Flirting with Forever

Hi Reader! I’m Kaye Kennedy, author of Flirting with Forever. I hope you enjoyed reading Hunter & Lauren's story as much as I enjoyed writing it. I sat down for an interview with the happy couple to give you an inside look at their relationship. I know I’m happy for them, and I’m sure you are, too. So without further ado, let's see what they had to say, shall we?

It's December and we're in Hunter and Lauren's living room at their new house in New Hyde Park on Long Island. They're each holding one of their sleeping twins, who are only a month old.

Kaye:

Thanks to the four of you for sitting down to chat with me today, although two of you didn't have much choice in the matter. Congratulations, by the way! Why don't we start by you introducing the readers to your new additions.

Hunter:

Absolutely. This is Christian he's younger by a few minutes because Lauren had a C-section, which her cervix is very grateful for.

Lauren:

Oh, God. Don't tell them that.

Hunter:

They read the book, baby.

Lauren:

Ignore my husband. This is Nolan. He's named after my dad.

Kaye:

That's so sweet. Are they identical or fraternal?

Hunter:

Identical. That's going to be fun when they're older.

Laughs sarcastically.

Kaye:

I'll bet. How has parenthood been treating you? Lots of sleepless nights I assume.

Lauren:

Sleep? What's sleep?

Hunter:

I'd imaging having a kid is never easy, but having to do it with two is the biggest challenge I've ever had in my life, which is saying a lot.

Kaye:

I can't even imagine. What was the moment like when you found out you were having twins?

Lauren:

Not gonna lie, it was terrifying.

Hunter:

Lauren told me she wanted four kids, so we decided to get halfway there in one go.

Kaye:

Now that you're parents, is four still the plan?

They look at each other with hesitance.

Lauren:

Maybe ask again when these boys are a little older. I think we're both too sleep deprived to think straight.

Kaye:

That's perfectly fair. Have you had any help with them?

Hunter:

Absolutely. We wouldn't be able to do this without our friends and family.

Lauren:

Now that we're on Long Island, we live really close to Mack and Tori's house in Bayside. They don't want kids of their own so they love their aunt and uncle status and they've been a big help. Zoe's in her second year of residency at Queens Memorial Hospital, so she doesn't have a lot of time, but she visits when she can. Ryan's been great, though. He comes over on pretty much all of his days off.

Hunter:

Declan and Gwen swing by, too. Jesse and Lana aren't far away either, so they help out some. Their son is real sweet with the twins.

Kaye:

Our readers haven't heard about Jesse and Lana's son. Can you give them an update?

Lauren:

Sure. Lana was pregnant at Mack and Tori's wedding, but they hadn't told anyone yet. He was born a few weeks after Hunter and I got engaged, so he's twenty-one months old now. His name's Maverick Murphy Hogan as a subtle nod to Lana's dad, Patrick Murphy.

Kaye:

It must be fun to have some friends with kids all around the same age.

Hunter:

It is. Maddie, Dylan and Autumn's daughter, is the oldest and she's three-and-a-half now, so it's cool that they'll all basically grow up together.

Kaye:

Love it. So, let's rewind a minute. You're living on Long Island. How'd that come about and how do you like it compared to Brooklyn?

Lauren:

I really like it here. It reminds me more of where I grew up, but we're just over the Queens border, so we're only about thirty-minutes from our old apartment in Williamsburg.

Hunter:

It's been an adjustment. I lived in Brooklyn for fourteen years, but I grew up in a smaller town than this, so it's a good middle ground. We want to raise our kids outside of the city. The schools here are great and we've got way more space than we could ever afford in Brooklyn, plus a yard for them to play in.

Lauren:

There's another reason, too.

She looks questioningly at Hunter.

Hunter:

Right. While we haven't had any issues with the Vosstaniye Bratva, we didn't want to take any chances by staying in Brooklyn. Not with these two around.

Kaye:

Well, I'm glad to hear that chapter is behind you. Why don't you tell us about your wedding?

Lauren:

It was the best. We had so much fun and Gwen did an amazing job with the planning. I've always fantasized about a white wedding in winter, and we actually got some snow! Not a lot, but enough to take some beautiful photos. It was at The Boathouse in Prospect Park.

