I lived in DC for twenty years. My first summer there, I attended my first Romance Writers of America conference. Soon after, I joined the Washington Romance Writers, and attended weekend meetings and annual retreats where I got to learn how to be a romance writer.

Over the next twenty years, my non-writing friends cheered on my writerly aspirations and bought me drinks when I met my writerly goals. My first book, Lush Money, was published when I still lived in D.C. Just this month, I celebrated the three-year anniversary of my debut launch party at One More Page Books.

So for my book to appear today in The Washington Post in Adriana Herrera’s list of the Top 10 Best Romance Books of 2022 is truly meaningful. I hope it’s proof to all of those friends that their cheerleading and support was worth it.

Adriana, the amazing Latinx romance author of The Caribbean Heiress in Paris (one of my favorite books of the year), says about After Hours on Milagro Street:

Lust, animosity and forced proximity make for a potent cocktail in this emotional enemies-to-lovers romance… Lopez excels at penning strong women who know exactly what they want, but what makes this romance shine is the way she reveals the vulnerabilities and pain hiding behind Alex’s tough exterior….

Other books included in this top 10 list include ones from authors Tracey Livesay, Natalie Caña, Kennedy Ryan, Sarah MacLean, Christina Lauren and more!