A single dad x nanny, small town firefighter romance I’m exhausted by all the different versions of myself I’ve spent years trying to be. Dutiful stepdaughter, polished girlfriend. The woman who keeps smiling through dinner parties and business meetings while feeling absolutely nothing underneath. So I sell my share of my late father’s business, and leave Toronto for Maplewood. All I bring with me is a bag of clothes, my mother's sparkly heels, and the blue-tipped hair I only dyed because my stepmother hated it. Maplewood is supposed to be my fresh start. A quiet little town where nobody expects me to be anyone but myself. Then I meet Evan Prince. The grumpy firefighter with tired eyes isn’t exactly what I’d consider charming, but his five-year-old daughter Elle certainly is. Soon I'm falling into their mornings filled with penguin-shaped pancakes, their quiet afternoons beside the lake, and a midnight date downtown that has Maplewood feeling less like a place I escaped to, and more like somewhere I finally belong. Somewhere I want to stay. But when one terrible night leaves our lives tangled in grief, every fear of being unlucky for the people I love comes rushing back. The problem is, a cinder still glows after everything else turns to ash. And firefighters run toward things worth saving. Cinder's tropes include: - single dad x nanny - grumpy / sunshine - small town setting - found family - age gap - fractured fairytale - hockey playing firefighters - hurt / comfort - spicy mirror scene - a firehouse doggo

Benefits of a summer romance: it’s always fun, always brief, and no one gets their heart broken. There aren’t enough labeled glass containers to contain the mess that is Ali Morris’s life. Her mom died two years ago, then her husband left, and she hasn’t worn pants with a zipper in longer than she cares to remember. She’s a professional organizer whose pantry is a disgrace. No one is more surprised than Ali when the first time she takes off her wedding ring and puts on pants with hardware—overalls count, right?—she meets someone. Or rather, her dog claims a man for her in the same way he claimed his favorite of her three children: by peeing on him. Ethan smiles at Ali like her pants are just right—like he likes what he sees. The last thing Ali needs is to make her life messier, but there’s no harm in a little Summer Romance. Is there?

A single dad x nanny, small town firefighter romance I’m exhausted by all the different versions of myself I’ve spent years trying to be. Dutiful stepdaughter, polished girlfriend. The woman who keeps smiling through dinner parties and business meetings while feeling absolutely nothing underneath. So I sell my share of my late father’s business, and leave Toronto for Maplewood. All I bring with me is a bag of clothes, my mother's sparkly heels, and the blue-tipped hair I only dyed because my stepmother hated it. Maplewood is supposed to be my fresh start. A quiet little town where nobody expects me to be anyone but myself. Then I meet Evan Prince. The grumpy firefighter with tired eyes isn’t exactly what I’d consider charming, but his five-year-old daughter Elle certainly is. Soon I'm falling into their mornings filled with penguin-shaped pancakes, their quiet afternoons beside the lake, and a midnight date downtown that has Maplewood feeling less like a place I escaped to, and more like somewhere I finally belong. Somewhere I want to stay. But when one terrible night leaves our lives tangled in grief, every fear of being unlucky for the people I love comes rushing back. The problem is, a cinder still glows after everything else turns to ash. And firefighters run toward things worth saving. Cinder's tropes include: - single dad x nanny - grumpy / sunshine - small town setting - found family - age gap - fractured fairytale - hockey playing firefighters - hurt / comfort - spicy mirror scene - a firehouse doggo

I’ve made a lot of bad decisions in my life. Showing up on Tucker Bradshaw’s doorstep claiming we share a daughter is not one of them. The youngest Bradshaw brother’s reputation is well known in Willow Bend and I plan to use it against him. I thought he’d simply throw money at the problem, hoping to make us go away. But Tucker doesn’t see my daughter and me as a problem. He sees us as a solution. So, instead of getting to take the money and run, I find myself being moved into his mansion. Helping out at his business. Spending time with his family. But I draw the line at sleeping in his bed. That’s never going to happen. Except Tucker isn’t at all the man I expected him to be. He’s funny and kind. Selfless and humble. When he reads my daughter bedtime stories, my resolve forms a crack. When he builds her a princess bed, complete with a tower, that crack widens. And when he pulls me close one night, telling me what a good mother I am, it crumbles completely. And that’s a problem. Because while Tucker’s presence is keeping my daughter and me safe, mine is putting him in danger.

I’ve made a lot of bad decisions in my life. Showing up on Tucker Bradshaw’s doorstep claiming we share a daughter is not one of them. The youngest Bradshaw brother’s reputation is well known in Willow Bend and I plan to use it against him. I thought he’d simply throw money at the problem, hoping to make us go away. But Tucker doesn’t see my daughter and me as a problem. He sees us as a solution. So, instead of getting to take the money and run, I find myself being moved into his mansion. Helping out at his business. Spending time with his family. But I draw the line at sleeping in his bed. That’s never going to happen. Except Tucker isn’t at all the man I expected him to be. He’s funny and kind. Selfless and humble. When he reads my daughter bedtime stories, my resolve forms a crack. When he builds her a princess bed, complete with a tower, that crack widens. And when he pulls me close one night, telling me what a good mother I am, it crumbles completely. And that’s a problem. Because while Tucker’s presence is keeping my daughter and me safe, mine is putting him in danger.

A fake marriage deal was never in my life’s plan. Especially not to Easton Bailey. Chicago Colts flashy shortstop. The kind of man built for a good time and allergic to forever. And the one who just slid a ring on my finger… on paper. It’s supposed to be simple. A mutually beneficial arrangement. I play nanny to his son. He plays husband to my family. No emotions. No complications. And absolutely no falling for each other. Turns out pretending to be a family is the fastest way to break every rule we set. Because he watches me like it was never just a deal. Because he trusts me with the person who matters most. Because the more we pretend, the less fake it feels. And now the man who was never supposed to stay is the one I can't lose.

A fake marriage deal was never in my life’s plan. Especially not to Easton Bailey. Chicago Colts flashy shortstop. The kind of man built for a good time and allergic to forever. And the one who just slid a ring on my finger… on paper. It’s supposed to be simple. A mutually beneficial arrangement. I play nanny to his son. He plays husband to my family. No emotions. No complications. And absolutely no falling for each other. Turns out pretending to be a family is the fastest way to break every rule we set. Because he watches me like it was never just a deal. Because he trusts me with the person who matters most. Because the more we pretend, the less fake it feels. And now the man who was never supposed to stay is the one I can't lose.