Beach-bum gorgeous, Luke Hancock, has been hired by her magazine to be her pilot and outdoor guide. He too has had his share of tragedy and grief. Both get more than they bargained for, when first impressions and pre-conceived notions prove to be wrong.
The climate isn't the only thing that's hot in Costa Rica, but will a contentious family connection keep them apart or will they overcome their differences and find the love that can save them both?
The novel was inspired by an actual event that my husband and I experienced while on a trip to Costa Rica.
On a hiking trip in Corcovado National Park, a densely forested park that encompasses some 263 square miles at the tip of the Osa Peninsula, a storm hemmed us in. The pilot who had dropped us off at the ranger station couldn't make the return trip to pick us up. After a harrowing hour of thinking an unplanned bivouac in the forest without tents or sleeping bags was our only option, the pilot radioed that he'd make an attempt at a quick landing. We had to be ready to run for the plane.
The pilot landed in a blinding rain, lightning streaking the sky, wind bending the trees first in one direction and then the other. We boarded the plane, careful to avoid the still-revolving props, relieved to make our escape, but fearful of the treacherous flight ahead.
About ten minutes into the flight, the pilot radioed the closest airport, only to learn it was closed as a result of the weather. The next closest airport, across Golfo Dulce, was also closed. We found ourselves airborne with nowhere to land.
This was the first scene I wrote for the novel, and like ripples in a pond, it grew in both directions from there.