by Casey MoralesPublish: Mar 10, 2026 Series: Heartstrings of HonorContemporary RomanceRomanceLGBTHumor
Book Overview
Before Dane met Patrick and found his happily ever after, he had to survive the Atlanta Fire Academy.
The drills. The instructors. The thirty-two percent washout rate.
And Micah Andre.
Micah is loud, blond, and built like a man who bench-presses problems instead of solving them. He's an ex-Marine with a grin that never, ever stops.
He's also Dane's drill partner, which means eight hours a day of shared ladders, gear checks, and the kind of physical proximity that would be fine — totally fine — if Dane could stop noticing the way Micah's curls fall across his forehead when he's concentrating.
Or the way his laugh carries across a training yard.
Or the way he says "Stoneface" like it's a term of endearment he hasn't admitted to yet.
Dane didn't come to Atlanta to fall for anyone. He had a plan. The plan did not include a locker room incident that neither of them will talk about, a midnight diner conversation that ended with their lips locked, or a Puerto Rican firecracker named Sami who sees everything, says everything, and will absolutely end your bloodline if you make her cry in a bar.
This is the story of Dane before Engine Four, before Patrick, back when he was just a quiet farm boy from Kansas with a jaw made of granite and a heart he hadn't learned how to use yet.
It's a love story. It's a comedy. It's a prequel with a lot of fire and very little chill.
BIOGRAPHY Casey Morales is the author of the bestselling LGBT series, Raised by Wolves, which is rumored to be more personal biography than romance fiction.
Born in the Southern United States, Casey is an avid tennis player, aspiring chef, dog lover, and consumer of gummy bears.