Hunter:

We got married on New Years Day earlier this year. I didn't want to wait very long.

Lauren:

Laughs. Please! You complained about having to wait for the eight months after we'd gotten engaged.

Hunter:

Why do you think I got you pregnant so fast?

He winks at her.

Lauren:

You started trying before we were even married. We were only married for two months when our sons were conceived.

Kaye:

Seems you didn't waste any time. And your wedding sounds like it was beautiful. What a great way to bring in the new year. I can imagine a snowy day at The Boathouse was gorgeous, too. Changing gears, are you still in school Lauren?

Lauren:

I am. Since I had the boys in November, I worked out a deal with my professors so I was able to get my coursework done early and I took my finals a few days before my scheduled C-section. I've done four semesters, plus summer and winter classes, and I'm taking next semester off to focus on being a mom, but I'm more than halfway to getting my degree.

Hunter:

I'm so proud of her. Lauren's worked really hard and she makes the Dean's List every time. Plus, she's still working as an advocate.

Kaye:

I'm thrilled to hear that. How about you, Hunter? Are things going well at your job?

Hunter:

Yeah they are. I retired early from the NYPD a year and a half ago, and I accepted a position as a partner at a security and investigative firm. The guy I replaced was looking to get out of the business, so I slid into his role alongside my two partners. It was definitely an adjustment at first. Giving up my badge was hard, but it was the right decision. I'm technically a private investigator now, so I still do detective work, but I get to choose what I want to work on and make my own hours. We take security jobs as well for some big time clients. The best part is that I'm able to take a few months off to be home with my family right now.

Lauren:

I'm a big fan. I love having him around more, and he's far less stressed out than he was when he was on the SITF.

Hunter:

Leans over and kisses his wife's head.

I'm still in touch with the guys from the task force. They'll always be like family, but this is a much better arrangement for where I am in my life at this point.

Kaye:

That's a great segway to ask you about Tai since his book is next. Anything you can divulge?

Lauren:

Bellamy freaking Shaw! That's all I'm gonna say.

Hunter:

Yes, we all know how much you love her, baby.

Lauren:

Oh, please. Like you weren't a little star struck the first time we all hung out.

Hunter:

I'm surprised you noticed anyone else was there.

Lauren:

Ha. Ha. Don't be a dick.

Hunter:

Anyway, it's a crazy story. I'm not going to ruin it.

Christian starts crying in Hunter's arms, which then wakes up Nolan and he starts crying, too.

Kaye:

All right, I hear you. Interview over. Thank you guys for doing this. Best of luck to you.

Tai & Bellamy's story, Flirting with Fame will be available on Amazon on November 23, 2021. Happy reading!

Thank you for reading Flirting with Forever! If you loved Hunter & Lauren's story, please take a minute to write a review on Amazon, GoodReads, or BookBub. I rely on your reviews to help me continue to bring you stories that you'll love and other readers rely on them to discover new books, so your opinion truly makes a difference! Reviews increase the visibility of my books, which means the more I have, the less time I need to spend on marketing, and the more time I have to write and bring you the next book!

The Flirting with the Finest Series follows the officers on the Special Investigations Task Force as they fight crime and fall in love.

Flirting with Fame

Detective Tai Hayashi thought it'd be fun being around celebrities when he'd picked up some shifts working security for his friend's company. What he hadn't expected was for pop star, Bellamy Shaw to take an interest in him. When Bellamy starts receiving threats from a crazed fan, Tai gets the Special Investigations Task Force on the case. Fame always comes with a price, and Tai refuses to allow Bellamy to pay for hers with her life.

Flirting with Forever

Bonus Content

The Hamptons House

This mansion, "rumored" to have been owned by the Russian Mafia, was my inspiration for Ivan's home in The Hamptons. It's located near where I grew up and it was "rumored" that they had their own submarine. So if you read the description of the home in my book and thought, no way, then I'm here to tell you, "Yes way."

Learn the self-defense technique that Hunter teaches Lauren at the safe house

The inspiration for Lauren's tattoos: