The Fake Fiancee in the Firehouse: A Sweet and Clean, Small Town, Fake Dating Romance

by Katy Lee Hart

296 pages, Kindle Edition

Published April 28, 2026

About the author

I have often likened my life to “Mr. Toad’s Wild Ride,” which used to be a tilt-a-whirl type ride at Disneyworld. I started out with a pretty normal childhood, the oldest of three children, growing up in a middle-class suburb of Louisville, Kentucky. It wasn’t until I got married that things started to get crazy.

I had married a young man who had so many ideas and was so full of energy and enthusiasm that he felt he could do anything. Turns out – he could. He was indomitable, unstoppable. Race car driver, private pilot, officer in the Marines, “serial entrepreneur” starting over 12 successful businesses, devoted father, true and faithful husband—he is the perfect model for a romance hero. With that kind of husband, how could I NOT write romance novels?

Living with Passion
My husband and I built an exuberant life full of interesting pursuits and joy – a life that we loved and still do. We built this life on passion – throwing our whole selves into whatever we did. No half measures for us. Our passion is built on being loving, generous, forgiving, optimistic, patient, and honest.

Living with Purpose
My purpose in life is simply this – to live in such a way that I will hear these words from the One who gives life, “Well done, good and faithful servant!” That’s why you won’t find anything in my books except a sweet and clean love story. Call me old-fashioned if you want to—I don’t care. You won’t find any filthy language or explicit sex in my romance novels.

But you will find a good story with characters that you will grow to love. In fact, you will hate to finish reading one of my books. When you do, you’ll miss the characters in it.

Reviews

[Lindsey Adams]

⭐️⭐️⭐️️⭐️/ ️🌶️

Sweet, clean, and a touch of mystery. Ways I would describe The Fake Fiance in the Firehouse by Katy Lee Hart. A FMC wanting a fresh start, an MMC whose family won’t stop meddling, and a stalker that won’t stop. A delightful read with the perfect touch of drama.

After being cheated on, Natalie moves to the same town as her brother. He helps her find a job at the local firehouse, which is where she meets Captain Cole. Besides working together, the other thing they have in common is people keep trying to play matchmaker for them. Being tired of this they agree to become fake fiance’s to get people off their backs. Yet things don’t stay so simple.

Someone keeps leaving Natalie hateful notes and texts, which brings out Cole’s protective side.
As these two try to keep their families at bay about their love life and try to find out who is threatening Natalie, real feelings begin to develop. Neither of them want to admit their fake romance is turning into something real. Their relationship is easy to root for and you quickly see they are perfect for each other.

Katy wrote a wonderful story that was easy to fall into and want to see their happily ever after. From the beginning her characters pull at your heartstrings. The story flowed nicely and nothing ever feels forced or pushed. I really did enjoy reading this and with this being the first book I read by Katy, I do think she will become a repeat author for me.

As always, review any author notes before reading.

What to Expect:
🔥Fake Fiance
💗Divorcee
🔥Meddling Family
💗Firehouse Romance
🔥Protective MMC
💗Paramedic FMC
🔥Small Town Romance
💗Closed Door Romance

[Amanda]

This book is about two MCs who are recovering from cheating exes. She was just engaged to hers and he was married to his. They both feel like they need time and everyone else around them feels like they just need to find the right one. The pressure to get matched up wears on Cole and he suggests they pretend to be fake dating. They both have lots of rules, some seem quite evident they cannot be unbroken. Natalie has a lot of trouble following her with what appears to be mean notes, threats and a stalker. They try to race to figure out who it is before things escalate with the help of Cole's brother, Shelby. They at the base of everything are good friends who understand each other because of their past hurts. Will they stay friends, be more or be nothing after the fake relationship blows up in their faces?

"That was the trouble with pretending for so long. Your body forgot the difference.".

I received a free copy of this book via Booksprout and am voluntarily leaving a review.

[Sheri Jelinek]

I received an Advance Reader Copy of this book for free, and this is my honest review.

