publishing experience such a positive experience.

My neighbor Connie! Our conversation about the importance of supporting the girls the day you snapped covert photos when your A/C blew out sparked my idea for the prologue of this book. Thanks for being a source of inspiration and witty conversation!

There’s no way to thank every single person who helped lift me up, encourage, and support this book and the writing of it, but I extend a special thank you to the following people; Denise my book pimping friend and ST leading lady; Becky #wingman4life, I hope you enjoy the Sweet Cheek references; Melody my fellow Arizona #teameyeball supporter; my internet friends Deana, Julie, and Lisa who keep me in supply of the latest and greatest firemen.

I won’t list every blogger and reader who shared this cover, release, or read and reviewed, but I thank you for taking the time to support this book. The indie book world is what it is because of your love of books and support of our work. Thank you.

To my readers. Thank you for choosing to spend your time and money reading my book. For leaving honest reviews, for sending me a note or message to tell me how much you enjoyed the story. These things support my dream and I’m so thankful for each and every one of you.

Kacey Shea is pen name to a mom of three, wife, and indie author who resides in sunny Arizona. She enjoys reading and writing romance novels as much as her son loves unicorns, which is a lot.

When she’s not writing you will find her playing taxi cab to her children while belting out her favorite tunes, meeting friends or family for food and to share laughs, or sweating it out in the gym. Kacey finds that picking up heavy weights repeatedly is good for her mental health as much as it is for the physical.

She has an unhealthy obsession with firefighters. It could be the pants. It could be the fire. It’s just hot. On occasion she has been known to include them, without their knowledge, in her selfies outside the grocery store.

Kacey one day aspires be a woman hand model in a sexy photo shoot. You know, the woman’s hand raking across the muscular back or six pack stomach of the male fitness model. Yep, that hand.

Until that day comes she will continue writing sexy, flirty romance novels in hopes to bring others joy!

Kacey enjoys interacting with her fans so please feel free to stalk her on Facebook, Instagram or Twitter.