FLIRTING WITH FIRE by Kate Meader
please tell us a little bit about your current projects?
Right now, I’m working on the Hot in Chicago series. It centers around the firefighters at Engine 6, the oldest firehouse in Chicago, and more specifically on the Firefightin’ Dempseys who rule the roost. There are five of them—four guys and a gal—and they are the foster children of a legendary firefighter named Sean Dempsey, who has already died in the line of duty before FLIRTING WITH FIRE starts. They live by the lessons Sean taught them: fire is stronger than blood and defend the people you love until the dying embers. So far, I have planned a novella and three full-length books, all standalone. Each book will have a primary couple and there will be a hot m/m secondary romance between sexy firefighter Gage and a gruff former-Marine-turned-gourmet-chef that will arc over the three longer books.
I’m also working on another series about a trio of Texan tycoons who have all been unlucky in love. The first book in that series will release with the Brazen imprint from Entangled this summer.
When was the moment that you knew you had to be a writer?
I can’t really tie it to a particular moment. It’s been something that’s nagged at me for years but I left it fairly late to answer the call. I suppose when I started to take it seriously and look for an agent – that’s the closest I can get to a moment like that.
Describe the “perfect” hero. What about the “perfect” hero for you?
The perfect hero is unrelenting focus on his heroine. As soon as he has her in his sights, she should be all he can think of, and every decision should be filtered through his attraction/obsession/love for her. I’m a big fan of the hero in pursuit.
What are some of your favorite pastimes? Do you have any hobbies or collections?
Pastimes? What pastimes? All my spare time is devoted to writing and reading that I can’t find the time to have a hobby J Besides my husband is a Dr. Who fan and he’s got the collection thing down – I could never compete with his hobby! We have every action figure, toy, and DVD from all eras of the show. Even a Tom Baker (The Fourth Doctor) scarf his friend’s grandmother knit from a BBC pattern!
What has been your biggest adventure to date?
I recently got back from an amazing trip around south east Asia – Vietnam, Cambodia, and Thailand. My husband spent a year planning it and it was wild. Hiking in the mountains of Vietnam, kayaking in UNESCO World Heritage site Halong Bay, sunrise at Angkor Wat temple, snorkeling in the clear waters off the coast of Thailand. Every day was amazing!
When it comes to food, are you the adventurous type who will try anything once, or do you prefer to stick to tried and true foods and recipes?
I’ll try anything except bugs. Though my husband is pretty sure there might have been bugs in some of the “delicacies” we tried in Asia. But what I don’t know—or refuse to acknowledge—can’t hurt me!
What is this romance writer’s idea of the “ideal romantic evening”?
Making pizza from scratch with the hubby, grabbing a glass of red, and settling in for a movie or a binge watch of House of Cards.
What is the one modern convenience that you cannot do without?
My hair straightener. It’s performed a huge public service in keeping my untamable hair in a manner that doesn’t scare people.
What project are you working on next?
I’m working on two projects: Book 3 of the Hot in Chicago series and a new book series about Texan tycoons who are unlucky in love.
Any place we can find you in person or on the net this month or next?
I’ll be at the RT Booklovers Convention in Dallas in May, so it you’re in the neighborhood, stop by and say hi!
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FLIRTING WITH FIRE (Pocket Books; On-sale: March 24, 2015; $7.99) is the first installment in Hot in Chicago sizzling new series from Kate Meader. The series features a group of firefighting foster siblings and their blazing hot love interests!
Savvy PR guru Kinsey Taylor has always defined herself by her career, not her gender. That is, until she moved from San Francisco to Chicago to be with her fiancé who thought she wasn’t taking her “job” of supporting him in his high-powered career seriously enough—and promptly dumped her for a more supportive and “feminine” nurse. Now, as the new assistant press secretary to Chicago’s dynamic mayor, she’s determined to keep her eye on the prize: no time to feel inferior because she’s a strong, kick-ass woman, and certainly no time for men.
But that all changes when she meets Luke Almeida, a firefighter as searingly sexy as he is quick-tempered. He’s also the second oldest of the Firefightin’ Dempseys, a family of foster siblings who have committed their lives to the service—if Luke’s antics don’t get him fired first. When Luke goes one step too far and gets into a bar brawl with the Chicago Police Department, Kinsey marches into Luke’s firehouse and lays down the law on orders from the mayor. But at Engine Co. 6, Luke Almeida is the law. And he’s not about to let Kinsey make the rules.
About the author:
Originally from Ireland, Kate cut her romance reader teeth on Maeve Binchy and Jilly Cooper novels, with some Mills & Boon thrown in for variety. Give her tales about brooding mill owners, oversexed equestrians, and men who can rock an apron or a fire hose, and she’s there. Now based in Chicago, she writes sexy contemporary romance with alpha heroes and strong heroines who can match their men quip for quip. Visit her at KateMeader.com
