Summer Fire — Kate Austin

Jack Smith hired Kara Lane to be the manager of The Lake House based only partly on her management skills. He fell for her at first sight but only allows himself to talk to her via email and, eventually, phone calls. His burns -- the physical ones he suffered as a teenager and the emotional ones that followed -- has made him gun-shy where women are concerned. Kara knows he's avoiding her, but she's fallen in love with him and she'll do whatever it takes to convince him they belong together.