Another great book from Katy Lee Hart. I enjoyed the clean romance story of Cole and Natalie. They come up with a plan to fake date so that Cole’s family will stop trying to set him up with women because he is now divorced and his ex has found someone new. And Natalie has just moved to Ridgeview and joined the fire department after her ex cheated on her with her roommate. She just wants to start a new life, in a new town, in her new home. But a stalker has other plans and believes that her relationship with Cole is real. While trying to protect her, they develop feelings for one another, but neither will tell the other until tragedy strikes and they realize that they love each other and the relationship is real. They both find their way to one another as fear brings them together.

[Jean Katchmar]

Natalie walks away from a life where her fiancee cheated on her with her roommate. She moves to Riverview where Drew, her brother, is a firefighter. She applies for a job as a parmedic at his firehouse. Cole Walker, the divorced Captain at Station 7 Firehouse, hires her and she seems to be accepted. Then one day Cole and Natalie realize that their lives are lonely and are tired of everyone playing matchmaker. They decide to make things happen by Natalie becoming Cole's fake fiancee. Then a suspicious car and hateful notes and texts to both of them arrive and Cole tries to protect Natalie. Cole's brother Shelby, the town sherriff, is now trying to track down and arrest the person(s) responsible. You are pulled into their story as you hope that things are resolved. Then maybe Cole and Natale can admit that their feelings are real after all.

[Tasha]

The Fake Fiancée in the Firehouse by Katy Lee Hart is a heartfelt romance about a fake relationship between the FMC Natalie and MMC Cole that becomes anything but pretend as the story progresses. I really enjoyed how Katy Lee Hart managed to mix small-town charm with a high stakes fire-fighter drama that felt cozy, deeply satisfying, and passionate. While the start of the fake relationship between Natalie and Cole starts out for practical reasons, it quickly becomes complicated as a serious of events pushes the two closer together. If you love a novella with a balanced romance that develops at a satisfying pace mixed with swoon-worthy moments, then this story is perfect for you!

I received a free copy of this book via BookSprout and am voluntarily leaving a review.

[Sheri Bolinger]

Wow! This book was just amazing! Natalie and Cole were that fake dating couple that you just cheered on and hoped they would figure things out sooner than later. Natalie was the sweetest, strongest, most empathetic character. I immediately gravitated to her. Then there is Cole, fire captain, serious, likes rules and hates pity! As these two bond over past hurts, they become closer and closer, neither wanting their relationship to be fake. I was just praying they would be brave and jump in! With a stalker on the loose and closing in, there was an element of suspense added in that i just loved! This book was a great read for my afternoon!

[Barbara Raue]

Captain Cole was in charge of Station 7 firehouse. He didn’t smile or joke around. In walks Natalie Bennett to see her brother, Drew, who works at Station 7. There was an opening for a paramedic and Natalie had the qualifications. Cole hired her – she was the first woman Cole had noticed since his divorce. Cole had family pressure to find a wife. Natalie had her own problems she tried to leave behind. They decided to pretend to be fiancés. Feelings grew, but they tried to keep them buried. Then Natalie’s past came after her.

I received a free copy of this book via Booksprout and am voluntarily leaving a review.

[Johanna]

'Somewhere between protecting her, wanting her, and nearly losing her, I stopped pretending.
And if I can’t keep her safe from the danger following her into Ridgeview, I won’t just lose a fake fiancée. I’ll lose the woman I really love.'

The characters were very appealing and likeable and complicated and absolutely perfect together. Plot was intriguing and exciting and well paced. World building was solidly drawn and impressive. Enjoyed immensely and highly recommend.

Grab a copy, kick back and enjoy!.

I received a free copy of this book via Booksprout and am voluntarily leaving a review.

[Shannon Binegar-Foster]

She is starting over after a recent broken engagement. He is her knew boss, who is healing from a divorce. It starts out as a way to get the town off of his back about getting back into dating. Just when they think about ending the ruse the mysterious stalker kicks things up immensely by setting her house on fire. This changes their relationship dramatically. I a loved everything about this book. Great story. I voluntarily reviewed an Advanced Reader Copy of this book provided by booksprout.
My favorite quote from this book is
“Your mother is a genius,” Natalie said. “She thinks marriage is a Swiss Army knife,” I said. “It fixes everything.” “She’s not entirely wrong.”

