Lila
He fought fires for a living. Then he built the tech that stopped them. Now Caleb Mendez is worth billions. And I'm the one woman turning his perfectly controlled world to ash.
I never expected to fall into my billionaire neighbor's lap at a poetry reading. Literally. One breathless moment, and suddenly the whole neighborhood thinks we're together.
He needs a softer image to close a deal. I need a plus-one my family will approve of. Simple. Clean. Time-limited.
Except nothing about Caleb feels fake. Not his hands at my waist during staged photos. Not the way he pulls me close when tornado sirens scream, and the sky turns green. Not the kiss I can't stop thinking about.
Three weeks. One contract. Two people pretending so hard we forgot what was real.
I want something permanent. He's never let anyone close enough to try.
Only one of us is still pretending.
Q. What inspired you to write this book? Was there a particular moment or event that sparked the idea?
Ans. This is my first book. I wanted to write a romance that had some of my lived experiences in the story and characters. All of the characters are from my imagination, but they may contain some characteristics from people I have met or know.
Q. What research did you undertake to write this book? Were there any surprising or unexpected findings that you discovered during your research?
Ans. I didn't conduct research, but I did draw on my life experiences in writing this book. The scene at the poetry reading was partially inspired by my love of attending open mics and poetry readings. I love written and oral storytelling and found this genre in the early 2000's.
Q. What was the biggest challenge you faced while writing this book? How did you overcome it?
Ans. My biggest challenge was getting started. Once I decided what type of story I wanted to write, I chose the characters and setting. The ideas began to flow as I added some lived experiences into the characters. I think by adding scenes or characters that I know or understand, I'm able to craft the story so the reader can be there with me.
Q. How did you go about developing the characters in the book? Were any of them based on real people or events?
Ans. I used a trope list to start with. Once I had the basics, the characters seemed to write themselves. Some of the female lead's traits were my own, but she was a combination of several women I have known.
Q. Can you share any interesting anecdotes or stories related to the writing of this book?
Ans. As I was writing about the poetry reading scene, I pictured several different events that I had attended. I am a little awkward, and I thought that would help propel my female lead's relationship development. When I wrote about the tornado scene, I included some of my experiences of sheltering from tornadoes and my feelings during those scary situations. I live in Tornado Alley in Texas. I have many stories from that.
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