Margot enjoyed her quiet life in California. She has her dad close by, great friends, and a decent job. She's happy to live under the radar after being in theatre for twenty-five years. When she left her long-term boyfriend (who wouldn't commit) and New York City behind, she swore she was done as an actress. Then her boss and good friend Sally has a heart attack, and Sally begs Margot to take over the local theatre production as the director. What choice does she have? Enter Max Russo, a star of a popular show in its fourth season and someone Sally cares about deeply. Margot isn't sure why a movie star would drop everything to come see Sally but she's determined to figure it out.
The chemistry between Margot and Max jumps off the page. Jane Porter knows how to write angst and boy does she deliver with these two. You will be asking yourself will they or won't they for a long time. Background characters usually don't make a book but that isn't true for FLIRTING WITH FIRE. Jen, one of Margot's co-workers jumps in to help with the play. Sally has so much personality in this book and she makes the reader laugh out loud plenty of times. There was also a girls' weekend when Margot needed it the most. Those friends showcased how much love Margot has around her.
FLIRTING WITH FIRE was an incredible journey. We saw two characters grow and fall throughout the story. I felt like the scenery described was almost another character in that it was expertly written. I love the beach towns of California and it was so great to read about the views that they were seeing and the sites they saw. I was sad to let go of these characters and can see picking this up again.
Love isn’t just an act in this captivating and flirty romance by New York Times bestselling author Jane Porter.
Forty-nine-year-old Margot Hughes has lived and breathed theater for the past twenty-five years. After a devastating breakup with her playwright fiancé, she wants nothing to do with the industry. She has sworn off New York, theater, actors—all of it. She returns to her hometown on California’s central coast and takes a job in real estate, where she manages significant investment properties. But Margot’s suddenly thrown back into the theater world when Sally, her friend and boss, who had been restoring and funding Cambria’s historic theater, has a heart attack. Before she knows it, Margot is tapped to take over the troubled summer production of Barefoot in the Park.
But the play is no walk in the park—the leads and director have all quit, and Margot struggles to find new actors…until Max Russo arrives. Forty-five-year-old Max is a former soap opera star turned rugged cowboy on TV’s most popular western series. Max has a huge following and is the perfect hero to step up and save the play, provided Margot stars opposite him. Although adamant she would never return to theater, Margot enjoys the long hours of rehearsal with a professional like Max, who is charming, witty, and passionate. But when the curtains close, can Margot allow herself to fall for Max when he represents everything she left behind?