Cyrus Damon, the hero of CHRISTMAS AT EDEN MANOR, wasn’t supposed to be a hero. He’s not hero-material at all. He’s in his late fifties, not incredibly handsome, rather eccentric, often grouchy, and very old-fashioned. In almost every way, he’s the opposite of what we’ve come to expect for the hero of a romance. He was originally a character in a previous series of mine, the Heirs of Damon. He was the uncle of the four heroes in that series, and he was intended as a mild antagonist and a blocking figure. He worked quite well in that regard, although he did grow and soften as a character throughout those four books. When that series was finished, I started a spin-off series (Beaufort Brides), and I’d always had in mind I might bring Cyrus back as a minor character in one of those books. I couldn’t fit him in, though. When I started another connected series (Eden Manor), I knew for sure I was going to bring him back, but I still never thought he would work as a hero. Then readers started asking me if he would get a book. I told them “maybe,” but the truth is I…