Where Embers Heal
(2025)(The fifth book in the Rocky Ridge Firehouse: Second Alarm series)
A Story by Thea Shaw
Brett Lawson is the rock of the Rocky Ridge Fire Department. A senior firefighter whose control is legendary, whose vigilance is absolute. To his crew, he’s a hero. But in the quiet of his own home, he’s a man haunted by a rescue gone wrong, fighting a silent war against the PTSD he’s desperate to hide. He’s spent years locking down his emotions because the alternative is a weakness he can't afford.
Then Dr. Riley Cross arrives in town. She’s brilliant, warm, and sees the cracks in his armor that he thought were invisible. After escaping her own burnout, she knows a complicated man is a bad idea. But when she spots the tremor in the stoic firefighter’s hand, she can’t ignore the deep wound—or the scorching heat—he’s hiding under his grumpy exterior.
Forced to work together, their professional respect ignites into a raw, blazing attraction that threatens to consume them both. He’s spent years controlling his demons, but one touch from her threatens to unleash the possessive, primal man he keeps chained up inside.
Just as his walls begin to shatter, a raging wildfire traps them, forcing Brett to face a terrifying echo of his past. But the real danger isn’t the flames outside, it’s the explosive need for the woman who has become his anchor, his obsession, and the only one who can heal his deepest scars.
Where Embers Heal is book five of the Rocky Ridge, Second Alarm series, but can be read as a standalone. A scorching hot, small-town firefighter romance packed with intense hurt/comfort, addictive grumpy/sunshine tension, and enough steam to fog up your screen. If you love a tortured hero who falls hard and a smart, compassionate heroine who isn’t afraid of his fire, you’ll love this emotional story. Happily ever after guaranteed.
Genre: Romance
Then Dr. Riley Cross arrives in town. She’s brilliant, warm, and sees the cracks in his armor that he thought were invisible. After escaping her own burnout, she knows a complicated man is a bad idea. But when she spots the tremor in the stoic firefighter’s hand, she can’t ignore the deep wound—or the scorching heat—he’s hiding under his grumpy exterior.
Forced to work together, their professional respect ignites into a raw, blazing attraction that threatens to consume them both. He’s spent years controlling his demons, but one touch from her threatens to unleash the possessive, primal man he keeps chained up inside.
Just as his walls begin to shatter, a raging wildfire traps them, forcing Brett to face a terrifying echo of his past. But the real danger isn’t the flames outside, it’s the explosive need for the woman who has become his anchor, his obsession, and the only one who can heal his deepest scars.
Where Embers Heal is book five of the Rocky Ridge, Second Alarm series, but can be read as a standalone. A scorching hot, small-town firefighter romance packed with intense hurt/comfort, addictive grumpy/sunshine tension, and enough steam to fog up your screen. If you love a tortured hero who falls hard and a smart, compassionate heroine who isn’t afraid of his fire, you’ll love this emotional story. Happily ever after guaranteed.
Genre: Romance
Used availability for Thea Shaw's Where Embers Heal