[AMANDA HARSH]

This was a sweet small town romance. It features a paramedic looking for a fresh start in a new town after catching her fiance cheating. The MMC is a fire captain who has been burned in love. They begin a fake relationship to stop other people matchmaking that soon turns to more. But the FMC is in danger from a potential stalker.

*Paramedic FMC
*Firefighter MMC
*Small town
*Clean romance
*Suspense

This book was somewhat predictable in the way things played out, but I found it an easy enjoyable read.

I received a free copy of this book via Booksprout and am voluntarily leaving a review.

[Barbara Harrison]

Have a tissue handy on the day you allow for this clean, sweet, wholesome, Christian, contemporary, small-town, second-chance romance set mostly at Fire Station 7 in Ridgeview, involving rescues, a second home with a siren, curiosity, a stalker, walls, self-protection, a fundraiser, shingles, a calendar,
pity, harlots, rules, training exercise, public reps, gentle chuckles, becoming human, reputation, a three-alarm fire, a bad idea, probably, optics, a fake beginning, a real middle, unraveling, truth, safety inspection, and no report.

I received a free copy of this book via Booksprout and am voluntarily leaving a review.

[MommyO]

This had a lot of things I love in a book-dual point of view along with a bit of suspense. The character of Natalie presents a strong female lead who’s smart, talented, and has the capacity to stand on her own in the midst of challenges. Cole is the strong silent type who leads by example as the captain of the firehouse. Their dynamics kept me reading from the first page to the last while thoroughly enjoying their HEA.

I received a free copy of this book via Booksprout and am voluntarily leaving a review.

[Jacqueline Johnston Cotton]

What a great story! I loved this book! It's a fake dating turned real with genuine and realistic characters, humor, plenty of emotion and some mystery/suspense. It had it all and I had to keep turning pages to see what would happen next. Watching Cole and Natalie's relationship move into something more was heartwarming. I loved how protective he was and she was smart and fun. Wonderfully entertaining, enjoyable and well written.

[Desiree Luhnow]

I love Cole and Natalie’s story. Chapter 1 caught my interest right off the bat and set the pace for the rest of the book. This is well-written and it pulled me in quickly. Both Cole and Natalie are likeable characters along with the found family at the firehouse. It’s a sweet read with a definite happily-ever-after.

[Teresa]

I loved this. This had it all. The nosy small town, the vindictive ex and her best friend, and the whole firehouse family. Loved the suspense of it too. So good. Great characters.

I received a free copy of this book via Booksprout and am voluntarily leaving a review.

[Jocelynne Diaz]

This book hooked me from the first chapter, with memorable secondary characters and all the romcom elements I was hoping for—small-town charm, nosy neighbors, plenty of drama, and a warm found-family vibe.

I received a free copy of this book via Booksprout and am voluntarily leaving a review.

[LizJ.]

The Fake Fiancée in the Firehouse by Katy Lee Hart is a delightfully charming clean romance that I absolutely adored. Ms. Lee is very talented in this genre, does it to perfection.

I received a free copy of this book via Booksprout and am voluntarily leaving a review.

[Kristina Graham]

It was so cute and adorable. Everything u want in a book. Must add to tbr!!!! ❤️ You won't be disappointed!!!.

I received a free copy of this book via Booksprout and am voluntarily leaving a review.

[Janice Particka]

She has just left a cheating boyfriend and he is recently divorced. He hires her as a the new paramedic. They decide to do a fake dating trial. This leads to drama and mystery. I enjoyed the story.

[Lucia Valenzuela]

Great story about starting over after betrayal. Loved Natalie and Cole’s story. Their journey is filled with threats and danger that bring their true feelings to light. Really enjoyed reading this.

I received this book from the author and am voluntarily leaving a review.

[Steve Canada]

I really enjoyed Natalie and Cole as a couple, and Katy did a great job iof bringing them together in this story.
I highly recommend this one, grab it now!

[Vickie Milton]

Cole and Natalie’s story is charming and quirky with suspense thrown in. I loved it! I received an advance reader copy for free, and I am leaving this honest review voluntarily.

[LaRae]

I really enjoyed this book! The drama, suspense and romance were all in perfect quantities! The story is fast paced and wonderful chemistry! Loved it!!