Behind the Scenes Sometimes, characters in a previous book insist on having their own stories, and if an author doesn’t give it to them, they float in and out of her consciousness, even for years. This is what happened with two of my earlier novels, PROMISES TO KEEP, where the hero’s sisters came alive for me, and SOMEONE TO BELIEVE IN, where the heroine’s older brothers insisted I tell their tales. What better way than to match them up? The result is CLOSE TO YOU, which brings together Secret Service Agent CJ Ludzecky and Aidan O’Neil, Bailey’s sexy, sensitive brother. Since Bailey is now the Second Lady, this was a perfect setup: her personal protective agent falls for her brother. Conflict of interest. Dangerous distractions. Career-ruining scandal. And a macho guy who has to watch the woman he loves put herself at risk every day. Truthfully, I didn’t know how CJ and Aidan were going to work this all out. They didn’t do it the way I thought they would; instead, they took off and told the story their own way. It was an exciting journey, discovering their strengths and foibles, understanding their thinking processes, seeing how they would act in certain situations. It was also fun to involve Bailey and Clay and the other O’Neil brothers from SOMEONE TO BELIEVE IN and especially getting to see what happened to Luke Ludzecky from PROMISES TO KEEP. (I loved that guy to pieces.) One thing that intrigued me from PROMISES was what it’s like to be a Secret Service agent. I’d done research on the Net and interviewed an agent back then, but I needed in-depth information for CJ’s everyday life: where do agents live when they guard someone full time, what are their hours, how do they protect a baby and a seven-year- old? I also researched their private lives: does the Secret Service really recommend that female agents not change their names when they marry because nearly 85% end in divorce? To find this out, I read several books, watched every movie and documentary made on the Secret Service, and researched more facts on the Net. I became a walking encyclopedia on these brave guardians who will step in front of a bullet to protect their charges. Combining a hostage situation, an attempted kidnapping and the resurfacing of gang members with some scintillating love scenes between the hero and heroine makes CLOSE TO YOU a fast-paced, meaty, gritty tale of politics, revenge and, of course, enduring love. I hope you enjoy reading the book as much as I loved writing it. Kathryn Shay
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